Category: Community Groups
ST DAVID – WALES AND BEYOND
ST DAVID – WALES AND BEYOND
St David was born in Pembrokeshire around 500 AD to Sant, a prince of Cardigan, and St Non, the daughter of a chieftain. Little is known about his life. He was brought up near Aberaeron and is said to have been baptised by St Elvis of Munster. David was educated at a monastery under St Paulinus who, recognising his great potential to spread the word of Christianity, sent David on pilgrimages around Wales, Cornwall, Britanny, Ireland and Jerusalem.
St David died on March 1st, 589. His remains were buried in St David's Cathedral. Although his shrine was later removed by Vikings, a new shrine was constructed there in the 13th Century.
It is said St David founded 12 monasteries and performed several miracles. Canonised by Pope Callixtus in 1120, St David has been recognised as patron saint of Wales since the 12th century.
St David’s Day is celebrated by Welsh societies around the world. St David’s Day celebrations are still held by the descendants of those who emigrated from Wales to Patagonia in 1865.
While preaching to a crowd in the West Wales village of Llanddewi Brefi, David is said to have performed his most famous miracle. The crowd were finding it difficult to see and hear the sermon, when a white dove landed on David’s shoulder. As it did, the ground on which he stood is said to have risen up to form a mighty hill, making it possible for the gathering crowd to finally see and hear him. The dove became St David’s emblem, often appearing in his portraits and on stained-glass windows depicting him.
• Monasteries founded by St David were known for their extreme austerity. Monks abstained from worldly pleasures and carried out hard farming duties on a basic diet. Some monks were so fed up of St David’s harsh regime they even tried to poison his bread. Fortunately he survived.
• The 17th century diarist Samuel Pepys noted how Welsh St David’s Day celebrations in London would spark wider counter-celebrations among their English neighbours, with life-sized effigies of Welshmen being symbolically lynched.
Welsh tradition says that during a battle against the Anglo-Saxons, David advised the Welsh warriors to wear a leek in their hats or armour so that the warriors might distinguish themselves from their enemies. Ever since then, the Welsh wear leeks every March 1st in memory.
History of the Village Hall
The Village Hall (big white building adjacent to the school & opposite the Community Centre) is one of our local charities. It is built on land owned by the Wenvoe Estate for a peppercorn rent to the residents (then known as Villagers) to build a Village Hall in memory of their loved ones at the end of the First World War.
Back in the early years it was known as the ‘tin shack’ by residents which was eventually replaced and rebuilt by the Committee and residents in 1974 into the building you see today.
The hall is run by a Voluntary Management Committee of residents who adhere to a lease signed and agreed between themselves and the trustees to the land.
One of the conditions in the lease is that the Village Hall must have a minimum of 8 and a maximum of 12 residents from the Parish of Wenvoe known as ‘The Committee’. If the hall fails to adhere to this then the land will be passed back to the Landowners and the Village Hall will be no more.
The Village Hall was built very much with the community in mind. It is the home of the Playgroup who will be celebrating their 50th Birthday next year. The Playgroup was formed in 1969 by the residents of Wenvoe.
We have 3 badminton classes each week, 2 Karate Classes, along with Annette’s Children’s dancing and adults exercise classes Wednesday and Saturday.
There is Ballroom dancing Saturday evenings with Afternoon Tea Dances held every Tuesday from 2 – 4pm throughout the year. Tuesday group hold their meetings in the Annexe the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of each month and of course it’s a great hall to hold big events such as; Coming of age Birthdays, Weddings, Anniversaries and Children’s Parties.
The Vale Village Church are at the hall every Sunday morning from 10:30am and also hold an evening service, the first Sunday of every two months (the next evening is 1st April).
All contacts are at the front of this magazine.
The Wenvoe Wheelers hire the hall for the winter months on a Thursday evening and some exciting news from Thursday June 7th for six weeks, we have a Circus Skills Workshop hiring the hall. Watch out for the advert. It’s for all the family we are told, so lots of fun to be had in the Summer evenings.
As you can see from the above number of classes and events, the Village Hall is well used. If you would like more information about the Village Hall then please email us on wenvoevillagehall@yahoo. co.uk.
February Report
The president welcomed our new member, Maureen. We were all delighted to hear that Mair is making good progress and so is Eira. They are hoping to join us on March 1st. Our speaker was Janet Young who spoke about ‘The Glorious Reign’ ie the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, who was the second daughter of King Henry VIII. We learnt about the various plots and conspiracies during her reign – there were six serious attempts to Walter kill Elizabeth herself. Elizabeth ruled wisely and set about re-establishing the Protestant faith with great determination. The Elizabethan age was one of great adventure and included Sir Raileigh bringing back potatoes from America.
Members were reminded of the coffee morning in Dinas Powys on February 24th and the lunch at the High Tide , Porthcawl on March 22nd. Our banner is ready for its launch at our 25th Anniversary party on March 1st. Members were thanked for their donations towards the party buffet.
WENVOE SPRING CRAFT FAIR
WENVOE SPRING CRAFT FAIR
SUNDAY 20 MAY 2018
WENVOE COMMUNITY CENTRE 10am – 4pm
Wenvoe Craft Workshop™️ presents the second annual Wenvoe Spring Craft on Sunday 20th May. Mark the date on your calendar and come along and see a variety of hand crafted items made by talented local crafts people! There are quite a few stalls that have not so far attended one of our fairs so there will be plenty of different products on offer and, of course, there will be some old favourites as well. We see a return of Tricycle Treats with their fabulous ice cream flavours on sale from a beautiful 1940’s style stop-me-and-buy-one trike. If you think you might be a little thirsty you could always taste some locally made cider and buy a few bottles to enjoy at home. We also have locally made artisan fudge on sale in some sensational flavours as well as jewellery, garden products, woven basket ware (our lovely crafter will be doing some crafts in action on the day), textile, paper, card and wood crafts to name but a few. Why on earth would you want to miss that? Then when you’ve shopped you can drop – in to the refreshment area where you can indulge in a hot or cold drink and a slice of home made cake. There are some lovely prizes in the charity raffle and this time the proceeds will be going to the Wenvoe Wildlife Group to help enable them to continue their sterling work around the Village. A member of the Wenvoe Wildlife Group will be in attendance on the day to give visitors information about their invaluable work. Do come along, it will a good, entertaining day where you can meet both present and past Wenvoe residents and have a chat and a catch-up.
If you have any queries you can contact the Organisers, Glenys and Mike Tucker, by email at pukkatucker@gmail.com or by phone on 079 2210 9721.
January and February Events
Rosemary Scadden was our speaker on January 24ty, with one of her new talks “On the edge”. Rosemary told us of villages along the edge of the Severn Estuary, some we had not heard of. This was followed on the 31st by Annette Bracey giving us some keep fit exercises to do.
We are pleased to welcome many new members. We do hope you will enjoy our Wednesday afternoons and continue to do so.
The Dance Band Days was the theme of Mr Wayne Warlow’s talk on the 7th February. Mr Warlow played us music from many famous band leaders, such as Geraldo, Billy Cotton, Bert Amberose and many more.
Following on the 14th February, Rhiannon Chamberlain, of the Dog’s Trust, Bridgend, gave us an insight into the wonderful work this charity does, not just rehousing, but helping many owners.
On March 7th we have our fish/chicken and chips lunch followed by a game of bingo. Please let us know if you are coming, the cost is £3.50. Please arrive by 1.30pm, if you do not wish to have lunch, bingo will follow at our usual 2.15pm
Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
This book follows a single day in 1923 in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, an upper class London society hostess, preparing for a party. The day interweaves her thoughts, reflections on the past, life choices and actions, with several other characters, including Septimus Smith (a war veteran, suffering from post traumatic stress) and Peter Walsh (an early admirer). The day ends with the suicide of Septimus and Clarissa’s party.
The book published in 1925, is considered a classic, an example of ‘stream of consciousness’ storytelling. It touches on suggestions of a Lesbian relationship, mental illness and lost love.
However, the majority of our group did not enjoy it. People found it repetitious, with overlong sentences, the characters hard to visualise, lacking in story and boring. Several members did not finish the book.
Those in favour rated it as a favourite read and beautifully written. The reader gets to know the characters really well and they are cleverly connected at the end.
Shopping in the Old Days
Our Spring/Summer session of Tuesday Group began with a social evening. Everyone had a pleasant evening catching up on the latest news. A big thank you to everyone who helped by supporting the Bring & Buy and by laying on a very tasty spread. The funds raised will be used to support charities.
Our first speaker was Rosemary Scadden whose talk was entitled “Open All Hours”. Rosemary had contacted The Grocer magazine for information about shopping practices and was provided with contacts who she interviewed about life behind the counter.
Unlike today shopping was a very personal service and a slow process. Most items arrived at the store in bulk so everything had to be weighed and bagged before it could be sold. As there was no Cellotape available, folding paper into bags became quite an art. Someone recalled having to whistle while weighing out fruit as it is difficult to eat whilst whistling,.
Tea came direct from the plantations in large wooden chests. The dregs that were left in the bottom were sold as low grade tea.
In some shops the coffee was roasted in-house filling the store with a distinctive aroma As it was standard practice to leave food uncovered the coffee aroma often mingled with other interesting food smells. A standard feature in many stores was the scarlet bacon slicer.
The Weights and Measures Act was introduced in 1770 when it became illegal to sell short measures. It was said that a grocer never went to heaven as many cunning tricks were learned by grocers to make as much profit as they could from sales.
Funeral teas became a very good source of income for shops. Tradition fare included beef wrapped in dough and then roasted and slab cake.
The Coop only employed men – women were confined to being cashiers. However, this all changed when firms such as Maypole, Liptons and Home and Colonial started employing women to work behind the counter. It was also noted that women were more careful driving the delivery vans.
Delivery vans were an essential part of rural life as they were a lifeline for rural farms as some women were virtually trapped on farms looking after children.
The cooperative movement started in Rochdale in 1840 and sought to provide ethical and moral trading – this ethos continues today.
Shops were the heart of a community and the shopkeepers knew their customers and often chairs would be provided so that shopping became a sociable occasion where women met and exchanged local gossip. Market days were also very important. It was not unusual for a farmer’s wife to offer butter and eggs in exchange for provisions.
In hard times shopkeepers arranged credit for customers so that families could survive although the poorest had to manage with whatever they could get from the Poor Board.
Harrods had a nationwide delivery service which is said to have been used by Tredegar House.
The modern day supermarket that we all know was introduced in America in Memphis in 1916 and was called Piggly Wiggly. This revolutionised shopping and self-service was set to take over from all the myriad of small grocers on our High Street. A lot of shops were forced to close as they were too small to convert into self-service shops.
I am sure many members of the group remembered the shopping experience as it used to be but judging how many new supermarkets continue to open I think they are here to stay.
Quakers Yard and Hendryd Falls
Quakers Yard –
Starting at Quakers Yard, until the 18th Century, known as Rhyd y Grug, ‘the ford of the rustling waters’, where the Bargoed Taff and Taff rivers meet. Its name changed when land was bequeathed to the Quaker movement for use as a burial ground or yard. Until the 2nd half of the 19th century it was a picturesque rural village with 2 inns and little industry. Neighbouring communities developed later around the coal trade, local streets are named after influential Quakers and Treharris is named after William Harris, who came from a rich Quaker family.
Travelling east we walked alongside a turbulent river taking us to the Taff Bargoed Park, built on the site of old mine workings. The river has been dammed to create lakes, providing habitat for a diverse range of insects, birds and small mammals.
The manmade channels carrying water through the park were churning after heavy rain and occasional waves rose along the sides of the structures. Paving on the main footpath indicates the position of coal seams, each over 2000ft deep. Leaving the park and walking up a hill we noted that even the road had fast flowing water and we were lucky it was not icy.
On reaching the outskirts of Trelewis we headed northwest across open land. We spotted a large herd of horses in the distance (redolent of a scene from an old western film).
Continuing we came upon the site of the remains of an old chapel at Cefn Merthyr – hardly visible in undergrowth. There was a murky view to the west, of a green and brown hillside but looking north towards Merthyr a watery sunshine which we called ‘the promised land’ – it was so long since we’d seen sunshine.
Reaching the eastern edge of a woodland, we continued north for a while before turning south through the wood. It was quite atmospheric, the trees being covered in moss and the clouds low. Moving closer to the edge of the track to peer into the wood we were staggered to see a huge tyre dump. Coming out of the wood, Aberfan came into view across the valley and we stopped for lunch.
Continuing in a southerly direction we entered the Pontygwaith Nature reserve and the Taff trail at ‘Trevithick’s Trail’ which follows the old tram road from Penydarren to Abercynon along the river. The tramroad is famous for being the first in history to carry a full load of iron and passengers. On 21st February 1804 the train travelled 9.5 miles in 4hrs 5mins! Sleepers buckled and split with the weight and the engine’s boiler broke on the return journey to Abercynon.
Looking west across the valley, the gap in the hill which is known as ‘the dinosaur’s footprint’ is visible here. Tram road stones for the railway are still clear on the ground in places. Soon we reached the magnificent viaduct which crosses the river Taff. It has double arches which were built separately but now form a single structure enabling 2-way traffic.
Continuing down the trail we came to Quakers Yard station and from there returned to the cars. We agreed that, despite a cold, grey, winter’s day we had enjoyed a good walk with the bonus of being on proper tracks the whole way – much appreciated after heavy rain and the amount of mud around. The walk was 7¾miles and 800ft ascent. Map 166.
Hendryd Falls –
Last June we parked at Coelbren and walked south towards Banwen. Local tradition claims that St Patrick, patron saint of Ireland (and patron saint of Nigeria), was born here. He engineered the development of arts and crafts after he introduced the use of lime and mortar to Ireland. Enabling the initial construction of clay churches in 5thC AD, he taught the Irish to build arches of lime and mortar instead of dry masonry – this developed into organised crafts.
Just beyond Banwen a raised path crosses a boggy field and leads to a wetland area. There are ponds for wildlife and fishing. The grass around was full of flowers – orchids, buttercups, ragged robin and iris to name a few.
We turned east towards woodland and then north towards Dysgwylfa. We passed a wide waterfall on the river and stopped for lunch later. A sign ‘Caution Pedestrian Crossing’ stood alone in a wide expanse of open land. At Sarn Helen (old Roman Road) we turned west and at Tonfildre Farm turned north towards Hendryd falls.
A steep descent to Hendryd falls is eased by lots of steps. The spectacular waterfall has a 90ft drop, the steep climb up the other side was harder than the descent but at the top we found we had parked just 5 minutes from the top of the falls. The walk was above Ystradfellte, 8miles and 800ft ascent. Map OL12
