{"id":6487,"date":"2019-08-28T18:13:18","date_gmt":"2019-08-28T17:13:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=6487"},"modified":"2019-08-28T18:13:18","modified_gmt":"2019-08-28T17:13:18","slug":"august-news-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=6487","title":{"rendered":"August News Report"},"content":{"rendered":"

Looking back to Sea Sunday <\/strong>we celebrated during July, the collections taken in the three churches came to \u00a3200, with the Gift Aid amount to be added to the total. This money will help to maintain the enduring and vital work of the Mission to Seafarers which has been carried out over the past 160 years.<\/p>\n

The scaffolding still surrounds the vestry, as a major design fault was discovered in the original building when it was built in 1991. The new steel roof covering could not be sealed into the masonry because a plastic damp course had been laid when originally built. This has now been rectified with the crenulations\u2019 removed and a lead damp course inserted which can now be sealed against the steel roofing. This has come at a cost which our insurers were not prepared to cover, and we are faced with an additional bill of \u00a33426 for the work of restoring the original masonry back to the 1991 design.<\/p>\n

On another page in \u201cWhat\u2019s On\u201d you will see that we have decided to widen our building appeal through the means of digital giving, which we are calling Donate StM appeal. <\/strong>This is meant for use by casual visitors to the church at times of weddings and baptisms, or by those who have had a previous connection with St Mary\u2019s over the years. Your support for this new venture will be gratefully accepted and will help us to maintain and carry out the repairs that are necessary to keep the church fabric in good order.<\/p>\n

Due to the current wet weather season we are experiencing, the work on the boundary walls surrounding the churchyard has been delayed until next spring. The lime mortar which is used to repair the walls will not set when the conditions are not right. This has also been the reason why the rebuilding of the vestry roof parapet has also been held up for the same reasons. However it is good to report that the interior of the vestry is now watertight and re-decorated, the wooden flooring has been sealed and all looks well.<\/p>\n

The blue carpeting in the nave, chancel and sanctuary has been removed and for the first time in almost 30 years the historic tiling has been revealed. The white marble slab in the sanctuary and partly under the altar recording the initials of the Birt\/Jenner family members buried below in the family vault will cause much interest and comment, as they remind the current congregation of how important in the life of the church these earlier generations at the castle were to the parish. Work to clean the mould and salts that have built up on the tiling will now be removed, the damaged tiles replaced and the surface than sealed to protect the tiles. This will restore the church to the appearance the Victorian restorers wished to present to the parish at the end of the 19th century. Later more decorative work with the installation of the John Ninian Comper Reredos and other furnishings were to follow at the beginning of the 20th century.<\/p>\n

The Church Extension Scheme<\/strong>, which has been<\/p>\n

optimistically called \u201cVision 2020\u201d continues on its very slow discussion with the Diocesan Advisory Committee. It is now almost three years since we made the decision to sell the church hall and use the money for an extension to the church, in order to bring all our activities onto one site. The most recent request was for a justification of us wanting to sell the church hall and also why we thought it was the time to think about the future and how we would see the church in the years ahead. It may be very frustrating but it is the way we have to go with the DAC having the final say in recommending the plans drawn up, at considerable cost to the church, to the Diocesan Chancellor who would then issue the faculty to go ahead. Then there is the local authority to be consulted, and not least CADW, for its input into the scheme; so many hoops to jump through, but we think the scheme is a good one and would make us more \u201cfit for purpose\u201d than we are for the present moment.<\/p>\n

Looking back. The Wenvoe Open Gardens <\/strong>day in July, which was a great success in the numbers of people who came from far and wide to join in the activities on the day.<\/p>\n

On Saturday 20th July the village of Wenvoe was absolutely buzzing! Crowds of people walking around following their maps to locate and admire the 12 beautiful and interesting gardens open for viewing.<\/p>\n

The event was inspired and co-ordinated by Sandra and Brian Jones with Mike Tucker working tirelessly in the background.<\/p>\n

Grateful thanks to everyone involved whether opening or visiting gardens, making or just enjoying tea and delicious home made cakes and giving donations to the St Mary\u2019s building fund. Such a special happy day of fellowship with the \u2018icing on the cake\u2019 being an amazing \u00a32,000 <\/strong>raised for St Mary\u2019s Building Fund.<\/p>\n

Fair Trade \/ Traidcraft: Wenvoe – <\/strong>After 14 years, Jude Billingham, due to other commitments has decided to close the stall she has run during that time. Way back in February 2005, after the morning service she began to offer various Fair Trade product\u2019s and the sales that day came to \u00a3119.98. Since that time sales have fluctuated over the years but the final total over the years is \u00a342,303, which is a wonderful achievement for a relatively small congregation and the friends who have supported her during this time. The remaining stock has been sold off, realising \u00a3420 and half of this has been donated to the St. Mary\u2019s Building Fund in recognition of the support Jude has received during her time, as the organiser of fair trade products in the parish. The other half has been given to Traidcraft Exchange, the charity that helps to set up work opportunities in the developing world. A big thank you and heartfelt thanks to Jude and Nigel for all the time they together have spent in raising our awareness of the needs and aspirations of others who are not so well off as we are.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The next Messy Church <\/strong>will be on Saturday 28th September in Wenvoe Community Centre when the theme will be \u201cHarvest\u201d. These popular events bring Mums and Dads and their children together to spend a short time together with friends, there is no age barrier, in a time of story telling, craft work, exciting activities, and worship followed by a shared meal and all FREE, <\/strong>so please come along and meet new friends and neighbours. See you there at 3.00pm.<\/p>\n

In the past few weeks we have seen on our TV screens that cathedrals in England have installed a mini golf course <\/strong>and a wonderful helter skelter <\/strong>in the nave of their buildings. Any suggestions of what we could install in the nave at St Mary\u2019s should be addressed on a postcard to Vicar Jon as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

Lastly for this month, we extend a welcome to all the new parishioners who have moved into Greenwood Close <\/strong>on the St Lythan\u2019s Road<\/strong>, not forgetting the Scarecrow Festival <\/strong>on the 21st September and our Harvest Festival \u201cAll Age Service<\/strong>\u201d on the 22nd September.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cCome ye thankful people come, raise the song of harvest home<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Parry Edwards<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n
\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Looking back to Sea Sunday we celebrated during July, the collections taken in the three churches came to \u00a3200, with the Gift Aid amount to be added to the total. This money will help to maintain the enduring and vital work of the Mission to Seafarers which has been carried out over the past 160 years. The scaffolding still surrounds […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6cWjO-1GD","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":16384,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=16384","url_meta":{"origin":6487,"position":0},"title":"Damp Day At Barry Island","author":"Alan Williams","date":"1st December 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Damp Day At Barry Island Smiling, happy walkers brightened up a grey, damp day at Barry Island. No Halloween horrors nor the forecast of rain frightened us away! \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0","rel":"","context":"In "Carers Walk"","block_context":{"text":"Carers Walk","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=362"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Carers-Stroll.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5448,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=5448","url_meta":{"origin":6487,"position":1},"title":"Clyne Valley","author":"Alan Williams","date":"6th January 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Clyne Valley We parked in lower Sketty, Swansea near the recycling centre and headed generally northwest through Clyne Valley Country Park. The land near the path was once a rubbish tip and before that a spoil heap from the Clyne Valley Colliery (closed 1921). Coal mining was the first industry\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Footsteps"","block_context":{"text":"Footsteps","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=38"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/walk-5-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10308,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=10308","url_meta":{"origin":6487,"position":2},"title":"Gardening Tips for September","author":"Alan Williams","date":"19th September 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"THE VILLAGE GARDENER Must Do Gardening Tips for September Tips from Carol Evans of Life Beyond the Patio. Let parts of your lawn go wild for a few weeks. Mow above mentioned parts before you get stung or bitten by the insects. Make sure your pots are off the ground\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Village Gardener"","block_context":{"text":"The Village Gardener","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=77"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/waterCan-2-257x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":14138,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=14138","url_meta":{"origin":6487,"position":3},"title":"National Dog Walking Day","author":"Alan Williams","date":"6th April 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"CARERS WALK \u00a0 On National Dog Walking day, there were more Valeways walkers than dog walkers strolling around Barry Island. The horrendous rainstorm that was predicted, did not materialise and the strollers enjoyed just a damp drizzle for most of the walk. The very stylish headgear modelled by many walkers\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Carers Walk"","block_context":{"text":"Carers Walk","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=362"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Picture4.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":634,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=634","url_meta":{"origin":6487,"position":4},"title":"Waterfall Country","author":"Alan Williams","date":"14th August 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 Waterfall Country \u00a0(OS map OL12)Pontneddfechan is a former silica mining hub and sits at the confluence of the rivers Mellte and Nedd Fechan. Silica mining took place in this area from the 18th century to the mid 1960s. 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