Amelia with her four-year-old daughter, Yakelin, surveying the tragedy of their dying banana trees during an intense heatwave in the Alta Verapaz region of Guatemala. Photo: A. Sheppey/Christian Aid

These envelopes could be returned to the post office or the pharmacy if people wished to donate to Christian Aid Week.

Sadly, the number of delivery volunteers has dwindled due to age and people moving away.

This year, Christian Aid Week envelopes will again be available to pick up at the Methodist Church and St Mary’s in Reepham, as well as Motts Pharmacy, Reepham Post Office and the Bircham Centre.

Envelopes with donations can be returned to either Reepham Post Office or Motts Pharmacy during Christian Aid Week (11–17 May). Donations can also be made online HERE.

This year’s Christian Aid Week is focusing on the charity’s work in Guatemala, Central America, where the climate crisis is causing the seasons to intensify and shift erratically.

As a result, farming communities have to battle devastating floods and intense heatwaves. Water sources are drying up and vital crops are failing, plunging farming families into hunger and poverty.

The post Make a difference this Christian Aid Week appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

“After years of us appealing to Broadland MP Jerome Mayhew, Reepham Town Council has informed us that the Vodafone mast on the church is now live,” said the agency in a social media post.

“The council's clerk checked the network from the town hall and we are pleased to report that there were actual bars of signal.”

See our earlier story:

• Improved mobile phone coverage coming to town centre

The post Mobile phone coverage boost to town centre appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

Revd Keith will be licensed on 10 January to the Debenham team and Debenham High School in Suffolk.

Meanwhile, Revd Helen Rengert has tendered her resignation as team rector for the Reepham and Wensum Valley Team Churches. Her last service in Reepham will be on 23 February and all are invited to join in with a shared lunch afterwards (Revd Keith will also be there).

She said: “It has been an honour, privilege and delight to serve you all and be your team rector for five years and team vicar for three years.

“We pray blessings in this area and hope it will not be too long before you have a new rector to encourage you in the future.”

The Rengerts were appointed to the Reepham and Wensum Valley Team in 2017, having moved from Spixworth.

See our earlier story:

• Interim associate priest and new rector appointed

The post Rural vicars to leave parish appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

The programme will be a mix of carols and festive songs, with a warm and witty accompaniment by Ian Colman.

The Singing for All community choir, which is also based at the hall, will be supporting the audience and singing two songs; they have been hard at work on Silent Night for some weeks.

The audience will be put in good voice by mulled wine and mince pies when they arrive.

Tickets are £8 on the door (cash only), under 16s free. Parking is available on the playing field and at the Hall for All, Church Street, Weston Longville.

Ruth Goodall

The post Christmas concert at Weston Longville appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

In addition, winter services are being held in St Michael’s to reduce the church’s carbon footprint; this is calculated annually, with a view to reducing it still further.

Members of the church community are also encouraged to use one of the carbon footprint tools to help them see how they can reduce their own personal carbon footprint.

Earth Hour, marking the need to reduce energy consumption, was celebrated in March, and a community litter pick was organised in the summer.

The church also achieved Fairtrade status in September, with all tea, coffee, sugar and communion wine bought being fairly traded, and £300 was raised at a coffee morning to help the Fairtrade Foundation to pay small farming co-operatives a fair trade premium.

This allows those in the co-operatives to decide how to help their communities, be it by providing clean drinking water, schools for their children, health facilities or improved tools for their farms.

Eco Church is an award scheme run by A Rocha UK, a Christian environmental charity “working for the protection and restoration of the natural world”’

The scheme aims to support and inspire churches of all denominations to take practical action to care for the Earth.

St Mary’s Reepham was awarded an Eco Church Bronze Award in 2022 for its worship, buildings, land, community engagement and individual lifestyle.

See our earlier story:

• St Mary’s Reepham received Eco Church award

The post St Mary’s receives Silver Eco Church Award appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

The answer is many volunteers. We have a team of people on church councils, some of which are getting small and need extra help such as Great Witchingham, Thurning, Lyng, Wood Dalling and Attlebridge/Alderford. We have a good ministry team, some of whom offer services in retirement which is kind and helpful.

People are also unaware that this band of people must fundraise not only for the fabric of the church (maintenance, insurance, amenity bills, etc.) and for the vicar for the church too.

Central church offers specific grants only and then Norwich diocese asks us to pay around £80,000+ a year for the cost of a vicar and support services. Out of this money we are provided with curates in training, housing costs, the support staff team and much advice.

People are generous and help us out as they can, but we really need to have regular donations to help continue to offer open churches. We would love for all our churches to remain open not just for Sunday/midweek services also for weddings, baptisms and funerals, for private prayers, for music and social events, for community fundraising events, for well-being social activities, for extra classroom space (inspired classrooms), for history tours and heritage days and so much more.

We need some extra help across our area, so we are asking everyone for a small regular monthly donation to your local church, such as £5, £10 or another amount.

• For Reepham email: treasurerrwv@gmail.com
• For Salle email: jolyonbooth@outlook.com
• For Wood Dalling email: maggie.leveritt@gmail.com
• For Thurning email: beansargent@gmail.com
• Or telephone 01603 879275 and your call will be forwarded.

Thank you so much; we appreciate your generosity.

Revd Helen Rengert, Team Rector, Reepham and Wensum Valley Team Churches

The post Rector in plea for regular donations to your local church appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

The new memorial honours not just those who have given their lives from the armed forces, but also those in non-military service, such as the police, fire service and NHS.

Reepham is one of the few Norfolk communities not to have a war memorial, although the names of those who gave their lives in the two World Wars are listed on plaques in St Mary’s.

The unveiling will be the culmination of a campaign that has been running for more than 20 years, which has seen a number of different sites for a memorial in Reepham considered and rejected.

The cost of the new memorial has been met through donations from residents, voluntary groups and other benefactors.

A grant from Broadland District Council has funded the refurbishment of the area around the memorial with new turf, landscaping and planting.

The community memorial will be placed in Reepham churchyard just outside the door to St Mary’s and will be unveiled by the Deputy Lieutenant of Norfolk, Rose Barnes, in a ceremony that will be attended by members of the public as well as representatives from all the services, voluntary groups and local dignitaries.

The unveiling and dedication ceremony will be led by Reepham’s Team Vicar, Rev. Helen Rengert, and will feature a minute’s silence to remember those who have been lost. A piper will also be in attendance.

The unveiling ceremony will be followed by a short reception in St Michael’s, adjacent to St Mary’s, to which all are welcome.

The post New community memorial being unveiled appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

Reepham Town Council provided hi-vis vests, grab sticks and rings to hold open bin bags, and all volunteers put on gloves, before four small groups headed out in different directions to clear any rubbish from the central parts of town.

It was a pleasure to make new friends and get to know each other better while doing something positive for the environment. A huge thank you to everyone who gave their time to help.

Rachel Richmond

The post Eco Church community litter pick appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

However, our volunteers have grown older and fewer so this year we have decided to do different.

If you would like to make a donation, Motts Pharmacy, the Post Office and the Bircham Centre in Reepham will have a supply of envelopes for people to pick up and return during the week; there will also be envelopes in the Methodist church and in St Marys.

We will be putting up posters in Reepham and in the churches to advertise all this.

Many thanks to you all and, of course, to our previous years’ volunteers.

Jolyon Booth

The post Doing different for Christian Aid appeared first on REEPHAM LIFE.

This annual event started in 2007 in Australia, when 2.2 million people switched off non-essential lights and electrical appliances for one hour, to show a climate-sceptic government they were concerned about climate change.

Since then, it has spread around the world, and is marked on the fourth Saturday in March, between 8.30 pm and 9.30 pm, in over 190 countries.

In Reepham, more than 20 people switched off their lights and walked to St Michael’s to light a candle and leave a pledge to do something positive for the planet.

There was also a food chain challenge and an outdoor trail to find the creatures named in the challenge, which was difficult, even with torches – some people had to go round twice to find them all.

The cloudy sky cleared in time for everyone to see the beautiful full moon through binoculars, which at times had a circular rainbow around it, as thin cloud drifted across.

Also seen were many constellations, including Orion and The Plough, just visible directly above St Michael’s tower.

It is hoped Earth Hour will become an annual event in Reepham.

Rachel Richmond

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