Sunday 6 October - Saturday 19 October
An Interfaith Harvest

Once again we're sharing our Harvest festivities with our friends from South Bucks Jewish Community (SBJC), and this year we'll be raising money for The Trussell Trust and The Hunger Project UK, two wonderful charities which work to feed hungry people in the UK and overseas.

Sunday 6th October: St Peter's Harvest Festival service
We celebrate our Harvest Festival in church, and as part of the 9:30am service we're inviting people to offer the promises they'd be willing to auction.

19 October: Harvest Promises Auction
We'll be sharing in a Harvest Promises Auction with SBJC at 12.30pm, in the Court House. Do come and support this lovely event - last year our two communities raised around £1000 for Christian Aid!

Wednesday 16-Saturday 19 October: Food for the Soul - Interfaith Sponsored Pilgrimage
Fr Stuart will be walking with Rabbi Neil Janes of SBJC and other faith and community leaders, from Wallingford to Berkhamsted. In our shared season of Harvest we'll be giving thanks for all those things which feed our souls by visiting centres of artistic creativity, sports, education and more. Anybody wishing to join for part of the journey would be very welcome:

• Wednesday 16th: Wallingford to High Wycombe (18 miles)
• Thursday 17th: High Wycombe to Aylesbury (17 miles)
• Friday 18th: Aylesbury to Tring (8 miles)
• Saturday 19th: Tring to Berkhamsted (6 miles)

Please contact Fr Stuart if you'd like to know more.

Visit the SoulFoodWalk website to learn more about this inspiring journey of a priest and a rabbi, and follow their progress daily. You'll also find donation links there to support their good causes:

Contact:

 Send an email to: Fr Stuart

 soulfoodwalk.wordpress.com/

Saturday 12 October at 7:00 pm
Harvest Festival Night Dinner

There will be another fundraising meal in the Court House to for raise money for the Roof Funds. We would welcome any meal donations for that night . Please contact Carolynne if you can help to support this event:

Contact:

 Send an email to: Carolynne Charman

Sunday 13 October at 1:30 pm
Be a Chorister day

Our church choir is holding a special recruitment event, hoping to attract new young singers. Local parents are warmly invited to bring their youngsters to try out singing at a "Be a Chorister" afternoon event -it's open to boys and girls aged 6+. There will be fun activities tea, juice and cake, and at the end of the day, there’ll be a chance to sing in a short service at 5pm alongside the existing choristers. Parents can meet our friendly music team and ask questions. 

St Peter’s Church Choir offers fantastic opportunities for children. Many youngsters who start in a church choir find that it opens doors as they get older - Duke of Edinburgh Awards, university applications and getting choral scholarships. You may also be surprised to learn how many of today’s famous musicians found their voice through singing in church – Taylor Swift, Justin Timberlake and Ed Sheeran all have a background in church music. Singing in church helps children to develop skills in music, thinking, working as a team and language - skills that will be with them for life. We offer a free musical education, and it's a great way to make new friends!

We all appreciate our church choir for elevating our worship and glorifying God through the beauty of music. It is a wonderful thing to have cathedral-style music in a parish church, and to keep this tradition alive, we need to bring in new singers, so please help to promote this event. If your friends, neighbours or co-workers have musical children, please tell them about this. There are leaflets at the back of church, and we'll be posting about it on X and Facebook, so please share!

Contact:

 Send an email to: Parish Office

 www.stpetersberkhamsted.org.uk/beachorister

Saturday 19 October at 8:00 am
Prayer Breakfast

The next Prayer Breakfast will be Saturday 19th October at Northchurch Baptist Church, when Berkhamsted churches meet to pray for the town and surrounding villages. This month's prayer leaflets are available to pick up at the back of church.

Tuesday 5 November - Tuesday 19 November
Evening Pilgrimage at St Albans Cathedral

Come on a free guided walk through St Albans Cathedral, with historical insights, prayers, and silence, concluding with Compline by candlelight at the Shrine of St Alban. Light refreshments provided. If you are interested in going, please let Fr Stuart know and indicate whether you could take part on November 5th, 19th or both.

Contact:

 Send an email to: Fr Stuart

 ow.ly/TLN850T8QmX

Saturday 9 November at 7:00 pm
Neoclassical Piano Concert – Back to the Future

We are excited to welcome virtuoso pianist Yaroslav Oliinyk to play a concert in St Peter's - "Back to the Future". Yaroslav is an acclaimed young composer and pianist from Ukraine, noted for his dazzling performances, captivating audiences with his exceptional improvisational skills. He will showcase his original piano compositions and reimagined versions of famous music across various genres, merging the past and the future. 

All proceeds from this concert will go to two good causes:

• EducArtEvent, a wonderful local charity that supports people who have been displaced by war and have found a refuge in the Dacorum area. In particular, they provide free English classes and arts & crafts workshops to help Ukrainian children adapt to their new environment.
• St Peter's Roof Fund, raising money to sort out our leaking roof!

Come and support two great local causes and enjoy a truly breathtaking experience! Tickets £12 - buy on the night or book online:

 www.eventbrite.com/e

Saturday 16 November at 10:00 am
Quiet Day at Little Gaddesden Church

Another Quiet Day has been arranged at Little Gaddesden Church on Saturday 16 November 10.00am - 4.00pm. Coffee/tea available throughout the day and lunch will be soup and sandwiches. By kind permission of the Rector of Little Gaddesden, the hall and the church will be available for only our group. The cost will be approximately £30 per person. To book a place, please email:

Contact:

 Send an email to: Fr David

The Rector’s rambles

Last weekend, Fr Stuart completed his 28-mile sponsored ramble around all the churches in the Berkhamsted Deanery. He raised £355, which will be split between the Beds & Herts Historic Churches Trust and for St Peter's Berkhamsted. On his travels, Stuart posted some entertaining live updates on X/Twitter from each of the churches visited, including a live video from the intriguingly named Covetous Corner near Little Gaddesden - take a look on the @stpeterberko X feed. It's not too late to make a donation, so please show your appreciation by adding to the total - follow the link to JustGiving.com below, or hand a donation to Fr Stuart in person. Thank you everyone for your support!

 www.justgiving.com/page

NextDoor

Do you use NextDoor.co.uk? It's a very popular app and website for sharing local information and events. After months of trying to get the account approved (it's a stringent process to prove that you're local), St Peter's has finally been accepted onto NextDoor. Do please connect with St Peter's - follow the link below and click the "Fave" button.

 nextdoor.co.uk/pages

Bike ‘n’ Hike

A big thank you to everyone who participated in or donated to the Bike 'n' Hike. The totals are still being counted up so we hope to have a result in the next week or so.

Victoria School prepares for Harvest

With all the wet weather we have been having it was very appropriate that our Bible story this week was Noah and the flood. We talked about the massive responsibility Noah had of building the ark and gathering all the animals. We felt if we had been asked to do this we would have found it really hard to do. We thought about the message and many of the children mentioned about how important it is for us to look after the world as it a special place.

We have started our preparations for our Harvest Festival on Monday 7 October. The Spiritual Ambassadors wanted to get involved with the service and had thought of lots of good ideas on how they could support. This included greeting everyone as they arrived at church, welcoming everyone at the start of the service and reading prayers and poems. We are really looking forward to our first visit to the church this term and celebrating Harvest.

Education Team job vacancies

The Diocese is advertising for two part-time administrators to work with the Education Team at Holywell Lodge in St Albans. Visit to the Diocesan website for job descriptions and application forms. The closing date is 24 September 2024.

 www.stalbansdiocese.org/vacancies-role

Sunday 29 September
Dacorum at 50 Fest

Dacorum Borough was formed in 1974 from the old Rural and Urban Districts, and this year marks the 50th anniversary of Dacorum. To celebrate, Dacorum Borough Council are hosting a free festival in Hemel Hempstead town centre from 11am to 5pm. The event will include a parade with giant puppets, entertainments, acrobats, fairground stalls, a market and food and drink stalls.

 www.dacorum.gov.uk/50-Fest

Thursday 3 October - Sunday 6 October
Graham Greene Festival

This year, to celebrate the novelist’s 120th birthday, there will be talks, discussions and social events in Berkhamsted, along with screenings of two film adaptations of Greene's work, The Man Within (1947) and The Fallen Idol (1948). For full listings and ticket booking visit the Graham Greene Birthplace Trust website. 

Contact:

 Send an email to:

 www.grahamgreenebt.org/festival

Saturday 5 October at 7:30 pm
Bridgewater Sinfonia concert

The Bridgewater Sinfonia's next concert in St Peter's will be Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto (described as "the ultimate Romantic violin concerto") with virtuoso violinist Amy Huang. Also on the programme is Elgar's Enigma Variations, featuring that stirring British favourite 'Nimrod'. Advance tickets are now on sale for £20 - book online or buy in person at Ashtons Estate Agents (next to Tesco). As always, under-18s get in free!

 www.bridgewater-sinfonia.org.uk/

Wednesday 9 October
Tea dance in Berkhamsted Town Hall

Once a month on a Wednesday afternoon from 1.30 until 4 o'clock, starting on 9th October, there will be a new tea dance upstairs, in the Old Town Hall. There will be a a DJ who is well versed in ballroom dance music, along with tea and biscuits of course and a great friendly atmosphere.

 www.hemeltoday.co.uk/arts-and-culture

Saturday 12 October at 9:30 am
Singing workshop: The Armed Man

Berkhamsted Choral Society are running a singing workshop in St Peter's Church, led by their musical director Graham Wili. They will be singing the popular, uplifting mass setting by Karl Jenkins, The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace. This friendly, social event will include tea, coffee and cake (bring your own lunch!), concluding with a free afternoon concert for family and friends. Non-members are welcome to come and participate - registration from 9:30am for a 10am start, and the free concert will begin at around 3:30 pm. It's £20 to take part, and you can book online or on the day:

 tktp.as/EXGQIA

Wednesday 16 October - Wednesday 23 October
Berkhamsted Neighbourhood Plan Consultation

Berkhamsted Town Council invite all local residents to a drop-in event in the Civic Centre, where there will be an exhibition about the planned development and growth of the local area. Please come along and give your views on the work so far and any ideas you have to help the council to shape the Neighbourhood Plan. The exhibition will be open daily, 9am-4pm. In addition, there will be an opportunity to meet members of the Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group to discuss the plans in person on:

• Wednesday 16 October 10am-4pm
• Saturday 19 October 10am-1pm
• Monday 21 October 10am-2pm and 4pm-7:30pm

 www.berkhamsted-tc.gov.uk/the-council

Vote in the Green Flag People’s Choice Award

There's been so much work to restore our once-forgotten Victorian cemetery. This year the volunteers are aiming for another award, and they need your help! Please follow the link below and click the green "Vote for this site" button to vote for Rectory Lane Cemetery in the Green Flag People's Choice Award. It's an easy way to show your appreciation for all the hard work of the volunteers who  have been caring for St Peter's historic burial ground over the past 10 years. 

Thank you for your support!

 www.greenflagaward.org/park-summary

Rectory Lane Cemetery Project 10th Anniversary

Back in the early 2010s, the PCC was discussing ways of finding new revenue streams for maintaining the fabric of St Peter's Church building and its memorials, buildings and churchyards. Fr Michael Bowie, rector at the time, led the idea of forming a "Friends of" charitable body, and on 15 May 2013, the Friends of St Peter’s (Registered Charity Number 1160314) was launched at a public meeting. Early on, St Peter's detached burial ground behind the Rex Cinema was identified as a "flagship" project which could engage the wider community. This three-acre Victorian cemetery had closed to new burials in the 1950s, and had become an overgrown and neglected patch of land, rich in local history but forgotten and unloved. On 14 September 2014, the Rectory Lane Cemetery Project was officially launched at a special event by by the Mayor of Dacorum, led by the Friends of St Peter's (and with a lot of help from others). In this super photo above, we see a ceremonial release of doves - you may spot the Imbers, Cllr Ian Reay, project convenor James Moir and the fondly remembered David Pearce, who took this project to heart.

At a series of events, the public were invited to comment on the proposals for renewing the cemetery. Shaped by the views of community, the project team formed plans, restoring monuments, bringing our local history to life, and creating a green space for all the town to enjoy. Teams of volunteers worked to clear overgrown weeds and trees, and the project team bid successfully for funding from a number of grant-awarding bodies - not least a Heritage Lottery Fund award of nearly £1 million! This funding enabled some amazing work to be carried out, laying new paths, installing new seating and engaging stonemasons to restore historic memorials of some of our most noted parishioners. Today, if you visit the cemetery, you will find a beautifully maintained area, resonating with the names of the past: the Smith-Dorriens, the Bridgewaters, the Coopers, the Hollidays, churchwardens, rectors, bellringers and our war dead. An online database of burials brings all their stories to life for visitors and honours those laid to rest. And alongside manicured lawns, a wildflower area teems with wildlife and rare species. It's a Berkhamsted success story to be celebrated.

Read more about the Rectory Lane Cemetery Project's 10th Anniversary and learn more about taking part:

 www.rectorylanecemetery.org.uk/10

A new book

Congratulations to Penny Abbott, who has just published her second book, Sophie's Children. The historical novel is part two of her Browne Family Saga, set in Devon after WWI. Find out more about ordering a copy on her website:

 penelopeabbott.com/