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A
year in the life of Great Ayton Methodist Church
 The
year got off to a great start after the General Church Meeting
as we welcomed 12 young people as members on 16th
March at an ear-splitting service with YFriday, Ben Shaw and
others who had helped them in their journey of faith. Youth
group is continuing well, with 30 under 30s under our
pastoral care. Some of these young people are now in gap-year
employment or at university, but they continue to look to us for
support in their faith.
We
were privileged to welcome Chance Riehl from Belton,
Texas who worked with us as worship and youth leader during May
and June. He was a huge hit with the young people and supported
Neil Harris, our Schools’ worker at Stokesley. We hope to see
him again. In early July, we welcomed a mission team of young
people from Champion Forest Baptist Church, Houston who shared
their faith with us and with the young people at local secondary
schools. Watch out for a return visit this year! Thanks to
Peter and Enid Bell for their hospitality for Chance and to the
many people to helped with the youth mission.
 A
group of young people attended the evangelistic camp
‘Harvest’ over the August Bank Holiday weekend and found their
faith grew and developed over that time, encountering God in a
deeper time of worship and teaching. Catherine Taylor and Grant
Turner are currently exploring a call to preach. From Autumn,
we welcomed Amy Mallaby as support youth worker. She lives in
Coulby Newham and is working with us through YFC during a gap
year.
We enjoyed a somewhat damp away day this year; enjoying
the hospitality of Fylingthorpe Methodist Church. A good, mixed
crowd of us descended upon the small Yorkshire village to spend
the day together. We had a very wet walk in the afternoon,
resorting to the local hostelry for hot chocolate when things
got too wet!
Housegroups continue well; exploring some hot topics
together! Perhaps the series on Prayer has been a favourite!
Up to 24 of us got up early to pray from 6-30am ‘til 6-50am for
a whole month before launching Wednesday is Pray day where we
pray continually as a church family from 4am until
midnight. Again, a good cross-section of the church family has
taken up this challenge and it is known throughout the village
that on Wednesdays, the Methodists are at prayer!! We are still
welcoming new members to the housegroups which are thriving and
have an exciting programme ahead of them. Contact Jean Meikle
or the Church Secretary to get involved!
First Tuesday goes from strength to strength, finding its
niche in village life. We have a regular attendance of 30-40
people, many of whom are not Methodists! We have enjoyed a rich
blend of high culture and old favourites in terms of hymnody,
poetry and music. Many thanks to all who have contributed to
the refreshments and music over the months! Why not join us for
future events??
Richard Bradshaw departed the circuit last July to begin
work as Mental Health Chaplain and Lisa Quarmby has followed him
into the appointment at Stokesley. She joined the new
superintendency team with Graham Peacock and our own minister
Catherine Hutton.
We
celebrated the abolition of the slave trade this year
with a coffee afternoon and petition which was followed up with
a good film night in November when we showed the biopic of
William Wilberforce.
This
autumn also saw the relaunch of our children’s work under the
Banner ‘J-Team’. They have enjoyed several good events
through the year including the Pentecost Bouncy Castle in the
Manse garden! Their Christmas service was excellent and showed
a high level of talent from the children and their leaders! We
are always looking for new recruits who would enjoy the rich and
varied programme which J-Team offers.
 The
Christmas season saw an unprecedented level of outreach
into the local community. The toddlers enjoyed 2 services,
Yatton House Students helped to craft and deliver their own
Carol service; the WI Hall saw a good attendance for our crafts
and carols for adults and younger children. 30 under 20s
attended our candle-lit Carol service and heard the message of
God’s love in Christ. Christmas morning was its usual happy,
fun celebration and attendances were up on last year!
 Our
links with Roseberry CP school continue to develop well, with a
packed church enjoying the Infants’ Christmas Show, building on
last year’s first visit and experiencing much goodwill. This
followed on from the Juniors’ Easter visit which was again a
happy and relaxed occasion with the children performing to their
best and the adults getting into the spirit of the event! I hope
to see these develop further over the coming years.
We
were saddened by the death of some of our members this
year. Margaret Stainsby who has worked hard in worship and the
service of God in this church for many years. Her Thanksgiving
service was one of much love and passion for a woman of
integrity and grace. Elsie Peirson has passed away lately and
we remember with fondness her hospitality, grace and apple
pies. We also lost Raymond Counter this year. Who will be
missed at the organ in chapel, especially during collections
when we would play something lively to male the act of giving
easier and more cheerful for us.
We
have welcomed into membership: Catherine & Alistair
Juckes with Isaac and Barnaby; Alan & Eileen Bunn; Iain
Ferguson; Andrew Chaplain; Becci Smith; James Hollins; Andrew
Harvie; Lucy Smith; Martina Dietrich; Eleanor Robinson; Michael
Brennan; Matthew Williams; Graeme Harvie; Stef Dietrich;
Catherine Taylor; Jonathan Stokeld.
Church
Project 2007
Each
year the church nominates areas of need it is going to support
through fund raising and education. In 2007 we supported two
small projects with a local connection-
·
a women's
knitting co-operative 'Spirit of the Andes' in Bolivia 'Spirit
of the Andes'
·
Bwindi
Community Health Centre in Uganda
www.bwindi.co.uk
Money
was raised through a variety of events. Fund raising started
with a Soup Lunch in the Youth Hall in April. The May
event was a Bluebell Walk followed by lasagne in the
garden; rain forcing us inside for pudding! Extremely heavy rain
also blighted the Coffee Morning at Roseberry Crescent in
June but this did not deter a good crowd from attending. The
Strawberry Tea in July
 also succumbed to the weather and had
to be relocated to the Youth Hall. A rain shower in the middle
of the Garden Lunch in August also meant a rapid retreat
in doors. The final event in November was a fun evening of Gingo,
Beetle and, again, excellent food in the Youth Hall.
Despite all the planned
outdoor events being affected by inclement weather everyone
seemed to enjoy themselves with quality food and generous
portions. Thanks to Eileen and Neil Cowen, Gill and John Berry
for organising and hosting events as well as help and support
from so many others and to everyone who attended the events.
In
total £3410.83 has been raised and shared between the two
projects
through events, regular coffee mornings and, thanks to
the Stainsby family, some of the proceeds from Margaret’s
memorial service.
Spirit of the Andes
Sue Sinclair, a retired Stokesley School teacher from Hutton Rudby, spent
8 weeks in 2006 as a volunteer to help with administration and
marketing with the ‘Spirit of the Andes’, a Bolivian charity
that trains women in hand-knitting to the highest international
standards and markets their goods.
 The organization also provides information on human
rights and family health issues. This project is readily
accessible to the women as no costly equipment or change in
lifestyle is required. All profits go directly to support the
women and their families.
Sue also saw an opportunity for
her to set up a much needed nursery for the women and children
at the workshop, as the children were expected to sit and be
good with no play facilities available while their mothers knit.
Arrangements were also made for a local doctors’ practice to
provide medical screening for these children. This comprises a
general medical examination by a paediatrician and the
examination of stool samples for parasitic diseases. A
consulting room has been set up at the workshop and the
paediatrician is working there every weekday afternoon, with a
nurse in attendance. Our project money is helping finance the
ongoing nursery, an additional salary and the medical programme.
Bwindi Community Health Centre in
Uganda
Great Ayton residents Dr. Paul Williams and his partner Vicky Holt are
working with the Batwa pygmies of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in
South West Uganda.  Bwindi is now a nature reserve for Mountain
Gorillas, which has led to the Batwa being resettled outside
their traditional forest home. Their jobs involve providing
basic medical support to the community around the Bwindi medical
centre. Approximately 25,000 people live in the area served by
the health centre and many of these people live many miles away
and have no access to transport. One of Paul's tasks therefore
is to provide a mobile clinic for those in the outlying areas.
Funding is being used to train local people to become nurses and
in relatively inexpensive preventative measures such as ITNs
(Insecticide-Treated Bed Nets), which can be purchased for £3-£4
and can reduce the number of mosquito bites by 90%, consequently
slashing the risk of malaria.
Latest
News from Paul and Vicky in Bwindi
We have new staff, new buildings and are
starting exciting new projects in Family Planning, Maternity,
Child Health and HIV/AIDS. We are also trying to improve the
quality of life for the staff, who live and work here. None of
this would be possible without first having these excellent
staff here in Uganda, and without the continuing help that we
get from our supporters and donors overseas.
 The HIV team started outreach clinics in February to
other areas in the district that currently have no services for
HIV testing or treatment. At the moment many people walk more
than a day each way to collect antiretroviral drugs from our
clinic, and we will be helping them and hundreds more by taking
treatment closer to where they live. We will be celebrating the
official opening of the new Children's ward (see www.bchc.ug for
photos of the completed unit). A donor has provided us with
funds to start building some new accommodation for our staff.
We would like to provide each member of staff with a private
place to live, with running water and power, (none of which they
have at the moment). Plans have been designed by the staff, and
we will start building the initial units next month. As we
raise more funds we will add more units. A charity called
Friends of Bwindi Community Health Centre is being set up in the
UK. Work has been taking place for some time arranging this and
we expect that people will be able to use it to donate from the
UK from February. 
Pastoral Notes
Membership
153 5 New Members Since last GCM
2 Transferred in since last
GCM
3 Deceased since last GCM
4 Transferred out since last
GCM
CTM since last GCM
¾ of our membership worship regularly with
us, which is an excellent achievement.
Our Sunday morning Services are well
attended – following the housegroup studies.
The number of Housegroups and those
attending have continued throughout the year.
Sunday evening services are not so well
attended but new ideas are being implemented to try and attract.
A year on the first Tuesday services are
still well attended and at least 1 lady is attending on a Sunday
from these services.
The listening Course has been attended by
10 people. This course is still available to any who want to
join – a day or time to suit can be arranged.
Pastoral visiting and communion to
housebound is still continuing, not all who are offered this
ministry accept it. We have 4 people in Homes, 3 Housebound and
1 in hospital.
Once a month we have a shared lunch which
is very popular with all age groups, come and enjoy fellowship
with us. Dates in newsletter.
Once again the year has been saddened by
the loss of some members.
-
Margaret Stainsby,
an active church worker and organiser of the dinners we’ve
enjoyed over the years
-
Raymond Counter – Church organist with a
style all his own a great enthusiast of the Moors Bus and Danby
Lodge.
-
Elsie Peirson – the baker of apple pies to
serve at coffee mornings and a gift of hospitality – hers was a
very open house to those in need.
We thank God for the privilege of knowing
and working with these friends.
Pastoral vision for our Church
To be a caring, sharing family who support
one another at all times, but especially in times of need. A
family who holds each other up in prayer and fellowship together
in Jesus.
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