On June 20 we celebrated Fathers Day and the arrival of summer at last with a family afternoon in the churchyard. We started the day with a Celtic Eucharist led by Rev Julia, this is a shorter but very direct service, which included hymns and communion, and a contemplation made by Fr David Teasdel. The words were directed at making us all work hard to follow the Christian life to which we all aspire, reminding us that talking about it is not enough, we need to follow it also.

After the service, we began preparations for the afternoon’s event; chairs and tables were fetched from the village hall, electrics were set up for the musicians, and the cream tea stalls were set up in church. This was a change to past years when we have erected a marquee in the churchyard for teas, but this year due to the flower conservation area being roped off, and also health and safety issues connected with electric cables, it was agreed that we would serve teas from the church. This worked very well, as it meant the cream teas were preserved at a better temperature. In our prayers during the service we included a small request for ourselves for the sun to shine for the afternoon’s event. The prayer was answered and we had a beautiful warm afternoon, which encouraged everyone to come out and either sit and chat, to try the treasure hunt around the churchyard, to look at the plant and book stalls or to try their hand at Archery. This was provided by Sue, a friend of Carol Hart from the Guide Association and appeared to be busy all afternoon. We also enjoyed music provided by John Batchelar and friends, including Jim Meager on guitar and David Cox, our organist on his saxophone. All in all it was a very pleasant and successful afternoon with a total of just over £400 being raised, which included a generous donation from a villager, from some fund raising undertaken at Christmas last year. Many thanks for that, and to all who attended the event, and of course to all the willing helpers on the day.

The day concluded with Evensong sung by members of the All Saints Choir, with the doors open and the sound of birdsong. Thanks to the choir for their contribution to this beautiful day. From discussions on the day and since, it is clear that there are strong feelings across the local communities with regard to the possibility of the church in Eggington being closed. It is clear that this is not something which residents wish to happen, no matter how often or infrequently they may visit the church for services. This is good to know, and gives us support and encouragement for the times ahead. At the time of writing, the PCC are soon due to meet with a representative from the diocese, and the result of this discussion and any decisions made will be reported in this magazine in due course. In the meantime, please continue to pray for all at St Michael’s Church, and its continued survival, and please lend your support whenever and however you can.