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A Letter from the Rector
As the warmth and brightness of summer begin to fade, autumn invites us to notice the beauty of change. The leaves turn gold, the evenings draw in, and the rhythms of life gently shift. In this season of transition, we are reminded that change is not always something to fear. It can also create space for reflection, renewal and hope.
Hope is at the heart of our Christian faith. It is not simply optimism that everything will always be easy. Instead, hope is the trust that God remains with us through every season, in times of joy and uncertainty, abundance and loss, beginnings and endings. As the prophet Jeremiah reminds us, God has plans for our future, plans filled with hope.
Autumn teaches us something important about letting go. Trees release their leaves, not because they have failed, but because they are preparing for what comes next. We too may carry worries, disappointments or habits that we need to place into God’s hands. Letting go can be difficult, but it can also open us to new possibilities and deeper trust.
This season also reminds us of the importance of community. As the days grow colder, we are called to look out for one another, especially those who may feel lonely, anxious or in need of practical support. A warm welcome, a thoughtful conversation, a shared meal or a simple act of kindness can become a sign of God’s love.
Within our church family, may we continue to encourage one another and share hope generously. Let us pray for those facing difficult circumstances, for our local community and for a world that longs for peace. May our worship, service and fellowship help people discover that they are not alone.
As we move through autumn, may we find God in the changing colours, the quiet mornings and the familiar routines of each day. May we remember that, even when the landscape changes, God’s faithfulness remains constant.
Let us enter this new season with open hearts, grateful for the past, attentive to the present and hopeful for the future. Together, may we become people who carry hope into our homes, our church, the community, and the wider world.
Rev Barry
Diary: St Peter & St Paul, Saltwood
Our regular pattern of worship includes a service every Sunday at 10am. Usually this is Holy Communion (to which all are welcome, whether or not you choose to receive communion) with a Family Service on the fourth Sunday of each month. Other services of Holy Communion, including ‘Book of Common Prayer’ services at Saltwood and Pedlinge, are shown on the website calendar, along with all services and events for the month.
Bubble Church, for families with Toddlers, is held in the Lads’ Club at 10am on the first Sunday of the month; Sunday Club, for children aged 3 – 10 is held at 10am in the Lads’ Club, on the third Sundays in term time.
Some extra dates to note in your diary:-
Thursday 1st – 18.00 – Bell Ringing Practice (and each following Thursday)
Thursday 1st – 19.00 Choir Practice (and each following Thursday) Friday 2nd – Carol Eastell’s day off (and each following Friday) Friday 2nd – 09.00 – Prayer Group in the Church (and each following Friday) Sunday 4th – 10.00 – HARVEST Thanksgiving with Holy Communion Monday 5th – 14.00 Monday Chats in the Lads’ Club (and each following Monday) Tuesday 6th – Our Rector’s day off(and each following Tuesday) Wednesday 7th – 10.00 – Toddler Group in the Lads’ Club(and each following Wednesday) Wednesday 7th – 14.00 – Afternoon Prayer Group at 34 Harpswood Lane
Wednesday 14th – Cinema Club in the Lads’ Club
Friday 16th – Hymn singing at Lympne church
Saturday 17th – Coffee Morning at Lympne
Saturday 17th – 15.45 – Messy Church in the Lads’ Club
Saturday 24th – 08.00 – men’s Prayer Group at the Lads’ Club
Saturday 24th – N.B. – last date for entries for the November magazine Saturday 24th – N.B. – Clocks go back one hour tonight
If you have any items for the November edition of the magazine, please forward to Beth Lewsey, by the 24th October
by email if possible, to: parishmagazine@saltwoodchurch.org
or deliver to 20 Castle Avenue. (Tel 01303 264577).
Saltwood Church Pastoral Group
Caring for One Another
‘And let us look out for one another to provoke love and good works’ (Hebrews 10:24)
Our Pastoral Group meet monthly to seek ways of offering support to those who are going through difficult or challenging times. If you know someone you are concerned about, or if you have concerns yourself, please contact us. You will always find a friendly voice and a listening ear at the end of the line. Caring for others is at the heart of Christian life and you can help us by being our eyes and ears, letting us know of anyone who is in need.
Contacts: 01303 266454 01303 883243
A Prayer for the month of October
Dear Lord,
As we give thanks for the harvest and pray for the farmers who have struggled through the summer’s drought and heatwaves, we also give thanks and pray for those who work to share the good news of Your kingdom, to bring in Your harvest of people who are searching for You.
May we, who know You, join those workers and share the good news that Jesus brings. So many people are lost and without hope or direction. Help us to reach out to them, maybe with an invitation, or simply a smile, or an act of kindness. May they see Your love reflected in us and turn to You.
May they put their trust in Jesus, who alone is the answer to all life’s great questions.
Lord, may we be workers in the harvest field where You have placed us, for Your glory.
In Jesus’ name. Amen.
By Daphne Kitching
Intercessions for October
Today we pray especially for:
1 Those who live in Bartholomew Close and Lea Close
2 Those who protect us – the emergency services
3 All who worship at St Peter & St Paul and at Pedlinge
4 Those making decisions about the use of AI
5 The lonely, thinking particularly of those known to you
6 Those who live in Bartholomew Lane and St John’s Road
7 Those who visit our church and those who make use of it
8 Holy Trinity Folkestone, St George Folkestone, and St. Paul Sandgate
9 Our organists and choir
10 Canterbury Cathedral, Diocesan House and their staffs
11 Those who live in Hillcrest Road and Quarry Lane
12 Those who care for the church and churchyard and make them beautiful
13 The national role of the Church of England
14 St John the Baptist Folkestone
15 Our neighbours
16 Those who live in Holly Close and Mulberry Court
17 Those unsure of their future, thinking particularly of those known to you
18 St Augustine’s Primary School – staff and pupils
19 The Pilgrims Hospice
20 Families going through difficult times, thinking particularly of those known to you
21 Those who live in North Road West, North Road and Barrack Hill
22 Those parts of the world where there is war or political strife and those who suffer as a result
23 Our own benefice with St Stephen Lympne
24 His Majesty’s Government and Members of Parliament
25 The work of Folkestone Rainbow Centre
26 Those who live in Pedlinge and Sandling
27 The terminally ill and their families, thinking particularly of those known to you
28 Our study groups
29 Other, non-Anglican, churches in the local area
30 Families attending Bubble Church and Messy Church
31 Those who live in Sandling Road and Highfield Close
From the Parish Records
We welcome into the family of the Church:
Aurelia Hazledene, who was baptised at Pedlinge on 20th September
Congratulations to:
Charley Owen and Sean Greenfield, who were married on 31st August
Our love and sympathy go to the family and friends of:
Roger Hill, whose funeral was on 12th August
Beryl Bazin, whose funeral was on 28th September
Mexican Quiz Night
Warden’s Corner
From John Campbell: –
The Proposed Dishwasher
Last month, I floated the idea of installing a dishwasher in the church kitchen, subject, of course, to the approval of the PCC. The proposal was discussed at our latest PCC meeting, and I have now been asked to research the machines available and identify the one most suitable for our needs.
There has been a little confusion about the list placed at the back of the church asking who might be willing to contribute towards the cost. This was not an indication that a decision had already been made. Its purpose was simply to test the water and discover whether there was sufficient support to make the proposal financially possible. The dishwasher would need to be entirely self-funding, as there are greater calls upon church funds at present. No purchase or installation will therefore take place without both sufficient voluntary funding and the formal approval of the PCC.
Many of you have said that you think a dishwasher would be a very good idea. Others have said that they do not believe one is necessary. That is perfectly fair, and anyone who prefers to wash everything by hand when it is their turn on duty will remain entirely at liberty to do so. There will be no compulsion to use the dishwasher!
Why Not Come for Prayer?
I write this both as your churchwarden and as a member of the Prayer Team which is available in the sanctuary after every Sunday morning service. I want to encourage more of you to make use of it. I find it difficult to believe that most of us have no need of prayer. We have children or grandchildren whom we long to see come to faith, loved ones who are ill, family anxieties, difficult decisions and problems waiting for us in the week ahead. Some of us would simply like the Lord to do something about our own old and aching bodies!
All these things can be brought to God in prayer. Our Lord tells us that the very hairs of our heads are numbered and that not one sparrow falls to the ground without our Father knowing. If He cares about a sparrow, He most certainly cares about you. Nothing that concerns you is too small, too ordinary or too personal for Him. He wants to be involved in every part of your life, but are you willing to let Him?
There may be a little pride involved in our reluctance to come forward. We may feel that being seen asking for prayer is an admission of weakness, that we are struggling or cannot manage everything ourselves. It is nothing of the kind. Coming for prayer is a sign of strength because it is a deliberate act of trust in God. It says, “I do not have to carry this alone. I believe that the Lord cares, that He hears and that He is able to act.”
You may also be assured that the prayer team is unshockable. Whatever you bring will be received with kindness and without judgement, and everything will be treated with complete confidentiality. In other words, what you tell us will not be passed on to anyone else. We do not even tell other members of the prayer team what has been requested. What you share remains with the two people praying with you and is brought only before the Lord.
The prayer team is not there merely for emergencies, nor do you need to arrive with a dramatic crisis at large. We are there because prayer is one of the ways in which we learn to stop depending entirely upon ourselves and begin relying upon God. So, when the service ends, why not come into the sanctuary and allow us to pray with you? Bring whatever is on your heart, however large or small, and discover just how faithful God is.
Saltwood Cinema Club
will be showing
THE SHEEP DETECTIVES
on Wednesday 14th October
at 2pm in the Lads’ Club
The Sheep Detectives is a 2026 mystery comedy-drama film directed by Kyle Balda and written by Craig Mazin. The Sheep Detectives follows a flock of unusually clever sheep who secretly understand the murder mysteries read to them each night by their shepherd. When he dies under suspicious circumstances, they set out to solve the case themselves, subtly steering the human investigation.
Cost £5 per person to include tea and cake
All proceeds to the Lads’ Club Funds
A Message from Carol
The Afternoon Prayer Group meets on Wednesday 7 October at 2pm and as usual in the home of Penny Forsyth, 34 Harpswood Lane. As always, we would love to welcome you to join us as we pray. We are a small group of church family members who realize that Prayer is the key to our growth in the Christian journey of life. We love to pray for people who have a need and of course our Rector, our church and world issues. Come and dip a toe in the water – you might be surprised how easy it is!
Friday mornings from 9 to 9 30am is prayer time in church. Our prayers are directed mainly for the following Sunday services in both churches and any other needs we can squeeze in. Again you would be most welcome to join us for a great way to start the day.
And if you see a small group of people at the back of the church on a Sunday morning, we are gathering to pray too for the Services of the day and the people involved. Come and join us, we would love to have your company.
The Monday Chatterers have been gathering with great gusto and I think we have all enjoyed coming together again after the summer break. We are at present making arrangements for our Christmas lunch on 14 December and if you would like to join us please give me, Carol, a call on
07795 100 441.
Quote
God made the moon as well as the sun; and when He does not see fit to grant us the sunlight, He means us to guide our steps by moonlight.
– R Whately
Nov 1st, All Saints Day – Commemoration Service
This year’s Commemoration Service for the recently bereaved will take place on Sunday 1st November at 3pm. Rev Barry is currently working with the choir to make the as special an occasion as possible in tribute to those we love but see no longer. If you would like the name of your loved ones read out during the service then please email rev.barry@icloud.com in advance.
Notes from the Choir
We are now well into our autumn term and as I write it is the 23rd September, the day of the Autumnal Equinox, when the earth’s axis tilts neither towards not away from the sun, giving worldwide, equal day and equal night. This marks the official astronomical start to Autumn which we celebrate with harvest feasts and festival. Speaking of which, Berkeley and Roger helped organise a harvest evensong on 13th September at St Rumwold’s Church in Bonnington. You may know it as the church where Paul O’Grady was laid to rest, in fact on his grave is a small, black memorial stone figurine in the shape of a puppy.
The 12th Century church itself is a little gem: so tiny, no lighting, an ancient pump organ, and no toilet facilities. However, therein lies its charm. Where we sat in the choir stalls were fixed candle holders, and along the aisle at the end of each pew stood wooden candelabras each holding four candles. During the service all the candles were lit, it was so atmospheric.
If you look at the photo you may notice some black timbers which are in fact steps which seemingly have neither beginning nor end, this is possibly because when first built, these steps would have led to a minstrels gallery. There had been a wedding the previous day and so the church was festooned with beautiful flower arrangements. So pretty and very ‘Jane Austen’.
Outside, the church lies very close to the canal and is totally isolated in the middle of the Marsh, narrow lanes, no street lighting, so night-time visits not for the faint-hearted! We all thoroughly enjoyed the day, and our thanks go to St Rumwold’s church and community for making it possible and for the very much appreciated refreshments afterwards.
As for our own church, we have so much to look forward to, first on 4th October we shall have our harvest festival with all the usual traditional favourite hymns and one rather good anthem. Later in October we shall be starting to think about Advent, evensongs and Carol services etc. We have in recent weeks been enjoying some really good old-fashioned, rousing hymns such as 546 How great thou art, and 601 Blessed Assurance. I never cease to be amazed at the magic of words and music blending in ways beyond my comprehension, inspiring all to sing more loudly and more fervently. You can read the words, you can listen to the tune, but put them together and magic happens, and from where I stand in the choir, I can see that we are all experiencing that same feeling. So a big thank you to Barry for amazing hymns.
Not to be missed:
4th Oct Harvest festival, anthems and fabulous organ music with Tim.
11th Oct Helen will be our organist, more fantastic rousing hymns.
18th Oct Beautiful hymns, anthems and more fabulous organ music with Berkeley.
25th Oct Hooba service for families and little ones, fun, games and very short.
Harvest Festival – 4th October
Our gifts will be donated to the Rainbow Centre. The Lympne Fellowship report further down this magazine explains the good uses to which our donations will be put. This poster shows which items are particularly needed.
Book Fair and Art Exhibition
Continuing our new series of Saltwood history:-
WELL … WELL … WELL!
‘Ding Dong Bell Pussy’s in the Well’
On the north side of Saltwood village green, hidden beneath a concrete capping and unnoticed by the casual eye, the old village well lies ignored and undisturbed. This once vital source of fresh water is thought to date back to the Roman Occupation, remaining in constant use well into the early part of the 20th century.
Clean, running water is taken so much for granted today, that it is difficult to imagine a time when every drop of water for domestic use would have to be taken from a spring or stream, or hauled from the depths of a well and carried home. Little wonder that maintenance of the communal well ranked high on the list of priorities in any community. Deliberate spoiling of the water at springs and wells was a serious antisocial act and rightly considered to be a heinous and punishable offence.
Like all public amenities, the Saltwood village well was in constant need of attention. An item in the parish records for April 1895 reveals that: ‘a new bucket which was urgently needed for the well had already been ordered from Mr Manning’. Frequent entries follow over the years for cleaning out the well and repainting the sign on the well-head. Repairing or replacing the bucket and chain also make regular appearances.
Old habits die hard in rural communities, but the march of progress is relentless. In January 1904 the parish council received an application on behalf of Elham Valley Water, ‘for leave to construct a waterworks and lay down mains and pipes along streets and roads within the parish’. Henceforth, the days of the village well were numbered and its demise inevitable. People were becoming conscious of convenience, and also, the danger of pollution to public health. Some years later, its final death-knell was sounded when Mrs Knight drew up the grisly remains of an unfortunate village moggy in the bucket. It was the last straw. The well was closed and capped off.
Risk of pollution was not the only danger posed by this ancient relic of village life. Tragedy also lurked, and a young girl lost her life while standing beside the well-head. As the heavy iron bucket plunged into the depths, the spinning handle of the windlass struck a fatal blow to the child’s head.
The well shaft
Concealed beneath the concrete capping is an interesting structure that remains in remarkably good condition. The shaft is circular and brick-lined down to a depth of twenty feet and has a diameter of three-and-a-half feet. From there, it opens out into rough-hewn bedrock for another twenty-four feet, putting the surface of the water forty-four feet below ground level. The water appears to be flowing in a south-easterly direction and is six feet deep, putting the overall depth of the well at fifty feet.
Together with my brother-in-law, Alan Flaxton, my sister, Brenda Flaxton, other family members and Brian Doorne, I drew up a sample of the water during urgent repair work to the concrete capping in October 1992. The water was clear, fresh, and odour-free.
The area around the well appears alive with springs, and water can be seen seeping through the bedrock that forms the lower part of the shaft. During the course of the work a local dowser plotted the direction of the water feeding the well with considerable accuracy. He also claimed that a neighbour who had worked for the Water Board, remembered the well having been re-opened and used during a severe drought. However, this seems highly unlikely and has not been confirmed.
The ground around the well-head has long-since become covered with turf. However, whilst repairing the capping a small excavation showed that it appears to remain paved. This would seem to be confirmed by a proposal in the parish records for April 1896, where the Clerk is instructed ‘to get the path leading to the well paved with stones’. This was amended to ‘bricks’, and the amendment carried.
Whilst a great deal of care had been taken in constructing the brick-lined shaft, the same cannot be said for the wooden structure above ground. The shaft was protected by a pair of folding doors, and the well-head above was a very crude apparatus. So, it is hardly surprising that repairs were an ongoing expenditure for parish councillors to squabble over.
A video of the 1992 repairs to the well capping, filmed by Brenda Flaxton, is available at ‘Saltwood Compendium of Odds, Queries and Curiosities’. Click on the link below to visit the website:
What was going on in the parish during September 20 years ago?
The bellringers had an outing, ringing at Newchurch, Brookland and Lydd.
Women’s World Day of Prayer: An additional autumn service of prayer and praise was held at Saltwood.
The church Autumn Fair was held on 14th October.
Saltwood school took over the management of the nursery school n the Lads’ Club.
An Alpha Course began with an exploratory session on 6th October
Saltwood Art Club held an exhibition in the Village Hall on the 28th
Bible Gem for Harvest —
The Threshing Floor Where Judgment Stopped
As we come to our annual celebration of Harvest, an extraordinary story in 2 Samuel 24:1–25 and 1 Chronicles 21:1–22:1 shows us how deeply Scripture connects harvest with judgment, sacrifice and mercy.
Israel lay under judgment. A plague was passing through the land, and the destroying angel was approaching Jerusalem with his sword drawn. Then, at one particular place, God commanded him to stop. It was at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
The choice of such a place is striking. A threshing floor was a broad, hard surface of beaten earth or rock, usually positioned where it could catch the wind. The harvested crop was brought there and crushed beneath the feet of oxen or a heavy wooden sledge, freeing the grain from the stalks and husks. The mixture was then thrown into the air with a winnowing fork. The wind carried away the worthless chaff, while the valuable grain fell back to the floor to be gathered and preserved.
The threshing floor was where the harvest was subjected to pressure, opened and separated. The heavy sledge did not judge or destroy the crop; it broke apart the stalks and husks and released the valuable grain hidden within them. Only then was the mixture lifted into the wind, where the chaff was carried away and the grain fell back to be gathered and preserved. Everything arrived mixed together, but it did not leave together. It is this familiar agricultural process which Scripture later uses as a powerful picture of judgment, separation and preservation. It was at such a place that the angel stopped.
David knew that his own recent sin had played a part in bringing judgment upon Israel. He had counted his army as if the victories of Israel were dependent on human strength and military skill rather than his trust in God. Afterwards he confessed, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done.” God then commanded him to build an altar on the threshing floor where the advance of the angel of the Lord had been halted. Araunah, who owned the threshing floor, offered him the oxen for the sacrifice, the threshing implements for the fire and the ground itself, but David refused to offer God something which had cost him nothing. He purchased the threshing floor, built the altar and offered the sacrifice.
God answered with fire from heaven. The sacrifice was accepted, the angel returned his sword to its sheath, and the plague ceased. The threshing floor had become the place where judgment was halted by sacrifice. Sin had brought sickness and death, but when blood was shed, mercy prevailed.
The parallel with the normal work of the threshing floor is beautiful. David’s sin was brought into the open and confessed. Judgment fell, not on David but on the sacrifice provided. Like chaff carried away upon the wind, the guilt was removed and remembered no more. As the Psalmist wrote, “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” What remained was not David’s goodness, but a man standing in the mercy and forgiveness of God.
The place where this happened was Mount Moriah. Centuries earlier, Abraham had travelled to Moriah to offer Isaac, and there God had provided a ram to die in his son’s place. Now, on that same mountain, sacrifice again stood between judgment and death. David recognised that this threshing floor had become holy ground and declared, “This is the house of the LORD God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel.”
Solomon later built the Temple upon that very place. The site where a harvest had once been separated became the place where sin was confessed, sacrifice was offered and worship arose. For generations the Temple sacrifices repeated the pattern already displayed upon Araunah’s threshing floor. Judgment was answered by sacrifice, sin was removed, mercy prevailed, and the forgiven worshipped the Lord.
All of this pointed forward to the Cross. There the shadows gave way to the reality. Centuries later, Christ was to be crucified on that same mountain where He bore the judgment of sin Himself and shed His blood so that those who belong to Him might be forgiven, declared righteous and preserved for God. As we come to Him and confess our sin, everything which condemns us is carried away like the chaff, and removed as far as the east is from the west. What remains is not our own righteousness, but “the righteousness of God in Him.”
This brings us directly back to Harvest, our annual celebration of the life and abundance which come from God. We may prepare the soil, sow the seed and nurture the crop, but we cannot put life into a seed. God placed that life there. Only He can cause the seed to break open beneath the soil, rise towards the light and multiply itself many times over in fruit and grain.
We plough the fields, and scatter the good seed on the land,
but it is fed and watered by God’s almighty hand;
Yet the harvest and the threshing floor cannot be separated. The workers bring in the crop, but it must be brought to the place where the chaff is removed and the grain is preserved. The same is true of the harvest of souls. We may sow the Word, nurture what is growing and gather the harvest, but we cannot give spiritual life or remove anyone’s sin. We can only bring them to the Cross.
The Lord of the harvest has done what no labourer could ever do. He gave life to the seed, bore the judgment Himself and became the sacrifice through which His harvest is preserved. At the threshing floor, the chaff is carried away and the grain is gathered. At the Cross, sin is removed and the sinner is clothed in the righteousness of Christ.
Harvest, threshing floor, altar and Temple all meet at the Cross. Judgment has stopped, sacrifice has been accepted, sin has been carried away, and God is gathering His harvest. How can the final response be anything other than thanksgiving and worship?
John Campbell
St. Stephen’s Church, Lympne
Services and Events in October
Sunday 4th 11am Holy Communion
Sunday 13th 11am HARVEST Family Service
Friday 16th 7pm Hymn Singing for all
Saturday 17th 10.30 Coffee Morning
Sunday 20th 11am Holy Communion
Sunday 27th 11 am Morning Worship
Regular Events:
Mondays 12:-30-1pm (every other week) – Prayer Meeting
Mondays 5pm (every other week) – Home Group – Speak to Valerie or Rachel
Mondays 19:30-21:30 – Bell ringing Practice (each week)
Friday mornings (every other week) – Home Group – Speak to Monica or Peter
Saturday mornings 10:30 – 12:30 Eco group working churchyard (when dry)
Lympne Fellowship
At our meeting in September, we enjoyed a highly interesting and informative about the work of the Rainbow Centre to help those suffering genuine hardship. They provide food services, homeless support, family contact and money advice to individuals and families across the Folkestone and Hythe district and treat all those they seek to help with sympathy, compassion, kindness and fairness. One of the ways they help is to run food banks where people who have been given tickets to shop, are either given or purchase for a small amount of money, food and other necessary items within an agreed amount. They also help with clothing, showers, and advice to help them move on from their current situation. St Stephen’s Church supports this organisation by donating food items to their local food bank. (see the poster earlier in this magazine for items urgently needed)
Lympne Fellowship normally meets at 1.15pm in the Harry Margary Hall on the second Thursday of the month with a programme of interesting and informative talks and activities. For further information about our group, please contact Jill Page on 07846 819693.
Lympne Church Coffee Morning
SATURDAY 17th September
10.30am – 12.30pm
Join us over coffee, cake & savoury bakes
Explore the churchyard and enjoy the fabulous view
Enjoy meeting friends, old and new
(Well-behaved dogs welcome)
Proceeds to the maintenance of the church plus a donation to this month’s nominated charity:
TEARFUND
(Working internationally to help people out of extreme poverty)
SHAL: Studying History and Archaeology in Lympne
Our dig in August, on the Beacon Field site, continued from last year and revealed further walls and levelled platforms. More coins and pottery but no real significant finds, so we are still not sure exactly what the Romans were doing on this cliff top. Lots of theories but no real evidence. The archaeologist in charge Keith Parfitt is keen to explore further next year.
We were privileged to welcome him to our September 15th meeting to talk to us about the East Cliff ongoing dig in Folkestone.
Unlike our site this has been known and excavated since 1919 when a local man discovered remains on the cliff, and the archaeologist Samuel Winbolt set up a dig to explore the site. A large 3rd /4th century Roman villa was revealed with two bath houses, a dining room with a view over the Channel and a mosaic floor. This had been built on the remains of an earlier 1st and 2nd century villa. Right through until the 2nd World War this was kept open to the public (ever wondered why there is public toilet isolated up on the East Cliff?) The shore fortifications during the war meant the closure of the area and in 1957 the by now overgrown remains were filled in with fly ash.
As part of the Folkestone unearthed project in 2010 the site was reopened, and Keith was involved with the new project. It was found that there were in fact three separate buildings and one at least was in danger of disappearing because of cliff erosion. Since then, there has been a steady exploration both of the villa and the courtyard. This reveals that this site was originally an iron age trading post dating back at least to 100 BC. The dig continues and will add more to our knowledge of ancient Folkestone.
Our next meeting on Tuesday October 20th in the Harry Margary Hall at 7.30 p.m. will be a talk by Sam Moorehead on Roman coins.
President Christine Farquhar welcomed thirty-three members and two guests to our September meeting. Biddy F, Sarah H and Jo S were thanked for organising the refreshments; Molly M was thanked for the plant on the President’s table and Diane and Linda were thanked for doing the raffle. The record of the last meeting in July was approved and signed.
The Treasurer gave a finance report. Christine took the opportunity to remind members that we would need a Treasurer for next year’s committee and that without a Treasurer Castle Green WI would close.
Subgroups. All the subgroups will meet in September. Please see website for details. The Garden Group will be taking a break until next Spring.
Bookings are now being taken for the Christmas Lunch at Etchinghill Golf Club on December 3rd.
At the end of the business Christine rang the bell and we had a practice fire drill.
Back in the Lads’ Club we enjoyed coffee/tea and delicious home-made cakes and good catch up with friends old and new.
We then settled down to a fun general quiz led by Sue C, Carol K and Julie from the Garden Group They had prepared names for each team and after a tense and nail-biting contest it came down to a tie break between the Sultry Snapdragons and the Gorgeous Gladioli with the latter team being declared the winners.
The next meeting is on Friday 9th October when will have Craft morning. Please see website for details.
Margaret Alcock
Finishing with a Smile …
As we give thanks for the harvest, here are some food-themed smiles …
… At my age I have given up on health foods; I need all the preservatives I can get.
… Why didn’t I realise this sooner? It’s the shampoo I use in the shower that is my problem. When I wash my hair, the shampoo runs down my whole body, and printed very clearly on the shampoo label is this warning: ‘FOR EXTRA VOLUME AND BODY.’ No wonder I have been gaining weight!
… As my five-year-old son and I were heading to McDonald’s one day, we passed a car accident. Usually when we see something terrible like that, we say a prayer for whoever might be hurt, so I pointed and said to my son, “We should pray.” From the back seat I heard his earnest voice: “Dear God, please don’t let those cars block the entrance to McDonald’s.”
