During the summer months it has been a great pleasure to welcome visitors to our services. They have come from various parts of the country, young and old., but all of them seeking to worship God in the midst of their holidays.

                On two occasions in June, we enjoyed united morning worship with communion, experiencing the differences and similarities of worship and meeting with friends from the Methodist and Parish Church.

                We in the U.R.C. would like to thank Mr & Mrs Stead for their continued hard work in the church garden. It really is a ‘labour of love’ and we are grateful for the lovely show of colour which greets us every week.

                As I write, summer is in full swing, but autumn will soon be here and various  activities will be included in the church calendar . Our Harvest Festival Service this year will be on Sunday 19th September. In a book called”Pickering in Old Picture Post Cards”, there is a photograph looking like a market stall with mounds of fruit and vegetables with the preacher almost lost amongst them. Styles change over the years, but we do try to make the church as attractive as possible. You will be most welcome at our harvest celebrations.

                The following weekend on Saturday 25th September, there will be a concert in church at 7.30pm by the “Dalesmen Singers”.This is a long established male voice choir of between 30 and 40 singers who live in villages on the northern side of the North Yorkshire Moors. Their musical director is Steven Maltby, who is also the musical director of the Whitby Festival Choir and organist of St Hilda’s Church in Whitby. They are well known on other countries too. Just before they sing in our church, they have been invited to Sweden, staying three nights in Stockholm, to sing in the Catholic Cathedral there. They are a popular group and deserve a good audience. There are no tickets, a retiring collection will be taken instead.

                Our popular discussion group, ‘Open House’ begins again on Thursday 16th September at 2.30pm. The first topic is called ‘The History of Fish & Chips’. This should be both interesting and informative. Following the talk there will be time for discussion, with tea and biscuits. Everyone is welcome.

  Anne Redfearn.