STANHILL METHODIST CHURCH
CHURCH AND OSWALDTWISTLE ROTARY
CHURCH and Oswaldtwistle Rotary recently made a donation to the Oswaldtwistle Churches Together Foodbank.
Last week a group of Rotary members visited the Foodbank to see how it is organised and how the money is used.
The Foodbank is completely reliant on donations. The cost of basic supplies which need to be bought every week is around £80.
Some local supermarkets give surplus and end of line foods, and there are donation boxes in Tesco, where customers can deposit items.
The Foodbank deals with around 100 people who, for one reason or another, are not able to afford to feed themselves and their families.
David Haworth, who helps to run the Foodbank, explained some of the many reasons why their services are needed. He gave examples of people who were waiting for their claims for Universal Credit to be decided and had to wait many weeks before a decision is made, leaving them without any money.
Not all the people who use their services are unemployed. He told of a woman who has three children and works full time but was presented with a very large bill to fix her car, which was vital for her job. This left her temporarily without any funds to feed the family. The Foodbank was a life saver for her and her children.
Church and Oswaldtwistle Rotary President Lyndon Heap said: “The volunteers here do a tremendous job under very difficult circumstances. They deal with people with all kinds of issues, people with mental health problems, drug addictions as well as those struggling to cope with unemployment and low wages.
“The volunteers are all caring, compassionate people who give their time freely to help others.
“We at Church and Oswaldtwistle Rotary are very happy to have been able to support their work here.”
ST JOHN’S CHURCH
BAXENDEN History Exhibition will be held at St Johns Church in Baxenden from Saturday, September 28, to Sunday, October 6.
This is a joint project between members of St John’s Church and members of the local community. There will be an opening ceremony on September 28 at 11am with Baxenden Concert Band and the attendance of Hyndburn MP Graham Jones and the Mayor and Mayoress, followed by refreshments in a cafe sponsored by Holland’s Pies and a chance to talk to the exhibitors.
The exhibition features photos, family memories, school days, newspaper articles, transport and much more.
There is also a short documentary film and exhibits from Hollins and St John’s Primary schools. Opening times are: Midweek: 10am-2pm and 6pm-8pm Weekends: 12pm- 4pm Wednesday, October 2 at 7pm: An evening talk with local historians
Sunday, October 6 at 2pm: A local guided walk
All welcome and entry is free. STANHILL Methodist Church have opened its doors to several groups of visitors over the past few months.
Carers Link, Oswaldtwistle Mothers’ Union, Mothers & Others and the Men’s Regnal from Cambridge Street Methodist Church, the Whalley, Great Harwood and Oswaldtwistle & Accrington Trefoil Guilds to name but a few, all enjoyed the experience of learning about the unique Heritage of Stanhill Village. The village being the home of James Hargreaves where he invented the Spinning Jenny and where there has been a Christian presence since the 1700s. The Stanhill Methodist Church and the Stanhill Residents and Fete Committee have worked together to establish the Stanhill Village Heritage Project based at the Church.
Once again the Church doors will be open during the National Heritage Weekend on Saturday, September 21 from 11am to 4pm and Sunday, September 22 from 12pm to 4pm.
Displays will include the Stanhill Prisoner of War Camp, some heritage of the little chapel, as well as the village heritage including the replica of the Spinning Jenny.Entry is free, everyone is welcome and refreshments are available.
Church steward Helen Plummer said: “We look forward to a good weekend of heritage and hospitality.”