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anyone is able to help man St. Nicholas Church on the day to welcome participants can contact Gary on: 07887 872766 or email: garyn.neville@gmail. com Together Again: the weekly over 50’s ‘Get Together’ meetings at the Baptist Church will resume on Wednesday September 16 with a ‘ Holiday Chat’ theme meeting runs from 2.15 - 3.45pm Ladies Breakfast: There will be a ladies ‘Continental Breakfast’ plus a Speaker in attendance at the Baptist Church on Saturday September 19 from 9 am. All ladies welcome. Please sign up on the board in the Church foyer. Alpha Course: The next Alpha Course will begin on Thursday October 1 at the Baptist Church. Open to everyone. Please contact Martyn or Stuart on 01622 685552 for further information. Messy Autumn: is on Saturday September 19 in St. Nicholas Church and Church Halls from 11am - 1.30pm. All welcome. Children MUST be accompanied by an adult. £3 per person or Maximum of £10 per family to include lunch. Bookings by Wednesday September 16. To book or for further information contact Fiona on: 07951 777854 Correspondent: Gilly Hurley Tel: 01622 790734 AylesfordEccles@ aol.com HOKH Open Gardens: Arnold Yoke and Inverarnold both situated in Back Steet, Leeds ME17 1TF and ME17 1TE will be re-opening their gardens in support of the Hospice on Sunday September 20 from 2 – 5 pm. Arnold Yoke features formal landscaping complementing a 15th Century Farmhouse. Exuberant and full planting of shrubs and herbaceous perennials aims for intensive colour from April to October . Inverarnold houses a fascinating collection of over 200 deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs planted in former orchards. Entrance is by suggested donation of £5 to visit both gardens. There is limited wheelchair access and refreshments will be available. Assistance guide dogs only please. Correspondent: Ron Stubbs Tel: 01622 726962 History Group: Bob Ogley will be the first guest speaker of the new season (ending next April) at the meeting on Monday, September 14 of the Barming History Society. A former editor of the Sevenoaks Chronicle, Mr Ogley will take members of the Society back to the 19th century to glimpse what life was like then in the so-called ‘good old days.’ For all its hustle and bustle I predict most members will be glad it’s now rather than then. The meeting will start at 7.45pm in Barming Village Hall, Heath Road and visitors are welcome to attend at £2 per head. Meetings re held on the second Monday of each month; there will be seven speakers spread throughout the months and December is set aside as a members’ Christmas social evening when there will not be a speaker. Best foot forward: It’s ride and stride time again when churches ask heir congregations to cycle or walk to visit as many other churches as possible having got themselves sponsors. The money raised is split with half going to he church of h participants and the rest to a central body which distributes the other half to those churches that have small congregations but are faced with large amounts of upkeep. Past experience has proved that route planning helps; there are certain areas with many churches in a comparative small area while others are strung out. Cyclists have found that those visiting the Romney Marsh district have fairly flat roads to cover but they can be windy and wet. St Margaret’s and St Andrew’s have followers straining at th leash and their organisers, Anne Passmore (01622 726237) and Liz Deane (204569) respectively, have all the details. In addition to the actual athletic side of things, volunteers are also essential in the churches to welcome the riders and walkers and along with the sponsors all their efforts are most gratefully acknowledged. Messy Church: Friendly and relaxed is the aim of the Messy Church where families are invited to enjoy the fun in an informal way while worshiping. The venue is Barming Village Hall, Heath Road and the next gathering will be on Sunday, September 13, from 4pm to 5.15pm. Space is available for the children in which to play and there are dramas, video clips, games, crafts and a picnic supper. Details from Wil or Fliss North on 01622 726263. It’s a mystery: The Ivy Club will have a mystery on its hands on Wednesday, September 16 in the guise of a half-day coach outing to ....? Mystery tours have the added ingredient of excitement in the form of those on board trying to guess where they will go but what is sure is that he coach will leave Fant Lane at 11.15am calling to pick up passengers in Terminus Road, Heath Road and North Street. Lunch is included and the cost to members is £20 and £2 more to non-members. Call Maureen (01622 721238) for more details of the club which caters for the over 60s with a programme of talks by guest speakers, quizzes, games bring-and-buy sales and occasional outings The club meets on alternate Wednesdays.in the hall of St Andrew’s Church (except, of course for the outings). WI meeting: Next Wednesday, September 16, marks the centenary of he founding of the Women’s Institute. The first World War was waging when a small group of imaginative women met if Anglesey and decided to encourage other women o produce food and to keep the rural communities going. Since then the WI has involved itself with some excellent community efforts of substance.Although the WI still has strong associations with foods it also offers classes on a wide and varied range of subjects and is recognised as the UK’s largest women’s organisation with 212,000 members in around 6,600 branches and it has much to celebrate. Surely so many women cannot be anything other than right. For details contact Angela Prince on 01622 728478. Mela: Some local members of the Mothers’ Union will be behind the organisation’s stall at the Mela International Festival in Mote Park on Sunday, September 13, between noon and 6pm. Always a riot of colour and smells of exotic cooking from all parts of the globe, this Festival is a very popular one. Arty, crafty: As part of the 90-year celebrations of St Andrew’s Church a festival of arts, crafts and flowers will take place there on Friday until Sunday, September 25-7. Obviously running an event like can be expensive so when committee member Chris Holman announced a charitable organisation, The Chaucer Foundation, had granted the church £500 for the festival, everyone was overjoyed. Volunteers are still needed from cake bakers to tea makers, from meeters to greeters as well as stewards so, if you haven’t already signed up do so now. Have a word with any committee member: Jean and John Sweetman, Liz and Tony Deane, Marlene Parks, Chris Holman, Hilary Chambers or Chris Chare. Any of them will be very pleased to see you. Copy please: The year seems to be racing past: The October issue of The Anvil, the magazine of St Andrew’s Church, is being prepared now and Tony, the editor, Tony has his red pencil sharpened and green eye-shade ready. Don’t disappoint him: call him on 01622 204569 with details of events planned for October as well as anecdotes, recipes and more. You can also e-mail him at anvil.mag@btinternet.com but he needs the copy by 6pm on Tuesday, September 15. Correspondent: Martin Hider Tel: 01622 736327 mhider5@ gmail.com Harvest Celebration: Messy Church for children of Holy Cross Church will celebrate Harvest at Thurnham School on Sunday September 13 at 9.45am with activities to experience the harvest of the land and the sea. Refreshments available. Donations will be given to Maidstone Churches Winter Shelter Scheme. Drop-In: A social ‘Drop-In Afternoon’ for a chat, refreshments and board games, if wanted, will take place at Bearsted Methodist Church on Thursday September 17 from 2.30pm to 4pm. All Welcome. Worship 60: Music of Worship will be played and sung at the Memorial Hall in Manor Rise on Sunday September 13 at 7pm. Bridge Players: Your local club is based at the WI Hall in The Street and is looking for ‘new blood’. Members play duplicate on Friday evenings in a pleasant, convivial atmosphere. Please contact Susan Hoddinott on 01622 747536 or email susanhoddinott@btinternet.com for more information. R.S.P.B. Meeting: The local group of the RSPB will meet at Grove Green Community Hall on Thursday September 17 at 7.30pm when an illustrated talk about the Swiss Alps highlighting it’s fauna and flora will be given by Gordon Small. Refreshments will be free and there will be opportunities to buy bird feed and Sales goods. Entrance fee for visitors £4.50 (£3.50 for group members). Easy car parking is available. R.S.P.B.: There is a great opportunity to visit the famous RSPB Minsmere Reserve by joining the local RSPB group’s coach outing on Saturday September 12. Tickets cost £26 and are available by phoning 01622 674007. Mothers Communion: The Mothers’ Union will have Corporate Communion at Holy Cross Church on Wednesday September 16 at 10am. Flower Arranging: A Free Flower Arranging Course will take place in the room at Holy Cross Church on Mondays September 14, 21 and 28 from 7pm to 9pm. The course is for beginners or near beginners who may consider joining the flower arranging rota at a local church. You will need to supply your own flowers which you will then take home after arranging. For details or to book a place phone 01622 737551. Fellowship: The Ladies Fellowship of Bearsted Methodist Church will meet at the church on Tuesday September 15 at 2.30pm. Pop Choir Voiceful: On Mondays from 8pm to 10pm, this new ‘Pop Choir Voiceful’ will have it’s rehearsals at the Memorial Hall in Manor Rise. New members welcome. No auditions and no musical notation. Everyone aged from 17 years welcome for a free tester session. For more information phone 07476 732910. Correspondent: Gilly Hurley Tel: 01622 790734 AylesfordEccles@ aol.com Correspondent: Robert Hanvik Mob: 07900 930824 robert.kentmessenger@ gmail.com Grand Quiz Night: The village hall and recreation ground are hosting what they’re calling ‘A Grand Correspondent: Alison Dickerson, 75 Chatham Road, Sandling, Maidstone, ME14 3BB Tel: 01622 762334 malcolm.dickerson@ btinternet. com Correspondent: Pam Merryweather, 13 Fir Tree Grove, Bredhurst, ME7 3LB Tel: 01634 610011 pamerry@ outlook.com Garden Club: Member Issy Whatrup will be giving a talk on Digging for the Past in Bredhurst at the Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, 16 September, at 7.30pm, in the village hall, visitors most welcome. There will also be the Potato Competition. Correspondent: Simon Poulton, 9 Cayser Drive, Kingswood, Maidstone, ME17 3QD kingswood-km@ live.co.uk Correspondent: Valerie Underdown Tel: 01622 843232 valerie95@ outlook.com Correspondent: Jenny Scott Mob: 07785974951 jscott@ cfsbroadband.co.uk Ploughing match: On Saturday September 19 the Weald of Kent Ploughing Match takes place at Highwood Farm. This is to be a memorable event with a special Spitfire fly past. More details next week. Ride + Stride: The Friends of Kent Churches Ride and Stride event whereby people are asked to take part in a sponsored run, walk or cycle ride from church to church to raise money for Kent Churches, is to have an extra dimension in this village. An opportunity for older people to be taken in cars to various village churches is offered, as it was last year. Anyone wishing to take up that offer should call 01892 832455. Woodpeckers: Last Saturday the Woodpeckers churchyard gardening group met to tackle yet more tasks. General grass cutting and ivy removal occupied part of the group, whilst others removed a large tree root which was hampering effective mowing. Lots of laughter accompanied the work, and they all enjoyed the home baking in the tea break. On Saturday August 22 the Woodpeckers enjoyed a fabulous barbecue, on one of the hottest days of the year, hosted by Stephen and Margaret Mackay. Parish Magazine: This month’s parish magazine has lots of parish news including a report of the June garden safari. Thanks go to Simon Hill who has printed six issues free of charge. The community now looks forward to Simon’s involvement with the new editorial team in 2016. PARISH COUNCIL: The September parish council meeting takes place on Monday September 14 at 7.30pm at the village school. Due to ongoing building works at the school, those attending the meeting are asked to please park on the road by the church. All parishioners are welcome to attend but anyone wishing to