Archive events from 2003

Gig Mill Red Nose / Silly Hair Day -16th March 2003

Organ Dedication Service - 5th April 2003

Winchcombe Methodist Church Flower Festival - 31st May 2003

Gig Mill's Sunday School Anniversary - 29th June 2003

Canal and Riverside Walk - 19th July 2003

John Wesley's House and Museum, Epworth - 23rd August 2003

Harvest Festival - 28th September 2003

Christmas Flower and Tree Festival - 6th-7th December 2003

Gig Mill Red Nose / Silly Hair Day

16th March 2003

Red Nose Day 2003 was held on 14th March, and although Gig Mill wanted to help support the worthy causes involved, in deference to the, er, more mature members of the congregation, it was felt somehow that it would be more dignified to wear silly hair rather than red noses...

Here is the evidence. Decide for yourselves !

Gig Mill Red Nosers	The Rev David Robb	Red Nose Conga
	...and other members of the Congregation...

Organ Dedication Service

5th April 2003

After over two years' fundraising to finance the purchase and transportation of our new church organ, the old system was finally retired after many years' faithful service to Gig Mill's long musical tradition. On 5th April, the new organ was dedicated in a musical service featuring the massed voices of the outstanding Gentlemen Songsters and our clearly pleased organist and Choir Master, John Walley !

The New Organ

The Gentleman Songsters

Winchcombe Methodist Church Flower Festival

31st May 2003

Gig Mill Church is very much a family, and when Rev David Robb joined us in 2001 his predecessor, Rev Janet Roe continued her calling in the old, pretty village of Winchcombe. Family members keep in touch, of course, so when Janet's church announced a flower festival in order to raise funds for the re-slating of the church roof, a group of Gig Mill members went along to support.

With a linking theme of "Best of British", Winchcombe Church Hall was host to a wide selection of intricate and beautiful floral displays, skillfully created by their talented handicraft members. Here are some photos of an enjoyable day out in Janet's delightful country village.

Gig Mill's Sunday School Anniversary

29th June 2003

This year saw rather a break from the usual Sunday School Anniversary format - rather than the traditional morning, afternoon and evening performances featuring Sunday School members' musical and spoken pieces, only the morning service centred around the children. The primary and junior school children all delighted us with their singing, recitations and acting in the morning - but the afternoon was a much more informal affair !

Gathering in the schoolroom, children, families and friends spent a fun-packed afternoon playing a variety of energetic (and frankly, silly) team games : new antics such as the Noah's Ark game, the Creation game and the legendary Fancy Dress Chocolate Eating Race were played with fierce competitiveness, alongside old Gig Mill favourites like Orange Under The Chin, Rings On The Rope and Pass The Parcel, where older GigMillers showed they still retain all of their traditional skills ! After a feast of a buffet tea and brief trips back home (for a rest), the day's Sunday School celebrations came to a conclusion with an evening of memories of anniversaries past : favourite hymns, old anniversary songs and brave attempts to remember anniversary readings ! A display of previous anniversary photos, memorabilia and the fondly remembered coloured anniversary booklets faithfully typed each year by Norma Dodd and Geoff Cartwright was a memory-jogging final touch to a thoroughly enjoyable, entertaining and unusual celebration of the Sunday School Anniversary 2003.

Canal and Riverside Walk

19th July 2003

Members of Gig Mill's congregation joined the District Chairman, Rev Peter Curry, on the 3rd day of a 6 day Canal and Riverside Walk from Wednesbury to Madeley, in memory of John Wesley's Ministry in the Black Country and as part of the John Wesley Tercentenary Celebrations. Starting at 10:00am at Whittington Bridge with a short act of worship, the party followed the canal towpaths in fine weather through Cookley and Wolverley, stopping for welcome rest and refreshments at Kidderminster Methodist Church. Off again after dinner, the dozen-strong group, gathered from various local churches, continued along the route travelled by John Wesley three hundred years before : it was suggested to Rev Peter Curry that if we were to make the same pilgrimage next century, maybe we should follow John Wesley's example even closer and go on horseback next time !

Passing Limekiln Bridge and Caldwell Hall, the tired but happy travellers arrived by 6:00pm at Stourport Methodist Church, a lovely old listed building, where a splendid tea - including strawberries and cream - awaited us in the schoolroom. A specially laid on minibus took us back to our starting point at Kinver and then we all returned home, leaving Rev Peter Curry to continue the journey with a fresh set of companions over the next three days !

Annual Church Trip - John Wesley's House and Museum, Epworth

23rd August 2003

On Saturday 23rd August, the people of Gigmill and some of their friends enjoyed their annual church outing. This year, to celebrate the Tercentenary of the birth of our founder John Wesley, we journeyed to Epworth in Lincolnshire, to enjoy a guided tour of the Rectory, the home of the Wesley family. We were delighted by the sight of John Wesley's chair - with its legs sawn off because he was such a short man - and astounded at the capabilities of the cornerstone of the Wesley family, Susanna Wesley : the way she taught her 10 surviving children for 3 hours in the morning, 3 hours in the afternoon, and still find time every day for an hour's private prayer and meditation. "Behind every great man is a great woman", they say...

From Epworth we travelled to Lincoln, where we were free to explore the city, with its steep streets and quaint shops, and, of course, the glorious cathedral, with its breathtaking stained glass windows and wonderful, peaceful atmosphere.

Harvest Festival

28th September 2003

David Robb led our Harvest Festival service, in the presence of many invited prominent local figures. Representatives from the Police Force, local MPs, health workers, publicans, child workers , teachers and the Deputy Mayor of Dudley all came at David Robb's personal invitation, to emphasise the importance of Harvest in the community.

Children and Adults all made the traditional procession down the aisle with harvest offerings of produce ; Kimberley bravely sang us an unaccompanied "Harvest Festival Samba" ; Andy and Maureen retold the story of "The Sower and the Seed" ; and Kate and Tom gave us an unusual and thought-provoking version of "The Lord's Prayer".

Christmas Flower and Tree Festival

6th-7th December 2003

"What Christmas Means To The Individual"

Many Church Members and Societies contributed beautiful displays to our successful Christmas Flower and Tree Festival Weekend, with proceeds going to the Church Renovation Fund.
Here is a photo gallery of the results of their hard work and craftsmanship !

Hark, The Herald Angels Sing - Hazel	In The Bleak Midwinter - Maureen	Glory Of Christmas - Circuit Singers
Christmas Dreams - Fiona and Lisa	The Holly And The Ivy - Irene	Good King Wenceslas - Beattie
Hark, The Herald Angels Sing - Brenda	Going Home For Christmas - Sunfield School	One Snowy Night - Busy Bees Playschool
Christingle - Sunday School	Santa's Mishap John	I Saw Three Ships - Peggy
Chrismon Tree	Christmas Fare - Delia	Decoration by Andrew, Florist of Clifton Street
Santa's Story - Hazel	Angels From The Realms Of Glory - Melva	See, Amid The Winter's Snow - Delia
Carol Singers - Doreen	The Gift - Roy and Stella	The Holly And The Ivy - Joan and Maureen