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TOWER CAPTAINS ANNUAL REPORT for year 2006/7
As always on these occasions I wish to record the thanks of all our ringers to Phil Dunn our ever-patient Ringing Master for his efforts to make decent ringers of us, and to my Deputy, Jan Cornfoot for her support at practices, competitions and outings. There is always a good friendly atmosphere at our meetings.
Latterly this year we have enjoyed an influx of learners, including some youngsters, which is most welcome and adds to our potential for continuing the ringing traditions of St Barnabas. Attendance on practice nights has been variable numerically, as has availability of ringers for Sunday Service ringing. We continue to be grateful to friends from All Saints to augment us. We have not missed a Sunday but a few practices have had to be called off. This appears to be a normal trend around the towers.
Apart from Sundays , we have this year rung for 5 Weddings and hosted 5 visiting bands, one from Guildford Cathedral no less.. In April we rang to join the celebrations for Her Majesty’s 80th Birthday; went on our own Tower outing around the Aynho area on a warm sunny day visiting some lovely country churches, including one in Deddington whose clock’s huge pendulum swung inside the ringing chamber. Safely behind a wooden casement, I add..
Of especial note was that we entered the Tower into the Oxford Guild Maintenance Award scheme and astonished ourselves by gaining a Silver Award on our first attempt. A few bits of improvement here and there and we should gain the Gold this year. The Silver Certificate hangs proudly on the ringing chamber wall.
June saw the Tower open for the Summer Fair visitors ; and during this month we actually beat high-flyers Aylesbury to win the Branch Striking Competition. The handsome trophy – an immaculately-carved wooden bell in its glass case - is in our care once more.
As 2006 was the 125th Anniversary of the Oxford Diocesan Guild of Bellringers, in July a tour of Bell towers in Oxford was specially arranged, giving an opportunity to ring – albeit only a short one – some bells that are not normally available to other than their College bands. We walked miles – Janet Miller measured nine on her pedometer - but it was a lovely days weather, adding picnicking at a sunny Oxford city roadside to the experience.
Our Branch outing this year was into Northamptonshire , centering around Rushden and ending at the very ancient church at Brixworth. Everyone seemed pleased with the arrangements and towers visited , which was a great comfort to both Davids, Body and Darvill, who organised it. Some good ringing and some challenging .
Thanks to winning the Branch competition we represented the Branch in the Guild competition at Sonning in October, and came 6th against some very strong bands.
This proved a very busy month which included competing in the inter-Branch Orchard Cup at Great Kimble.
In December our major effort was to organise and build our entry into St Bs Christmas Tree Festival. Janice Robinson again produced the creative ideas with help of husband Ted and we manufactured and decorated another splendid creation to add to the large display in the Nave. Lack of available ringers – holidays you know –rather hampered our Festive ringing , but we missed only the New Year and enjoyed watching other people’s fireworks instead.
The start of 2007 sees us looking forward to the Branch Christmas dinner, this year at the Queens Head in Wing in January - to avoid the deja-vu of yet another Christmas Dinner in December.
Heather Darvill (tel: 371836)
St Barnabas' Bellringers spent the new year in the Church Tower to ring in the New Year - especially significant as it marks the beginning of what Christians believe is the real millennium. This years ringing was accompanied by several spectaculer fireworks displays around the Parish , and once ringing was finished the Ringers enjoyed a glass of mulled wine and watched the fireworks from the vantage point of the Tower windows. To see a larger version of the Photos below, click on them (use your browser BACK button to return)
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