Sheldon Jottings for June 2019

We were saddened to hear that Doris Fletcher passed away on 27th April at Derby Hospital, aged 83. Her funeral service, which was well attended by family and friends, was held in Sheldon Church on Tuesday 14th May and led by Rev. Alan Griggs.  Born in Millers Dale in 1936, Doris moved with her family to Flagg where she went to primary school and then on to secondary school in Buxton. She met Ian in 1957 and they married in 1964, settling in Sheldon. Ian always wanted to farm and Doris lived on her parents’ farm and always enjoyed helping in the work there. So it was no surprise when the couple moved in 1975 into the house which they had built on Johnson Lane, where they were to farm for the rest of their lives.

They had 2 children, Peter and Christine, to whom she was a wonderful mother. When Peter and Sarah’s daughter was born in 2012 Doris was overjoyed and found great happiness in being a grandmother. Doris loved farming and as Rev. Griggs stated ‘farming defined her life’. She was buried next to Ian in the churchyard in Sheldon. Doris will be sorely missed and our thoughts are with her family and those who were close to her.

The Parish Annual General Meeting was held on 16th April and we were delighted when Wendy was re-elected unanimously to continue her excellent work as Chair and Joe was re-elected as our Secretary.  Congratulation to them both. They make a very good combination and have the full support of the village. They have worked hard on our behalf over the last 12 months and for that they have our heartfelt thanks. The Chairs of all our committees remain the same and if you are not a member of one but would like to help, please have a word with Wendy or Joe. Our grateful thanks go to the committees and especially their Chairs for the work they do. The next Parish Meeting is on June 24th.

May 5th saw our second Cream Tea Sunday of the season – and what a Day it was! This was also the afternoon of the Yard Sale when 9 households had a bric-a-brac sale at their garden gates and stretching from the top of the village to the bottom. The weather was dry but with a very chill wind but that did not deter customers coming to the village which was filled with people. The stallholders reported a steady trade as objects from model cars to bicycles went up for sale. Well done to all who took part in what could well be an annual event.

As for the Cream Teas – they were a roaring success raising £425 for Hall funds. So many people were attracted to the village and nipped into the warmth of the hall for a cream tea, that all the scones were sold with an hour and a half to go!  It was rumoured that Colin was dispatched to the supermarket for more and that frantic cooking took place. Meanwhile some of us enjoyed a delicious cake and cream with our cup of tea! Well done and thanks to all those involved and to Lindsey for all her hard work organising.

The Book Club continues to prosper. Thank you to Jenny for hosting the last meeting when the group discussed  ‘The hen who dreamed she could fly’ by Sun-Mi Hwang. As always this was a lovely meeting enjoyed by all. The new book is  ‘After you’ve gone’ by Maggie O’Farrell which will be discussed at Angie’s on Tuesday 11th June. Sure to be another great evening – do come along.

Another new event taking place in Sheldon is the first of what we hope will be a succession of Social Evenings which will take place in the village hall on Friday 7th June starting at 7pm. This will be a Pie and Peas/Quiz Night organised by Julia H and Angie. We understand that places are limited so if you haven’t booked your place or need more details please contact them. We hope you will come and support this initiative and have a great fun evening with friends and neighbours.

It is good to see Louise up and around again after her illness when she was struck low by pneumonia and spent time in hospital. She is recovering well and we send her our love and best wishes.

There was much lively fun on Sunday 12th May at the village hall as Jenny and Alan celebrated a double event. Their grandchild Joseph, son of Adam and Fiona, was enjoying his first birthday and Joel and Natalie and proud grandparents were also celebrating the birth of Annie Rose who was just 2 weeks old. Lovely events in which the whole family joined on a wonderful Sunday under the cherry blossom.  Best wishes to all.

One final thing to celebrate here in Sheldon is the return of the swallows and house martins, particularly around Top Farm – more than we have seen for a few years. But sadly there are far fewer further down the village.

The winner of the Church Draw this month was Tracy Gregory with number 70. Congratulations!  Kath has reminded us that it is now time to sign up for next year’s Draw (2019-2020) so see Kath to take part before all the slots are taken.

DIARY DATES

Friday 7th June – Pie and Peas/Quiz night in the village hall at 7.00pm

Tuesday 11th June – Book Club at Angie’s at 7.30pm

Monday 24th June – Parish Meeting in the village hall at 7.30pm