1st January 2022
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Dialstone Lane Notices 1st January 2022Offerton ChurchI am delighted and relieved to say that after more than five years of trying, since it closed in October 2016, the site and buildings of the former Offerton Church have finally been sold to a housing developer. Two previous potential purchasers pulled out after putting a lot of effort into realising their plans for the site. The site’s location on the busy Marple Road, the lack of vehicular access to the site (except for a ramp for wheelchairs and mobility scooters) and the lack of off-street parking made finding an alternative use for the building and site difficult. Designated a building of local historic and architectural significance by Stockport Council, the chapel, dating from 1887, presented further challenges but also the potential to retain local heritage, an opportunity that I know the late Ray Preston, a member of the congregation at Offerton Church, would have strongly supported, and I suspect others in the former congregation. The developer’s plans for the site realise that potential, retaining the chapel and knocking down the 1960’s extensions to the rear. The chapel will be converted into small apartments on two floors and a new extension of similar broad design will be built behind the chapel to provide additional apartments. The developer tells me that he hopes to commence work on the site in January and I for one will be very interested to watch the project come to fruition. Our thanks go to Dave for his hard work over the past years in looking after the property and dealing with the many problems faced. Also thanks to Andy Stoker for his help at times. Ed With SympathyOur sympathies go to Susan, Terry, Jonathan, David and families on the death, shortly before Christmas, of Susan’s Father, Donald Riding. Our thoughts and prayers go to all the family who will miss him very much, Members who saw him at various church events will miss his cheery smile. Room BookingsAs many of you will know, Sue J is incapacitated at the moment and unable to deal with Room Bookings, which she has done wonderfully for quite some time. Any changes to regular bookings should be made to Pat on 0161 456 5314 for the foreseeable future. ThanksTerry and I would like to express our gratitude and thanks for all the prayers, messages of support, cards and flowers we received after my dad passed away last month. It really helped us get through a very sad time, knowing that we are part of such a loving church family. Many thanks. Diane would like to thank the church for the beautiful flowers and the birthday cards. Also thanks to Catriona for a lovely day at Gorton Monastery. Thank you to all at church for the delicious biscuits as a Christmas Gift. This was very unexpected but gratefully received. It was kind of you to think of us. We would also like to thank friends for cards and gifts. I would like to say thank you for the flowers from Church, the cards and phone calls. All your concern means so much to me. Thank you too to May from all at Dialstone Lane for all she has done for so many years. We are pleased to say that Debbie Wells has offered to take on the role of organising the Door Welcomers Rota in future. I would like to say "thank you" to the fellowship of Dialstone Lane for the Christmas cards and presents. Although I cannot get to the church services, I am kept informed by the newsletters delivered to me by Gill, also phone calls, which make me feel part of the church family. Outdoor Carol Service – 12th DecemberA Big Thank You to Rev Cathy and all our Musicians – Margaret, Anita and Barry - chief Fire Raiser, Dave, for minding the fire pit and all those who erected the gazebo, set up the seating and provided refreshments. We had a good turnout for our new venture and the weather was kind until we actually started the service of readings and carols. But we’ve had many positive comments and will certainly include this in our Christmas repertoire in future. Letter about Church Services during JanuaryMany of you will already have received this letter by email, but I thought it was also worth including in the January newsletter, as a further reminder of Dialstone Lane’s Guidelines to keep us all safe in Church. Dear Friends, The Leadership Team has been discussing whether we hold the services for the next few weeks in Church, so we can meet in person, or over Zoom. We know how disappointing it was to cancel our Carol Service and Christmas Day Service at short notice. We have concluded that so long as there is no change in Government or Church guidance and everyone plays their part by sticking with the guidelines outlined below, we should be able to meet safely in person at Church. The guidelines have been updated a little since we first returned to church, as our knowledge of Covid has progressed. So please take the time to read them. We would remind you that this is in the context of huge growth in the numbers of people diagnosed with Covid throughout the country and in Stockport in particular, the Zoe study estimate that numbers with an active infection have grown by 985 in the last week to 6954. A few weeks ago, this number was in the low hundreds. So, we must proceed with caution. We will also be reviewing the situation regularly.
If you decide to stay at home this coming Sunday, 2nd January, you might be interested in: TV BBC1 1.15 Songs of Praise Zoom If anyone would like to join a Zoom service at a different church, please contact Catriona or Andy and we can provide details of some options With best wishes for a Happy, Healthy and Peaceful 2022! From the Leadership Team New Year Challenge – we need Volunteers for Roles in Church.This is that time of the year when we are more likely to have time to look back over the past year and think about what is to come. It’s a time for New Year Resolutions. We’d be so grateful if this led you to think about how you might help the Church. We need more Stewards, Welcomers, people prepared to help on the audio-visual presentations. At present much of this work devolves on a very few people and it has meant that other things, like restarting our Sunday School, have remained on the back burner. Please ask any of the stewards – Susan Conlon, Stewart Blackledge, Eric Osborn, Andy and Catriona Stoker - about what is involved, if you feel that you could take a part in any of this work – or offer assistance elsewhere. Future DatesWorship Consultation Catriona is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Join Zoom Meeting One tap mobile +442080806591,,87218712129#,,,,*145399# United Kingdom Dial by your location 0208 080 6591 United Kingdom 0208 080 6592 United Kingdom 0330 088 5830 United Kingdom 0131 460 1196 United Kingdom 0203 481 5237 United Kingdom 0203 481 5240 United Kingdom 0203 901 7895 United Kingdom Meeting ID: 872 1871 2129 Passcode: 145399 Afternoon Quiz and Hot Pot, 3.30pm Saturday 19th February You are invited to an afternoon quiz (kindly produced by Andrew Mason) followed by Hot Pot, Apple Pie and cream, Tea or Coffee. Linda N 4 SeasonsThere will be no 4 Seasons meeting in January and February 3rd will be led by Ruth A Letter from St. George’sDear Friends, This year we have created a virtual festival which includes all the trees in the festival as we know that some people don't yet feel confident about coming out or going into potentially crowded places. So please feel free to pass on the details of how to watch it. The Festival is on our church FaceBook page so click on the following link and it should take you there even if you don't have FaceBook installed. https://www.facebook.com/stgeorgeschurchstockport/videos/602873874131648 I hope you all have a happy and safe Christmas. Best wishes Hazel – (who organises the Tree Festival each year)
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