St Luke's Church Eccleshill - Articles from "The Link"

A visitor from Lexington

Mrs Sharon Peters visited us for our new bishop's Welcome Service, and stayed with Tony and Ruth Wood for five nights. She is a member of the R E Lee Memorial Church in Lexington (Diocese of West Virginia), which is twinned with St Luke's as part of the twinning of the two dioceses, and she also coordinates the diocesan prayer diary for her home diocese. Below are two articles: one of her account of her visit (printed in "Cross & Crown", the R E Lee parish magazine) and one of Tony Wood's account (printed in our magazine). (Photo: Sharon Peters and Tony Wood)

My visit to St. Luke's Eccleshill

What a special opportunity I just experienced. I have been praying for St Luke's for many years and preparing the diocesan prayer diary for the past several years. The diocese and the Gadsden Committee helped fund my trip to Bradford for the Welcome Service for the Right Reverend David James the ninth Bishop of Bradford. He chose not to have a ceremony of enthronement but rather a service of welcome to emphasize the servant nature of his office. It was a beautiful, moving service with hundreds of clergy, bishops, and civic leaders processing into The Cathedral Church of St Peter Bradford.

At the Sunday morning service at St Luke's, The Rev. Dr. John Hartley provided his congregation with a few of the readings and oaths that Bishop David professed on Saturday. It was a special feeling to sit in the congregation at St Luke's Eccleshill and hear the intercessory prayers for R. E. Lee Church. They welcomed me very warmly and I met many folks that had traveled to Lexington years ago for the exchanges.

We really need to arrange another exchange trip to Eccleshill in the near future. My wonderful host family was Ruth & Tony Wood, who treated me like a queen (cup of hot tea brought upstairs to my bedroom each morning!) and delicious meals with fabulous desserts! Ruth invited me to attend the Mothers' Union meeting on Monday night, which included Holy Communion. I also enjoyed the Coffee Hour Saturday morning (sort of a mini bazaar held each month)

Eccleshill is a beautiful town and I have a special place in my heart for St Luke's, Ruth & Tony Wood and John Hartley and his family. They wanted to know what they could do to be more effective with the companion link. They send us their newsletter, The Link, and we send the Cross & Crown to them. It is available for anyone to read to find out what St Luke's is doing each month, I urge you to read it.

My entire trip home was spent with Bishop Neff Powell and it was a grand time getting to know him better. Bishop Powell and I also had lunch with the Bishop of Bradford, his wife Gill, and Chris Wright on Monday. I felt really blessed to have this wonderful opportunity. Thank you!

Sharon Peters

Our visitor from Lexington

We were delighted to welcome Sharon from RE Lee Church, Lexington to our home, as she was part of the official party from the Diocese of South West Virginia and arrived on Friday 3rd January.

On Saturday morning, after a good night's sleep, Sharon enjoyed helping Ruth sell Birthday Cards on her stall at the monthly Coffee Morning. This gave Sharon a good chance to meet many of us for the first time. In the afternoon, Sharon as one of the official guests, attended the Service of Welcome in Bradford Cathedral for the Rt. Rev. David James, 9th Bishop of Bradford. Later she took part in a discussion group at St.Paul's Church, Shipley on the importance of keeping and strengthening the links between dioceses in America, Sudan, Germany and England. In the evening, Jack and Mavis Lightfoot came round and brought lots of photos in albums of their many visits to Lexington, and we all wallowed in nostalgia getting up to date with the news of our friends in Lexington.

On Sunday morning, Sharon came to the joint service and took part in a question and answer session with John on the chancel steps. Sharon also told us about her work in the church preparing the annual diocese Prayer Calendar Booklet and the life of the RE Lee Church. For lunch we went to the Black Bull Hotel in Haworth, going the scenic route via Cullingworth, having our meal in the dining room by the big open coal fire where Branwell Bronte used to sit and drink his ale. Afterwards we visited the parish church and showed Sharon the American Window later exploring the village with its many quaint shops and bought presents and souvenirs. After our evening meal we all relaxed.

On Monday morning Ruth and Sharon started to take down our Christmas decorations, while Tony went to church to help take down the Christmas tree and packing away the decorations for another year. Sharon's next visit was to Bishopcroft for lunch with the Bishop and other guests. Afterwards they were taken to the Diocesan Office for discussions and meetings. Arriving back at our home, Sharon met our two friends from Norfolk, Alan and Betty Pybus, who had just arrived to stay for a few days with us. Then Ruth and Sharon were off to St. Luke's for the Mothers' Union AGM with John taking Communion at the Admission Service.

Tuesday being a free day, we all decided to do some shopping in the morning and we were invited to our daughter Angela's home for lunch and Sharon met Dave her husband. After lunch we went to Ilkley via Pool Bank and Otley to let Sharon see a bit of our lovely countryside. First stop in Ilkley was photo-shoot on the moors near 'Cow and Calf Rocks', then down into the town and guess what, more shopping. Before leaving Ilkley, Sharon had to buy an extra holdall to take her additional purchases back to Lexington. We hope her husband Philip approved. John popped in for a chat in the evening and a final farewell.

On Wednesday morning, we were up by 6.30 am as Sharon was going by car with Malcom Halliday and the Bishop of SW Virginia to catch their plane from Manchester Airport - arriving with 5 minutes to spare to book in for their flight home! We have since received an e-mail from Sharon to say she arrived home safely despite the rush this end to catch their plane.

Whilst it had been a hectic few days, we thoroughly enjoyed having Sharon with us and being able to help to keep the Link alive between our two parishes.

Tony and Ruth Wood

	*St Luke's Church, Eccleshill - The Link* magazine** The Link is published monthly at 40p (Senior Citizens 35p), and we deliver free within the parish and post copies (at the reader's expense) to those who request it. Please contact us if you would like a free copy for a trial period. February 2003, Pages 9-10.
Home Page. Index of articles. In this issue: (February 2003) Play in Zimbabwe? Hymn, Us & Methodists, Roof & bibles, Sharon Peters.	A visitor from Lexington Mrs Sharon Peters visited us for our new bishop's Welcome Service, and stayed with Tony and Ruth Wood for five nights. She is a member of the R E Lee Memorial Church in Lexington (Diocese of West Virginia), which is twinned with St Luke's as part of the twinning of the two dioceses, and she also coordinates the diocesan prayer diary for her home diocese. Below are two articles: one of her account of her visit (printed in "Cross & Crown", the R E Lee parish magazine) and one of Tony Wood's account (printed in our magazine). (Photo: Sharon Peters and Tony Wood) My visit to St. Luke's Eccleshill What a special opportunity I just experienced. I have been praying for St Luke's for many years and preparing the diocesan prayer diary for the past several years. The diocese and the Gadsden Committee helped fund my trip to Bradford for the Welcome Service for the Right Reverend David James the ninth Bishop of Bradford. He chose not to have a ceremony of enthronement but rather a service of welcome to emphasize the servant nature of his office. It was a beautiful, moving service with hundreds of clergy, bishops, and civic leaders processing into The Cathedral Church of St Peter Bradford. At the Sunday morning service at St Luke's, The Rev. Dr. John Hartley provided his congregation with a few of the readings and oaths that Bishop David professed on Saturday. It was a special feeling to sit in the congregation at St Luke's Eccleshill and hear the intercessory prayers for R. E. Lee Church. They welcomed me very warmly and I met many folks that had traveled to Lexington years ago for the exchanges. We really need to arrange another exchange trip to Eccleshill in the near future. My wonderful host family was Ruth & Tony Wood, who treated me like a queen (cup of hot tea brought upstairs to my bedroom each morning!) and delicious meals with fabulous desserts! Ruth invited me to attend the Mothers' Union meeting on Monday night, which included Holy Communion. I also enjoyed the Coffee Hour Saturday morning (sort of a mini bazaar held each month) Eccleshill is a beautiful town and I have a special place in my heart for St Luke's, Ruth & Tony Wood and John Hartley and his family. They wanted to know what they could do to be more effective with the companion link. They send us their newsletter, The Link, and we send the Cross & Crown to them. It is available for anyone to read to find out what St Luke's is doing each month, I urge you to read it. My entire trip home was spent with Bishop Neff Powell and it was a grand time getting to know him better. Bishop Powell and I also had lunch with the Bishop of Bradford, his wife Gill, and Chris Wright on Monday. I felt really blessed to have this wonderful opportunity. Thank you! Sharon Peters Our visitor from Lexington We were delighted to welcome Sharon from RE Lee Church, Lexington to our home, as she was part of the official party from the Diocese of South West Virginia and arrived on Friday 3rd January. On Saturday morning, after a good night's sleep, Sharon enjoyed helping Ruth sell Birthday Cards on her stall at the monthly Coffee Morning. This gave Sharon a good chance to meet many of us for the first time. In the afternoon, Sharon as one of the official guests, attended the Service of Welcome in Bradford Cathedral for the Rt. Rev. David James, 9th Bishop of Bradford. Later she took part in a discussion group at St.Paul's Church, Shipley on the importance of keeping and strengthening the links between dioceses in America, Sudan, Germany and England. In the evening, Jack and Mavis Lightfoot came round and brought lots of photos in albums of their many visits to Lexington, and we all wallowed in nostalgia getting up to date with the news of our friends in Lexington. On Sunday morning, Sharon came to the joint service and took part in a question and answer session with John on the chancel steps. Sharon also told us about her work in the church preparing the annual diocese Prayer Calendar Booklet and the life of the RE Lee Church. For lunch we went to the Black Bull Hotel in Haworth, going the scenic route via Cullingworth, having our meal in the dining room by the big open coal fire where Branwell Bronte used to sit and drink his ale. Afterwards we visited the parish church and showed Sharon the American Window later exploring the village with its many quaint shops and bought presents and souvenirs. After our evening meal we all relaxed. On Monday morning Ruth and Sharon started to take down our Christmas decorations, while Tony went to church to help take down the Christmas tree and packing away the decorations for another year. Sharon's next visit was to Bishopcroft for lunch with the Bishop and other guests. Afterwards they were taken to the Diocesan Office for discussions and meetings. Arriving back at our home, Sharon met our two friends from Norfolk, Alan and Betty Pybus, who had just arrived to stay for a few days with us. Then Ruth and Sharon were off to St. Luke's for the Mothers' Union AGM with John taking Communion at the Admission Service. Tuesday being a free day, we all decided to do some shopping in the morning and we were invited to our daughter Angela's home for lunch and Sharon met Dave her husband. After lunch we went to Ilkley via Pool Bank and Otley to let Sharon see a bit of our lovely countryside. First stop in Ilkley was photo-shoot on the moors near 'Cow and Calf Rocks', then down into the town and guess what, more shopping. Before leaving Ilkley, Sharon had to buy an extra holdall to take her additional purchases back to Lexington. We hope her husband Philip approved. John popped in for a chat in the evening and a final farewell. On Wednesday morning, we were up by 6.30 am as Sharon was going by car with Malcom Halliday and the Bishop of SW Virginia to catch their plane from Manchester Airport - arriving with 5 minutes to spare to book in for their flight home! We have since received an e-mail from Sharon to say she arrived home safely despite the rush this end to catch their plane. Whilst it had been a hectic few days, we thoroughly enjoyed having Sharon with us and being able to help to keep the Link alive between our two parishes. Tony and Ruth Wood
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