July saw our coffee morning supporting rare blood cancers. MPD Voice is the charity that raises funds to research into these rare disorders. Myeloproliferative disorders (also called myeloproliferative neoplasms) are a spectrum of disorders, ranging from mild to more aggressive conditions. There are three main types of MPDs called essential thrombocythaemia, polycythaemia vera and myelofibrosis. MPDs are rare: people with MPDs number just one in 100,000. And they can strike people of any age, even children. The three MPDs are distinct diseases but they have one feature in common – they affect the levels of blood cells produced in our bodies.

A good turn out helped by the nice weather saw £130 raised and with further donations a total of £200 will be sent of to help the work of  the MPD charity.

To visit the MPDVoice website click the picture link shown here.

After 3 years with us, Rev. Derek Shaw is retiring. We shall miss him greatly but hope he will continue to join us sometimes at coffee mornings and Bible Study. In September we welcome Rev. Mike Crockett to be our new minister. Mike and his wife hail from South Africa and also minister at Solihull. We look forward to working with them.

The coffee morning in June for Huntingdons raised £105. On July 5th we shall be collecting for MPD (Rare Blood Cancers), August 2nd it’s the turn of Host UK and then on September 6th it’s the Methodist Relief and Development Fund. To find out more about these charities visit our web site www.whitacre.co.uk

You will also find there details of the events that take place weekly in the Church hall. Instead of Keep Fit on Thursday evenings at 6.00pm the class has become Pilates. Gentle exercise can be taken however on Tuesday  afternoons at 1.45pm  for an hour, with Jo Johnson. Yoga could do with some more members on Monday evenings at 7.00p.m.till 8.30p.m. Use it or lose it, I am told!

Despite the recession, our Christian Aid collection throughout Nether Whitacre, OverWhitacre, Marston and Lea Marston was still an improvement over last year. We received £1518, thanks to the generosity of the villagers and the diligence of 30 collectors who visited nearly every household. This money will be put to good use amongst the world’s poorest people.

Our Pudding Night will be upon us. This event takes place on Sat. 7thJuly and tickets cost £6. You can sample a variety of delicious desserts from 7.00-9.00 in the Church Hall.

Activities such as Bible Study, continue during the Summer holidays. Enjoy yours!