Week beginning December 9th 2002

Wonderful Windows : There are many very attractive shop windows in Hedon this Christmas and the Mayor and Mayoress of Hedon had a most difficult task when they set out to judge the competition for the best decorated one. Thirteen shopkeepers entered the competition and from the start, the judges decided to look at the windows in the daytime and also after dark. The variety of shops added to the interest of the competition - but how to choose? Estate agents, charity shops, florist, fish, optician, wine merchant, bazaar - Cllr. Allen Marshall and his wife took a certificate to each entrant before any decision was made! After two visits round the town the points were added. The first prize was awarded to the Dove House shop in Souttergate by a very narrow margin from the two joint second prize winners, Hedon Fisheries in St. Augustine's Gate and Hedon Florists in the Market Place. The winners were presented with a framed certificate and chocolates by the Mayor, who thanked all the entrants for participating in the event and said he hoped there would be even more competitors joining in next year.

Christmas Lights in Hedon : Friday saw a visible start to Christmas season in the centre of Hedon with the ceremonial switching on of the Christmas lights in St. Augustine's Gate, Market Place and Souttergate. Lighted Christmas trees now adorn almost every shop front, and there is a bigger tree in the Market Place for all to see. The celebrations accompanying the lighting-up ceremony, conducted by the Mayor of Hedon, Cllr. Allen Marshall, extended throughout the town centre, with a steam organ providing music for the holiday mood and a wide variety of stalls lining the streets and market place, selling everything from Christmas decorations to mulled wine! The staff of many of the shops, which stayed open late for the occasion, were in fancy dress and a holiday atmosphere prevailed throughout the town. (Photos accompanying this item can be seen here.)

Hedon W.I. talk : The next meeting of the Hedon Women's Institute will be held in the Allison Hall, St. Augustine's Gate, on Monday December 9th starting at 7.30 p.m. The speaker will be Mrs. Ann Atkin who will entertain members with tales of her days as one of the Television Toppers, those leggy lovelies who danced their way across our television screens on the much-loved "Black And White Minstrel Show" in the sixties and seventies. The competition will be for a Theatre Programme, and members are asked to remember to take their Christmas Gifts to this meeting.

Carols in Paull : There will be a community carol singing and social evening in Paull Village Hall on Saturday, December 14th 2002 starting at 7 p.m. Entrance will cost 50p and this will include refreshments in the form of tea or coffee and of course mince pies. (There will be an alternative for those of you who don't like mice pies!) There will also be a Tombola and a raffle, which will be drawn on the night, and the invitation to come along and join in this village event is extended to all.

Church Services for Hedon, Paull and Preston : please note - these are for NEXT Sunday, December 15th
Hedon: St. Augustine's Parish Church, Market Hill : Holy Communion service at 9.30 a.m.
Hedon Methodist Church, Church Lane : Holy Communion Service at 9.30 a.m., All Age Worship at 10.30 a.m., Evening Service at 6.30 p.m.
St. Joseph and St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, Baxtergate, Hedon : Daily Mass times : Sunday 10.30 a.m; Monday 9.15 a.m; Tuesday 9.15 a.m; Wednesday 7.30 p.m; Thursday 9.15 a.m; Friday 7.30 p.m; Saturday 6 p.m.
Hedon Pentecostal Church meets every Sunday at 10.30 a.m. in the Jubilee Room of the Alexandra Hall, St. Augustine's Gate; a Sunday School is also held at 10.30 a.m. every Sunday.
Paull : St. Andrew's Church : Holy Communion at 11 a.m.
Paull Methodist Church, Main Street : no service this week - services on alternate Sunday afternoons at 3 p.m.
Preston : All Saint's Parish Church : Christingle Service at 4 p.m.
Preston Methodist Church : Holy Communion at 10.30 a.m.

Christingles : I have had a few puzzled looks when I tell people about the coming Christingle services in the local churches. "What is a Christingle?" you may ask. A growing number of churches hold Christingle services at or around Christmas. These services derive from a Moravian custom of distributing lighted candles to children on Christmas Eve : the Christingle itself is an orange, decorated with a red ribbon, sweets and nuts, in which is placed a small candle. The orange represents the world, the ribbon Christ's blood, the sweets and nuts the fruits of the earth and the candle, the Light of the World. Christingle services have become increasingly popular since they became associated with The Children's Society in 1968. It is estimated that over a million children take part in these candlelit services across the country each year, and they are a lovely way to celebrate Christmas for all the family.

A bridge so far…… Regular readers of my column will know how enthralled I am by the progress of the roadworks on Hedon Road. The rapid appearance of huge roundabouts, popping up overnight like mushrooms, has been most impressive, and the swift "swapping" of the bridges near Delhi Street was a remarkable feat of engineering, although I do miss the nostalgic message of "Fenner's - simply streets ahead" which used to grace the old bridge. But by far the most awe-inspiring construction taking place has to be the flyover taking shape astride the Saltend roundabout and Paull Road. It looks as if it's going to be the biggest flyover for miles around, and is intended to ease the journey into Hull for commuters from Hedon and the villages further east. We folk who live in Paull haven't quite decided yet whether it will be any benefit to us at all - will we still have to wait patiently at the roundabout until some kind soul flashes his (or more often, her) headlights to signal that we may ease into the flow of traffic, or are we really going to have a trouble-free journey too? Still, it is progress, and must surely be welcomed. Now, if only it wasn't for those cones…….