Parish of Myland | St. Michael's Church

	New Toilet in Church Right at the start of 2007, but only 153 years after the Church was built, a toilet was installed in Church. That's important to us, because it makes the Church accessible for use by all sectors of the community.
	Annual Parochial Church Meeting: Reports We start by publishing what happened in 2006 - the Reports which were compiled by leaders of our various Groups, as presented to our Annual Meeting.
	Happy Easter! 8th April was Easter Day, and we celebrated in style. The great and glorious day remembering our Lord's resurrection was the culmination of a very busy week - read all about it!
	Revd Geoff Catchpole retires We were all extremely sad to see our Rector, Revd Geoff Catchpole, retire on grounds of ill-health; yet the Farewell Service on 22nd April was truly a celebration of his achievements in ministry, here and further afield. We have a report & photographs.
	Churchyard Vandalism In May, a large number of graves in our Churchyard were vandalised: the event featured in the local press and TV, and served to bring the community even closer together. But what a way to achieve that!
	New Primary School for Myland Also in May, we heard that a long-awaited new Primary School had been finally approved. It had been mooted that this could be a Church of England School, but we are as pleased as the Community that it will be a Community School. Here's what we said at the time...
	Open-Air Service The June Family service was the occasion of our annual open-Air service - the weather was fairly warm, the friendship and fellowship was very warm, and the barbecue was very hot indeed!
	Barbecue & Swim at Myland Church House 2007's summer will not be remembered for its hot weather! However, one event we will remember is the barbecue & swim event held at Myland Church House in August. It raised funds for the new kitchenette, too - whether the fundraising was successful, will become clear as you read on!
	John Chandler's Ordination 1st July was a memorable day for John and St. Michael's, when John was ordained Deacon in Chelmsford Cathedral. After the service, a reception was held in the Halls, and it was good to see so many people welcome John to the ordained ministry - though he's not new to Myland!
	We welcome a new neighbour At the start of the new academic year, a new neighbour moved in across the road from the Church and Halls - the Lorraine George School of Dancing and Performing Arts. Lorraine has already become a good friend, and we look forward to opportunities to work together in the years ahead.
	Annual Pets Service September was the occasion of our annual Pets Service, when all went according to plan - some pets remained alert, whilst some dozed; some were vocal.... a bit like their human counterparts! And they had their own Bible reading, too!
	"Senior Moments" Bus Tour Later that month, "Senior Moments", our group for the over 60's, commandeered the Colchester Open-Top Bus Tour. You'd think they'd know it all - but everyone had a great time, as the photos confirm!
	Rolling Worship September was one of those months that contained 5 Sundays - so, on the fifth Sunday, we continued our pattern of services by holding "Rolling Worship" - which lasts all morning. Do take a look, to see what we did on this occasion...
	stmixkids.com In October, we began a brand new initiative - a Saturday Club, instead of a Sunday School, for children aged 5 to 11. As the name suggests, it has its own website - and you're only a click away. See the site by clicking here or on the left.
	Harvest 2007 This year's Harvest celebrations were hugely successful - whichever way they are measured! After a full Church for the Thanksgiving service, when we presented a large quantity of produce and gifts, we enjoyed a feast of "ploughman's & puds" - and then all the goods went to benefit local residents, homes, St. Helena Hospice and the YMCA.
	Men's Night Out Another innovation in 2007 was the Men's Night Out - not a club, just a time when men can get together and have a social evening. We went bowling in the summer, and then had a meal at the Half-Butt in October. We hope more will follow - but will our ladies follow suit?
	Ladies Night Yes, of course they did! Our ladies have big plans for the future, and they began with a social evening at Myland Church House, where lots of suggestions were made about what to do next.
	Ray Gibbs appointed new Rector It was a happy day in St. Michael's when the announcement was made that Revd Ray Gibbs is to be the new Rector of Myland. After a long and thorough process, Ray emerged as the preferred candidate and the right man for the job! His service of Licensing is to be on Monday, 3rd March 2008.
	New Kitchenette in Church Here was another step forward in our plans for the Church - the installation of a kitchenette, just in time for the busy Christmas season. And what a stylish installation it is, as the photographs show....
	String of Pearls Christmas festivities at St. Michael's were given a wonderful boost on Saturday 1st December, with a concert by Myland's local ladies singing group "String of Pearls", in a varied programme of seasonal songs.
	Christmas 2007 What an amazing Christmas! The Church was full on numerous occasions, for Carol Services, Nativity Plays, concerts and many other services and events. And around 800 people attended Church services in the 48 hours from Sunday 23rd December to Christmas Day! We have four pages of pictures and story.