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0300 111 0101 from 9am to midnight everyday

vicar Rev Andy Saville The Vicarage, The Broadway, Laleham TW18 1SB 01784 455 524 andy.saville@allsaintslaleham.org.uk

associate minister Rev Ian C. Smailes 211 Thames Side, Laleham TW18 1UF 01784 461 195

curate Rev Chris Conn 246 Worple Road, Staines, TW18 1HB chris.conn@allsaintslaleham.org.uk

church office: administrator Mary Hunt mary.hunt@allsaintslaleham.org.uk administrator/pa Claire Welham office@allsaintslaleham.org.uk (Mon/Wed/Fri 9.30am–12.30pm 01784 441 160)

churchwardens Alastair Duncan Vaughan Smith

parish website www.allsaintslaleham.org.uk

editor Rev Andy Saville

www.allsaintslaleham.org.uk Parish Newsletter September – October 2016

Parish NewsletterSEP – OCT 2016 // FREE

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F R O M D R U G A D D I C T T O

daughter of the KingFormer Page 3 girl Susie

Flashman Jarvis tells her story of leaving behind the worlds of modelling and drugs.

In June All Saints’ welcomed a former Page 3 model to share her remarkable story. Here is a brief summary in her own words, from a longer version published by Premier Christianity. If you want the full story, her autobiography is called ‘Potholes and Belly-flops’.

“I was an angry child. I grew up in a Christian home, but my father was an aggressive man. I was quite disrespectful of him; he and I would fight together.

I went to church as a youngster and was baptised voluntarily at the age of 17. I had head knowledge of God, but no relationship with him.

As a teenager I was quite lary. I was in the top class at school but I messed about. I began to play around with drugs as a bored, middle-class schoolkid.

I left home at 17 to start training to become a nurse. I met a young man and moved into a flat with him. My father disowned me and my mother bought me a pressure cooker. From then on, things began to get a little out of control.

TOPLESS MODELLING

At 19, I got a job in the Jobcentre, who asked me to model for them. I asked the photographer to take some photos of me. So we went out to a field and I had a tiny little skirt and top on. He said, ‘Take your top off, then’, and for some reason I just did.

That was the beginning of the rest

of the story. I got a modelling portfolio together and took it to an agent in London, who snapped me up. I was used by The Sun, The Mirror and many magazines. I did lots of topless work, until one day someone said to me, ‘If you carry on doing this, you will get a name for yourself and you won’t be able to do anything else.’

I started doing TV and commercial work then; I’m the original Impulse girl. I did the Harmony hairspray advert with Leslie Ash, and De Beers Diamonds. I’m on the cover of the ABC album, The Lexicon of Love.

USING DRUGS AND PEOPLE

Parallel to that world was my private life. I lived with boyfriends for about two years each, and then I’d trade them in for a new one. I was looking for someone to really know me, accept me and believe in me.

My drug addiction began to escalate and I moved on to class A drugs. If cocaine and heroin were around, I would take them together.

My drug addiction didn’t affect my work initially, but then, as I became more and more addicted, my work ran out. I was stick thin and looked terrible. I fell pregnant but I lost the baby.

THE TURNING POINT

I went to stay at a friend’s house, thinking, ‘If I can just stay clean for a few days, maybe I can beat this.’ Sitting in her bedroom, I pulled a Bible off her shelf. I stuck my finger in and opened it on a

verse. It was Psalm 32 and it said: ‘Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered…For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.’

I read it and thought, ‘This is my life!’ I read on. It said, ‘Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle…the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts in him.’

I said, ‘Lord, can you help me? I’m sorry.’I came off heroin, just like that. And I

never took it again.”Suzie is now in her fifties, a mother of

four, and she works as a therapist and counsellor in Kent.

The Vicar of Laleham is described as “Red, round kidney; eyes shallow, tubers medium; crop fair.” Not a clergyman after too much sun or a particularly strenuous bike ride, but a variety of potato called ‘The Vicar of Laleham’. This 19th century variety, no longer grown, was described as ‘quintissentially British” in the 2011 book How Carrots Won the Trojan War: Curious (but True) Stories of Common Vegetables. Thanks to Jacqueline Day for her research.

The Vicar of Laleham – red and round!

North West Surrey Samaritans, Ledger Drive, Addlestone, Surrey KT15 1AT

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www.allsaintslaleham.org.ukParish Newsletter September – October 2016 Parish Newsletter September – October 2016

What’s The Best Gift God Could Give You?We all want to be happy. Why is lasting happiness so hard to find?

Life Explored is an exposé of the little gods that promise us so much happiness, yet deliver so little. As it explores the Bible story

(creation, fall, redemption, new creation), Life Explored shows how our deepest desires for happiness can only be satisfied in one

person, Jesus Christ. The best gift God can give us is himself.

Even in an area like ours there are people living on the

edge of poverty. Sometimes all it takes is an unexpected event – a bereavement, illness, redundancy or theft – and people can struggle to put food on their table. To help local individuals and families through a difficult time with essential supplies, churches in Staines and Laleham partnered in setting set up a food bank called Manna based at Christ Church on the Kingston Road.

Here is Manna’s description of how they work:

‘Manna operates by referral. We accept referrals from a wide variety of statutory and voluntary organisations and individuals.

Once Manna receives a referral, we will contact the client and arrange a suitable delivery time. Manna delivers all food parcels to clients. This makes it easier for someone struggling to get the help they need and enables us to develop a relationship with the client.

Our food parcels contain food and household essentials expected to be sufficient for seven days. We do realize however that not all problems can be solved immediately therefore Manna will provide up to two food parcels per individual or family. Each new food parcel delivery requires a new referral.

Manna food parcels are made up primarily of tinned and packet food as we do not have storage provisions for fresh food. We will, funds permitting, purchase bread, butter, milk and cheese on the day of our delivery to complete the parcel.

Some examples of people we have helped:• A family where the

grandchildren are now living with the family due to health issues with the parents

• A woman whose benefit money was stolen

• A case where disability benefits was stopped

• A family with unexpected expenses who couldn’t make things stretch.’

Every Sunday we have collection boxes for tinned and packet food in church and the school hall. For those unable to attend church, donations can be left at the Church Office on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings.

Particular shortages and needs can be found on the Manna Twitter feed ‘mannastaines’.

Contact details for Manna are tel. 07776 309390 and email. info@mannafoodbank.org.uk

This Summer our curate Chris was ordained a Priest

by the Bishop of Kensington, Dr Graham Tomlin.

The splendid service was held at St Mary Abbots Church in Kensington, along with 11 other clergy from the Area and a large number of family and friends from Laleham. Having been ordained a Deacon at St Paul’s Cathedral a year ago, Chris now takes on a fuller role. ‘Priest’ translates the biblical term presbyter, more commonly translated as ‘Elder’, and

the role is chiefly one of leadership and Bible teaching. This is indicated in the service as Bishop Graham gave Chris a Bible with these words:

“Receive this book, as a sign of the authority which God has given you this day to preach the gospel of Christ and to minister his Holy Sacraments.”

The most obvious change is that he is now authorised to lead the congregation at Holy Communion. We give great thanks to God for Chris’ work already here in Laleham, and pray for all that lies ahead in the next two years of his curacy.

Chris Conn’s ordination

MANNA FOOD BANK

A hidden

epidemicTherapist Susie Flashman Jarvis, who

came to speak at Laleham and whose story appears on the front page, is all too aware of the prevalence and harm that pornography can cause.

A report from the Children’s Commissioner for England in 2013 was entitled ‘Basically… porn is everywhere.’ When Susie came to speak at Laleham she recommended an online resource called The Naked Truth at www.thenakedtruthproject.com. The aim is ‘to open eyes and free lives from the damaging impact of porn.’ In addition to recovery work, Naked Truth also delivers education programmes in schools, provides support for parents and seeks to find ways to inspire and support couples and families to forge healthy relationships.

For parents there is an online parents’ guide.

For those who are struggling there is advice and the offer of a confidential support group.

CHRISTIANITY IN

6 picturesHow would you sum up Christianity?

The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple.

In our services we are focussing on a helpful summary called ‘Two ways to live’, and a version for younger people called ‘Who will be king?’, which use

just 6 line drawings. It is a message from the Bible about God and his son, Jesus. It is about life and death, and the choice that we all face. In John’s Gospel we read: ‘Everyone who trusts in the Son has eternal life. But everyone who rejects him will never share in that life.’

Why not spend a couple of minutes to see this summary for yourself? There’s a website and an app, with a version aimed at adults at www.matthiasmedia.com.au/2wtl/ and one aimed at younger people at www.matthiasmedia.com.au/2wtl/whowillbeking/. If you have an iPad there are lots of extra features including thoughts on tough issues like ‘Why is there suffering?’ and ‘Christians are hypocrites!’

Some dates for your Autumn Diary

Harvest FestivalWe’ll celebrate Harvest on Sunday 2nd October.

Remembrance SundayRemembrance services and our open air Act of

Remembrance will be held on Sunday 13th November.

Lighting up LalehamLights, fireworks, mulled wine and minced pies – and a brief

Service of Light in church on Sunday 27th November.

ChristmasA full range of Christmas services in our beautiful church.

Full details in our next Newsletter.

AN EXCITING SERIES OF TALKS AT SERVICES IN

OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER