It was good to see the familiar faces at today’s NSPCC stall on the Market Place in Abingdon. We can be thankful that they are there every year raising money and the profile of NSPCC’s work to protect children.

NSPCC is a leading children’s charity that works to prevent child abuse and neglect. It gives support to children who have been abused and campaigns for better laws and policies to protect children. It provides a helpline for children and adults. On average, two children a minute contact Childline. It provides education and training on child protection.

As part of the regular Tea and Cakes at St Ethelwold’s House, Anne Dodd gave a talk on the history of the house and the people who have shaped it, mentioning, in particular, Dorothy Pickering and Father Bede Griffiths.

St Ethelwold’s House is a historic building with a long history. It was originally built in the 13th century. It has been used as a brewery, and by a coal merchant and an antique shop. In 1964, it was purchased by Dorothea Pickering. She first used the house for her prep school, moved from the Vineyard and called The Vineyard School. It was only used as a school until 1967, and then became her retirement home.

During the 1970s, Dorothea believed it could be the base for a traditional Benedictine Community. She named it St Ethelwold’s after the reforming Abbot of Abingdon Abbey, who was a major figure in the Benedictine revival in England. She was then inspired by the Benedictine monk Bede Griffiths, who had an Ashram in India, to create a spiritual centre where people of all faiths could learn from each other and find peace and inspiration. He visited and wrote to her about the plans.

Under Pickering’s leadership, St Ethelwold’s House became a popular destination for spiritual seekers. It hosted various events and workshops, including meditation sessions, and interfaith dialogues.

Pickering died in 1997, but St Ethelwold’s Trust continues to operate St Ethelwold’s House as a spiritual centre. Initially there was an attempt to form a Benedictine Community like an Ashram. More recently, it has become an open spiritual / community centre and unique to Abingdon. It is a popular destination for people of all faiths, and none, who are looking for peace, inspiration, and community. The garden is also a popular place for local people to enjoy, and the events such as tea and cakes are a great way to connect with the community. There are groups in the house doing art, poetry, yoga and meditation. It has also been used to welcome refugees and host get togethers to celebrate what unites people.

(Jill Gant wrote a short history of The Fellowship of Saint Ethelwold available for £1 in the house.)

Team Mikayla is a charity founded by Mikayla Beames, a teenager who has been fighting brain cancer since she was 4. The charity’s mission is to grant wishes to children fighting cancer.

Today, they organised a Motorbikes for Mikayla event at Abingdon Rugby Club. There was a great turnout of motorbikes and classic cars. There were also stalls selling food, drinks, merchandise, and a tombola. The event was free, and there were buckets for donations.

The Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue were on hand to give advice on what to do in case of a biker accident. They run a FREE Biker Down workshop. See 365alive.co.uk/bikerdown.

After a day of rain yesterday and some showers today the ground remained firm.

There were lots of bright spells and the event raised a lot of money for the charity. The band Hazy Soul played rocking soul and helped make it a fun day.

The Abingdon Foodbank is in urgent need of supplies. Donations at Tesco Extra go to the national organisation Fareshare, and those at Aldi and Lidl go to Neighbourly. So if you want to be sure you’re helping the people of Abingdon, use Waitrose, or the Co-Op in West St Helen’s St, or the North or South Abingdon foodbanks. Read more about donation times and what they most urgently need at https://abingdon.foodbank.org.uk/give-help/donate-food/.

To help support local foodbanks, food larders and community fridges, South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse district councils are inviting community food groups to apply for a grant of £2,500 for essential supplies.

To help fight global poverty, there was a Christian Aid stall on the Market Place on Saturday. The stall was run by members of the town’s churches.