Houghton - Down Your Way

At Houghton Older People’s Enterprise meeting in the Methodist Church Hall at 1pm on Thursday, the speaker will be Ken Williamson, a youth worker for the Methodist Church, who will talk on the life of C S Lewis.

The next Ecumenical Prayer Breakfast by Churches Together in Houghton will be in St Michael’s Roman Catholic Church, Old Durham Road, from 8am to 9.30am on Saturday. All denominations are welcome.

Hazel Pringle will give a demonstration on making Christmas Crackers at Shiney Row St Oswald’s Ladies’ Group at 7.30pm on Wednesday, November 23. Visitors are welcome.

Christmas fairs taking place this Saturday, including wide varieties of seasonal stalls, children’s attractions, refreshments and visits by Santa Claus are at the following locations:

 Welfare Hall Sports Complex from 10am to 2pm. The regular monthly fair with a Christmas flavour and free admission.

 Trinity Methodist Church, Shiney Row, from 10.30am, with free admission.

 Shiney Row St Oswald’s Winter Fair from 11am, with free admission.

 St Mary’s Church, West Rainton, from 2pm in the village Jubilee Hall, featuring a grand draw for valuable prizes, and free admission.

The next walks by the Sunderland Group of the Ramblers’ Association are: Sunday, Seaham Circular, about eight miles, meeting in Tonia’s car park on the coast road, opposite Seaham Hall Hotel (SR7 7AD), at 10.30am, with leader Joy Bolton, phone 5673097 for details. Wednesday, November 23, Carrville Park and Ride Circular, meeting in the car park at 10.30am and taking a bus into Framwellgate Bridge in Durham City and walking back to the park and rise, about eight miles, leader is Hilda Conlon, phone 5226609.

Sunderland Historian Stuart Miller will be reflecting on The Christmas Truce at Houghton and District local History Group in St Michael’s Kepier Hall at 6.45pm on Thursday, November 24. Admission is £2, including sweet mince pies, in addition to the normal light refreshments.

At Houghton Methodist Church Superintendent Minister the Reverend Alf Waite is on a sabbatical period, spending time volunteering help to other church organisations and Durham University to run their programmes.

At the Women’s Fellowship the speaker was Ros Pickersgill, a reader at St Michael and All Angels’ Parish Church, about the different cultures arising in Australia since the original natives and settlers.

At the Tuesday Fellowship, the speaker was Mr Hook, from Sanctuary 21, Durham, a Salvation Army operated shelter offering food and comfort for people in deprived circumstances.