Houghton - Down Your Way

St Michael's Catholic Church in Old Durham Road is holding a parish mission on the theme of Divine Mercy from Saturday to Saturday, March 12, led by Father Jim McManus CSsR, a renowned writer, retreat director and recently appointed Missionary of Mercy by Pope Francis.The Mission will include two daily masses, evening services, anointing of the sick and housebound, a service of blessing for mothers and children and daily midday reflections and promises to be a thoughtful and uplifting week to which all are welcome. Further details from www.pcdhm.org.uk or www.stmichaelshoughton.co.uk
Left to right Ged Parker, guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Houghton, Bernard Blacklock, president of the Rotary Club of Houghton, Clive Beddoes, president of the Rotary Club of Durham Bede, and John Kerry, treasurer of Rotary Club of Houghton.Left to right Ged Parker, guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Houghton, Bernard Blacklock, president of the Rotary Club of Houghton, Clive Beddoes, president of the Rotary Club of Durham Bede, and John Kerry, treasurer of Rotary Club of Houghton.
Left to right Ged Parker, guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Houghton, Bernard Blacklock, president of the Rotary Club of Houghton, Clive Beddoes, president of the Rotary Club of Durham Bede, and John Kerry, treasurer of Rotary Club of Houghton.

Well reputed singer Ray Banks will be entertaining members of Houghton Older People’s Enterprise in the Methodist Church Hall at 1pm on Thursday.

There will be an Easter coffee morning with tombola in Houghton Racecourse Association, Burdon Avenue, from 10.30am-noon on Friday. All are welcome. Phone 5847973 for further details.

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The next surgery by Shiney Row councillors Anne Lawson, Mel Speding and Geoff Walker will be in Trinity Methodists Church hall from 10am-11am on Saturday. Residents are invited to raise any relevant topics for discussion.

Houghton and District Ramblers’ Group will be walking around Page Bank on Sunday. Details of time and meeting place from leader G Lindsley on 5202152 or secretary John Conder on 3856551.

The next meeting of the members of the Friends of Rectory Park will be in the community room of St Michael’s Kepier Hall at 7pm on Tuesday, March 8.

The Sunderland Group of the Ramblers’ Association will be walking around Hart Village on Wednesday, March 9, meeting at 10.30am with leader Joy Bilton at the Saxon Church. Phone Joy for details on 5673097 or 07721 186800.

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Speaker at Sunniside Methodist Women’s Fellowship was Sunderland Historian Philip Curtis with illustrated photographs of old Houghton, including some back in the 1800s which members helped to recognise and discuss.

At the Rotary Club meeting held in the Chilton Country Hotel, president Bernard Blacklock welcomed the president of Durham Bede Rotary Club and several of his member colleagues. The speaker was Ged Parker, a former senior researcher at Washington New Town Corporation, with a highly informative talk on How the East was won, on the long competitive process of siting the Nissan plant at Washington and the huge success it has become since arriving in 1984.

Jean Shotton, a former school teacher, talked to Houghton Methodist Women’s Fellowship about her former career and her particular interest in getting young children to understand the meaning of words and developing speech.