On 11th December we held a lively concert with the talented Three Pressed Men and were delighted to have raised £400.

On 16th October, we held a ukulele concert with Sam Brown and the People’s Ukulele Brigade. It was a wonderful evening  in a packed church with 190 tickets sold. We raised £1400 so thank you to everyone involved.

On 13th February we held a Concert of Baroque Music performed by the Band of Music, a talented group of young local musicians. 90 people attended this wonderful evening in the Church and the Friends raised over £500.

The talk by Dr Kate Tiller explained the situation in the country and in Ewelme before the start of World War 1, as well as highlighting the effect of the war, locally.

There was a general sense of confidence across the country, although Dr Tiller also highlighted some of the political issues – strikes, women’s suffrage, the Irish question etc – which were of concern.  In Ewelme, the population, at 479, was smaller than in 1871 and was ageing and in decline.  The principal activity was farming – mainly arable, but also sheep farming and watercress production.

When war broke out, 26 Ewelme men enlisted, many in the navy.  Ewelme School was also affected, as children left early to go to out to work.  Those of the population who did not go to war got involved in ‘keeping things going’.  Much fund raising and home production of food went on, with women working on the land and in munitions factories.

By the end of the war, there were 20 casualties from Ewelme.  The Ewelme war memorial was erected in their memory.

Dr Tiller’s talk was extremely interesting and appreciated by the full audience in the church.

Other News
The friends have recently donated £1,000 towards the cost of a new Church Guide, written by Dr Kate Tiller.  The Guide is available in the Church.

At the end of January, the Trustees agreed to donate funds of up to £12,000, in support of the costs of installing new heating in the church. The heating has now been installed and we have already noticed the temperature difference in the Church.  We thank all our Friends who have donated so generously to enable this important project to be completed.