Brookside care home, part of the Orders of St John Care Trust (OSJCT), is bringing a living nativity featuring two camels and a donkey to Melksham on Sunday 14th December to raise money for Dementia UK.
Starting at 5.00pm outside Melksham Town Hall, Mary, Joseph and Eros the Donkey, will lead a procession of carol-singing villagers, including local people from surrounding schools, churches and businesses, to Brookside care home. Lit up by a giant ‘Star of Bethlehem’, the care home will present seasonal readings by residents, an open-air carol service and feature a performance by Calne Silver Band.
Following the procession, Therese and Temujin, two Bactrian camels, who have previously performed in London at the Lord Mayor’s Show and in front of the Queen at Horse Guards Parade will appear, courtesy of the Countess of Chichester. They will be ridden by local MP Duncan Hames and OSJCT’s Deputy Chairman of Trustees, Brian Goodson.
Esther Thomas, home manager at Brookside, commented, “We organised a similar event three years ago, which was a huge success, and expect this year’s to be even better!
“We’d like to thank the whole community for their fantastic support, as well as local businesses, Leekes, Asda, Whitehall Garden Centre, Waitrose and Co-op for their generous donations and hope everyone comes along to enjoy a magical evening and to raise money for charity.”
Robin Khokhar from OSJCT, said, “Building relationships with the local community is a major objective for the Trust, and we can’t wait to open our doors to our neighbours, so they can come in, spend time with residents and celebrate the festive season together.
“At OSJCT, a significant number of our residents are affected by dementia, so we’re committed to raising awareness of the condition among the wider community through events like this one.
“We’re also fortunate to employ the services of specialist Admiral Nurses in the Trust. These nurses are trained by Dementia UK and provide invaluable support to people living with dementia and their families, so we’re delighted to be raising money for an organisation that is very close to our hearts.”
Mulled wine, hot chocolate and hot dogs, provided by Waitrose and Co-op in Melksham, will be available for a small donation to Dementia UK.
For more information on the event please contact Esther Thomas on 01225 706695. For more information about OSJCT, visit www.osjct.co.uk.
![Melksham Times Past
A column about days gone by in Melksham by local historian Lisa Ellis
The Independent Chapel and Women’s Rights in the 1840s
A document I recently transcribed lists the baptisms performed at the Independent Chapel. This record is especially helpful in that, along with baptisms, a lot of them include birth dates - one of the ways I discover which day someone was born.
The following is taken from a Wiltshire Times article published on 9th November 1878 which reports a speech given during the 100-year services and to celebrate their renovations (what we now know to be the Rachel Fowler Centre).
One speaker, Rev. T. Mann, minister in Trowbridge, talked about the Chapel’s origins when he related how Rev. Honywill came to Melksham and how he’d gone on to remain as the minister for the Independent Chapel for almost 60 years. [Honywill and his family lived on King Street in what we now call “Legion House”.]
Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.](https://scontent-lhr6-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.75761-15/505444438_18038424887647822_3264519508333556874_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=110&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=18de74&_nc_ohc=gXZQJoHTNiEQ7kNvwHezuPI&_nc_oc=AdlrJvMDapuork_EjycPOcegNeMnCA37GEIudkxkTeCfTgvB5iijE05ojpwlYCd5gN8&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr6-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=0ZY31jxOGx2M8z1ZqYNvEg&oh=00_AfPY_C0B8EndpVcx78sVp9qVJgtm368WREf36ZX1_jO3mg&oe=6855C74A "Melksham Times Past
A column about days gone by in Melksham by local historian Lisa Ellis
The Independent Chapel and Women’s Rights in the 1840s
A document I recently transcribed lists the baptisms performed at the Independent Chapel. This record is especially helpful in that, along with baptisms, a lot of them include birth dates - one of the ways I discover which day someone was born.
The following is taken from a Wiltshire Times article published on 9th November 1878 which reports a speech given during the 100-year services and to celebrate their renovations (what we now know to be the Rachel Fowler Centre).
One speaker, Rev. T. Mann, minister in Trowbridge, talked about the Chapel’s origins when he related how Rev. Honywill came to Melksham and how he’d gone on to remain as the minister for the Independent Chapel for almost 60 years. [Honywill and his family lived on King Street in what we now call “Legion House”.]
Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.")
