On Sunday 6 October our Chaplain, Revd Chris Briggs held a service in the Parish Church for new pupils and their parents.
The service had a Harvest theme and included enthusiastic singing of Harvest favourites, ‘Come, Ye Thankful People, Come’, and ‘We Plough the Fields and Scatter’.
New members of the community read the readings and led the prayers, including pupils from Years 7, 9 and 12. The Psalm was read by two new members of staff - the new Headmaster and the new Chaplain himself.
The Chaplain had arranged for a sunflower to grow tall, nearly up to the ceiling of the church. It grew almost unnoticed for a while, but Mr Jones, who was standing right next to the pot as it emerged, got quite a surprise when he spotted it! The idea behind the visual aid was that new pupils have chosen to be planted, so to speak, in the rich soil of Shiplake College. Here they will be tended and cared for, fed and watered in order to fulfill their potential. The happy evening came to a close with refreshments in the OVR.
The Shiplake community is now looking ahead to the next big event in our worshipping calendar - the Service for Remembrance Sunday 10 November at 10.45am in the Great Hall. Parents and Grandparents are very warmly invited. If you would like the names of any family members who have lost their lives in war to be read aloud in the service, please email the Chaplain. These will be included with the names of those inscribed on the memorial boards in the Parish Church.
