If memory serves me right (and it was a very long time ago, you will understand!) the first involvement I had with what was in those days only three Churches was to print out a list of services so that everybody would know what was happening where each Sunday. I seem to recall a Canon David Morris who came into Red Lion Secretarial Service shortly after we had moved there in 1981. The list was on a single sheet, I was asked to set this out, type it and print a certain number of copies.

The Canon was followed by another clergyman who decided to write a letter on the back of the sheet. Some time after he left the new Rector, the Revd Keith Hawkes, came in to see me. He explained that he wanted to make sure that every household in each of the Parishes had a free copy of the sheet and, as there were quite a few older people resident in the area at that time, he wanted it to be clear and easy to read, so it increased in size.

One day Megan Fowell came in to collect the ‘magazines’. We started to discuss costs and I suggested that perhaps some of the local businesses might like to take advertising space which could fund the magazine. It was difficult to fit it all onto the single B4 sheet, and so I did a ‘mock up’ of two sheets of A4 size – folded in half – to make an 8 page booklet, which would give enough space for the advertisements, the Rector’s letter, notices of coming events, reports of what had been going on in the villages and last, but not least, the list of services. Despite some initial misgivings, Keith Hawkes agreed and Megan threw herself into the task of selling advertising. This she did with enormous success and the newly designed Magazine was born!

Not long after this a further amalgamation resulted in seven churches being bonded into one extended unit. To take account of the extra news items the Magazine was increased in size – and Megan succeeded in selling even more advertising to cover the production costs! In the early days most of the articles received were on small pieces of paper, a few were typed but mostly they were hand written, or just in note form. To start with, as well as preparing the material, I did all the printing as well. However, for a while after the ‘Group of 7 Churches’ was ‘born’ the increase in the size of the print run required a professional printer to take over this task. There was a period of
time, when I was able to buy a bigger printer which enabled me to take back this task, and once again I produced the whole thing ‘in-house’, which had the added advantage of pushing back the deadline to enable more up-to-date reporting of events. We produced 925 copies – it took a whole morning for two of us to collate, staple and fold the sheets into booklets!

We like to claim that we have never missed a deadline in all those years, despite various moves, relocating around in Aylsham, and some traumatic tides in our personal lives! When I finally moved away from Norfolk my son Tim, and his wife Sandra, who had been helping me for some time, offered to take over the whole task. My by then slightly antiquated equipment was replaced by a ‘state of the art’ computer and two very accomplished operators, who were able promptly to re-set all the advertisements and polish up the overall layout, and I am happy to admit that there was, once again, a progression and development of the Magazine. With the justly very popular advertising well sold (where else could you reach so many people on your doorstep at so little cost!) it has been able to pay for itself.

It has always been important to the Parish Councils and to the Rectors that the Magazine should continue to reflect the lives of the very different villages and Churches, informing everyone of what is going on, keeping alive the spirit of community and fellowship and providing the ‘glue’ to help keep their very different identities held firmly together as one solid body in Christ.

After over 25 years of commitment to the Magazine we should like to send our appreciation to all those who have collaborated with us over the years, and contributed to its undoubted success, and we wish it, and those to whom we entrust it, a very Happy New Year and a long and successful future.

Liz Butler and Family
March 2008