It was lovely to greet Irene Tuzio back to St. John’s despite her broken arm and foot, happily she is recovering well. Irene described how she felt God was instructing her and the path she should take. On her arrival at St. John’s she felt very nervous and outside of her comfort zone. In time of course she felt very at home and has found herself taking a further step with God’s guidance to become ordained. Sadly to continue on her journey she left St. John’s to continue her training at Christ Church in Norris Green. She described the many and various activities taking place in there and with the combining of funds and ideas with Good Shepherd and St. Christopher this is having a beneficial effect on the children, teenagers and families in the Norris Green area. There are different styles of services to meet the numerous needs of the community and Irene feels she has benefited from her time there. Once ordained next September Irene will be part-time and is hoping to hear where she will be placed and that she will remain in the West Derby area.
1 July – A history of Storeton Woods
Once again David Casement, this was his second visit to the CAST Group, gave a very interesting and informative talk. Apparently, long before the woods existed, a dinosaur called a Chirotherium left its footprints in stone which are still visible to this day. We were given a full list of the names of all who have owned the area together with a modern day family tree which brought us right up to the present day. Due to the uniqueness of the geology of the area and its development over millennia this has created a hard white stone, whereas in the surrounding area the stone is red. This white stone was quarried, how this was done was described with the aid of photographs. He explained the use of horses in the transport of the stone to the quayside and with the advent of the railways, a tramline designed by George Stephenson changed the manner in which the stone was ultimately transported. We were taken on a walk through the woods with maps to demonstrate how to negotiate the area. The woods are now owned by The Woodland Trust, however, it is a charity “Friends of Storeton Woods” and their volunteers who work hard to maintain and protect the area. Unfortunately, the owners mansion built using the white stone has been demolished but some of the stone work can be found at Portmerion. Amazingly this white stone was used in the creation of the two Mersey tunnels, the Marks and Spencer building in Church Street and Trials on Castle Street.
17 June – The History of Astronomy – 30,000 years in 30 minutes
Gerard Gillian, who was a member of the Liverpool Astronomy Society, and was on the committee holding positions as President and Secretary for many years, but who is now very involved with the Society for the History of Astronomy, gave a very informative talk. Gerard took us on a tour of astronomy from its very origins from 4/5000 years ago. Originally called astrologers the Greeks, Egyptians, Mesopotamians and Babylonians used the stars and plants to make predictions, naming many of the constellations that we know today. With the invention of the telescope which was used for maritime purposes, astronomers adapted these early telescopes using mirrors or lenses – reflecting and refracting telescopes. These telescopes enabled people such as Tycho Brahe, Hershell, Horrocks and local astronomer Lassell to make significant process in the understanding of our solar system, the plants and their orbiting moons. Gerard touched on the many types of astronomical clocks, suggesting that Stonehenge could well be one. We were brought right up to date with the latest 21 st century technological advancements such as the Hubble and James Webb deep space telescopes.
3 June – Fairy House Workshop
This workshop was a great success although not strictly a CAST Group meeting, as it coincided with the Jubilee celebrations held in The Sir Ken Dodd Happiness Hall. At any point during the workshop there were in excess of 20 people watching many of whom were children accompanied by a parent or guardian. We received very positive feedback about the workshop with children saying they want to create their own fairy house. Gill MacDonald, the demonstrator, brought along a small piece of tree trunk (which was just about light enough to carry!). She proceeded to explain how to create a fairy house and the everyday items which can be used. Gill was excellent, friendly and full of ideas. We will be inviting Gill back in the near future to repeat the workshop for our CAST Group.
One of the hand crafted fairy homes.