	About Travelling Guild


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18 Apr 24

Guild emblem

The Wesley Guild is part of the social and caring life of the Church:

•to promote open and honest discussion of the meaning of the Christian faith in today’s world;

•to broaden the cultural horizons of its members for the enrichment of life;

•to be a caring fellowship for its members;

•to be a point of contact with Christianity for people to develop their own patterns of devotion to Christ

•to encourage an interest in the local community;

•to support care projects locally, nationally and overseas

Travelling Guild Committee arrange the programme.

Travelling Guild Programme

Contact - Mrs Eileen Kelsey - 01507 343363
A warm welcome will greet you at our meetings, whether you join in regularly or occasionally. We meet at 7 pm each Monday in the Methodist Church premises shown.

The Story of the Mid-Lincolnshire Guild

The roots of this Guild go back fifty years to the days when there was a Bardney Circuit. The minister of the day was Rev Leonard Atkinson and he, together with the District Youth Organiser, Sister Edna Trawford met with circuit members to discuss forming a Travelling Wesley Guild, which would visit the ten churches in turn and be an affiliated Wesley Chartered Guild. One third of the members had to be under 25 years in age and this requirement was easily met. Travelling around the Bardney Circuit was done in a variety of vehicles - cars, a butcher's van and a soft top jeep. At some meetings as many as 90+ people were present and steps were used as seats.

After the Horncastle and Bardney Circuit was formed in the 1960s a second Guild was established in the Horncastle section. Eventually the two Guilds combined and continued together until the Mid-Lincolnshire Circuit was formed in 2004, when the number of churches increased. After 2008 the Spilsby Circuit became part of the Mid Lincolnshire Circuit and brought with it a Travelling Guild which is now assimilated into the Mid-Lincs Circuit Travelling Guild. The practice of travelling around the circuit continues and meetings are held every Monday from October to Holy Week with a brief 'rest' around Christmas

The meetings are organised by four committees - Devotional, Christian Service, Cultural and Social. . Transport is by private cars and only when the weather conditions make travelling difficult are meetings cancelled.

A collection is taken at each meeting and at the Annual General Meeting, held towards the end of the session, the money remaining, after expenses have been paid, is allocated to Methodist organisations and to local charities from whom we have had speakers. During Summer 2016 some of us developed bell- ringing skills at St Wilfrid’s Church Alford.

Programmes are varied and meetings provide interesting topics. As well as the meetings planned by the committees, members and friends meet for Sunday lunch twice a year and enjoy summer outings. This year we are visiting Flower Festivals in the south of our county and journeying to Temple Newsam near Leeds. We also hope to have an evening outing to our coast and enjoy a meal.

The area covered by the Mid-Lincolnshire Circuit stretches across a large area of the county and enclosed within its boundaries are places of interest. In the west is Bardney with its tradition of an ever open door. In the centre is Horncastle with some Roman remains, connections to Sir Joseph Banks. Alfred, Lord Tennyson, Henry Lunn of Lunn travel and the notorious William Marwood who perfected the long drop method of execution. At Coningsby there is the Battle of Britain Memorial flight, and at East Kirkby Lincolnshire Aviation Centre. Spilsby has connections with Sir John Franklin and there is also a link to John Wesley at Raithby near Spilsby where it is possible to visit the chapel built by Mr Brackenbury for Wesley.