“Some sort of periodical is an essential life-line in a village such as ours”

Welcome to West Farleigh’s own

LIFELINE
Distributed freely in April 2020 Edition no 521
Editors: Stephen Norman, Helen Swan and Jacky Taylor
Website: www.thefarleighs.co.uk Email: editor@thefarleighs.co.uk

THANK YOU
Of course, we all want to say a big thank you to all the NHS staff and other frontline workers, they are all
going over and beyond what they have ever been called upon to do before. The Thursday clapping and pot
banging reverberates around the village.

However, we must also thank those in the village who have volunteered to help with shopping, collecting
medicines, walking dogs and delivering Lifelines. There are others who are quietly keeping an eye on their
neighbours and doing whatever is necessary. The Community spirit, which has always been there, has
come to the fore and it is why West Farleigh is such a great place to live.
Do use the volunteers listed on your Green Card, they are waiting for your call!
Do ring your friends and neighbours, especially those living on their own. They will love to hear from you.

Enjoy this wonderful local picture, which got 71 likes on Facebook. See Farleigh in Bloom page three.

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PASTORAL LETTER

In the past month or so, life and daily living has changed for all of us. The change
for some maybe more radical than for others but we are all now experiencing life
in a way that we never expected. The measures being taken to prevent the
spread of the Covid 19 virus have affected us all in a myriad of ways causing us to
re-evaluate our priorities and the way we do things.

As this national crisis has unfolded I have been reminded of the three virtues that St Paul talks about in his
first letter to the Corinthians – Faith, Hope and Love.

As a Christian I have faith that God is with me and can bring good things from the chaos that is currently
surrounding us; but I also heard many others say that this current situation is restoring their faith in human
nature. They, like myself, are amazed at the stories of self-sacrifice, and care and compassion that we are
hearing on a daily basis.

Many homes now have rainbows in their windows and what started as a way to keep the children amused
whilst out walking have now once again become a sign of hope. We are told in the first book of the Bible
that the rainbow was placed in the sky by God as a sign of His promise to Noah and we are holding onto
the hope that those bright colours proclaim, looking toward a brighter, more connected, caring society
once this danger has passed. We are seeing signs of unity across the nation through the weekly round of
applause for keyworkers, we have seen many volunteering to help and support the vulnerable in our
society and we can have hope that this surge of goodwill and connectivity will continue.

And love is underpinning all of this. Love for each other, a love for life, a love for where we live. We are
realising that we each need to work together, in whatever role we have been given, for us to get us
through this crisis as quickly and as safely as we can.

No, it’s not easy. No, we will probably not come out of this the same as we were when it started. Yes, we
may lose some of those we love along the way. But if we hold onto our Faith, our Hope and our Love we
can come through this together.

Becky

Children and Family Worker

SERVICES AT ALL SAINTS

NO SERVICES AT ALL SAINTS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE but you can join our Rector Peter Callway
on-line every Sunday at http://bit.ly/UnitedBenefice or by phone: 0208 080 6591 Meeting ID: 185 124 308.

You can also to view a recording of a traditional Holy Communion service and Morning Prayer at
https://unitedbenefice.church/service-videos/

Rector Peter Callway peter@callways.co.uk 01622 747570

Curate Lorna Faulkner revlornafaulkner@gmail.com

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MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN MAIDSTONE (M.A.D.M.)
In these worrying times did you know that our church in West Farleigh are collecting non-perishable food
and toiletries for the charity M.A.D.M. (Making A Difference in Maidstone)? This Charity help not only the
homeless but many people/families in crisis in our area. The need is growing so if you can spare any items
at all please contact Sue O'Donnell by phone 01622 727852 or email and she will arrange to collect them
from your doorstep and give it to the Charity in Maidstone for distribution.
For those that are able to buy groceries they particularly need tinned meat i.e. corned beef, sausages and
beans, hot dogs, chicken curry, meat balls etc., also tinned rice pudding, custard and tinned fruit. If anyone
wants to donate I will gladly collect from them and deliver directly to MADM.
However, some of us are not finding it easy to shop for ourselves!
Alternatively, you can make a donation and the charity can buy what they need. The Sort Code is 23-05-80
The Account No. is 28525087 and the name of the account is Making A Difference in Maidstone.

MICHAEL GOACHER

We are sad to announce that Michael Goacher of Northcote, Charlton Lane, West Farleigh, passed away
peacefully on Wednesday 8th April at the age of 76.
Michael was a long-term resident of the village and leaves behind his wife Christine and two children,
Michelle and Stephen.
Michael’s final farewell will be held in private.

WEST FARLEIGH IN BLOOM

The good news is that South East in Bloom will still go ahead this
year but all entries will need to be submitted for judging as
Powerpoint. There is going to be a special award to the group or
community who have been the most innovative under the
current circumstances. To this end we hope you have been
enjoying our daily photos on the Farleighs Facebook page
showcasing the lovely spring flowers around the village –
particularly for those who are self-isolating at home and missing
it all. If you have enjoyed seeing the photos we would really
appreciate if you could let us know by emailing
bloom@thefarleighs.co.uk for us to submit to the judges. The
favourite one so far. which is on the front cover, got 71 likes.
We also posted an idea for making a bee home for children to do
at home. If you have made one – please let us know – or if you
would like to make one for our designated wildlife area at the
top of Teston Lane that would be fantastic. You can find instructions on Utube “Eco How: How to make a
bee home”.
One of our villagers has been volunteering for the Bloom team as part of his Duke of Edinburgh award and
has been working hard on clearing areas of the wildlife area and planting some flowers for which we are very
grateful.

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COVID 19 RELATED SCAMS

It saddens me to report on the ever-increasing number of Covid 19 related scams being carried out by
unscrupulous opportunists who are preying on a society struggling through difficult times.
PSE Adam Sackett who works alongside Kent Police and Neighbourhood Watch has been sending regular
reports on these crimes which you can read in more detail on
www.thefarleighs.co.uk/neighbourhoodwatch. But not everyone has internet access so I have listed below
some of them.
Doorstep scammers
i) People are knocking on doors wearing PPE (personal protection equipment) purporting to be
from your local medical centre carrying out Covid 19 tests. Do not open the door to them, they
are doing this to gain access to your property and steal your belongings. Some are even setting
up fake testing sites – always ask for ID,
ii) If someone you don’t know offers to do your shopping saying they are from a charity such as
Age Concern, be aware that this is another way of defrauding you out of your money, which
they will take along with your shopping list and you will not see them again.
We are lucky in West Farleigh to have a list of volunteers who will pick up your shopping – for
details please contact Helen Swan on 01622 814445
Phone scammers
Callers are saying they have been asked to send you a set of masks, gloves and hand sanitisers at a cost of
£29. They are asking for payment by credit/debit card.
Please always take extra care with phone calls – DO NOT give credit/debit card/bank details over the
phone at any time. Your banks will not ask you for details over the phone.
On-line Scams
Medical Supplies Scams Scammers are targeting people looking to buy medical supplies online or from
magazine ads. They send emails offering fake medical support and trying to scam people who may be
vulnerable or increasingly isolated at home. Once your money is sent, the supplies never arrive.
Free Tesco Vouchers Fake emails offering free vouchers includes a link leading to a convincing-looking
#phishing website that is designed to steal your login, personal and financial information.
Please do take care and if you think you are the subject of a scam or fraud please report it to Action Fraud
Police https://reporting.actionfraud.police.uk/ or call on 0300 123 2040.
Stay safe and well
Jacky Taylor
Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator (West Farleigh)

NOW FOR SOMETHING CHEERFUL

Let’s get busy making Scarecrows. Make them fun, to make
passers by smile. Put them in your front garden for everyone
to share.
This was suggested by Sue O’Donnell who helps with Little
Angels. I hope that she will set us an example and make one
for her front garden. A Guardian Angel perhaps?

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THIS MONTH IN THE GARDEN by Jon Fenlon

The garden is now romping away

and full of life, the tree blossom is
constantly buzzing with bees. In
May the risk of frost will reduce
and soon be over, so now is a
great time to harden off your
cannas and dahlias by leaving
them out during the day and
taking them in at night for a week
or two. Just keep an eye on the
weather and temperature at
night.

Clematis and sweet peas are growing like crazy. We get good
results by tying them in at least once a week because of their rapid growth. Another reason to tie them is you can
form shapes on frame works that then
become full of flower as the season
progresses. If clematis are not tied in, the
wind can easily snap the small stems, this
also goes for some climbing roses.

You might be tempted to clear all the foliage

from your spring bulbs that have now
finished, but try to resist until the foliage has
gone over and turned yellow. This will allow
the bulb to get the most energy stored up
for next year.
Now the weather should be warming up, so make sure you water your pots and
add a granular fertilizer or liquid feed depending on what is in your pots. All pots
will require different amounts of watering each week depending on the plants
you have in them. You can get water crystals that store water which should mean
you can water them less. They are available at most garden centres or online if
the shops are all still closed.

I would just like to say a BIG Thank you to everyone out there still hard at work
during this pandemic and to all the volunteer helpers. Keep up the good work.
Most importantly stay home, save lives and protect the NHS.

Jon

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FARLEIGH FEATHERS by Ray Morris
Lockdown Birdsong
Possibly the only plus point in the current lockdown is that the world has become largely
silent apart from natural sounds. Fortunately, now is the time of year when the world is
anything but silent because we are surrounded by birdsong. An early morning jog around
the village, or a stint in the garden, is accompanied by songs and calls from seemingly
every tree or telegraph pole, rooftop, field or hedgerow.

But for those who find the mixture of melody and timbre confusing, the sheer number of
individuals contributing is frustrating, especially as many, like blackbird and song thrush for example, are similar.
Learning to identify and differentiate a few species at a time, therefore, is a sensible strategy. In the case of the two
in question, Robert Browning provided a clue.

That's the wise thrush;

he sings each song twice over,
lest you should think he never could recapture
the first fine careless rapture!

Listen carefully, and he does indeed repeat short phrases two or three times, while the blackbird is less repetitive.

Even the cuckoo can be confused with a distant collared dove, which itself is easily confused with woodpigeon. The
trick of separating the latter two is the collared dove’s annoyingly repetitive football chant of “U-Ni-Ted, U-Ni-Ted”
while the woodpigeon’s call can be rendered as a different drone: in Gloucestershire, where historically Welsh
border raids resulted in the loss of cattle, it was a monotonous “take-two-cows, Taffy; take-two-cows, Taffy; two”.

We can thank Enid Blyton for helping us recognise the yellowhammer’s “little-bit-of-bread-and-no-cheeeese”. Sung
throughout the day, it is sometimes the only accompaniment to a drowsy summer afternoon when most other birds
have fallen silent. An added delight is seeing the male’s head, lemon yellow against the dark green hawthorn leaves,
protruding from the hedge.

Many species don’t have a convenient mnemonic to help us remember their song, but I sometimes find it helpful to
create a mental picture of when and where I first connected a song to a species, like sitting next to a dense bramble
patch in Suffolk where nightingales and a garden warbler were singing simultaneously. A magical moment, never to
be forgotten.

A nightingale has been heard in Amhurst woods. What a treat.

Nowadays, with a smartphone ever to hand, there are apps a-plenty to assist.
Free ones are abundant, but come with abundant advertising too, and often
with species you are never likely to hear. An app I have come to rely on is Chirp!
Bird Songs UK and Europe, worth every penny of the £3.99 to download it.
Simple to use, you can set it to UK species only, specify your habitat (a Kent
garden or moorland, for example) and has photographs to aid identification.
Most helpfully, there is a ‘favourites’ function so that once you’ve mastered a
species you can separate it for future reference.

Assuming you will be proud of your ability to distinguish your collared dove from your woodpigeon, and blackbird
from song thrush when Lifeline is next published, I’ll provide a few more hints for making the most of this, possibly
unique, experience being forced upon us.
Continued on next page…

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TOO FEED OR NOT TO FEED? THAT IS THE QUESTION
First, it was found in research at Birmingham University that great tits (or it might have been blue tits - can't
remember which) actually fledged fewer young in a wood where they were fed fat blocks and seeds throughout the
winter. Great spotted woodpeckers, on the other hand, appear to fledge more young when they are fed.

It is likely to be the case that weaker individuals (with poorer genes) will survive the winter to breed if they have
access to garden feeders - but we don't know if they breed successfully, how many young they produce, and how
genetically fit their young are.

It is certainly the case that in a hard winter, garden feeding helps birds survive. The increase in goldfinches definitely
seems to be linked to feeding them niger seed in gardens. It possibly makes little difference to overall winter
survival, as there will be more young birds to feed predators like sparrow hawks. So it's probably good for sparrow
hawks!

Feeding in summer? The young of most species need insects, which most people don't put on their bird tables. On
the other hand, if the parent birds can grab an immediate meal of sunflower hearts or suet, they can spend more
time foraging for insects - so that probably helps them. If food is so short the parents have to feed the young on
peanuts or sunflowers (which is not the best food for them) they would probably not survive anyway!

So, for the birds it's swings and roundabouts. But given the loss of natural habitat, woods etc etc on balance we are
probably doing more good than harm. It's certainly doing humans good because of the enjoyment we get from
watching them - especially during lockdown!!

So, a short answer made long,

Ray

THE FARLEIGHS WI
.
Hello Ladies, have you had enough of the lockdown? If you want to try something new,
then why not try the WI at the Farleighs? We offer many activities like craft mornings, art
classes and Amateur Dramatics, not to mention darts, tenpin bowling, Pentanque,
suppers, outings to interesting places and of course our meetings once a month where we
have speakers and demonstrations. I will keep you updated when we will be able to open
again. If you wish to discuss then please give me a ring!

Pam 07711590402.

EVERGREENS
All further meetings and outings are cancelled until further notice.

BUT members would enjoy a phone call. As many of you live alone, it would be good to
hear another voice, have a chat and a laugh!

The record for a call is 48 mins so far!!

Do phone your Evergreen friends. If you do not have their number, ring Helen (01622
814445) who will be able to help you.

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VIEW FROM THE SCOREBOARD by Terry Baines

FOOTBALL: CRICKET: NETBALL:

On the plus side we have not lost a game since the last Lifeline.

On the minus side, we have not kicked a ball, bowled a cricket ball or thrown a netball!

Strange times indeed and though we are all missing our sport immensely, the main object is to get through
this safely and to come out stronger and hopefully wiser.

TON UP CLUB – this month’s lucky winners

24 Geraldine Baggott £30 140 Elle Wooster £20 37 Lance Boseley £10

As our new year starts in April, if there is anyone wishing to join the Ton-Up club, it cost £10 per number
for a year and as you can see, we share out £60 a month in prizes. If you would like to join, just let me
know that you are interested.

Stay safe
Yours in Sport
Tel (815267)

VILLAGE EVENTS
THERE ARE NO SCHEDULED EVENTS BUT CHECK THE WEBSITE www.thefarleighs.co.uk for the latest news.

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