Dear Members, Friends and Supporters of Othona,

Welcome to our March Newsletter!

2026 Programme

We have now published our 2026 programme online and we continue to have a number of our regular faith and youth groups returning to Bradwell in 2026, and we look forward to hosting you.

February half term 

I am writing just as we are saying a fond farewell to all those who joined us here at Bradwell for the February Half term retreat. It was an absolute pleasure to spend the week with everyone. The group included long standing community members and many new faces. Children ranged from age 1 through to upper teens and formed a wonderful mini community in their own right with the retreat. Outdoor games when the weather was fine, were wonderfully led by Claire, including pancake flipping! Activities included nest box painting and some enthusiastic hammering to then build bird homes, as well as crafting jam jar lanterns for the Thursday eve Dedication Chapel service, all supported with great care by Claire and Chris Bliss. Many thanks also go to the many musicians, not least new faces Martin and Jasmine, who sang and played for every chapel, and to all who led a service. There were many highlights, including the making and flying of paper aeroplanes during one chapel service. Beverly led activities in seriously yummy healthy snack making, though on the gratitude tree created during one Chapel service, the accolade went to ‘Phil’s Chips’!

It was wonderful to welcome new faces, including families from Ukraine, to celebrate an 11th birthday and watch the older children plan and deliver both a talent show and mini party for all ages. Enormous thanks go to the resident and community volunteer team, who worked incredibly hard throughout the week, and to then turn the site round in a matter of hours, as the working weekenders arrived that afternoon, hot on the heels of the departing half term families. Chris, Winnie, Dorian, Dave B, Bea, Phil, Beverly, Claire, Chrissie and the many guests who contributed, were utterly amazing, and helped to create a deep sense of community, fun and a week of  many smiles.

February Artist Residency 

Integrated in the February Working weekend was a ‘trial’ Artist Residency. Wonderfully supported by Angenita, we are experimenting with offering residencies to local Essex based Artists. This first residency saw four artists with differing practices join the Working Weekend, and roll up their sleeves alongside the community for the first morning. Then while remaining part of the community including participating in the duty rota, during their studio time the four responded to the location, site and experience of being in Community. During a Sunday Chapel service there was then an opportunity to experience the art, ranging from paintings to sculptures and songs. The evaluation with the artists about the residency was extremely encouraging, both for future residency ideas and in hearing how they spoke of their wonderful experience, welcome and  the friendship they had received by the whole community.

Coming up, we have two retreats with spaces available:

• March Working Weekend – Othona (Friday 20th March-Monday 23rd March) – this is a great value retreat for those willing to help us prepare Bradwell centre for the new season. We are likely to be busy doing gardening, painting, DIY, with your help.
• Easter – Othona (Thursday 2nd April-Tuesday 7th April) – spend Easter celebrating with friends old and new.  Traditional church services mixed with family activities means there is something for all ages!

Further ahead, please see Upcoming Events – Othona for dates and prices of future events. We are also promoting the programme on Facebook / Instagram so please share details to anyone who you think might be interested in our offer.

Website news

We are continuing to rebuild the website and this is taking a lot of time and effort; not least because the behind-the-scenes booking system is not operational.  This means that bookings currently have to be made manually by sending an email to bradwellbookings@othona.org. Kirstie and Winnie are doing their very best to keep up with all the enquiries. Thank you for bearing with us during this process.

Staffing news – and a VACANCY! Please look at our job advert

Bea, our Catering Lead and Dorian, our French Civic Service volunteer, moved on in February. Both of them have developed some great skills at Bradwell over the last few months, and we are sorry to see them both leave and wish them every success in their futures.

Two other French Civic Service volunteers are due to start with us on 9th March.  And we are now advertising for the Catering Lead role.  If you are interested, or you know someone who might be interested, please share the advert with them. We are happy to sponsor Level 3 training for the right candidate who may not have the formal qualifications, but who is a good team player, wants to live in community, and has a passion for turning out good food (within a budget!). We welcome enquiries and visits.

Can you help out this summer?

While we recruit for a permanent catering manager, we will need the community’s help in the kitchen as we have another busy programme planned this year. If you are interested in short term (or long term!) volunteering with us (free bed and board provided) please get in touch. You’ll need to be confident at preparing meals for groups of people, but support and training is available and as usual in the community, many hands make light work.

Temporary closure in February

As some of you will be aware it’s been a challenging time with our sewage system which, due to poor installation, failed on a number of occasions these past weeks forcing closure and relocation of the core team to temporary accommodation and OWD for a short time. Trevor Darley and Peter Baird have now spent several days digging ditches and laying new drainage in the 11 acres to alleviate excess water flooding the system and we can operate again but further works will be required over the coming months as we try to make the system fit for purpose.  This may necessitate further closures but we’ll aim to minimise the impacts as far as possible.  There are of course financial consequences that we’ll have to work through.  We’re thankful to all those who’ve been helping.

Kevin Bruce

It is with great sadness that we share news of the death of our friend Kevin Bruce. Kevin was an amazing man renowned for his knowledge of local history and wildlife, photography and so much more. The many school children that he spent time with during their visits to Othona loved to hear his stories and all the information that he passed on to them. Kevin will be hugely missed by all at Othona and we send our love and best wishes to his wife Pat and his family. His funeral was on Friday 27th February, with donations invited to his tribute page at Farleigh Hospice, https://kevinbruce.muchloved.com

80th Anniversary – a reminder

As we mentioned in our last two newsletters (do let us know if you didn’t receive this – we had some IT glitches linked to the website) we’ll be celebrating Othona’s 80th anniversary in August. So please do think about booking for the 2 weeks of events. The big weekend will be Saturday August 8th/Sunday 9th – this special celebration will bring together generations of friends, visitors and newcomers for a weekend filled with live music, inspiring speakers, creative workshops, storytelling, worship, delicious shared meals and plenty of time to reconnect. The full programme will be going onto our website very shortly.

Trustees Update & New Dog Policy

Trustees met at Othona West Dorset last month to review the charity’s progress towards a single entity charity business for Othona and this will take effect from 1 April. Having one website is part of the process of the two centres coming together. We are also reviewing policies applicable to both sites, and have recently renewed our policy on dogs at Othona, recognising that by law we are required to accommodate assistance dogs.

Trustee Vacancies

We are still looking for Trustees to join the team. Link Trustees are being sought for West Dorset (contact the Warden there Tony Jaques for more information) but we also need to recruit a Central Trustee-Community Treasurer. The current postholder will shortly be stepping down after some 5 years in the role and we are seeking someone with a financial / accounting background to take over. There is a suite of procedures and policies developed over the years that will help anyone stepping into that role, and with action nearing completion to create a single legal entity for Othona and strong administrative capabilities in day-to-day billing (which is managed at each of the centres), the role is very much one of oversight and strategic planning. We have external accountants and investment managers supporting us.

Desired Skills and Experience:

• Strategic financial planning skills, which ideally will include investment and business financing experience.  #Accountancy,  #financial management,  #business development,  #business advice

• A good understanding of financial accounting and reporting procedures and how they relate to the charity sector

• Excellent communication skills able to communicate clearly; internally with Trustees and all levels of personnel, externally with Accountants, Insurance Brokers and Investment Brokers.

• This position would suit an experienced finance professional who would like to put their skills to good use supporting Othona

If you are interested or if you know someone suitable, please put them in touch with us, or contact the Chair of Trustees directly (Mark Ringrose) by email chair@othona.org 

Reflection…

This month we are in the heart of both Lent (Christian) and Ramadan (Muslim), a month of fasting and prayer. There is so much popular culture about giving stuff up, alcohol or chocolate are common, but Muslims really fast – between dawn and sunset – and also add in a positive action – giving alms.

Christians are recalling the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the Wilderness, during which time he was working out what his mission was to be, and how he would fulfill it. He was faced with three ‘temptations’, portrayed as a conversation between him and the devil.

1. “If you are God’s son, turn these stones into bread”, the devil says. To which Jesus answered, “People cannot live on bread alone.” If mankind’s needs were all met by a God simply reaching out a hand and providing, would we ever learn responsibility to care for one another, to give and share? Would we ever feel we were needed or gain any sense of achievement? These, surely, are more important than bread.
2. From a hilltop Jesus sees a vast distance and the devil says, “The whole world can be yours, all its power and all its wealth, if you only worship me.” Jesus answers, “Worship the Lord your God and only him.” There are probably too many leaders already, motivated by the pursuit of power and wealth. No, that doesn’t fit with God’s desire for the health and happiness of every person.
3. Then standing on a high parapet on the Jerusalem Temple, the devil teases Jesus with promises from the Psalms, “Jump off and be saved by angels!” To which Jesus responds, “The scriptures also say, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Yes, we can win influence and popularity through showmanship and the cult of celebrity, but that can make the rest of us feel inadequate, which is not what God intended at all.

They are three worthwhile questions that prod us to ponder our own motivations. It’s an appropriate season to consider the direction and purpose of our own lives.

And while we’re at it, in Othona’s 80th year, we might consider what we wish for the community’s direction and future, too.

God bless us, Steve