 The Ferndale Community Market moved into the Community Garden to enjoy the shade and to make use of the new roof on our carport.
The sellers left expressing that they had had a good and enjoyable morning, the community who attended said that they had had a great time. The conversations in the photos below attests to it.   And it was a meeting place for friends.
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The annual Children's Summer Camp ran from 10 to 18 December 2022 at the Goodlands Estate Seringveld Conservancy.  Group photo of the whole camp  Morning and evening circle  The barn where the morning and evening circle was held Evening circle around a bonfire Meal time    The children with their group helpers  The helpers play The Advent Fair made a return after the Covid. On Saturday 3 December 2022 from 10h00 untill 15h00 stall displayed a range of goods for sale; children were entertained with a story and a puppet show, enjoyed the magic of meeting an angel and entering a dark cave to experience light boats, going on a treasure hunt and making an advent garden; teas, coffees, juices, bacon & egg rolls, cakes, pancakes and a hot lunch filled bellies. The organising of this fair was an intense six week period that brought about a day that illicited many comments of joy and satisfaction from attendees. Many things have shifted in the last few years, and Covid too as left its mark. Several new faces took on well loved activities and introduced new stalls. Some of the mainstays of an Advent Fair have greatly reduced and the poeple carrying these activities are no longer as active in the creative pursuits that brought about these stalls or activities.
The well curated Garden Stall
Jewellery and other gifts
The puppet show: Rose White and Rose Red
Boitshepo Care CentreOne of our community purchased the furniture that was donated to be sold as White Elephant and donated the furniture to Boitshepo Care Centre in Farm 8 and 9, a squatter camp outside of Cosmo City. A couple, Collins and Celia, started the centre. Collins was brutally murdered earlier this year, but Celia still lives on the site of the Centre. A group of accountants raise funds for the stipends of the people working at the Centre. The Centre receives donations from other organisations, often donations in kind. The Centre provides a safe educational environment for young children between the ages of 0 and 5. The centre has 91 children currently but the vegetable garden that the Centre has feeds other children as well.
We have been gifted a bench in remembrance of Sophia Turner. Professor Michael Knott in Windhoek was unable to attend the memorial and interment for Sophia and instead has gifted a bench. It was felt that as recycling was close to Sophia's heart, it would be appropriate to have a bench made of recycled material. The material selected was plastic as this threatens our oceans and clogs our waterways, finding its way into our very food. 
Our gardens are blooming with new plants. Thanks to Pam Klette who took up the challenge to work with Hazel Fornali at the last Community Conversation, a complete transformation of the Memorial Garden and Wake Room Garden is taking place. Pam Stevens spent much of her time while here with George Nurse working in the gardens, clearing up and beautifying around the Wake Room, the Community Garden and parking area gardens.  A panoramic view of the newly planted garden around the pond   The flow-forms feeding the stream and the pond with the newly planted garden visible alongside.  The garden around the Wake Room has been planted with new ferns and impatiens. A new bed of bark lies at the foot of the bench. The access to the Wake Room has been opened up.   The first Ferndale Community Market was held on Saturday 30 July. The initiative is one that hopes to bring people in the Randburg area who have things to sell into contact with the community of Ferndale who come to browse and buy. In the process we bring people onto the church property who would otherwise never think of popping in. By meeting our community, in the form of the organisation, the tea garden, the stalls we set up and the general atmosphere, these visitors may become curious and ask questions. At the very least conversation can spark up. This initiative relies on members of our congregation coming to the Ferndale Community Market because they are curious, and they are interested in community building. On Saturday 30 July we had eleven stalls that included our White Elephant stall, send-hand books and Tea Garden. There was a good selection of goods from clothing to preserves to personal care and glassware on sale. Some congregants who enjoy community gatherings for the social aspect came to enjoy the tea garden; friends now living in Stellenbosch came to see what this initiative is all about and some congregants brought friends. 
 All the stall holders made sales, but the day could have been busier. The next Ferndale Community Market is on Saturday 24 September, and we rely on our congregation to help build these events into meaningful community builders, not simply a day of commercial activity.
The St John’s Children’s Festival comprised three parts. Firstly, the children gathered a fire and story. The story is a uniquely Africa Story. Then the children lit a candle for a lantern from the St John’s fire and snaked their way with their lanterns to find the aloe flower of the story. There they created an aloe frame with the lanterns. Compost is nature’s way of returning the energy of plants back into the ground to nourish the next growing season. As human beings we can participate in this process consciously and add elements into this composting process that draw a new quality into the natural processes. These elements are the preparations that make for a biodynamic compost heap. Daniel had prepared for the building of the compost heap by gathering the components that go into making compost. Most of this is the dead and dying material that nature sheds at the end of the growing season. Into this is added some freshly cut organic material, some well matured compost and the manure of animals fed on pure natural plant feed. Some mineral components are added and when everything has been beautifully layered and moistened, the biodynamic preparations are added. Then we wait six to nine months for nature to do what it does best. The compost that was made last year has nourished parts of the gardens already. An enthusiastic small group gathered on Youth Day at 14h00 to build the biodynamic compost heap and then to spray the entire property with Preparation 500. A lot of meaningful conversation introduced those present to all the concepts of biodynamic compost making. When all the Preparation 500 had been spread, the tea and coffee was consumed and happy, weary people turned to home. Photos are courtesy of Natalie Gerike.
The Community Room with the sale of second-hand books, gifts, crafts and deli
Craft, deli and gifts
Christmas starsPlants
Tea garden with the teas, coffee, cake and food
Live entertainmentA short excerpt from 3 forms that Rhyse Sothern demonstrated.
Child of the red twilight dawn - a dramatised story for children Children's activities
Mother Goose
Making Advent Gardens
The exhibition of these paintings accompanied the Michaelmas Conference of 2021.
The Phoenix Bird rising from the ashes in fire and flying to the Temple of the Sun  The incarnations of the Earth      The five vowels inspired by the Eurythmy gesture of each      |
