MESSAGE FROM TONY

In the last issue of the File, we celebrated `Milestones' and now we celebrate one of our own - the 50th issue of the File. I would like to thank our present editor Liz for giving the present series of the File its distinct character and to thank her for the time and talent she devotes to it.

On behalf of us all I would also like to thank Lyanne for the many issues she produced during her term as editor. It seems quite a few years ago that we all sat around a table at Hucklow discussing the future of the Network - what we should call ourselves and how we should keep in touch with one another. We were a small group then but the seeds had already been sown by Peter Roberts a few years before when he had the courage to launch the network in a climate that was then not quite ready for a neopagan or new age group within the Unitarian Movement.

Now, thanks to the efforts of those early editors and Hucklow week-end leaders the Earth Spirit Network has an established place on the Unitarian spectrum. We have a large membership and everyone is able to participate whether through the File or the festival week-ends. A further development has been the growth of local groups. That is a very positive indication of our progress.

The most important Thank You is to you the membership, for it is you who have kept the File going by contributing to it, you have helped and participated in workshops at the Unitarian annual meeting and you have attended the festival week-ends.

We have never had a committee and have never seemed to need one but we manage between us to get things done anyway. A key player we should not forget is David who is both Secretary and Treasurer - but from me thanks to you all.

NOTICES

Our next week-end at Great Hucklow will be 29th - 31st October 2010 (Friday evening until Sunday lunch). Please book early through David. There is a new rule at Hucklow. Bookings of less than 15 will not be accepted unless we have agreed to share the centre with another group who would make the number up. At the time of writing we are the only group booked - cave!