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| Stephen Metcalfe with Stanford-le-Hope Town Crier and Rev. John Guest |
Last Sunday, Stephen Metcalfe, local MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock joined Stanford-le-Hope residents for their annual Carols on the Green service.
The annual event organised by St Margaret’s Church and the local ‘Hope Committee’, was the perfect opportunity for the community to come together and get into the Christmas spirit; to sing a few carols and to see local school children re-enact the traditional nativity play.
Proceedings were led by Rev Jon Guest, disguised as the Prophet Isaiah, who retold the story of the very first Christmas.
Mr Metcalfe gladly accepted the invitation to take part in the event and reflected on some of his own experiences of nativities and carol services before reading a passage from Isaiah 9 to the many onlookers.
He later commented: “I thoroughly enjoyed Carols on the Green. It was a fantastic opportunity to come alongside local people to celebrate Christmas and to reflect on the Christmas story and the true meaning of Christmas. Being outside created a fantastic atmosphere and I hope that everyone who attended enjoyed it as much as I did.”
“I would like to thank St Margaret’s and the Hope Committee for the invitation and for organising this great event. Finally, can I take this opportunity to wish all those present and all my constituents a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!”
