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ByDave Hall

Twelve-year-old Jonathan will speak up for the speechless

A 12-year-old best-selling author will help open CRE – and speak up for the speechless.

Jonathan Bryan, who has quadriplegic cerebral palsy, is entirely non-verbal. He uses an alphabet board to spell out everything he wants to say and in his book, Eye Can Write, reflects on his Christian faith.

Jonathan’s father, Rev Christopher Bryan is rector of Gauzebrook and area dean of North Wilts. His son’s faith, rooted in a profound experience of the life to come, is both ‘hugely inspiring and challenging. The prospect of going to be with Christ is such a strong and real thing it totally informs his attitude to death, getting ill and everything. That really makes you think about your own attitude.’

In the days after Jonathan’s birth, and for the first time in her life, Jonathan’s mother, Chantal, prayed until she was ‘spent’, joined by others over the country — strangers, in many instances.

‘God answered our prayers,’ she told the Church Times. ‘Jonathan survived, and, OK, he is stuck in a body here that doesn’t work very well, but, actually, what has been transformed out of that is something that none of us would have thought of in the early days. His faith encourages others. I say now sometimes that he is more healed, in a way, than the rest of us. A lot of people are still trying to find out who they are and what they are, and he is happy with who he is.’

The Bryan family have set up a charity, Teach Us Too (a panel about the organisation will be on display at CRE), promoting the right for all children to be taught to read and write, whatever their label or diagnosis. Three more organisations will exhibit under the Churches for All banner – each committed to improving universal access to church buildings and programmes. Count Everyone In, The Lodge Trust, and Torch Trust will offer visitors a breadth of experience and depth of knowledge on disability issues.

Opening the exhibition will be singer/songwriter Marilyn Baker, blind almost from birth, who will be accompanied by a choir from Notre Dame school in Cobham, using Makaton, a language programme using signs and symbols to help people communicate.

Gordon Temple, executive officer for Churches for All, says: ‘CRE presents a great opportunity to support and encourage churches as they strive to welcome, include and involve people living with disabilities in every aspect of church life.’

• Churches for All will hold a seminar at CRE 2018 (12pm, Tue 16 Oct)

Click here for a list of more than 200 exhibitors at CRE 2018
Click the button below to pre-register for CRE 2018 for as little as £3

ByDave Hall

Blazing a trail for creative storytelling

A scavenger hunt based on the nativity story introduces the birth of Jesus in a new, engaging way.

It’s all part of Tale Trails, an initiative to help churches develop work with families and young people.

‘I wanted to use my expertise to provide a series of events for use in church and school situations,’ said Kirsty Allen, a former primary school teacher with drama training. ‘My first activity – the scavenger hunt – went down extremely well in a trial with 40 to 50 children in my home district.’ Kirsty, 55, intends to produce a number of Tale Trails to encourage children and adults to delve deeper into biblical stories.

‘I will cover subjects such as Easter along with some more suitable for schools and community use,’ she said, ‘to introduce children to parts of the Bible and traditional tales such as Goldilocks.’

The Nativity Trail features eight original illustrations which participants in teams hunt for. They then scan the attached QR code using a mobile phone or iPad and watch a short and entertaining video about one of the characters from the story. They must work as a team to rise to the creative challenges set within the trail, such as making their own videos based on the story.

‘A smart device (iPhone or tablet) able to scan QR codes is necessary,’ explained Kirsty. ‘A second device that can take photos and videos will be useful.  Each team will need one QR code-friendly device and one photo-friendly device.

‘Through this engaging activity, participants experience stories by hearing from the characters involved and learn along the way by answering questions to unlock the next clues. The project is suitable for ages four to 94, so great for all-age events.’

• Tale Trails will be on stand P13 at CRE 24

CRE 2024

Tickets for CRE 2024 are available now!

Organisations considering exhibiting at CRE 2024 should contact James Batterbee on 0161 250 2306 (E: james@creonline.co.uk). Click here for a brochure, floor plan and price list.

ByDave Hall

Moving forward, future proofed

Integrating technology into some of the UK’s most historic listed buildings – that’s the mission of first-time exhibitor FWD-IP at CRE 24.

Future-proofing buildings by enhancing network infrastructure, telecommunications and security, the firm designs and installs state-of-the-art CCTV camera systems, contributing significantly to health and safety protocols, security measures, visitor management and crowd control. Their door and gate access control, barrier systems and automatic number plate recognition technology help manage car parking and secure premises effectively.

In operation since 1992, FWD-IP has partnered with time-honoured institutions such as Ely Cathedral, The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption and the English Martyrs, Cambridge (OLEM), the Fitzwilliam Museum and Cambridge University.

‘We are thrilled to participate in our first CRE, where we will showcase our premier security solutions designed to safeguard places of worship and our national treasures,’ said FWD-IP director Will Everitt. ‘With many venues hosting an increasing number of large-scale events, our technology ensures seamless and secure operations, allowing them to focus on their mission and community.’

• FWD-IP are on stand C1 at CRE 24

CRE 2024

Tickets for CRE 2024 are available now!

Organisations considering exhibiting at CRE 2024 should contact James Batterbee on 0161 250 2306 (E: james@creonline.co.uk). Click here for a brochure, floor plan and price list.

ByDave Hall

Speaksee set to ‘amaze’ at CRE 24

A ground-breaking technology that delivers live speech transcription directly to a mobile phone or AV system will be launched at CRE 24.

Iain Harvey-Smith, of DM Music, believes Speaksee will have church leaders amazed at how it can help deaf people and those who hard of hearing. ‘This is a brand-new product in the UK,’ he said. ‘Seeing Speaksee in action will provide a better understanding of its capabilities than any description I can offer!’

An added benefit of Speaksee is that it can also be an effective language-translation tool for those for whom English is not their native language

DM Music – established over 30 years ago as a dedicated church supplier and installer of sound equipment – is now one of the leading AV system installers with installations in over 3,000 churches.

Adam Lee, the UK regional director for the Dutch-based Speaksee company, will join Iain at CRE 24.

• DM Music are on stand A17 at CRE 24

CRE 2024

Tickets for CRE 2024 are available now!

Organisations considering exhibiting at CRE 2024 should contact James Batterbee on 0161 250 2306 (E: james@creonline.co.uk). Click here for a brochure, floor plan and price list.