For anyone visiting this site who I went to school with at Hearnville, or who I taught at Greville, here's an update as of January 2002. After training at Eastbourne College of Ed and then having the privilege of teaching the best class of youngsters ever I married Julian in 1977. We have four boys. Our eldest son, Daniel, is a landscape gardener and builder. He is planning to marry Kerry this year. Our second son, Andrew, is now in heaven. You can read his autobiography here. Stephen is at Exeter Uni studying Computer Science. Ben takes his A levels in the summer and then hopes to travel the world! Julian is an I.T. manager, while I still find far too much to do at home. I would love to hear from anyone who remembers me.
My email address is cilla palfreyman@ gmail.com (please remove the spaces from the email address)
Update February 2003
As I write this addition we have much for which to thank God. Daniel and Kerry were married on a beautiful sunny day down in Cornwall and have been hard at work turning a building of virtually bare brickwork into a welcoming home. Ben has been saving up for his travels in Africa, planned for the beginning of April, and has managed two weeks in Lanzarote while the rest of us had fun in the snow.
But most importantly I would like to thank everyone who has visited us here. The majority are unknown to us. Several complete strangers have emailed me to tell me they have come. Two of these are close to my heart. Their emails are still on my screen as a reminder each day to pray for them. They are precious because they are both seeking Christ. Precious to me, yet how much more precious to the One Who is longing for them to come to Him.
Thankyou, all of you, for coming; whether you come and leave quietly, or whether you write and say you were here. May God bless you all.
Update July 2006
Over three years have passed and this page is badly in need of updating!! Over these years we have had a mixture of trials and blessings, but the same God is over and above them all. As a family we can all testify to His Power and His Goodness as we trace the moving of His Hand across our lives.
Ben had a wonderful time in South Africa in 2003 and could write a lengthy journal of the three months spent there. The following year saw him in Thailand for a month and the highlight of last year was Croatia. Next year he has been asked to be the best man at a friend's wedding in Tanzania which promises to be another long and exciting adventure!
Stephen successfully completed his studies and now has a job in I.T. in St. Neots which has also taken him abroad. He has visited many parts of Europe over the last couple of years culminating in two visits to Azerbaijan last year working on a gas rig! As I write this update he is on an oil rig in the North Sea.
Daniel has continued to work hard at his own landscaping/building business. He has been burdened for a long time now to recommence work with the young people of Cheshunt who are so desperately in need of a Saviour. We would value prayer for him that God will use him mightily.
Julian still works far too hard; not so much in the London office as in Sandhurst, Birmingham and Bristol. I don't work so hard as he does, but my home and garden provide plenty of potential for hard work, and I have been spending a good deal of time each week preparing for my home bible studies and my 'tiny tots' Sunday School class. If you would like more detailed info then I have just commenced my personal blog here!
Grandma has settled well into a Christian residential Home in Pamber Heath, which is quite close to Reading University where Ben has just graduated, and Stephen has transformed her home into something quite unique. The garage is now a gym!
I would finally like to give a mention to Dena, who I 'met' on an Internet bible message board. I know that God planned the meeting. He gave me the privilege of an insight into her spiritual emptiness as a recovering drug addict and seeing her eventually in September of 2004 give her life over to the One Who can save from the depths of despair. Her journey to Christ is incredible and I am so thankful for being able to join her on that journey.
Please pray for us that as a family we will always put the Lord first in our lives, and do let us know if you have come here looking for prayer and guidance yourself. This website originated with the homecall of a treasured son, brother and friend. We pray that God will use this small place for His Glory.
Update September 2014
Another blog calls for another update! Life is full of the unexpected and I never would have thought my next update would be written from our new home in the midst of the beautiful Wiltshire countryside. We have left behind so many dear friends in Cheshunt but we treasure them in our hearts and are thankful for all they have taught us. In February 2008 our Daniel was suddenly called Home. We have a little corner here for Daniel. Stephen moved to his new home in Bristol in 2009 and married Lynsey the following year. A beautiful and precious addition to our family. Just after their wedding Julian and I purchased a bungalow in Ash, Surrey to save him commuting to work every day. I spent many hours there sanding floors and painting walls. The end result was good, maybe in part because it was the end! With Julian away so much in Ash I took up sewing as my new hobby and thoroughly enjoyed teaching myself quilting. Hopefully I shall be able to take on more sewing projects here throughout the winter months. Ben has taken up residence in Caversham, and has shown that it wasn’t just Daniel with the flair for house renovations. He married Jenny nearly a year ago and we were so thrilled our new baby grandson, born to Steve and Lynsey, was at their wedding. After such sad losses we feel so blessed with our two wonderful daughters and a precious grandson. You can see some pics of Raffie here. We left our little church in Hertford during troubled times and came down here to join our new church at a very unsettled stage. We pray that we shall be a blessing here, both to our family members and also to church members and people in the village. You can read about our journey from Cheshunt to Tiddleywink in my new blog here.
Update January 2018
A new year calls for a new update and strangely it is with both sadness and joy that I have to write that Julian was called Home on July 9th 2017. Sadness that we have lost the most wonderful husband, Dad and Grandid, but joy because we wouldn't have wanted him to suffer any longer and because we know that he is safely Home. After enduring a bone marrow transplant in Bristol in the summer of 2016 and apparently recovering really well we had to face the fact that our plans weren't God's plans, and in April of last year he was given just two months to live. He was a true hero to the very last, he bore sorrow patiently and was a real example of how to die well. He crossed the final river with Steve and me on either side of him. He has fought a good fight, he has finished his course, he has kept the faith.
The photo of this rose was taken in our garden