On Sunday 27th May at 10:45am, we will be holding a memorial service for Rev. Eirion Phillips at Gellionnen Chapel.

Mynydd Gellionnen will once again be the venue for our community picnic.

It's an informal gathering to share music and food; we'll also have a treasure hunt, and a maypole.

The event will be held inside the chapel in the event of poor weather.

With great sadness, we announce that Rev. Eirion Phillips passed away peacefully on the morning of Wednesday, 1st February, surrounded by family. This photograph was taken at Pontardawe Festival by Victor & Carolyn Lendermon from Memphis, Tennessee, on their visit to Wales. Eirion's wicked sense of humour and vibrant personality is something that comes to mind straightaway. He wasn't just the leader of the flock, but one of the flock. We remember his jokes for bringing a smile to all of us, but we also remember his sincere and thought-provoking sermons, and his incredibly kind actions. Eirion was a man of deeds as well as words. There's so much more to say, but for now, I personally felt it was important to say 'diolch' to someone who has, and will continue to be an inspiration to myself and so many others.

(Dr.) Jamie Nemeth

The first service of the new year will be conducted by Dr. Carwyn Tywyn, starting at 10:45am on Sunday, January 8th, 2012.

Carwyn is the new Welsh Department Secretary of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, as well as being a very talented harpist!

Gellionnen's annual candlelit Christmas Eve service is planned to take place on December 24th, 2011 at 11pm (in the event of adverse weather conditions, please check the website for up-to-date information).

If you need to contact us regarding this service, please email us at gellionnen@hotmail.com or telephone 01792 830413.

There will be no services at Capel-y-Graig, Trebanos or at Gellionnen Chapel on New Year's Day, 1st January 2012.

Services will resume at Gellionnen on 8th January, 10:45am, with a warm welcome to Carwyn Tywyn, the Secretary of The Welsh Department of the Unitarian and Free Christian Churches.

Gellionnen's annual candlelit Christmas Eve service is planned to take place on December 24th, 2011 at 11pm (in the event of adverse weather conditions, please check the website for up-to-date information).

Our sister chapel, Capel-y-Graig in Trebanos, will also be holding a Christmas Carol service this Sunday, December 18th from 3pm. Following the service, there will be refreshments, during which a collection will be made for the charity Hari's First Steps, which hopes to raise £45,000 for 2-year-old Hari Kieft - who has a form of cerebral palsy - to pay for a specialized operation in the USA to help him to walk unaided.

If you need to contact us regarding either service, please email us at gellionnen@hotmail.com or telephone 01792 830413.

In October, local photographer Bob Grainger produced a beautiful set of photographs of our chapel, a selection of which are shown here.

For more information or to see other work by Bob Grainger Photography, please visit his website at http://www.bobgraingerphotography.com.

Last Sunday's Folk Service at Gellionnen was attended by over fifty people, including representatives from across the SEWUS district. Thank you to everyone who contributed their music and voices! Photos from the service have been made available on the SEWUS (South East Wales Unitarian society) website.

We have once more enjoyed the delight of a wood burning stove as this was installed in January. It is gorgeous - thanks to Ernie and Sara for firing up every Sunday since! They also removed a lot of unwanted items from the back room and we will soon be planning a working party to continue this, date to be circulated. Wayne tells us that the window carpenter is due to start work during week of 4th April. He will be removing the damaged windows, repairing them, then replacing them.