Joshua Raven - Village People

By Claire Cooper
An exclusive interview with Bill Gates would be the pinnacle of many journalist’s career – but for Cuckfield’s Arif Mohamed nothing beats the moment when he laid hands on his first published novel.
     “It’s incredible – the best feeling a writer can have,” says Arif. “We were so excited and the children were all dancing round the kitchen!
     “Seeing my work in print, and welcoming my family and friends to my book signings has been a dream!” 
     Arif, who writes under the name Joshua Raven, is the author of the 5fingers series of supernatural thrillers. ”It’s a quintet of five books – the first three, 5fingers: initiation, 5fingers: vortex and 5fingers: trinity have been published and the fourth is well underway,” he says.
     Aimed at teenagers and young adults, Arif’s books have been hugely successful, with many readers eagerly awaiting the publication of the fourth, due later this year.
     For Arif, it’s the culmination of a dream which began when he was an avid young reader, spending many hours devouring books in Crawley Library. Inspired by Tolkein, Tolstoy and Dickens, among others, Arif started writing when he was 15. After leaving school he studied English Language and Literature at Leeds University before training as a journalist in Portsmouth.

He went on to become a news reporter working on high profile publications, including The Times newspaper and Director Magazine, travelling extensively and interviewing high profile business leaders including Bill Gates and Michael Dell while working for several leading business/IT magazines. “My scoop on Gates got syndicated around the world,” Arif recalled.
     After meeting and marrying wife Phoebe, Arif changed direction. “We embarked on our ‘American Adventure’, moving to North Carolina to run counselling workshops in the Blue Ridge Mountains,” said Arif.
     “It involved taking married couples and teenagers into the mountains to spend a week with us getting counselling, confronting events from the past and ultimately healing. It was an amazing experience for us all.”
     On returning to England, the couple settled in Haywards Heath before discovering Cuckfield. “We moved to Cuckfield after the birth of our second child,” Arif recalled. “We were attracted by the feel of the village and the sense of community.”

Full article available on pages 16/17.

Sue meets the Queen

Cuckfield tennis coach Sue Pegler, who has inspired many deaf youngsters to take up the sport, was recently presented to the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh at Buckingham Palace.
     Sue was one of 300 Churchill Fellows, chosen from over 4,000, to be part of the 50th anniversary celebrations. 
     The Winston Churchill Fellowship Trust was set up in 1965 to ‘travel to make a difference’ in a particular field of work or interest. Sue was a 1984 Fellow and, from 1999 to 2003, served in the Council to help choose categories and interview prospective Fellows.
     “Being invited to Buckingham Palace and meeting the Queen and Duke was such a privilege and great honour,” said Sue. “It was lovely to meet other Churchill Fellows too who are doing tremendous work at the grassroots of society and are so passionate and enthusiastic!”
     Sue was granted a fellowship for ‘Social Integration of the Young Deaf through Tennis’.
     The funding enabled her to travel to New York for the USPTCA Conference, meeting other coaches from all over the world.
     She went on to spend 8 weeks studying ‘Integration through Sport of the Deaf’ in America and Canada, visiting the Deaf University and schools teams in Washington DC, North Carolina, Baton Rouge, Texas (where Arthur Ashe had a big tennis school for deaf youngsters run by a qualified deaf coach,) San Francisco and Montreal, and witnessing the confidence gained by deaf sports people competing against hearing players.
     Armed with contacts, information and experience, Sue set up tennis coaching days all over Britain inspiring a whole generation of deaf youngsters to take up the sport and eventually taking Britain’s first team to compete in the Deaf Davis Cup.
     Her first pupil, Andrew Rees from Cuckfield, went to achieve international recognition in world games for deaf tennis and rugby.
     Sue is now keen to encourage others to apply for grants. “It’s a chance in a lifetime to make Britain better in your field of work,” she said. “The possibilities are endless to integrate people into communities through sport and you gain much more than you give.”

Article also available on page 21. 

Sandra Hall - Village People

By Claire Cooper

When Sandra Hall was preparing to take up her first post in the ministry, as assistant curate at Holy Trinity Church, she was given one simple piece of advice: “Love the people and they will love you back.” 
     It’s advice that has served her well, for as Sandra prepares to leave the village to take up her first parish she’s been humbled by the heartfelt messages from parishioners who are clearly very sorry to see her go.  
     “Leaving is going to be very hard and I can’t help but feel sad,” said Sandra. “I’ve made some wonderful friends here and the village will always have a special place in my heart.” 
     Sandra has been appointed priest-in-charge in the parish of Slinfold and Itchingfield, near Horsham. Her last service at Holy Trinity will be on April 19. 
     “It’s going to be a sad day,” said Sandra. “When it was announced that I was leaving I had many tears. I just hope I can hold it together.”  
     Sandra arrived in Cuckfield in June 2010. 
     “I came here straight after ordination so this was my training parish,” said Sandra. “It was all very exciting - my first year as a deacon.” 
     She was ordained priest in the parish in June 2011, with two other women priests. “It was a magnificent service. The church was completely full and the music and singing were fantastic.” 
     Sandra always knew she would leave the village when her training ended but was delighted to extend her stay after vicar Nick Wetherall retired. “My training finished last year but because Nick was leaving I was allowed to stay and look after the parish while a replacement was found. It’s been a great experience for me.” 
     She also used the time to look for her next post. “Slinfold and Itchingfield appealed to me straight away,” said Sandra. “I’m a country girl at heart and grew up on a farm, so a parish in the countryside was perfect.” The parish has two churches and covers four lovely villages. “It’s also only about a 35 minute drive from Cuckfield, so it doesn’t feel like I’m going too far away!” 
     Sandra was born in Leatherhead but shortly afterwards the family moved to Ovingdean. “So I always thought of myself as a Sussex girl!” 
     After leaving school she worked in the accounts department of American Express, and as a farm secretary, before spending many years in the sales team of Bass Charrington. “I also worked as a driving instructor for 4 years after being made redundant,” Sandra recalled.

Read full article on pages 10/11.