Community, Parish Council & Village
Friends of St Mary’s Antiques & Other UpdatesThe Friends have been busy lately and have news to share about the start of renovations work, their successful afternoon at the village fayre and a new initiative, an Antiques Valuation Day.
This is taking place on Saturday Continue reading “Friends of St Mary’s Antiques Roadshow?”
Bats in the Belfry?As previously announced the £10,000 target for repair of the roof and the tower at the Old Church has been reached. Unfortunately work has not yet started as a bat survey indicated that the bats were still roosting in the church. Apparently the bats are late leaving this year because of the cold spring but should leave soon. The Churches Conservation Trust have given assurances that everything is in hand and should start work by September.
The Friends of the Old Church continue to fund raise for the ongoing maintenance of the church. In time they also hope to have electricity laid on and install lighting in the building. At present they rely on the generosity of the owners of Bergholt Hall for a limited electricity supply.
In this vein they would like to express their thanks to the Co-op and their customers who supported the Old Church with their tokens. This has resulted in a generous donation of £500 to kick start the next wave!
You’ve Kept the Bell Ringing – Target Reached!The Friends of St Mary’s Old Church are delighted to announce the success of their Keep the Bell Ringing Appeal. The initial target of £10,000, required to trigger the various grants needed for the Church restoration, has been achieved in the incredibly short time of 8 months. This is down to the hard work of the Events team lead by Jane Lloyd but even more to the generosity and goodwill of the community of West Bergholt who have wholeheartedly supported the appeal. We have seen great Continue reading “You’ve Kept the Bell Ringing – Target Reached!”
£200 to go! Keep the Bell RingingThe Friends of St Mary’s Old Church latest ‘Keep the Bell Ringing’ event, Maytime Melodies, was a great success. Taking place on Saturday 13th May it was a wonderful melange of music sung by Tom Cogan, Elizabeth Cobb and accompanied by Penny Marsden. They entertained us with Continue reading “£200 to go! Keep the Bell Ringing”
Nearing Target – Keep The Bell Ringing AppealNearing target, the appeal total now stands at £9,480.22, so it is quite possible that you can help it top the £10,000 over the next 2 weeks. The next event, in a series of events, is a Maytime Melodies concert. The concert programme includes Continue reading “Nearing Target – Keep The Bell Ringing Appeal”
Bell Appeal UpdateGiving a Bell Appeal update, The Friends of St Mary’s admitted the £10,000 target was initially overwhelming, but they have been delighted by the support that they have received from residents, especially at their recent Curry Lunch.
The appeal had reached £8,605 before receiving Continue reading “St Mary’s Bell Appeal Update”
Curry up For the Bell AppealFollowing the success of their last event, the coffee morning, which raised nearly £300, the Keep the Bell Ringing Appeal has now reached £7,000. With just £3,000 to go to reach the target, the Friends of St Mary’s next venture is a Village Curry Lunch. This will take place on Saturday 11th March in the Orpen Hall between 12:30 – 2pm.
There will be a choice of 3 curries (mild chicken, vegetable & beef madras are planned) and all the trimmings (poppadoms, mango chutney etc.) Soft drinks, tea and coffee will be served and other, alcoholic options available to buy. A selection of fruit-based desserts will follow. You can pre-book shepherds pie if you are not keen on curry. Continue reading “Curry up For the Bell Appeal”
Winter Bird Walk 2017The first guided walk of the year at Hillhouse Wood takes place on Sunday 19th February when Steve Hallam leads the Winter Bird Walk 2017. Continue reading “Winter Bird Walk 2017”
Winter Bird Walk 2016The first guided walk of the year at Hillhouse Wood takes place this coming weekend (Saturday 27th February), when Steve Hallam leads the Winter Bird Walk 2016. Walkers, who should meet at the Old Church at 10am (weather permitting), wearing stout footwear and warm clothing, can expect to see a range of resident woodland and meadow species as well as some winter visitors. You are also advised to bring a flask of hot drink with you.
Dawn Chorus walks in previous years have seen as many as 20 species registered, most being native, so who knows how many you might see with the added ‘winter visitors’?
[See the report of the walk here.]
Jon Lander, who was a resident of West Bergholt for many years has written a book about the history of St. Mary’s Old Church, titled ‘The People, Priests and Problems of a Country Parish’. The Friends have recently had this published in a booklet form. It is illustrated with colour photographs and is an interesting read, especially for anyone who lives or has lived in West Bergholt.
On Sunday 20th September from 2.30 – 4pm, Jon Lander will be at the old church to meet people and discuss his work. Peter Noakes who provided the photos for Jon’s book will also be there. Peter is putting on a slideshow of photos that he has taken of the interior and exterior of the Old Church. We are offering visitors tea, cold drinks and homemade cake. We hope you will come and join us.
The friends are selling the 20 page booklet for £2.50. All profits from the sale of this booklet will be used by the Friends to care for the Old Church.