Parishioners of a Huddersfield church have pledged to raise at least £100 each to kickstart a new fund which will repair the damage done in the wake of Storm Eva and protect the church’s longer term future.
And they have given themselves a deadline of three months to raise the first £10,000 to ensure they get the repair work done before the Autumn in time for any potential bad weather.
Pledges to grow plants, make cakes, hold dinner parties, run a raffle have already started to come in to organisers of this latest fund raising initiative at St John’s Church, Golcar.
The church – like many other buildings in the area – was badly hit by the floods over the Christmas and New Year period and urgently needs to raise £10,000 to waterproof the building before further bad weather and then start a slush fund to protect it and preserve it for future generations.
Said church warden Helen Davies: “St Johns in Golcar has been working hard to make sure that its mission statement of Open Doors, Open Hearts, Thriving Communities is a reality. Many hundreds of people have enjoyed our church at services, wedding and baptisms as well as at the many regular community events.
"Unfortunately the recent series of very wet and windy winters has made the planned maintenance work on the exterior St John's Church in Golcar much more urgent and, on investigation, far more extensive than we realised.
“And never known for letting the grass grown under our feet, the people of St John's have decided to raise £10,000 in three months and get the work done,” she said.
The Bishop of Huddersfield, the Rt Revd Jonathan Gibbs launched the appeal on Easter Sunday and since then there has been a great buzz around the church as people decide how they can help – some have their own fund raising plans – including Susan and Dave Boulder who are growing plants to sell – and others are planning joint ventures.
Said Helen: “We are calling this the Umbrella Fund; because it will keep us dry and protect us from storms in years to come. We know that if 100 of us raise £100.00 each we are home and dry. We are also appealing directly to everybody who enjoys having a church in the village centre and wants to see it thrive into the future to help in whatever way they can. “
A special celebration service to mark the three month deadline is being organised for July.
Helen is pictured here a couple of years ago after the successful revamp of the inside of the church to create a better community space
You can donate via the church website www.stjohnschurchgolcar.org
Email: office@stjohnschurchgolcar.org or post to St John's Church c/o By and Buy, 14, Sycamore Court, Longwood, HD3 4SS or just drop in at St John's on any morning and ask for S