 Rev Sheila Bridge with Yvonne Rollins, Churchwarden and Darren Knapp of Symons Construction - we get started on Phase Two of Project Welcome  Wow! We are so excited - it's all happening. The bricked up door is going to come down!  The inside of the church hall - we are still in action offering space to all our mid week groups  We are delighted to announce that work has finally begun this week on the reopening of the original front door to St Peter and St John’s Church. The church which sits on the corner of Clifton Road with St Peter’s Road, has had a bricked up front door for the last 25 years or so, ever since the church was reordered internally to incorporate the church hall after the old church hall burnt down. Rev Sheila Bridge says that many local people have been hugely supportive of the church’s efforts to reopen this door. “Many people have old family photos of weddings or christenings taken on the steps into church. But it’s not just about memories, the bricked up entrance has given the impression that we are closed, whereas in fact we are a very active and useful resource for our local community.” Last year, the church was enabled to install new toilets thanks to a grant from WREN. This year, the next stage of improvements to the building has begun, thanks to a grant of £75,000 from Veolia Environmental Trust. These improvements will also include internal rearrangements and new storage facilities as well as new paths around the outside of the building improving disabled access. The work is being carried out by local contractor Symons and will, hopefully be finished by the end of June.  Fantastic to be back in the church end of our building today. Still no heating, but nobody complained. Thanks so to all of you who made the church look so beautiful and for the wonderful Easter garden. Also a photo of our compass stones now in place in our quiet/community garden which is a work in process       Above is a screen shot of the words of the song that Heather played for us at the end.
 The promise auction that we held last weekend was great fun and a great success. Local firms and businesses had generously donated many lots: we had over 55 items or services to bid for. Sean, our organiser and auctioneer, began the evening by selling off 4 fish suppers and worked his way up through the lots finishing with auctioning off the holiday in a caravan in Norfolk. There was a great atmosphere and a good turnout. On the night, we raised a total of £2018 towards our new boiler. Many individuals bid generously but also fairly competitively, however it was great to see a lovely spirit of sharing as successful bidders often offered to share their winnings with others. Halfway through the evening we stopped for a drink and something to eat. Two activities on the side also raised some pennies: “name the chicken” and “face splat”. Everyone was encouraged to throw their small change into a bucket to either see Sean or Sheila receive a custard pie in the face. Sheila was delighted with the generous way everyone filled Sean’s bucket! Here is a picture of the face splat, being administered by Rob who had generously paid for the privilege. We would like to thank all of those businesses who contributed to the success of the evening by donating so many fantastic lots: Asda, Clifton chiropractic, MB massage therapy, Little Miss Perfectionist, Nicola Jayne, Marsellas, Anytime Fitness, Max Spielman, Pampered little Pooches, and the Paw House, Dilruba Indian restaurant, Cafe Nero, Caspars, Mega bus, G Force Martial Arts, Paper Sales UK, and many many more. Also the many private individuals who offered crafting sessions, organ lessons, and other creative ideas. We will keep you updated on our progress towards restoring the boiler and turning the heating back on in our church and church hall.  Sheila welcoming everyone at the start of the evening. |
Rev Sheila BridgeMinister of St Peter and St John's Church, Rugby Archives
June 2019
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