Blossoming Festival of Flowers will help roof repairs take root at St James the Great in Thorley
Visitors to St James the Great in Thorley were taken on a journey around the world during the church's annual Festival of Flowers and Music over the bank holiday weekend.
A total of 21 floral arrangements adorned the Norman church – each one depicting a different country – from Australia and New Zealand, through to South Africa and Cape Verde, over to the USA and Hawaii.
Throughout the three-day festival, food was served, visitors could browse several stalls and there was a silent auction with 19 prizes donated by various
local businesses.
“It was just a really lovely atmosphere,” said church warden, Pippa Roy-Chowdhury.
“It was lovely to see so many people there enjoying themselves and supporting the church and the local community.”
She added: “At several times, the car park was absolutely full. We had a steady stream all weekend and the kitchen was busy.
“We provided lunches, and, at one point, we had to run out and buy more food because we ran out.”
The money from the event will be put towards funding repairs for the roof at the church’s St Barnabas Centre. “The roof tiles have failed, and we’ve got to have the whole roof replaced,” explained Pippa.
Over the past two years, a large amount of the roof tiles have deteriorated and the repair work is estimated to cost £100k. It is hoped that the festival will have raised a few thousand pounds towards this target. “It’s a big project, and it needs to be done urgently,” added Pippa.
