The church building of Holy Trinity, Wareside, was consecrated and first opened for worship in 1841. We thought it was worth celebrating the 175th Anniversary of this event.
We conducted a Stewardship Review and initiated discussions about establishing a “Friends” group which might help with funding and caring for the building and churchyard.
We began our anniversary year in January with the formal launch of The Friends of Wareside Church Charity. We were delighted to host a concert of classical music performed by Royal College of Music pianist Barbara Manning.
A follow-up event saw James Pearson (house pianist at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club) come to play songs from the Great American Songbook with some friends.
Through the year, supported by funds raised at these events and local volunteers giving time and energy to the cause, some of the urgent building-maintenance items on the quinquennial report were addressed and some critical redecoration work carried out. Then we were pleased to welcome Bishop Michael of Hertford to celebrate the anniversary of the 1841 consecration of the church building with a special service on 4th September 2016 – the nearest Sunday to the actual anniversary.
We have an ongoing programme of minor repair works and the Friends of Wareside Church have continued their wonderful support by hosting other events and with hands-on assistance with the maintenance. We are very grateful to them and everyone who made this anniversary year so special and who continue do what they can to ensure that Wareside Church building is able to serve its community into the next 175 years.