It was “fellowship, fun and floral” at the Harvest Flower Festival at St Stephen’s Church, Bath. The festival was organised by churchwardens, Carolyn Cowley and Penny Cracknell who said…
It was “fellowship, fun and floral” at the Harvest Flower Festival at St Stephen’s Church, Bath.
The festival was organised by churchwardens, Carolyn Cowley and Penny Cracknell who said it offered an opportunity to reach out to the local community and “reinforce the church’s strength as a convenor of so many wonderful community voluntary groups, clubs, schools and businesses.”
The festival was opened by Bath Mayor, Dine Romero, and was blessed by Archdeacon Adrian Youings and St Stephen’s Revd Debbie Pow. 26 exhibits were created by different groups, organisations, schools and charities from Bath.
The Mother’s Union, Lansdown Neighbourhood and Friendship Groups, St Stephen’s young people’s group; the choir, bellringers, and Home Groups were among the church groups who submitted a display.
Representatives from the local neighbourhood also joined in with displays created by groups such as the Bath Floral Club, Cantata Choir, St Stephen’s Millennium Green and Beckford Tower.
Schools from the area were also invited to take part, with Abbot Alphege Academy, St Stephen’s, Kingswood and the Royal High Schools all represented alongside local charities The Genesis Trust and STEP.
Commenting on the success of the event the St Stephen’s Quardens (four churchwardens), Penny Cracknell, Carolyn Cowley, Jude Dent and Hester Davies, said, “The Festival was created as a prelude to future major fund raising for vital repairs and re-imagining of this notable Victorian gothic revival church.
“Mouthwatering home bakes were dispensed with aplomb, alongside children happily absorbed with Harvest themed crafts. Our food bank collection was literally bulging with generous Harvest contributions. The final weekend featured an insightful talk by Revd Debbie Pow on a year in the life of a farm, with the grand finale of a Benefice bring and share lunch.
“It was an answer to so much prayer; a joyful community gathering and a celebration of Harvest with a timely reminder of the importance and intrinsic value in our daily lives of hard-working farmers.”
Photos: Alastair Chalmers and Penny Cracknell
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