Appeal Update: February 2020

What we have done so far

Since our last newsletter the church has been transformed. The Doom painting has been marvellously refreshed by Peter Martindale and his team of conservators, and new furniture has been installed, designed and manufactured by Luke Hughes.

I want to draw your attention to two less obvious aspects of the work – one historical, one practical.  The first of these was revealed through the work of the conservators, when they uncovered a tricephalous Trinity. This is a carving on a roof timber of ‘three faces in one’, a feature in churches between the 15th and 17th centuries, until they were banned by Pope Urban in 1628. So this remarkable carving has lain undetected beneath layers of grime and varnish for hundreds of years. If you visit, please ask one of our Welcomers to point it out to you. It looks like this:

The second change will be the introduction of four new bookcases to house our collection of second hand books which are for sale each Tuesday and Saturday morning in the church, raising £3,000 on average annually. These bookcases will replace the ingenious, but ageing, display boxes, shelves and book trolleys that have done the job for so many years. They will be installed in the next few weeks. Our second hand book sales, together with the café that is open at the same times in the church, form an important part of the social fabric of St Thomas’s.

Paying for it all

By the end of this year, we will have spent nearly £½ million on this phase of our renewal project. But we are still nearly £25,000 short of our target. If you would like to help us close the gap, you can do so by responding to our ‘Buy a Bench’ appeal. We are inviting donors to contribute between £250 (for a chair) and £1,500 (for a 5-seater bench), and have their donation recorded in a commemorative book together with a dedication. Please see our website for details, or contact the Parish Manager, Meryl Browning, on 01722 322537.

John Bruce-Ball, Chairman Appeal Committee February 2020   Previous Appeal updates: October 2019 August 2019 June 2019 April 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018

Quest Magazine issue 2 is now out, dated February 2020. It's full of news about the fund-raising and also about the work that's been done to the church using the money raised. There's a quiz and other news about St Thomas's and Salisbury. Pick up a paper copy in the church or click on the cover (left) to view or download a copy.

 

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