The Friends of St James the Great, Thorley
Report by the Secretary to the Annual Parochial Church Meeting May 2023
The Friends were pleased to make several grants to the Parochial Church Council (PCC) during 2022. In February we funded the purchase of a microphone for the Church lectern. In July we covered the cost of the construction and installation of a notice board to replace that adjacent to the Lychgate, which had collapsed through rot. In August we made up the difference between a donation the PCC received, and the full cost incurred in installing a new boiler in the Church. As well as covering the usual annual servicing costs of the Churchyard machinery, the Friends were also pleased to add a new strimmer to the inventory of this equipment, thanks to a donation by one of our small team of helpers who maintained the Churchyard throughout the growing season.
The Friends 2022 fundraising activities were a Quiz Evening in February, a Sale of Nursery plants in May, an Autumn Craft Fair in November, and the provision of Sunday Afternoon Teas from the Church Room during the months of May, June, July, August and September. In addition to funding the above-mentioned expenditure, the money so raised, together with that received through membership subscriptions and donations, increased the Friends’ reserves for future projects to just under £22,000 by the year end.
Looking forward, the Committee has agreed that the Friends will pay for the purchase and installation of audio-visual equipment to enable the more straightforward and flexible streaming of services in the Church than is possible with the portable camera and associated components currently in use. We will also be covering the cost of the repainting of areas of the stained-glass window in the Tower that a recent report identified as having suffered significant erosion in the 30+ years since the Friends funded a major restoration of the glass in that window in 1991.
New members of the Friends are always welcome. The minimum family subscription is only £5.00. By joining you will be supporting the work of the PCC by helping to preserve our ancient and beautiful Church building and to maintain our Churchyard.
Philip Hargrave
Chairman & Secretary