Kind gifts do great things

Published on: 14 October 2019

Legacy stories from St James’s Church Southrepps, Christ Church Eaton and St Mary and St Botolph Church Hevingham

St James’s Church, Southrepps

St James’s Church was left a legacy of £750,000 which enabled them to build a well-designed extension. The ground floor includes a kitchen and small hall which is large enough to seat approximately 25 people sat around tables. There are also toilets and a store room and upstairs there is a useful meeting room and office. This is the sort of development which would help so many of our churches become community buildings for their local village, but it is dependent upon us being proactive about encouraging legacies in our own parishes. With these sorts of facilities you can hold toddler groups and coffee mornings very comfortably as well as run several other much needed groups. Legacies like this help to make our churches sustainable for the future.

Christ Church Eaton

Christ Church Eaton were able to develop a welcome area in their church thanks to the generosity of a legacy. It has a fully accessible WC and kitchen facilities which are proving helpful for hosting concerts, weddings and major services and is also ideal for community events, exhibitions, lunches and school visits. Legacy money has also meant that they can restore their pipe organ. Christ Church were very clever as they did not use every penny of their legacy money to pay for their projects but also applied for grants from grant-making bodies, which meant that their legacies went so much further.

A legacy, however small, can be that important catalyst to get a project off the ground, and that is why each and every one of us in our church congregations as well as those living in our local communities should consider leaving a legacy to their church.

St Mary and St Botolph, Church Hevingham

St Mary and St Botolph Church had a prayer answered in the form of a legacy. They needed to replace the lead on the church roof which had been stolen. They decided to go ahead with the work in the summer because they were very fortunate that they had been offered two interest-free loans to settle the account for the repairs which was due the following January. The problem with loans is that they have to be paid back, but just as the invoice arrived they received notification to say that they had been left a legacy. This was such a timely occurrence and we can only imagine the joy that the legacy brought to that parish. It is a lovely thought that we too can bring so much joy after we have gone.


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