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The Spirit of Christmas Celebration St Laurence Church, Hilmarton
Uploaded: December 12, 2006
The Spirit of Christmas was truly captured at St Laurence Church on Friday 12th December.
The first Spirit of Christmas event took place in 2006 and the idea was to present the church not only as a place of worship, but to celebrate its beauty and highlight some of the activities that happen in the church throughout the year. Therefore the bells were rung to welcome people into the church, the choir sang until they were hoarse and the organist played, filling the church with its wonderful sound.
Visitors to the children’s corner were encouraged to decorate a Blessings tree with coloured cardboard baubles. On each of the baubles they wrote their names, ages and something they were thankful for in their lives.
Those that attended drank mulled wine, tea or coffee and ate delicious minced pies. Also served was a choice of homemade soups with crusty bread.
The talent and generosity of our local residents never ceases to amaze, as there were homemade Christmas decorations, cards, candles, wreaths, floral decorations, knitted goods, preserves and other delightful Christmas food donated for sale.
One resident brought some models of buildings that were made completely out of scrap materials, which proved fascinating to all. Hundreds of hours of work go into constructing these models and we felt priviledged to be able to display them in our church.
The Christmas tree sales did well again this year, and it truly makes you believe Christmas has arrived when you see children and their parents carry home their chosen tree!
All the decorations in the church looked fabulous. The candles were lit in the window decorations, and in the pews, so there was a magical atmosphere created for people to sit and chat or browse through some of the items for sale, including tickets for the amazing Christmas raffle. So many people fell in love with the Christmas teddy bear but rest assured he went to a loving home and is now awaiting the arrival of a new baby.
Once again it was highlighted what a fantastic community spirit we have in our parish.