NEW CHURCH FOR WOOLSTON

Press, Volume XCIII, Issue 27989, 8 June 1956, Page 8

NEW CHURCH FOR WOOLSTON

BUILDING TO START IN 1957 A new church on the site of the present church is the aim of the parishioners of Woolston, Christchurch. It is planned to lay the foundation stone of the building in November, 1957, when the cure will observe its centenary. The erection of a Sunday school on the Athletic Park site was also decided upon, after the sale of two back sections. These decisions were reached by unanimous vote at the annual meeting of parishioners. “It was made perfectly clear to al! present that the erection of a church on our present site would necessitate two things,” said the vicar, the Rev. H. F. Thomson writing in “Church and People.” “First, the immediate erection of a new Sunday school at Athletic Park, so that .this building would be available for our mid-week youth activities during the year of construction when church services would have to be held in our St. John’s parish hall. To keep within our financial resources this building would have to be erected by voluntary labour, after the manner in which we built our block of new classrooms at St. John's.

“Second, it will be necessary to raise £6OOO over the next three years. The meeting was strongly of the opinion that once people knew that it was our definite. intention to begin building the new church they would rise to the occasion, and that it was not beyond our ability to raise £2OOO annually over the next three years. This, of course, would be over and above all present giving to the Church. “It was decided that, after the drawing up of plans, a brochure should be printed and distributed amongst all parishioners with a promise form of giving toward the new church, such giving to be spread over the next three years?”