Friends of St Breaca Church looking for more volunteers

Four of the village’s residents, Jane Stone, Malcolm Hersee, Chris Dale and Trefor Bowen, joined forces to set up the Friends of St Breaca Church with the aim of raising funds for the upkeep of the building and the preservation of its contents including rare wall paintings believed to date from the mid-15th century.

The launch event featured an educational and entertaining talk by Martin Matthews on the history of the church in Breage, right from the arrival of St Breaca herself in the Dark Ages, up to the present day.

Friends’ treasurer Chris Dale then spoke about the Friends, the projects which have already attracted grants, such as roof repairs and the wall paintings, as well as the pinnacles which are also in need of repair.

Trefor Bowen, with Martin’s help, had also put together a display of old photographs of the village, the church, and many of the key personalities. The centrepiece of the display was a map of the world, highlighting the 23 countries represented by entries in the church’s visitors’ book over the past five years. Many of these visitors have come as part of family history searches.

Chris said: “Breage, for many centuries, was a mining village. When the mines closed, many travelled overseas and we now see many of their descendants back to trace their family’s history. Last year we had someone visiting because seven generations ago his uncle was a vicar here. It brings such delight to these visitors when they come and we can show them where their ancestor is buried.”

As well as the money raised on the evening, the group also received a number of requests to join the Friends and there were offers of support in the form of organising fundraising events and a local business offered to set up a website.

Jane Stone said: “We are still hoping for some help with administering and organising the Friends. We are a small, busy group and we do need others in the community to assist us. What we’d like is for people to sign up as members but also for anyone who thinks they might like to get more involved to come forward. We want to make it a community group rather than a religious group because the church is so much more than just a venue for Sunday services.”

Trefor added: “We know that many of our villagers don’t use it as a religious resource but they enjoy the many community events hosted there and so we hope to build on that enthusiasm.”

With that in mind, the group are now planning a garden party to raise funds. The Friends of St Breaca Church Garden Party will take place on July 12, from 2pm to 4pm, with maypole dancing by the children of Breage School at 3pm. There will be cream teas, face painting, an ice cream man and a raffle with valuable prizes. There will also be a chance to become a Friend of St Breaca Church.