A church in Egremont is appealing for old photographs and memories ahead of its 150th anniversary.
Egremont Methodist Church, on Main Street, is getting ready to celebrate the milestone with services and a special exhibition of people’s memories of the church, set to be held on Saturday 16 May, from 10am to 2pm.
The church is now asking for anyone with old photos or other memorabilia like programmes, wedding, christening or baptism pictures, to lend their items that tell stories of days past to feature in the exhibition.
It would also like to hear from anyone who has any stories of Methodist life in Egremont from years gone by.
Andy Lennox, who has been part of the congregation for five years, said the exhibition is celebrating the history of the church, where it has been and where it is now.
He added: “We’d love to see things like old photos, because while we have a few, we haven’t got that many. So any families who’ve been members of the church in the past, we’d like to borrow pictures, copy them and give them back.
“Any memorabilia too, we’ve got a few things like Christening gowns and someone is going to bring their wedding dress as they got married in the church.
“We’d also like any stories or memories that we can write up on a board and display. We’d really like to hear from the community in advance of our celebrations.”
The church first opened in May 1876 and over the years has become the centre of Methodism in the Egremont area and beyond.
It has also welcomed congregations from three other Methodist chapels in the town as well as from Methodist churches in Thornhill and St Bees on their closure.
In 2012 the church was renovated to become a multi-purpose community centre named ‘The Meeting Place’ and has welcomed a range of groups of people in the years since.
Andy added: “We have a regular congregation of about 25 to 30 every Sunday and the church itself was built as a traditional church with pews and all the rest of it.
“But in 2012 we got it renovated to become a more useable community space and it’s now a big open hall used by not just ourselves.
“We have Scouts, taekwondo who meet there every week and the church is also used as a warm welcome hub every Wednesday that welcomes about 30 people.
“There’s also a regular coffee morning every Saturday and we do various events throughout the year. The next will be a craft afternoon before Mother’s Day so kids can come make stuff for their mum and mum’s can come and have an afternoon tea.
“The North Lakes Foodbank also operates from the church twice a week to help people in need.
“So it’s a very well used community building.”
The exhibition will take place on Saturday May 16, from 10am to 2pm, and refreshments will be on offer.
The church will also host two services to celebrate the anniversary on Sunday Mary 17 at 11am and 4pm.
The 11am service will be led by Rev Richard Teal, previously chair of the Cumbria District and past president of the Methodist Conference.
For the 4pm service, Rev Teal will also be joined by the Phoenix Praise group for a lively service of all-age worship.
Anyone with old photos or memorabilia to share can get in touch with the church via Facebook here.
