St Cyriac's Refurbishment
Thursday 14th October was a very special day in our village life, in that the new alterations to the interior of the church attracted many visitors, some from the Churches Conservation Trust but many from the village.
To describe the meeting I feel it right to start at the end of the evening and work backwards. The school choir really stole the whole show; the enthusiasm of the youngsters and their obvious enjoyment of providing entertainment were plain to see. Even the very youngest knew the words, and joined in with gusto.
Under the direction of Mrs Rachel Holt, the music seemed to flow from those young voices with clarity and accuracy more associated with adult choirs. To keep over forty "under tens" in time and in tune gave us all pleasure. It was not only the top line singing that came across, as the descant and harmonies were present and audible. The choice of music was not my generation, but that did not detract in any way from my enjoyment.
The audience, or perhaps it should be the congregation, showed their appreciation with loud applause after each item, which seemed to energise the choir even more. We have had much music in this church in the past, provided by the Cambridge Voices, and these school children rank in their special way along with their senior choristers as excellent entertainers.
A Trustee of the trust was present, and expressed his hope that this building, now equipped with all the necessary facilities, would be an asset to the village, and find users from the wider community. The previous speaker told us all what we knew already. That was just as well as he did not get the feeling of the difficulty of the spoken word, and was very difficult to hear.
The Vicar, who welcomed the Trust members, the architect Henry Freeland, and other important people in his usual friendly manner, opened the whole evening. He gave a brief history of the way the alterations had progressed, and the source of our contribution to the cost without giving away the total expenditure!!
The first sign of any activity was the ringing of the bells. Turning them through ninety degrees, and replacing the bearings on which they hang have refurbished these. My only sorrow was that only two out of the six ringers lived in the village; but we are all grateful for the renovation by the trust. So there is it, all smart and done up, and ready for use. Let us hope it is well used, and that many more enjoyable events will be staged in this ancient building.