NEWSFLASH:
Next Fundraising event: OPERA ON A LATE SUMMER'S EVENING - on Saturday September 25th 7pm - 10pm at St Thomas-on-the- Bourne.
Optional black tie - Champagne and canapes.
Tickets £25 each. Please phone 01252 734732 or 01252 725992. More info from Ashley Jones (St Martin's Committee Member) below.
'Hi All,
I have arranged an opera evening at St Thomas’ The Bourne Church for Saturday September the 25th 2010 from which all proceeds will go to the ‘Save St Martin’s Hall Project’.
We are aiming for 200 attendees which will enable us to carry out some urgent works following our successful purchase of the hall.
So to the evening. As some of you know (and others will be amazed to learn) both of my parents were opera singers who spent much of their careers at Covent Garden.
One of our closest family friends is also the world renowned conductor – Robin Stapleton - who has very kindly agreed to stage the concert for us.
We can now confirm that the performers will be:
ROBIN STAPLETON - Conductor - for biography and career details please view Robin's website at www.robinstapleton.co.uk
PHILLIP RHODES - Tenor - please view this rising young star's website at philliprhodes.co.uk
GWAWR EDWARDS - Soprano - please view this rising young star's website at www.gwawredwards.com (she recently recorded a duet with Bryn Terfel for his Christmas album)
ADRIANO GRAZIANO - Baritone - - please view this rising young star's website at www.adrianograziano.com
Anna Cooper - Mezzo - My mother! Trained at the Royal Academy of Music, London, won the prestigious Kathleen Ferrier Award and trained in Venice, sang Gilbert & Sullivan as a principal and then worked as a member of the Covent Garden chorus for 30 years.
Tickets for Opera on a Summer's Evening are priced at £25.00 each and the event will commence with a champagne and canape reception (Black Tie optional). The show will consist of well loved Arias, Duets and ensembles from the ‘World of Opera’. As you can see from his biography, Robin does not do average!
We cordially invite you all to attend what we expect to be a truly spectacular evening - a great opportunity to dress up, mingle, drink champagne and enjoy a magical, cultural evening of opera.
All this, and if you haven’t had the opportunity yet, a chance to raise money for our local community project which will benefit us all!'
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ON SATURDAY 17TH JULY ST MARTIN'S HALL WAS FORMALLY RE-OPENED UNDER ITS NEW OWNERSHIP, THE ST MARTIN'S HALL COMMUNITY TRUST.
WE WERE DELIGHTED TO HAVE CAROLE COCKBURN, MAYOR OF WAVERLY AND LOCAL COUNCILLOR, AND PETER GOOCH OF RURAL ACCESS TO SERVICES, TO DO THE HONOURS, UNVEILING THE HALL'S NEW NAMEPLATE.
WE NOW MOVE FORWARD INTO OUR SECOND PHASE - THE REFURBISHMENT OF THE HALL TO BRING IT UP TO MODERN STANDARDS.
FURTHER FUNDRAISING IS NOW NEEDED TO REFIT THE TOILETS, WITH DISABLED ACCESS, TO IMPROVE THE HALL'S KITCHEN FACILITIES, AND TO COMPLETE MUCH NEEDED CARE, MAINTENANCE AND RESTORATION OF THE BUILDING.
DURING THE SUMMER BREAK THE COMMITTEE HAVE CLEANED THE HALL, DONE URGENT REPAIRS, PAINTED INTERNALLY, DEMOLISHED A SHED AND HAVE CUT BACK ALL OF THE OVERGROWN VEGETATION.
WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF OBTAINING QUOTES FROM COMPANIES TO ENABLE US TO ACCESS GRANTS FOR THE TOILET REFURBISHMENT.
VOLUNTEERS TO HELP IN ANY ASPECT OF THIS WORK. PLEASE EMAIL US OR CONTACT ONE OF THE COMMITTEE.
Photos of the opening ceremony to be found in the photo album.
SUPPORT FROM THE 'FARNHAM HERALD' AND THE BOURNE TENNIS CLUB SECURE THE HALL!
PLEASE DONATE NOW TO SUPPORT REQUIRED REPAIR AND REFURBISHMENT.
For details see 'NEWS' (left)
St Martin's Hall Community Trust - Registered Charity No 1130666 - has been formed to save and maintain this village hall facility for the residents of Lower Bourne, Farnham, Surrey. The Hall is widely used by a nursery, Brownies, Guides, Yoga and for many other social activities. Our successful bid of £80,000 would not have been possible without the generous grants of £20,000 from RASP and £2000 from Farnham Town Council, donations received from the community and the continued support of The Farnham Herald, our local newspaper. Our aims are to refurbish the building and extend its community use. This is a much loved local Hall which has served several generations of Bourne residents and which is still used by old and young alike.
St Martin's Hall History
St Martin's Hall is essentially a 1950s-style building, originally erected on land behind the small church of St Martin-by-the-Green. The plot was donated for the purpose by their widows in memory of two gentlemen named Urmson Willan and Graham Barker. We understand that the Hall was dedicated by the Rt. Rev. Bishop F.F. Johnson on October 1, 1960. Several local residents contributed enormous time and effort into digging and preparing the foundations for the Hall and in helping with its subsequent assembly, decoration and maintenance. A number of them are with us still today. St Martin's Hall has therefore provided our Bourne community with almost half a century of multi-purpose service, not only for church goers but also for the wider community. The Hall is generally in good condition considering its 50-years age, and with adequate investment managed by sympathetic and attentive ownership it can continue to provide Lower Bourne with a useful and versatile meeting place for many years to come. The photograph below captures a typical recent event - the 2009 Hallowe'en Fun Day which raised nearly £800 for the St Martin's Hall Community Trust's purchase appeal fund.
