The Cake - Spring 2022

FEATURE
Can you be a Friend
to St Dunstan’s?
A question posed to us all in Cranbrook by John Williams,
membership secretary of the church’s friends’ group;
“How would you feel if you found St Dunstan’s Church
in the same dilapidated state as the Providence Chapel?”
Why, I wonder,
should the
relatively few
worshippers
who regularly
attend the church bear the brunt
of the considerable expenditure
involved in keeping such a
magnificent building in a good
state of repair?
Indeed, some Christians might
argue that they would be freer
to celebrate their faith without
the encumbrance of having to
maintain any church building.
St Dunstan’s, together with the
windmill, must be of considerable
help in contributing to the
significant level of tourism
within the town. I think that
most of us like to know that the
building is there, even if we do
not go through the doors very
often. Many of us like to look at
the time on the clock, hear the
bells ringing in the tower, attend
the occasional wedding, funeral,
memorial service or baptism, or
the annual Remembrance Day
service. We take it for granted
that the church will always be
there.
I know that our vicar would
like to open up the building even
more, so that it can be a real
focal point for all the Cranbrook
community, as it would have been
centuries ago.
HOW TO HELP
How can we help? We could all
become Friends of St Dunstan’s
(FOSTD)! We are not committing
ourselves to spending hours in
church, but simply wanting to
help keep the building safe, clean,
dry and open, and to be ever more
beautiful for generations to come.
A minimum donation of £12 per
person per year would really
encourage the small committee
of trustees to continue their
work, helping keep the church
building open and available to
the wider community.
In recent years, FOSTD
have, amongst other projects,
contributed money to the
various projects of St Dunstan’s
Parochial Church Council. They
include maintaining the fabric
of the building, helping to aid
the recent restoration of the
tower, and the renewal of the
lighting and rewiring. FOSTD
have also helped with funding
for the restoration of windows
and memorials, repairs to the
roof, stonework and noticeboards.
Funds have helped to pay for
the overhaul of the clock, create
the Millennium Book, maintain
the organ, purchase a grand
piano, install CCTV, repair the
heating, refurbish a chapel and
porch, provide pew cushions,
and published church guides and
histories.
The trustees organise concerts
during warmer weather at 1pm on
the first Thursday of each month
from March to October, this year
starting on March 3rd, to which
all are welcome without charge.
There is a retiring collection for
the friends’ work.
If you could help, please chat to
one of the trustees (on the Friends’
website) or contact; FOSTD
Membership Secretary, Church
House, Stone Street, Cranbrook,
TN17 3HA. John Williams
The Cake • Spring 2022 25