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Music & Christmas Tree Festival – December 2015
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Christmas trees decorated by local groups
(Photo courtesy of Michaela Lawler‑Levene)
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The FoSJP History Research Group was proud to be present at the St James Road Methodist Church‘s Music & Christmas Tree Festival on Friday 4th and Saturday 5th December.
This popular bi‑annual community event takes place at this Shirley Church over two days in early December. The Church is transformed into a performance space, hosting a varied mix of musicians and choirs performing a wide range of musical styles. There’s a chance to buy some homemade gifts from the local crafters and community group, with refreshments available from the church café.
Another enchanting part of the festival are the real Christmas trees which are beautifully decorated by local groups and charities. Some of the trees are sold to the highest bidder at the end of the Festival to raise more money for charity.
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This year the Church shared the monies raised with the Honeypot Charity, a New Forest‑based charity which provides respite holiday breaks for children who are themselves carers. Much to the delight of the FoSJP History Team, the event was opened by TV personality and historian Dan Snow, who is one of the charity’s patrons. It goes without saying that Dan left with a copy of our St.James’ Park History Book!
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Thank you to those people who came to chat with us and in some cases share memories. We managed to sell two more copies of our book, which will help us raise funds towards the next Shirley local history book.
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