Somehow, the day after I won the End to End Walk this year, we once again ended up on the same route along the North West coast of the Island, though it has to be said, this time in the car.
Driving past the turn off to St Patricks Church Jurby, we noticed that there was an exhibition of paintings and photographs on that day.
It was an 'Off the cuff' sort of day, so whilst turning the vehicle, we ended up in a farmyard that sold its own produce and we were able to buy beetroot, cabbage, potatoes and apples for a fraction of what we would have paid in the supermarket.
As we walked towards the church, it occurred to me that whilst I visited here 9 times during the Parish Walk, never once had I journeyed through the gate.
The pictures turned out to have been painted by local artist, Peter Lloyd-Davies who was actually there in person. We are still using some of the trays and table mats that he unfortunately is no longer able to produce but this was our first meeting.
His son Tony (who somehow is a friend of mine, as Facebook moves in mysterious ways) was the photographer and they were exhibiting to try and raise funds for necessary renovations for the building.
St Patricks although not the most spectacular piece of ecclesiastical architecture has a tower and dominates the scenery from many miles around (I should know having also walked past it in the many other races ;)) It also has historical links with the Second World War because of the nearby airfield.
The Bishop of Soda and Mann has recently brought the plight of many of our Island's churches into the media spotlight with his comments about who is going to pay for their upkeep.
The subject was featured on 'Talking Heads,' the Manx Radio, 'Phone-in Show'and the weight of opinion seemed to suggest that it was up to the Church to maintain its own property though with congregations dwindling in number this would not seem to be sustainable.
Better usage and Government help seemed to be the Bishop's proposals and though it is good to see that the CoE is being pro-active with the provision of pre-schools, it is hard to see how our rulers will be able to justify spending huge amounts whilst we are in our current predicament.
Unfortunately, I have no magic wand to wave but I think it would be an awful shame if we are to start to lose some of these wonderful edifices that adorn our towns and countryside and help to display our heritage. I also suspect that though the queue may be short of benefactors willing to part with their money, the queue to criticise the people that allowed them to be lost will be long.
Good luck to the Parish of Jurby in the quest to preserve St Patricks.br />
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