12Jul
News from St Faiths Crematorium!
Hello again from all at St Faiths. Hope everyone is enjoying the few sunny days we have had so far this “summer”!
Wildflower Scatter Area
We are so pleased with how our new bee-friendly wildflower meadow has flourished this year. We have started some scattering of ashes in this area and our families have been pleased with how quiet and tranquil this area is. It offers an environmentally friendly alternative to our more traditional gardens. There is a quiet place to sit and reflect with our wildflower sculpture as centrepiece and the benches are available for memorialisation if a family would like a plaque to remember their loved one.
Visit from St Faiths C of E Primary School
We loved welcoming some of the smaller children last month for a nature walk in our gardens. Here they are learning about the bird boxes in our Wildflower Meadow. Some of the flowers were taller than them! They also took a good look at the insect activity around our Buzzing Bug Bungalow created by their fellow pupils last summer.
Shrub Option
First an apology to anyone who has visited our gardens in the last few weeks and found that their loved one’s bed has not been weeded. This year has been extremely challenging for our gardening team and we have tried to get to all the beds as quickly as possible. The weather (rain, sun and more rain!) has resulted in thriving weeds. We are now more or less on top of the situation but it has taken an “all hands on deck” approach with our office team also coming out to help keep the beds weed-free. We have also taken the decision to offer shrubs instead of roses to families where roses are not thriving in their loved ones resting place. Unfortunately, roses do not particularly like the acidity created by interring ashes in the soil and over the years, despite replacing them year after year, many roses are not doing well.
We have decided that if a family prefers, we can replace the rose with a type of shrub which we have found fares better in these conditions. The shrubs that we have found grow the best are choisya, pieris and skimmia.
They are also evergreen and look nice throughout the year. Of course, we are happy to persevere with a rose if the family prefer, but will offer the option.
Our Gardens are not gated and open every day of the year. Well-behaved dogs on leads are very welcome. Here’s Ivy, a rescue dog who is a regular visitor.
Thank you for reading.
If there is anything you would like more information on, please call our friendly office team on 01603 897727.
Debbie Leah Business Leader
60 Years’ of Dedication to St Faiths Gardens
We were honoured to celebrate with Terry Farrow, our Head Groundsman who celebrated60 years of working at St Faiths last month. Terry started as an apprentice in 1964 and isstill working full-time. We held a lunch gathering for friends, family and colleagues past andpresent. We are all honoured to be part of the team at St Faiths who have been part of Terry’s journey and frankly we do not know what we do without his knowledge andexpertise. Terry’s affinity for working outdoors began during his schooldays, when he would spend the holidays helping his father on a local poultry farm. Terry said: “Working outside with my hands was something I loved from a young age. So when the opportunity came to becomean apprentice at the crematorium and maintain the grounds, I knew it was the right fit for me.” Terry is well aware of the emotional attachment our Gardens hold for bereaved families and has learnt when someone visiting their loved one’s resting place might welcome a friendly chat or listening ear. He is definitely a local legend in St Faiths and we look forward to many more years working alongside him.
Work on our Patio Gardens
We have given our Patio Garden area a spring clean and treated the stonework to a jetwash. It’s taken some effort but the finished result is rewarding to see and we hope our families are happy with how it has turned out.
We are now working on the patio areas in our Cloisters so that visitors leaving our Chapel will have a brighter, lighter area to gather after the funeral service.
Blooming Gardens
Our famous rose gardens will soon come into their own but in the meantime, please feel free to come and have a wander round and enjoy our stunning azaleas and rhododendrons which are looking beautiful.
Our Gardens are not gated and open every day of the year. Well-behaved dogs on leads arevery welcome.
Thank you for reading. If there is anything you would like more information on, please callour friendly office team on 01603 897727.
Debbie Leah
Business Leader
At last, Spring and lighter nights have arrived! Our Gardens are starting to bloom, and colour seems to be exploding with camelias, magnolias and spring bulbs in full bloom. Please feel free to have a walk around our Gardens which are open every day of the year.
New Wildlife Sculpture
This week saw the arrival and installation of our new wildlife sculpture as a centrepiece for our Wildflower Meadow which we created last year. The sculpture was designed and made by fabulous local chainsaw artist Matt Darge who also created our St Faiths owls, named Elizabeth and Spirit by Tidus Wigg of St Faiths Church of England Primary School. Our new sculpture features some of the wildlife that we regularly see at St Faiths including woodpeckers, owls, buzzards and hedgehogs. We are now working on creating a pleasant, green space for ashes scattering or just to sit, reflect and watch the bird and insect life that our Meadow attracts.
Work on our Top Pond
The excessive rain we have experienced earlier this year resulted in some areas of ourgrounds suffering from flooding. Particularly our private garden area near the gated entrance next to the St Faiths Centre.
We had a look at the drainage for our top pond and found some blockages. We have employed contractors to clear the drains and noticed an immediate improvement. Hopefully, this will improve conditions for future heavy periods of rainfall.
St Faiths Gardening Club
With the warmer, spring-like weather upon us, we thought it was worth reminding any keen gardeners out there about our St Faiths Gardening Club. This is an opportunity to enjoy some light gardening alongside our experienced grounds team and meet some like-minded people afterwards for complimentary tea/coffee, cake and chat. The Club is held every Thursday at 2.00pm. If you are a new volunteer, please meet at our offices at 1.45pm any Thursday to sign up.
Our Facilities
Whilst we offer a traditional Chapel setting for our funeral services, we also have state of the art technology in the Chapel which allows for live-streaming of services and playing of photo slideshows and tributes as part of the service. We are also happy to provide a venue for Celebration of Life Services. With the ever-increasing popularity of Unattended Funerals, a Celebration of Life or Memorial Service is an alternative way for those leftbehind to say goodbye and celebrate the life of the person they have lost. If this is something you would like more information on, please call our friendly office team on 01603 897727.
Four-Legged Friends
We have had enquiries lately about whether dogs are allowed to attend funeral services andvisit our Gardens. We are happy to confirm that we welcome well behaved dogs on leads at St Faiths. We know what a comfort they can be to bereaved families either at the service itself or when visiting our Gardens of Remembrance. Bins are provided throughout the grounds for dog owners to clean up after their pets.
Glassware and Large Ceramic Items
Cherry Tree Dedication Service
On 23rd November we held a Tree Dedication and Memorial Service for our new cherry tree at the front of our chapel. This Cherry Tree commemorates members of our armed forces imprisoned in the Far East during the Second World War and several such war veterans have their ashes scattered beneath the tree. The Service was led by Pauline Simpson who is Chaplain to Far East POWs and all connected associations. Local families who have connections with FEPOW were also present as well as British Legion Standard Bearers. A minute’s silence was held in memory of these brave men and women and a new granite plaque was laid by local resident, David Lane. Thanks to all who attended and helped to create a moving tribute.
Donation to Local Bereavement Charity
At St Faiths Crematorium we participate in a nationwide not for profit metal recycling scheme administered by the Association of Private Crematoria and Cemeteries. The recycling scheme, operating with the consent of bereaved families, sees metals that have been recovered during the cremation process as well as metal plaques no longer wanted by families recycled and the profits donated to charity. We were happy to donate £6,500 from this scheme to local non-profit organisation Take Our Hand which supports and helps young people through grief. Take Our Hand is a charity with a mission to provide support and solace to young adults facing the challenging journey of bereavement. While conventional counselling services are offered by the charity, they also offer alternative therapies through activities such as music, art, drama and other activities as well as bereavement care packages. Pictured are Mark Bird, Memorial Consultant at St Faiths, Alex Curtis of Take Our Hand (centre) and Debbie Leah, Business Leader at St Faiths. If you or anyone you know would benefit from the help of this charity, please call 07707126650 or visit www.takeourhand.org.uk.
Launch of St Faiths Online Book of Remembrance
Last week saw the launch of our online Book of Remembrance. Pages of each Volume have been painstakingly photographed by Dominique (our Chapel Attendant) and we have loaded them online for viewing by family and friends in the comfort of their own home. This also gives friends and family who do not live locally the opportunity to view an entry at any time. Please follow this link to view https://www.remembrance-books.com/stfaiths/
There are two Volumes so if you do not see your loved one’s entry in Volume 1, please select Volume 2
Thank you for reading. If there is anything you would like more information on, please callour friendly office team on 01603 897727.
Debbie Leah - Business Leader @ St. Faiths Crematorium