Fundraising News
Harvest thanks to our funders
Harvest seems an appropriate time to say thank you for the gifts and grants so generously given to the cathedral throughout the year. The kindness and goodwill lying behind each donation are what keep us open in the present and able to pass on our precious heritage in the future, and we cannot thank everyone enough.
In the past two months, we have been very fortunate to receive funding from charitable organisations in the following areas:
Heritage – St Mary’s Aisle
A huge thank you to the Bernard Sunley Foundation for their generous pledge of £10,000 towards the cost of repairing and refurbishing St Mary’s Aisle. This work is urgent due to a serious leak in the roof, and its completion will enable us to make fuller use of the Aisle for the smaller scale, more family-oriented, activities for which the cathedral nave is too large. So far we have raised about £180,000 of the £450,000 + inflation required, and we send our grateful thanks to all the individuals and organisations that have already contributed.
The Aisle is an important part of the heritage of Truro, and a site of worship for at least 750 years. Further fundraising is in the pipeline, including a household appeal leaflet, and if you have yet to support this urgent restoration project, please visit St Mary’s Aisle Appeal.
The Byfield Organ is one of the historic features of the Aisle threatened with rainwater damage. It’s a fine instrument, played here by our Assistant Director of Music, Andrew Wyatt.
Music – the choir
Truro Cathedral Choir is one of the jewels in Cornwall’s crown. It has an unbroken tradition dating back to the 1880s and performs an extensive repertoire of music from the last five centuries of the Anglican Choral Tradition, as well as commissioning new pieces. These challenging scores require a professional choir with child choristers. The continuation of this unique musical heritage is therefore reliant on the generosity of charitable trusts, local companies, Chorister Sponsors and members of Truro Cathedral Music. We are heartily grateful to them all, and would like to extend special thanks at this time to the Saddlers’ Company, who have recently decided to extend their annual gift of £2500 in support of our choristerships to 2024-25.
Mission – learning and interpretation
Education is a core function of the cathedral. We welcome many school visits yearly and have just launched an online education portal funded by the Church Commissioners’ Cathedrals Sustainability Development Fund. Our thanks go to them for their continuing support. Through the portal, every school in Cornwall can choose to utilise tailored resources from the cathedral to deliver RE in line with our county’s Curriculum Kerwenek.
Benefact Trust has recognised the importance of the cathedral as a place of learning, and we are extremely grateful to be able to fund our 2022-23 academic year Learning and Interpretation programme through their Recurrent Grant of £25,000.
Judith Field,
Fundraising Lead