Good Friday Easter Eggstravaganza

It has been the tradition for several years in Crewe-by-Farndon Chapel to organise a big community event during Holy Week, usually held on the Field and/or Chapel. This year a Good Friday 'Easter Eggstravaganza' was planned, which involved Donkey Rides, Easter Garden Making, Easter Seed Bomb Making, Music, a message from Revd Malcolm Lorimer and Refreshments. Roland Twydell had booked the Donkeys months in advance, we were excited for reaching out into our community this Easter.

This year however, presented us with a new challenge. The non-stop rain for months on end and an early Easter resulted in an unusable Chapel field and grass verges that could be better described as bogs. Certainly not suitable for lots of car parking at all.

The decision was taken that instead of cancelling, we should get our thinking caps on. If the community couldn't come to us, we would come to the community. Right at the centre of it to, in Farndon Community Club. Posters were produced and released online on local village Facebook groups. Printed posters were placed around the village. We hoped that the families from playgroup might come along.

So....we woke up to another rainy day, oh no! This might put people off, most of our activities were planned for outside. Farndon Community Club was carpeted and we were quite sure we couldn't run our very messy crafts inside. Would anybody want to sit on a donkey in the rain too?

And then, just as we were about to open, the clouds parted and the sun shone. "How many are you expecting Marie?" Revd Malcolm Lorimer asked, hoping that I had advertised it as promised.
I was hoping a few would come along. Some of the playgroup Mums had said they were hoping to. I thought, Please God, after all this, please let some come along.

What happened next was a bit of a blur. This is the bit I was asked to report on, yet my memories blur into one! OVER 100 PEOPLE TURNED UP!

People from the community, people's friends, people who come to playgroup, people who came to playgroup years ago. I even spoke to one woman asking how she knew about the event and she had seen it on a Wrexham school WhatsApp group message!

Poor Linda and Roland who were running the refreshments were inundated. Hot Cross Buns for the masses!

Easter Gardens were made by the dozen, that church member Mia Munnerley and her son Joey had gathered resources for. Clay and seeds everywhere, as enthusiastic children made Easter Egg Seed Bombs.

People chatting, catching up with friends they hadn't seen in years and new connections made. People wanting to know more about what else goes on at Crewe-by-Farndon Chapel.

A quick decision was made to relocate rooms for the Easter Message with Revd Malcolm Lorimer to a larger room. Everything was on the hop. More chairs please! Marie decided to not play the ukulele as planned, instead invented new actions for church songs, so more would be able to enagage. I hope they didn't realise how under prepared we were! Revd Malcolm Lorimer is the master of impromptu messages, thinking on the spot and I think together we pulled it off.

Bible Society Easter booklets were distributed to lots of families, Happy faces (as frankly best of all, there was no rain!) and a brilliant morning of outreach was held.
In fact it was such a success, we plan to use Farndon Community Club more regularly for church outreach.

I hope this report encourage you to reach out into your community and share the Good News of Hope! Just of note, it started raining as soon as the event finished. Thank you Lord.

Marie Lumb – Crewe-by-Farndon Lay Worker