It has been quite some time since any mention has been made of Project St Thomas, a pastoral initiative of the Catholic community in South Holland.
I admit that it may have seemed as if the project had gone to sleep, but in reality the project continues to grow.
Our very first project under the umbrella of ‘Project St Thomas’, ‘Hub In – Hub Out’ celebrates its second birthday next month and continues to flourish; serving free hot meals on Sundays from the centre premises on the corner of Green Lane and St Thomas’s Road between 12 and 2pm.
The project did have to step back a little owing to the merging of the two local Catholic parishes in Spalding and Holbeach, the merger was completed on Easter Sunday this year; the Parishes of The Most Holy Trinity, Holbeach and the Immaculate Conception and Saint Norbert church in Spalding are now one and collectively they have become ‘The Parish of Our Lady of Walsingham, South Holland’.
Every country throughout the world has its own national shrine to Mary, the Mother of God, and the national shrine in England is in Walsingham, near to King’s Lynn in Norfolk.
It is well known that the then parish of The Immaculate Conception and Saint Norbert (St Norbert’s) Spalding was given what was the former Methodist chapel on St Thomas’s Road, by local parishioner, the late Peter Borst to provide facilities for the wider community.
The parish is being supported by the Diocese of Nottingham, but the project is one, if not the first of its kind in the Diocese, and we knew it would not be easy.
The structures that were put in place were just not working and so we have had to make a few changes – we are still supported by the Diocese of Nottingham, but we have a new and broader local committee, with local knowledge, including three local councillors.
So, what’s next for Project St Thomas? We need to generate more funds to keep ourselves afloat and to support ‘Hub In – Hub Out’.
We are getting the premises ready so that it can be hired out for community use.
We are making very good progress with this, and bookings are already being taken.
We want to re-engage with our neighbours, and with anyone who wants to work with us to see what we can add to the excellent services already being catered for in other community groups and organisations in the area.
Father Jim Burke
Parish priest
