In common with every other similar organisation, plans for fundraising this summer were thrown into confusion. Yet, in spite of the lockdown and the country’s major problems, there are still repairs to carry out in St Peter’s church at Newenden and improvements to the church fabric, which have to be paid for so the committee must continue to find ways of raising funds.
Instead of having a garden safari in June, which Caroline Anderson-Jones had organised, we shall be offering a virtual garden safari online. The film will include the option of making a donation to the friends via a Just Giving page.
This film has been made possible because our daughter, Hannah, and her fiancé, Joe Morgan, have been staying with us in Newenden since the beginning of the lockdown. By good chance, Joe is a filmmaker and he has very kindly agreed to edit our videos into a short film and “The Gardens of Newenden 2020” will hopefully be available in early July.
The amazing new technology will enable us all to visit at least ten Newenden gardens, many of which will have more attention this year than perhaps they’ve ever had before! It may not be the Chelsea Flower Show, but it will be an amazing record of our efforts.
There is a great deal of enthusiasm for the scheme among the gardeners of the village and we must hope that the glory of their gardens, big and small, will bring pleasure to online viewers, not just locally but around the world.
Image Credits: Anthony Dawson .