STELLA MARIS GUTTED AS THE MILNER WING SOARS ON HIGH!

On Monday, June 11th 2007 the builders - or rather at that stage, the demolition workers - moved in to the Shrine to begin work on the new Stella Maris/Milner Wing project. Hoardings were erected, foundations for the tall crane were set in the ground and a viewing area for the public and pilgrims constructed.
 

Now the crane dominates the skyline. Because of the restricted nature of the building site and access to it virtually everything has to be lifted by the crane from the road, over the roof of Stella Maris and into the construction area.

The road outside the archway is single file, controlled by traffic lights. The interior of the northern part of the Stella Maris building, having been gutted in preparation for refurbishment, is now re-roofed with new dormer windows inserted. The colonnade columns fronting the road are in place. The extra storey on the tower above the entrance archway is virtually complete. Work is also progressing very fast on the Milner Wing. The roof tiles are more or less on and it is now possible to gain some sense of what the rooms will feel like and how the whole building will look when complete. And it is all very exciting. It would seem that once again the architects, Cowper Griffith (the firm who designed the refectory)  will be handing over to us a truly beautiful contemporary building and one that will be worthy of the fabric of the Shrine.

The building will soon be watertight. Once that point has been reached, the crane will be removed and the trades can move in - plasterers, electricians, joiners, plumbers, decorators, glaziers and many others will be on site in large numbers.  Gradually the scaffolding and protective netting is being removed and we can begin to get some idea of what the exterior of the finished building will look like. Many of us are looking forward to the completion date with great anticipation.

And when will that be? On what night will the first pilgrims sleep in the bedrooms in the Milner Wing? Your bet is as good as ours, but we are certainly hoping that by the late summer or early autumn these wonderful new facilities will be ours to enjoy.

The cost of the new building is being met by the £2 million Walsingham Appeal with a substantial grant from The Heritage Lottery Fund. Go to The Future - The Appeal to find out more about the new building and how you can help - we haven't quite reached the £2 million target yet!

Welcome!

When the Heritage Lottery Fund agreed a grant to the Walsingham Appeal, part of it was to fund a part-time post of Visitor Services Officer. We are delighted that Claire Wheeler has been able to fill this post and will work with us until June 2008. Claire brings a wealth of experience from the world of TV and communication and will help out in planning the Welcome Centre, designing resources for all ages and training up a pastoral team to welcome visitors.

The Knight's Gate

Visitors to Walsingham this season will not fail to notice the splendid restoration of the Knight's Gate complex of buildings. This historic building (rumoured to have provided accommodation for Queen Catherine of Aragon - Henry VIII's first wife, when on pilgrimage to Walsingham) has been desperately in need of renovation. As part of the Shrine's Appeal initiative, the whole complex has been sensitively converted into five cottages. These have now all been sold.

A New Organ for the Barn Chapel

The Barn Chapel now has its own organ - thanks to the splendid generosity of a regular pilgrim to the Shrine.  The Barn has for the last year had an electric piano to accompany worship, but the new organ will provide an instrument both to accompany services in the chapel and for the Shrine organists to practise on.

Bradford Organ Associates - the designers and builders of the Shrine Church organ - were asked to asked to come up with something slightly different from the run-of-the-mill standard electronic organ. The instrument pictured has totally  re-voiced as a two manual French organ of the nineteenth century - based on the famous tonal creations of Aristide Cavaillé-Coll.

Further information about this organ can be found at The Shrine - Music page.