Save Compos Memorial Garden

B

Benzade

Member
Hello all I recently visited Holmfirth to check out a few locations and in particular to visit Bill Owens grave and the Compo memorial garden next to it located in St Johns churchyard in Upperthong.

Whilst Bill Owens grave is mown and kept respectable the Compo memorial garden is looking overgrown and neglected. I was quite shocked to find that it was in this state and wrote a very strong email to the Reverend of St Johns complaining of what I found berating both the church of St John and the people of Holmfirth for allowing this to happen.

To my suprise she wrote back to me and informed me that actually the maintenance of the Compo memorial garden is not the churches responsibilty and that it was errected on the understanding that the maintenance costs would be met from a fund set up for that purpose. Apparrantly the church has not received any payments from this fund for a few years now as they cannot make contact with those running the fund and have had to pay for any maintenance to the memorial garden themselves which they can ill afford.

It has apparantly got to the stage where the church is now having to consider this autumn returning the area back to grass if the memorial garden cannot be funded seperately again.

As I'm sure all members here would agree it would be a sad loss if Compos memorial garden would be lost and I have offered to donate a small sum to the church of St John to hopefully halt it's immediate removal and buy it some time as it were if this donation was accepted.

However a more permanent solution is needed to secure the long term future of the memorial garden in it's present state for the future enjoyment of others.

So I am asking members here would they be willing to get onboard a campaign to save the Compo Memorial Garden at St Johns Upperthong?
 
I will think on. Safeguards would be needed. I would think seriously about contributing directly to the church on the basis that the money got spent on the garden. And, as with all my contributions, must qualify for Gift Aid.

Keep us in the picture on developments.
 
Pearl said:
Does anyone know who is supposed to be in charge of the fund?
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I have been informed of who is supposed to be in charge of the fund Pearl and it may sadden and shock you if I was to disclose the information related to me.
However I am not willing to post the identity publically and in an open forum as it was disclosed to me in confidence and as it stands I only know one side of the story.
 
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Big Unc said:
I will think on. Safeguards would be needed. I would think seriously about contributing directly to the church on the basis that the money got spent on the garden. And, as with all my contributions, must qualify for Gift Aid.

Keep us in the picture on developments.
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Sadly the next development I give you could be that it is gone if you are willing to help in anyway then you must speak up NOW before it is too late.

St Johns Parochial Church Council will be deciding the fate of the memorial garden very soon if they cannot make contact with those running the fund for it's upkeep then they will have no alternative but return the area back to grass and this is scheduled for this autumn.

What I'd like to be able to say to them is that there is another way of securing the memorial gardens future because there are people out there who are willing not just to pay lip service but to actually get involved.

For now no one is asking for any money from anyone and any future money raised would have to naturally be properly accounted for to make sure that it is spent on what it was raised for. It is also worth bearing in mind that it is not just about giving money, some of you may live close enough to give up a few hours a month to actually tend the area yourselves. Sadly I live a good two hours drive away from Holmfirth and Upperthong otherwise I'd roll up my sleeves and do it myself.

I have personally made the offer of a small donation to provide some form of immediate basic maintenance for Compos memorial garden in order to try to keep it as it is for now and hopefully this gesture will also show the church of St John that people outside of their congregation do actually care about what happens to Compos memorial garden.
 
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Benzade said:
I have been informed of who is supposed to be in charge of the fund Pearl and it may sadden and shock you if I was to disclose the information related to me.
However I am not willing to post the identity publically and in an open forum as it was disclosed to me in confidence and as it stands I only know one side of the story.
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I have a feeling I know who it is and yes you are right to keep it to yourself. Please let us know how you would like us to help, I have no idea what is needed or how I could help with this.
 
Pearl said:
I have a feeling I know who it is and yes you are right to keep it to yourself.
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We'll leave it at that then Pearl as I said I only know one side of the alleged story.

For now I would like people to spread the word that this memorial garden is actually under threat and could be gone by winter be it on other Last Of The Summer Wine forums or Facebook etc.
It seems that the powers that be at St Johns, Upperthong have finally become exasperated with the long running situation regarding the payment for the upkeep of the memorial garden as it is currently costing them money they neither agreed to pay or can afford due to not being able to contact the keepers of the maintenance fund despite numerous attempts.
They have therefore decided to grass over the area this autumn but the Reverend at St Johns cannot tell me for certain if none or some parts of the garden such as the memorial stones would remain after they make these changes because it has to be discussed at their next Parochial Church Council meeting first.

Basically it is logical to assume that if no interest is shown in the fate of Compos memorial garden then the church of St Johns may simply remove the whole memorial garden and stones thinking nobody cares about it being there. I think this was their way of thinking that no body cared or at least not enough to do anything about the situation until I contacted them with my ideas such as a "Friends of Compos memorial garden" volunteer force to keep it tidy for free.

Also it is worth bearing in mind that if enough public opinon can get behind this issue then maybe those who are allegedly currently shirking their responsibilities for the payment for the maintaining of this memorial garden can be made to face up to them. Or at least hopefully other arrangements can be made to save it.

If anyone has any other sensible ideas on this issue or would like to get involved you can private message me.

Bill Owen gave us many laughs down the years as Compo and it was the character Compo that made Last Of The Summer Wine great. For me and I'm sure many here will agree part of the show died along with Bill and I think we owe it to him as Last Of The Summer Wine fans to try to save the memorial dedicated to the character he made great.
 
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Since I'm much too far away to donate labor, I'd really like to donate money. Because of the currency conversion, I'd need to donate via PayPal, though, so if anyone sets up a way to donate to a self-perpetuating fund, I hope they keep those of us in mind whose financial lives are not in Pounds Sterling.

Marianna
 
Sadly many churches do not have the funds to pay for the upkeep of the churchyard and struggle to even cover the basics such as heat and light. Partly as the only central help they get is the stipend of the priest and associated housing (although they still have to contribute something known as "share" which is dependent upon congregation size and income towards this).

Congregations are dwindling and what would have been straightforward 50 or 100 years ago to maintain is no longer the case. Many congregations no longer have the able bodied individuals to do this work themselves, as many churches now have an average age of 60 + for their congregation (not all - there are notable exceptions) and thus have to pay professionally for this work to be done. And many churches now have congregations of less than 30.

If funds are given to a church for a specific project they are what is known as "restricted funds" and can only be used for that purpose. Thus some safeguard that the donated cash would not end up paying for other things. The snag is that this is a continuing expense (revenue cost) rather than a capital cost and thus there is always concern "what happens in x years time when this pot of cash runs out?"

Another factor is that the local people may have been less keen on an uncared for area and they may be exerting pressure; they may not all necessarily be SW followers. The fund that was set up may not really have enough in it.

An absolute minefield - and I write as somebody who has been a PCC Treasurer.
 
barmpot said:
Sadly many churches do not have the funds to pay for the upkeep of the churchyard and struggle to even cover the basics such as heat and light. Partly as the only central help they get is the stipend of the priest and associated housing (although they still have to contribute something known as "share" which is dependent upon congregation size and income towards this).

Congregations are dwindling and what would have been straightforward 50 or 100 years ago to maintain is no longer the case. Many congregations no longer have the able bodied individuals to do this work themselves, as many churches now have an average age of 60 + for their congregation (not all - there are notable exceptions) and thus have to pay professionally for this work to be done. And many churches now have congregations of less than 30.

If funds are given to a church for a specific project they are what is known as "restricted funds" and can only be used for that purpose. Thus some safeguard that the donated cash would not end up paying for other things. The snag is that this is a continuing expense (revenue cost) rather than a capital cost and thus there is always concern "what happens in x years time when this pot of cash runs out?"

Another factor is that the local people may have been less keen on an uncared for area and they may be exerting pressure; they may not all necessarily be SW followers. The fund that was set up may not really have enough in it.

An absolute minefield - and I write as somebody who has been a PCC Treasurer.
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No one knows if there is any money in the fund Barmpot or not due to those running the fund allegedly having broken off contact with St Johns for several years therefore the church have had to pay for the maintenance out of their own pocket which as you have rightly pointed out they can ill afford. I can't go into the details here as it would be wrong of me to do so in a public and open forum such as this.

It may well be that those not immediately associated with St Johns at Upperthong are blissfully unaware of the problem as was I until I was put straight so to speak by the Reverend of St Johns after writing a rather disapproving email to her regarding the state of the memorial garden.

There are many businesses and people in Holmfirth and Slaithwaite still making money off the LOTSW bandwagon and I would like to think they would help to save something which is so strongly associated with arguably the icon of LOTSW.
 
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index4u said:
Since I'm much too far away to donate labor, I'd really like to donate money. Because of the currency conversion, I'd need to donate via PayPal, though, so if anyone sets up a way to donate to a self-perpetuating fund, I hope they keep those of us in mind whose financial lives are not in Pounds Sterling.

Marianna
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Hello Marianna for replying. I am not asking for donations at this time as I'm still waiting on the outcome of the next Parochial Church Council meeting at St Johns however I would be grateful if I could mention your kind offer to them the next time I contact them as a show of the support for saving the memorial garden?

Thank you once again.
 
If someone wrote an article in the local newspaper it may shine some light on the subject , and the person or persons responsible for the $ to care for the garden will pay the bill, and or secondly may start a fund to take care of it. Like Marianna mentioned , paypal to where fans across the world could donate.
 
Compo's Memorial Garden?? Where??

We have walked around Compo's grave, where there are/were the
wellies and at least two stones, in the lawn just off the stairs
behind the church, but I do not remember a memorial garden.

Can someone supply a location? Is it near the grave?
Is it behind the church? Is it along the stairs/path across
from the grave?? I just can't imagine it???

thanks

chuck
 
Benzade said:
No one knows if there is any money in the fund Barmpot or not due to those running the fund allegedly having broken off contact with St Johns for several years therefore the church have had to pay for the maintenance out of their own pocket which as you have rightly pointed out they can ill afford. I can't go into the details here as it would be wrong of me to do so in a public and open forum such as this.

It may well be that those not immediately associated with St Johns at Upperthong are blissfully unaware of the problem as was I until I was put straight so to speak by the Reverend of St Johns after writing a rather disapproving email to her regarding the state of the memorial garden.

There are many businesses and people in Holmfirth and Slaithwaite still making money off the LOTSW bandwagon and I would like to think they would help to save something which is so strongly associated with arguably the icon of LOTSW.
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I agree that this is a delicate matter and there are facts which we do not know. My comments were merely meant to illustrate the type of difficulties facing the church, the PCC and the priest there. What I do know is that for it to continue they need a firm undertaking that no further costs fall on themselves. Of course there may also be legal obstacles such as ownership of land, and covenants in the setting up of the original garden - as I said a veritable minefield for the unwary.

All we can ask is to keep us updated and if something is feasible then let us all know.
 
I didn't know it existed. You would imagine the local chamber of commerce would or should be interested in the upkeep. Local businesses must benefit greatly from the influx of visitors that come and spend their money in the town. A memorial garden to Bill Owen could easily be sold as one of the local attractions to be seen by visitors.
 
Benzade said:
Hello Marianna for replying. I am not asking for donations at this time as I'm still waiting on the outcome of the next Parochial Church Council meeting at St Johns however I would be grateful if I could mention your kind offer to them the next time I contact them as a show of the support for saving the memorial garden?

Thank you once again.
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Please do mention the offer. I couldn't donate a great deal and given my age, there's no telling how long I could carry on donating, but I do want to help. It would be very frustrating to run into a currency conversion barrier.

Marianna
 
Can someone, anyone, please tell me where it is?

And how to recognize it when I find it??

We have been going over to H'firth almost every year since
hector was a pup and never seen it. Or at least never
knew we were seeing it. From the grave, please take me there.
 
Benzade said:
No one knows if there is any money in the fund Barmpot or not due to those running the fund allegedly having broken off contact with St Johns for several years therefore the church have had to pay for the maintenance out of their own pocket which as you have rightly pointed out they can ill afford. I can't go into the details here as it would be wrong of me to do so in a public and open forum such as this.

It may well be that those not immediately associated with St Johns at Upperthong are blissfully unaware of the problem as was I until I was put straight so to speak by the Reverend of St Johns after writing a rather disapproving email to her regarding the state of the memorial garden.

There are many businesses and people in Holmfirth and Slaithwaite still making money off the LOTSW bandwagon and I would like to think they would help to save something which is so strongly associated with arguably the icon of LOTSW.
Click to expand...

OK, how about this. Rally the tourists to spend some time fixing up the Memorial Garden. Find someone to be a coordinator with sign-up sheets on the Bus, Cafe, Nora's House, etc. and provide wellies, shovels, rakes, weed eaters to anyone who would be interested in spending an afternoon doing basic landscaping. Perhaps the wellies could sold as Compo's Wellies and sold at cost. Lots of tourists would embrace the idea of doing some volunteer work.
 
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