Get on a a bike or your feet (From Oxford Mail)

Tour of churches will help to boost charity

12:00pm Saturday 13th August 2011 in Oxford By Fran Bardsley

AN ARMY of cyclists and walkers are to travel from church to church to help raise thousands of pounds for charity.

Last year’s Ride and Stride event raised £110,000, with funds split between individual churches nominated by each rider or strider and the Oxfordshire Historic Churches Trust.

It is the largest fundraising event for the trust, which then distributes the money to historic churches across the county for repairs and refurbishments.

This year the Rt Rev John Pritchard, Bishop of Oxford, will be taking part for the first time, setting off from St Andrew’s Church in Linton Road, Oxford, and visiting as many city churches as possible.

He said: “I hope that we will curve all over the place and visit lots and lots of churches.

“The trust is a brilliant organisation and raises very large amounts for these churches and I am delighted to be part of it.”

Churches of all denominations will be throwing open their doors, and Bishop John said he particularly hoped to visit The Oratory in Woodstock Road, the city’s largest Roman Catholic church and one which he had never visited.

He has nominated St Peter’s in Alvescot, near Bampton, as his church and hopes to raise a total of £1,000 in sponsorship.

About 70 churches across the county will get involved on Saturday, September 10, and about 500 people will take part, with many more manning the doors of each church.

The Oxfordshire Historic Churches Trust handed out £157,000 to 42 churches last year, with much of the money coming from Ride and Stride sponsorship.

Among them was St Britius in Brize Norton, which received £8,000 towards a major £300,000 re-roofing project.

Churchwarden Jacquie Griffin, who co-ordinates walkers and cyclists taking part on behalf of the church, said grants like this one were “extremely helpful”.

She said: “We do an awful lot of fundraising ourselves, but if we organise an event we will raise something like £500.

“To have a larger chunk like that is fantastic.”

It will be the third year Mrs Griffin and a group of her friends take part. The team cycled 20 miles and saw 16 churches two years ago and covered 20 Oxford churches on foot last year.

She said: “It’s actually very interesting and makes a nice day.

“A lot of these churches are not normally open so it’s a chance to look inside some really interesting churches.”

The University Church of St Mary the Virgin, in Oxford High Street, has also benefited from funding from the trust in the past.

The Rev Canon Brian Mountford said: “We are going to make a big effort to be there to welcome everyone and stamp their books as they come in.

“We are hoping to get some of the children in our congregation to do it this year with their parents.”