BOSSINEY Methodist Chapel, founded in 1860, celebrated its 158th birthday on Sunday, June 24 with a full day of anniversary events, writes visitor Helen Harding McLaren.

Morning and evening worship services were led by returning former Minister, Stephen Caddick, who travelled up from St Austell. The congregation was joined by friends from other churches and a number of regular visitors from other parts of the country.

An open invitation to a lovely buffet lunch in the schoolroom was well attended, with a great atmosphere of fun and friendship, which continued through the afternoon, with a cream tea before the evening service.

As a regular holiday visitor to the area, I see the chapel community from the perspective of somebody who isn’t a local resident — but I have never felt like an ‘outsider’. For many years I’ve visited churches across North Cornwall and have always been made welcome. I guess that for lots of caravanning holiday makers like me, a service starting at 11am gives time to sort yourself out with a relaxed start and there’s always a genuine sense of connection and inclusion without any pressure.

Bossiney Chapel is fortunate in the talent of its team. Emma and Chee’s soaring flute playing, combined with Brian’s fluid, expressive keyboard playing sensitively leads and underpins the worship.

The recently acquired new organ also adds dimension and depth to the music. In a special addition to the regular musical offering, Grace Robinson and Lizzy Hobbs sang two duets and Lizzy also gave a moving solo performance of the Puccini aria ‘O Mio Babbino Caro’.

A new banner at the front of the church states that the Chapel is ‘a place of light and hope’ — and this really sums up the experience of anyone coming in, either as a visitor, or to share in the mutually supportive, family feeling of the resident congregation. At the Tintagel Carnival in the summer, local congregation members are planning an open garden event in Bossiney to support the carnival, at which the banner will be displayed.

Richard and Sue Uglow joined the afternoon and evening activities and I was interested to hear of the WAVE bus initiative which, following on from the bus being part of the Creation Fest at Wadebridge last year, is now available as a mobile venue to support church and community outreach events across Cornwall.

They can be contacted through Bossiney Chapel if you would like to have the WAVE bus support your event.

The Rev Caddick preached on the letters to the churches at Laodiciea and Philadelphia at the morning and evening services. A key aspect of the message was that communication — letter writing (maybe even emails, Facebook and Twitter!) means you have something important enough to share and enough care and commitment to send it.

Bossiney Chapel congregation have a sustained track record of 158 years of care and commitment which reaches outside its building and has interest in, and connection to, life in the world today and into the future — I’m already planning my next visit!