Community Events -
the Spring Fair & the Village Show
The Spring Fair
Over decades, for many local people, the St John’s Spring Fair on the Burys Field in Godalming kicked off the fair season. Starting as early as we do – usually the Saturday closest to May Bank Holiday – meant we ran the hazard of the weather, but we always managed! The Fair not only raised money for the church, but provided a showcase for a variety of local charities and organisations, and a cheap afternoon’s fun for families.
The Spring Fair was established in 1982 to raise money for the reconstruction of the organ in St John's, and so much fun was had that first year that the church kept it going. In 2017 we gave a proportion of the profits from the Fair to the redevelopment project at the National Autistic Society‘s residential house in Ockford Ridge. 2018’s Fair supported The Warehouse Trust which operates The Cellar Café in Godalming and Skillway, teaching practical skills to vulnerable young people, and in 2019 our giving went to the Surrey Air Ambulance.
The covid emergency put paid to the Fair in 2020 and 2021, and prompted a reassessment. The 2022 fair took place in and around the church building and was a huge success! We look forward to the next Fair on Saturday May 20th 2023. Images are from the 2022 Fair.
The Village Show
St John's began the Village Show in 1991 as a way of building community in Farncombe, and encouraging gardeners and allotment holders to share the results of their skills. Recently the Show has branched out to include craft items and photography. After necessarily taking a break in 2020, we staged the Show again on 21st August 2021 and thankfully it was a great (albeit socially distanced) success. Thank you everyone who helped make it possible. The provisional date for 2023 is August 19th.
Images are from the 2019 Show.