St Mary’s Aisle Appeal Underway

St Mary’s Aisle is a very special place in the cathedral – loved by generations as the last remaining part of old St Mary’s Church, it has a totally different feel from the grandeur of the newer part of the building. Pretty and petite, and bathed in sunlight for much of the day, it is the ideal venue for family celebrations such as wedding blessings or baptisms, and community activities such as school visits, meditation, arts and crafts.  

However, there is a challenge. St Mary’s Aisle is urgently in need of roof and guttering renewal to make it watertight once more, and to prevent further damage. Inside, it badly needs redecoration and refurbishment to make it cosy and comfortable for people of all ages. The St Mary’s Aisle Appeal aims to raise £450,000 from grant applications and fundraising to get the Aisle back to its beautiful best.  

We are off to a flying start, thanks to generous individuals and grant funders. For example, Mrs. Grace Holmes, who used to enjoy visiting the cathedral and meeting friends in our restaurant, very generously left a five-figure sum for the Aisle in her will. And a retiring collection raised £572 at the Cornwall International Male Choral Festival concert in the cathedral on Friday 29th April. Added together with grants awarded by funders like Cornwall Historic Churches Trust; Benefact Trust and the Dulverton Trust,  we already have £153,489 – more than a third of the way towards our target. 

A community effort is needed. If you want to help St Mary’s Aisle, there are many ways to get involved. For instance, we are preparing a display about the history of the Aisle and our memories of it over the years. Do you have a story we could feature?  

Or could you help spread the word about the Aisle? Can you encourage neighbours and holiday-makers to visit? Are you a business that wants to get involved in the appeal? 

Please get in touch with your offers, ideas and recollections: info@trurocathedral.org.uk  

You can support us by donating to the ST MARY'S AISLE JUST GIVING APPEAL 

And if we do really well, and exceed our fundraising target for the Aisle, anything extra will be spent on other essential cathedral roof repairs. So let’s get cracking! 

Judith Field
Fundraising Lead