Second prestigious award win for Strabane church

FOR the second successive year, the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Strabane has scooped a gong through a prestigious nation-wide awards body.

On Monday, members of the church’s Heritage Project team flew to London for the National Churches Trust Awards where they beat off stiff competition to take home the Open for All – Tourism Award NI.

Last year, the parish won the Church and Community Volunteer award.

Parish priest, Fr Declan Boland, said the latest accolade was a proud moment for all.

“We are delighted and very proud to have won an award at the National Churches Trust Award for the second consecutive year,” he said. “The Heritage Project team, which includes myself, project curator Roisin Doherty, project manager Lorraine Gallen and events co-ordinator Mary Bonner flew over for the ceremony and were elated to get the award. Amanda Cairns, our project administrator couldn’t be with us unfortunately.

“The judges said we got the award for the way that the church has engaged with the community, for everything we do in terms of mentoring other churches, and for making a Strabane a better place to live, work and visit with the church at the very heart of the community.

“It’s an extremely proud moment for the town, the parish and the people in the area. The Heritage Project team do what we do on behalf of the community we serve and love because, without them, there is no community so this award is for us all.”

The latest award comes as something of a double whammy for the Strabane parish, after it was last month awarded £182,662 through the Big Lottery Fund.

The Heritage Project Team at the church received the windfall for its latest project, ‘Sacred Treasures – Restoring, Illuminating, Cataloguing and Maintaining,’ the ultimate aim being the restoration of the church’s spectacular stained glass windows, which are in critical need of repair. The scheme will also involve the community through volunteering opportunities, the creation and delivery of a new stained glass tour, community events, outreach work and the employment of a new management and maintenance officer.

The National Church Awards is organised by the National Churches Trust in partnership with the Pilgrim Trust, Marsh Charitable Trust, the Ecclesiastical Architects and Surveyors Association and Mercer’ Company.