"THANK You For The Music" is an annual event at St Philip's,
Birchencliffe, in the Huddersfield Episcopal Area of the diocese of
West Yorkshire & the Dales. It takes place
just before the annual pantomime, and everyone involved in the show
takes part in the occasion to celebrate God's gifts of music,
dance, and drama.
"It is a wonderful opportunity for us to celebrate the way the
pantomime brings our community together," the Vicar, the Revd Mary
Railton-Crowder, says. "It enables us to offer a ministry of
welcome, hospitality, and laughter. The cast come in costume, and
it's quite an experience to have the church full of princesses,
fairies, handsome princes, goodies, baddies, and dames. We even had
a tin man this year."
The Rt Revd Jonathan Gibbs, who is the first Bishop for the new
Area, preached at the service, and afterwards led a colourful
parade to the Church Centre, where he dedicated the newly installed
community defibrillator bought with funds raised from last year's
pantomime.
The potentially life-saving piece of apparatus had been bought
on the advice of the Yorkshire Ambulance Service, and will be
available at all times for people to use in an emergency, once they
have dialled 999. "It is great to see the church getting behind
this brilliant scheme," the Bishop said. "As a new bishop, I'm
getting used to dressing in costume, and pantomime is a wonderful
way of bringing people together to have fun and to raise funds for
such a good cause."