Two Stalwarts of Ferryhill’s churches have been recognised by the King and Queen as part of the Easter Maundy Money ceremony.
Les Lewis and Ann Bower were two of the 152 recipients of Maundy Money at the ceremony, which took place at Durham Cathedral on Maundy Thursday.
The service was last held in Durham in 1967.
Les, who was accompanied to the special service by his daughter, Rebecca and son, Jonathan, has served the communities of Ferryhill, Chilton and West Cornforth parishes as their Lay Reader for the past 47 years, having been licenced on 16 September 1978.
Ann, who has been a lifelong member of Ferryhill Methodist Church, was also celebrating her 80th birthday on the day, making it an extra special occasion.
The day started with a special service inside Durham Cathedral. During the service, the King distributed gifts according to the number of years he has lived – to 76 men and 76 women – to thank them for their outstanding Christian service and for making a difference to the lives of people in their local communities.
Each recipient of Maundy money is given two small leather purses by the King, one red and one white in a ceremony which commemorates Jesus washing the feet of the Apostles at the Last Supper.
The service dates back to 600AD and these special coins have kept much the same form since 1670.
The red purse contains a small amount of ordinary coinage: a £5 coin commemorating the Queen Mother, and a 50p coin which features stories of WWII.
The white purse contains a set of specially minted silver Maundy coins up to the value of the Sovereign’s age.
After the ceremony, Les said: “The day has been an absolute pleasure to attend, and it has been an honour to be selected to receive something so meaningful.”
On behalf of Ann, a spokesperson for the Methodist Church said: “Ann is such a vital and humble member of our congregation. She does so much for us that we simply couldn’t do without her.”
Ann added: “When I put my hand out to receive the purses, the King held my hand and said, ‘thank you for your help in the Church, we are sure it is very much appreciated’. It was such a lovely experience.”
Following the service, the King and Queen spent time meeting members of the public outside the Cathedral.
Ferryhill & Chilton's local community newspaper.
