Hello from Hilary and Lorna
There is something very special about Fogo Kirk - apart from its solid sandstone walls, stained glass and charming chapel. Everyone seems to have a story about their path to Fogo and how delighted and surprised they were when they found it (or it found them). Our last minister, the late Rev Dr Dane Sherrard, truly believed in the magic of the place. He knew it to be a ‘thin’ place, where the presence of God was very clearly felt, and he worked tirelessly to keep that spirit glowing.
In recent months, Hilary Murray-Brown and Lorna French have taken on key roles at Fogo Kirk. As the new Session Clerk and Chair of the Trust, respectively, Hilary and Lorna are totally committed to developing Dane’s vision, which was quite simply, to support the faith, education and leisure needs to the local community.
Lorna says, “It’s almost seven years since I first walked through the door of Fogo Kirk, to be welcomed by Dane and the rest of the Fogo family. I was bowled over by Dane’s energy, and spent many a happy hour being reassured that God loved me, (and everyone else!), and that there would be convivial coffee and biscuits at 11.30.”
“I first learned about Fogo,” says Hilary, “round the sewing table with Dane’s wife Rachel at her Kilting classes every Friday. Dane would come in to chat and of course, it wasn’t long before I found myself at Church. The sense of community and kindness shown by everyone is quite remarkable – everyone is welcomed.”
So many things have happened over these intervening years, some good, some devastating, but the original mission that Dane so powerfully conveyed has lodged in our hearts, and we are now honoured to take on these roles on behalf of the congregation, local friends and families.
Like any other legacy, we are only here to nurture and pass it on, but with so many talented and generous souls already part of the Fogo family, we envisage being able to build our faith and creativity offers over the next few years. To do that we will need to work hard, by welcoming people of all faiths and none, and to listen to the community to offer the services that folk want.
Fogo Kirk is already on the map for hosting top-class musical performances and later in the year we will welcome writer Elspeth Wilson as part of the Berwick Literary Festival.
We are gradually building a website to showcase our work – you can view it here. Please visit and tell us what you think.
Fogo Kirk is ours to treasure, and with care, and energy, it will become the thriving hub that Dane and so many others have worked tirelessly to build. How blessed we are.
Hilary Murray-Brown and Lorna French