Church Flowers
The church flowers are provided by a group of volunteers who organise flower arrangements for the church throughout the year. This includes weekly alter flowers as well as decoration of the church for annual celebrations such as Christmas, Easter, Harvest, Memorial service, Remembrance Sunday and Mothering Sunday.
There is also a sponsorship scheme enabling people to sponsor flowers on a specific date, perhaps in memory of a loved one, or to celebrate a wedding anniversary or special birth.
For more information, please use the email below or contact the Parish Office at 01494 676690.
"Walk of Life" Flower Festival
6th to 8th July 2012
The journey
Our town’s life is about journeys. In the early days we were a staging post for coaches going to and from Oxford and a lot of the Old Town landmarks evidence that. In more recent times, the train was brought to Beaconsfield, and the New Town was created to help commuters settle as a community outside of London. 
By the time the trains came, Beaconsfield’s history already stretched back over 700 years. And since then we have another century of growth and life shared.
For Christians, a journey often means pilgrimage: traveling to get closer to God. The church has a key role to play in life’s journey and still today, many foreign visitors to Beaconsfield come to our church as they pass through on their own travels.
This year we will host a flower festival using the metaphor of a journey to tell the story of life. Our theme highlights the journeys we travel, as individuals, and as a community. At previous flower festivals over the last 15 years, we have used up to 3000 blooms to create displays depicting stories of sorrow and joy; seeds of hope; creation and renewal. This year we balance the concepts of our physical path with this spiritual way.
The flowers
There will be 30 displays depicting our theme, which acknowledges that whilst we live our lives we go through many emotional experiences. Each of us needs time for peace and reflection; we experience times of forgiveness and healing. Our individual journeys include times of aspiration and achievement like the Olympians are embracing this year. And we are often faced with crossroads, and need support and guidance whilst deciding which way to go. With the Queen’s Jubilee also happening this summer we will take the opportunity to reflect our thoughts of majesty and glory when we think of God’s gift that we will be sharing over the course of this very special weekend.
Each of us has our own unique journey to travel. Throughout the last eight centuries, the people of Beaconsfield have come to the parish church at the significant times of their lives for baptism, marriage and funerals. Today St Mary’s still plays this very important role in the lives of local people, the church is there for each of us when times are challenging or joyous; at points of high emotion, or significant change. Within our floral displays we will acknowledge these milestones.
The labyrinth
One aspect of the festival will be a labyrinth within the body of the church. A labyrinth is an ancient symbol that relates to wholeness. It combines the imagery of the circle and the spiral into a meandering but purposeful path. A labyrinth is not a maze, there are no blind alleys, it has only one path- to the centre and out again. It is a spiritual space as much as a physical one, and has long been used as a meditation and prayer tool, and through the centuries has drawn people to God. The labyrinth at the centre of our Flower Festival provides an oasis of calm and reflection within a spiritual environment to complement a busy summer of events and activity.
The people
The floristry team includes members of St Mary’s church and a group of committed and talented amateurs, headed by professional Angela Shepherd. These individuals have been supported by other local churches and flower clubs, and some specialist groups.
The programme
Angela Shepherd explains: “ We have a great deal of talent and creativity within our floristry team, but it is important to also capture the imagination of our younger visitors. We are lucky enough to have an active and busy toddler group and junior church that are joining forces to create engaging and interactive elements for our younger visitors.
“Whilst we recognise that life is about family, and we would want any walk of life to involve the children, we also see the need for quiet and peace and reflection. For those that are inclined to engage at a more spiritual level we have set aside special times for silent meditation within the body of the church.
“And alongside the church we are very lucky to have the excellent facilities of the Fitzwilliams Centre. Whilst the Flower Festival is going on the Fitzwilliams Centre will always be open. There will be refreshments available including light lunches. We will have stalls offering gifts and produce as well as our always popular garden stall.
“St Mary’s is a very musical church and our organist, David Hackett, will play musical arrangements to accompany the visitors viewing on Saturday afternoon. We have also been lucky enough to secure some guest organists to play. The Festival will also close with a choral evensong on Sunday 8th at 6.30pm.
“All together we hope that we have put together a programme to suit everyone. We have chosen the weekend of Beaconsfield Town Council’s Olympic celebrations: The Beaconsfield Games, to complement the activities there – giving residents two reasons to spend their weekend in town, and visitors double the reward for their journey.
“Should you wish to journey with us through the festival, you will have the opportunity to sit and reflect – whether it’s a thoughtful meander through your life’s memories or a contemplation of a single rosebud, the setting will allow that quiet and peace. If you wish to feel involved and engaged there will be interactive elements to include you, spiritual connectivity to uplift you, and beauty to enthrall you. In previous years we have welcomed more than 2000 people across the flower festival weekend, and we have had resoundingly positive feedback.”
The community
Historically the flower festival has generated a lot of support from the local community. Accordingly, St Mary’s has chosen two charities with whom to share any proceeds. Both are locally based and support local people. In line with the Walk of Life, both charities also become particularly relevant to individuals at particular points in their own personal journeys.
Cruse Buckinghamshire. Death is a part of life, and grieving a natural process. Cruse is committed to breaking the stigma around grief and ensuring that everyone, no matter how old or young, can access the highest quality support following a bereavement. For more information, visit their website at www.crusebucks.org.uk.
The Iain Rennie Hospice at Home offers 24 hour, on call, specialist and supportive care and advice for patients with cancer and other life threatening illnesses in their homes, and at no cost to the patient. They also aim to help the relatives and those carers close to the patient during the illness and bereavement period. For more information, visit their website at www.irhh.org.
Flower Festival Sponsor Forms: .pdf click here (or) .doc click here
To view the "Live is a journey" article from the Parish Magazine, click here.
To view the lastest press release, click here.