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Sculpture Trail Cairn 2005 Cairn 2005 Final Report
Sculpture Trail Cairn 2005 Cairn 2005 Final Report
| Cairn 2005 Final Report |
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| Sculpture Trail - Cairn 2005 | |||
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August 2005 John Ling writes The sun shone – much of the time. The heavens opened - some of the time. The visitors came in their thousands. They brought their bikes, their dogs, their picnics and their readiness to be delighted by the works of almost one hundred sculptors in the twenty locations of “Cairn” – the fourth Bergh Apton Sculpture Trail. Many of us find it difficult to believe but it is a fact that, based on the number of wristbands issued and those that came back unsold, over ten thousand visitors bought tickets for the Trail over its three weekends. The final financial results are not yet to hand as there are still bills to be received and costs to be resolved. In previous years this winding-up process has enabled us to announce the final results in September and this year will be the same. What we can say, even at this early stage, is that it is a record year for the value the Trail will inject into our projects. On the strength of that BACAT has made a preliminary distribution of £8,000 to each of the two key projects that have always been on its list of beneficiaries – the church fabric fund and the village hall. It has also provided £500 to the Local History Group who publication process for The Book of Bergh Apton. The full distribution list for village projects includes the Bergh Apton Conservation Trust, Alpington and Bergh Apton Voluntary-aided school and Bergh Apton Youth Club. This year we shall also support two vital Norfolk projects, the Quidenham Hospice and East Anglian Air Ambulance. Finally, far from home but close to our hearts, we shall provide more vital funding to Sanyu Babies Home in Kampala. This project, that rescues and cares for orphans from the streets of Uganda’s capital city, has become almost a part of Bergh Apton especially as we now have two of its former children living so close to us Finally, here are two stories that emerged from that memorable period when the rain came down like stair-rods on the final Sunday afternoon. 1. The kindness of an inhabitant: A couple on the Trail, trudging along Church Road in shoes so soaked that they squelched, had an umbrella thrust into their hands by a man who ran out to them from his house as they passed. They reported that he said something like “you’ll need this” and ran back inside - having made no request for its return. They handed the umbrella in to the car park and asked that he be thanked for his kindness – and be given his umbrella back. 2. The kindness of a visitor: As David Brown stood, without cover in the pouring rain as he directed traffic out of the Manor car park onto Threadneedle Street, the front seat passenger in a departing car wound the window down and handed David an umbrella with words similar to “you’ll need this”. The car drove on, with no request that the umbrella be returned. These two tales show just how people from all elements of the Trail can ennoble the already benevolent spirit of the Trail by their actions. We won’t embarrass that resident of Church Road by revealing his name, but those who know him will not be surprised by his kindness. We did pass on the thanks of those visitors when we gave him back his umbrella.
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