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2006 was a very important year for The Anglican Shrine
of Our Lady of Walsingham for it marked the 75th anniversary
of the restoration of the Holy House. It is wonderful to
see how God has blessed the vision of Fr Patten and those
who supported him in his work of restoring pilgrimage to
Walsingham’s holy ground. Each year more and more people
from a whole range of backgrounds seek and find God in this
unique place.
Named after one of the earliest and most generous
of the Shrine’s benefactors, Sir William the new
building (completed in October 2008) has
completely transformed, modernised and greatly extended
the west section of Stella
Maris which is one of our oldest accommodation buildings.
The new Milner Wing contains the Welcome Centre and
a new Pilgrim Reception area, plus 27 bedrooms
with bathrooms with disabled
access. Safety has been improved by the creation
of a new pedestrian-friendly colonnade leading from
the centre of the village into the Shrine
Grounds.
Beautifully designed entrances with
power-assisted doors and a new lift give access
to all floors and the appearance of the building
has been greatly enhanced, not least
by the addition of an additional floor to the tower.
For a full report on the new Milner Wing go to
What's New?
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Chief Patron:
The Archbishop of Canterbury
Patrons:
The Lord Bishop of Norwich
The Lord Hope of Thornes
The Baroness Wilcox of Plymouth
The Appeal - launched in the Autumn of 2005 -
ran for just over two years. The aim was to
raise £2 million to help pay for the building of
the Milner Wing. All over the country, parishes
and Cells of OLW swung into action. Concerts
were held, marathon cycle rides were undertaken
and parish breakfasts, lunches and dinners were
arranged - all of which raised money for the
appeal. "Challenge Fr Philip" - a cycle ride
from St Paul's Cathedral in London to Walsingham
raised in total £60,000 from supporting pilgrims
and friends. By the December 2008 the total
raised through the appeal stood at £2.1 million;
this included grants from a wide range of
trusts, charities and the Heritage Lottery Fund.
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February 2009 update: Thanks to the wonderful
generosity of pilgrims and friends the
Walsingham Appeal has reached its £2
million target and moved toward £2.2 million.
The Walsingham Appeal Board thanks all those who
contributed with sums of money - large and
small.
There is still quite a lot to do
to finish of the interior of the Milner
Wing and the archway, so if you would like to make a
donation please use the on-line facility at the
bottom of this page. |
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Major donors to the appeal included: The
Heritage Lottery Fund
John D. Booth Esq
The U.S. Friends of Our Lady of Walsingham
The Garfield Weston Foundation
Members of the Order of Our Lady of
Walsingham
The Oratory of the Good Shepherd
Forward In Faith
The Priory of Our Lady of Walsingham
The Guild of the Servants of the Sanctuary
The names of all appeal donors will be
inscribed in the Appeal Book - to be kept in
the Shrine Church. |
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