2012 Working Party Dates have been announced
Click on the link below for the full list
Working Parties
The Dry Stone Wall being built around the centre circle, in the Nature Garden continues to take shape, even in the Snow and Frost.
FODC December 2011
Darwen Days now has a website
Darwen Days now has a website showing 1000s of Photographs of Darwen, many old but some more recent, they also include Photographs of the Cemetery.
Click on the link to go direct to the website.
www.darwendays.com
FODC November 2011
Hard work, all this posing!
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Friends chairman John East stepped smartly into action when a hefty branch of a 25ft conifer crashed down and blocked a main path through the Cemetery. While gravediggers John and Peter Dawson were scratching their grizzled pates and wondering if it were perhaps time for a brew, he moved with the speed of lightning. He jumped into his car, raced off and borrowed a couple of heavy saws from Harold Heys and Bill Parkinson before dashing back to the disaster scene. John and Pete were still contemplating a brew as Our Hero handed 'em a saw each and told 'em: "Get cracking, lads!" So they did - while he sat on a nearby log and admired their sterling efforts, occasionally helping with useful advice along the lines of: "Missed a bit there, lads," and "Come on, lads. Going to be dark soon." The picture of him sawing through a hefty branch while Bill and the Dawson boys look on admiringly? Oh, no, no, no. That was just posed for the Telegraph. As Easty said: "I haven't had my picture in the paper for at least two days."
FODC November 2011 Picture: Jonny Stanley
Return of the White Lady
Martha Jane Bury has had an autumn clean-up thanks to Harold Heys and his neighbour Bill Parkinson. Oh, and a bucket of bleach.
"Everyone called her The White Lady," said Bill. "But no one knew why. Now we do!"
They spent several weeks spraying and brushing and now she looks almost back to her Victorian best. And they reckon her faint smile has widened just a little ...
click on link to Marthas story
link to Martha
FODC November 2011
Last Working Party 2011
On Saturday 26th November we held our last working party of 2011, we had a Cemetery full of Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, a Youth Group and School Children and with the help of loads of Adults we Planted 100s and 100s of Dafodills.
We planted the bulbs so quickly we had to go and buy more, the bulbs were planted in front of every Grave in Section C and on the side of the mound where the Non Conformist Chapel once stood.
I would like to thank Four Seasons Garden Centre for helping us out with the urgently required Dafodill bulbs at a very heavily discounted rate.
I would also like to thank Claires Creatures for donating for FREE plants to put in the large planter in between the North and South Lodges Entrance, we also managed to put the plants in other parts of the Cemetery.
Whilst many of us were planting Bulbs other Members were hard at it in the Nature Garden fighting against the Mud making the Stone Wall around the centre circle.
Ann made some Christmas Wreaths and Potts and any money raised Ann was
donating to FODC.
What a fantastic end to the Working Parties.
After the Working Party ended the members had a well earned break with a Spud Pie in the Cemetery Hotel.
Thank you to everybody who have helped, donated and organised the Working Parties in 2011 and look forward to starting all over again next year, especially when all the Dafodill Bulbs come out, it will be a great sight.
Our first Working Party in 2012 is on Saturday 28th January.
Photographs by Diane Davies
FODC November 2011
70s 80s Disco
On Saturday 19th November we held a 70s 80s Disco at the Craiglands Function Rooms, the night was a great success, we sold all the tickets avaliable and made £320 for FODC.
Thanks Diane and Brian for organising a fantastic night!
A big thank you to Paul & Sandra at the Craiglands for their generosity helping us make the night the success it was.
For more photographs of the night click on the below link.
70s 80s Disco
Photographs by Diane Davies
FODC November 2011
Vandalised Graves Re-erected
The graves vandalised recently in the Eastern Cemetery have been
re-erected by Brent Stevenson this week.
Brent has kindly completed the work for free.
Before After
John East said "An amazing result of basic kindness and thought from Brent Stevenson. I have nothing but praise for the speedy re erection of these family headstones. Great to see goodwill lives on and gives the human spirit a glow"
Thanks Brent from everybody at FODC
FODC November 2011
To coincide with Remembrance Day we have researched some of the War Graves in the Cemetery
To have a look click on the names below.
Arrand L
Calvert G.
Blackledge J.
Done A.
Hindle C.J.
Orrell W.H.
Poole J.
Ward A.E.
Wilkinson H.
Yates W
Remembrance Day Sevices 2011
The first Remembrance Service on Friday 11th November 2011
Schools Commemorate the Sacrifice at Darwen Cemetery
Over 80 local children and students attended the Friends of Darwen Cemetery Remembrance Service on Friday 11th November the 11th Month in the 11 year of the 21st century at 11am.
Local MP Jake Berry for Rossendale and Darwen and local D Day veteran and Darrener, Richard Westhead also attended and help place remembrance crosses on the 97 War Graves with chldren and students from local schools in both Eastern and Western cemeteries.
Many local residents and friends attended.
Re. Lena Talbot led a short service of remembrance with local students taking part.
Schools who attended were St. Peter's CE Primary, St. Joseph's RC Primary, Holy Trinity CE Primary, St. Barnabas CE Primary, Ashleigh Primary, Sudell Primary, Darwen Vale High School and Darwen Aldridge Community Academy.
John East, Chairman of the FODC said, "It was very moving, especially with local children taking part, placing crosses on the war graves with Jake Berry MP for Darwen, Richard Westhead, several war widows and Patrick O'Reily a retired soldier from a Lancashire Regiment. It is important to remember those war graves of the fallen buried here in Darwen.
Each one is now adopted by local schools, indivuals and organisations and I pay tribute the Darwen Community who respect and look after our local war dead."
The second Remembrance Service on
Sunday 13th November 2011
"Everything was ready - gazebo up, hot and cold drinks ready, table out, leaflets ready - all was set. At 10.40am - everyone arrived. Best of all the weather was mild and the sun appear. Our special guest was Mike Coyle, Lancaster's War Memorial Trusts Coordinator. Diane Davies helping with the new sound kit and the Rev. Lena fronting the Remembrance service.
The service was attended by members of St. Joseph's Scout Group - who arrived by mini bus from morning mass. Residents of Darwen and members of the FODL joined in a moving service of remembrance, during which the sky above appeared to give us a kiss as two passing aircraft's jet-streams crossed.
Attendees were invited round the cemetery to see the crosses placed on each grave last Friday by local children and students. Refreshments served and our tribute and service of remembrance over.
The FODC again proudly thanks everyone for helping and taking part as we continue to honour the service men and woman buried in Darwen Cemetery by tending their graves and involving the community, especially young people.
Chairman John East said, "It was very moving and solemn occasion and I hope we can continue in our communities and society to learn to live in peace and harmony out of respect to the fallen, who gave so much for us in past and continuing conflicts."
Photos by Diane Davies, John East and Jayne Waring
FODC November 2011
Graves Flattened in Darwen Eastern Cemetery
Darwen's two cemeteries have been thankfully free of vandalism, apart from the Council - inspired flattening and wrecking of dozens of headstone a few years ago in the imagined interests of "elf"n'safety."
Until Thursday evening, October 27, when eight headstones in the Eastern Cemetery were kicked over by young scrotes. Fortunately none of the headstones appear to have been broken and no doubt they can be stood up again.
Police are investigating and are confident that they will find those responsible.
There was a similar incident in Great Harwood a couple of days later where one councillor said those responsible should be "birched on the town gates."
No doubt his plan will shock the namby-pambies and the do-gooders. Most reasonable people will hail an excellent idea.
A spokesman for the Friends of Darwen Cemetery said: "There was probably a small group of yobs and not all of them would have been responsible for this wanton vandalism. It only needs one of those kids, someone who does know right from wrong, to make one phone call and mention a few names."
And he urged: "Do it. Do it now."
A visitor to the Cemetery, a young man, had little faith in the justice system making an example of the vandals. "All it needs is for the names of those who have done this to be passed round. People will know who they are. A lot of hefty young lads have relatives buried in the two cemeteries and they would be happy to meet up with them and, er, ask them politely not to do it again."
Another visitor, an elderly woman, commented: "When you look at those headstones lying flat you have to think that it wouldn't have taken much to shove them over. The bases look very weak. But I suppose that when they were erected vandalism wasn't as rife as it is now."
FODC November 2011.
FODC are invited to the Mayors Parlour.
Coun. Foster invited the FODC to the Mayors Palour to thank them for the work they have completed. Each volunteer was presented with a Mayor's Certificate of Appreciation.
Among the graves discussed by Tony and Harold were those of some of the victims of the 1940s bombing raid and the tram crash in 1926. It careered down steep Sudell Road in a violent storm and crashed into the billiards hall in Bridge Street.
-law at his chip shop in Whalley New Road, Blackburn in 1932 and, later that year, Annie Farnworth, a frail little six-year-old who was raped and strangled by a mentally ill teenage neighbour in Kay Street.
The coroner recorded that George had killed his wife while he was "temporarily insane" and they were buried together in the same grave.
