New Canon Pastor appointed - Truro Cathedral

THAG
When the Truro night shelter closed in the spring of 1998,
it was recognised that there remained a need for the
homeless to have access to regular meals and hot drinks
together with non-confrontational contact with members of
society. A group of volunteers formed THAG and initially
served hot drinks and sandwiches every morning from a
corner of the old bus station.
Eventually, THAG was able to operate from Zebedee’s
Cafe and then the Salvation Army Hall which meant that
not only could hot food be served but also the clients
could warm up after a night outdoors, use proper toilets
and socialise with each other in a welcoming
environment. Full festive lunches were provided at
Christmas.
In May 2008, THAG moved to St Pauls Hall offering the
same breakfast and Christmas facilities A full English
breakfast is available at a cost of £1. Hot drinks and
toast are available free of charge. Meal vouchers for new
arrivals to the city are issued both by St Petroc’s and Truro
Methodist Church. In addition, toiletries, socks and other
sundries are issued free of charge. New thermal
underwear is available during the winter months.
THAG is run purely by volunteers and relies totally on
individual contributions and larger more formal grants..
Some donations are in kind with one person contributing
a supply of new socks every week. At Christmas, a local
farmer donates a free range turkey and various local
organisations such as the Lions Club provide some of the
Christmas niceties that the rest of us come to expect.
Major financial grants have been received from The Lord
St Leven Fund, The Rosemullion Trust, The Diocese of
Truro, St Mary’s Church, The Church of our Lady of the
Portal and St Piran and Truro Methodist Church.
THAG has always endeavoured to be a good neighbour
and liaises with other homeless organisations and values
the support of the police who arrange informal visits from
the local PCSOs.
Once again, because of the pending change of use of St
Paul’s Hall, it is necessary to move premises and
negotiations are underway to relocate to St John’s Hall
where both the Rosemullion and Diocese grants will
enable the necessary alterations to be made to facilitate
the service.
THAG still has two of its founder members, Paddy
McParlane and Ann Boorman and continues to encourage
new volunteers to keep the service alive. It remains the
only group in Truro that provides a hot meal for the
homeless 365 days a year.
More help is needed from volunteers for one duty
a week from 7.30 am – 9.00 am serving
breakfasts.
Please contact Peter Dexter on 01872 261614 if you can
help in any way.
Celebrate with the country’s foremost charity St
John Ambulance on Saturday 17 September at
2.30pm in Truro Cathedral with a Re-dedication service.
This charity has a history of over 1000 years commencing
in The Holy Land where monks ran a very
large hospital in Jerusalem for visiting pilgrims and
in its hey day could accommodate up to 2000 patients.
It still maintains an Eye Hospital there today.
The Order of St John is an Order of Chivalry with
The Queen as Sovereign Head and received its charter
from Queen Victoria. It differs from other orders
of the British Commonwealth in that its members
have an obligation of charitable service. In England
this is mainly through St John Ambulance, well
known for first aid training and for first aid duty at
public events.
Since 19449 the governing body of the Order has
visited a different county each year for a service of
Re-dedication in its Cathedral and this year for the
first time in 25 years it will be in Truro. This also will
be the last public appearance of Lady Mary Holborrow
(who has been a member of the Order of St
John for many years) before she retires as Lord Lieutenant.
In the morning prior to the service there will be on
display outside of the Cathedral many of the activities
undertaken by St John Ambulance.
Free tickets to attend the service are available from
the Cathedral Office or St John Ambulance 01726
815967.
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