Service of reflection and thanksgiving

The community of Stourbridge gathered at St Thomas’ Church for a service of reflection and thanksgiving following the Stourbridge wildfires.

The service was led by Bishop Martin who spoke about his own experience of coming back home at lunchtime on 13 August and seeing what he thought was a black storm cloud in the distance.  He and his wife Kathryn had to evacuate their home and also helped an elderly neighbour and her greyhound.

Other memories of the day were shared by residents and firefighters. Chief Fire Officer for the West Midlands, Simon Tuhill, explained how he’d been doing an interview with the BBC on the hot weather and risk of wildfires when the first crew had been called out. He said: “The scale of the fire was scary with firefighters working in extreme conditions for many hours. Seeing how hard they were working, doing the best they could made me incredibly proud. Our firefighters are part of the Stourbridge community, and we all recognise how awful it was for people who lost everything.”

Paul and Jane Rogers bravely spoke about their experience of losing their home and how their faith had helped them. They said: “It all happened so quickly, we were on the phone to the fire brigade, and they told us to just leave – we walked out with just a phone in our hand. Despite the awful situation, we felt tremendously calm throughout. We have seen God’s grace in many miraculous things that have happened since and we are certain that the outcome is in his hands. We are so grateful for all the support we’ve received from friends and family.”

During the service a candle was lit as a sign of hope and there were prayers for those affected, the fire and rescue service and hope and renewal. A combined choir from St Thomas and St Mary’s Church in Oldswinford sang and the Deputy Lord Lieutenant and Mayor of Dudley gave thanks for the community response.

The Deputy Lord Lieutenant, Nick Venning said: “People often tell me that we’ve lost our moral fibre and our community, but the events of 13 August show that’s not the case in Stourbridge. So many people did so much and contributed magnificently, it was a fantastic response and showed who we really are.”

The Mayor of Dudley, Pete Lowe said: “We demonstrated that difference isn’t important in times of needs. In the darkest of times, we see the very best of people and everything that happened just shows what a ‘bostin’ community Stourbridge is.”

After the service there was a chance to talk to one another and share experiences over refreshments.