Lumphanan Heritage Society (LHS) is our own village charity. LHS was established in 2005 with an inaugural meeting in the village school. This meeting focussed on the desire within the local community to try to keep Lumphanan Church open as one of the many small Deeside active churches, but when it became clear that this was not an option the most promising path was to try to buy the church building, to be used for a wide range of activities by the community. Through a number of successful fund-raising initiatives, the sale of Bonds and generous donations, the building was purchased from the Church of Scotland in April, 2014. With the aim of preserving the church as a useful community resource and to encourage community activity more widely, LHS became a registered Scottish Charity in November, 2015. The specific objectives of LHS are:
to promote and preserve the built and natural heritage and culture of the village of Lumphanan and in particular to encourage awareness and interest in its historic buildings and the history of the community;
to promote, protect and conserve the natural environment in the village and its immediate surrounds;
to advance citizenship and community development by encouraging and engendering a sense of ownership of the heritage of the village within the community and encouraging community participation and citizenship across all ages.
Already there have been a number of well-attended events at the church, including highly popular Christmas carol and other seasonal services. There was recently an event to mark the 100th anniversary of the commencement of the Battle of the Somme at which many local troops fought and from which very many sadly did not return (see photographs elsewhere on this website). As part of the wider role of LHS, we are keen to exploit the village's link with the history of Macbeth and we hope to involve children attending Lumphanan Primary School in this. The church building is also available to groups to hire for both community and private ceremonies or events.
The LHS Executive Committee is keen to hear from anyone who would like to contribute to the running of the Society. This could include hands-on help with building maintenance (the church is almost 150 years old), vital fundraising, or helping to organise events. We have recognised that parking at the church is currently a problem and have plans to develop an area behind the building. So you can see that there's plenty for everyone to get involved with!
We still have a limited number of Bonds for sale (£100). The money raised will go towards essential preservation and development work to allow the church building to fulfill a wider role as a community venue. Bond holders are able to use the building without the usual hire fee for a service such as wedding, along with making a tangible contribution to our local environment. You can also become a member of the LHS for only £5 a year and have a say in how the Society develops.
If you would like to find out more about LHS, you would like to help with any of our activities or have any skills to offer in the maintenance of the church building, please speak to any of the current committee members or email us on lumphananheritagesociety@gmail.com. You can also find more information by exploring this website or following the links.
Pete Goddard,
LHS Chairman