Christ Church, Felixstowe, used their growth fund grant to hold two community events - Christ Church Does Christmas and Summer Fun across two seperate Saturday afternoons. Over 200 people were in attendance for the Christmas event, with a team of 41 helpers, and over 120 people attended the Summer event, with 37 helpers.
Each event had a theme - the Nativity Story & "God Loves Us". Both events included the following activities - crafts, games, puppets, music and singing, and also provided a variety of refreshments, all free of charge.
At the Christmas event there were adults dressed as Nativity characters interacting with the guests. A free gift for each child from Father Christmas and a family gift of a bauble with a crib scene on it to hang on a Christmas tree was also provided.
At the summer event there was candy floss, popcorn, a clown, face painting and outdoor games. Each child was given a bookmark which said; "God Loves you."
The events have helped the church to develop and deepen relationships with several families - some of which now use the church's toddler group and pop-up shop. Many of the people who attended the first event then went on to attend the second event, and one father even made a comment saying he and his children enjoyed themselves and added; "I didn't know Church could be like this."
The Church intends to host three events each year - Christ Church Does Christmas, Easter, and Summer Fun.
