The sound of church bells on a Sunday, or for weddings and funerals, is part of village life in our county, and a great tradition we often take for granted. But its down to dedicated teams of local people that this tradition is kept alive, people like the bell ringers from the Thurcaston and Cropston Parish who held a bell-ringing open morning at Thurcaston Church to give people an insight in to what they do, to try out bell ringing for themselves, and to recruit new members to their dedicated team of bell ringers.
Edward joined the team for the open day, and was shown how to ring the bells by Thurcaston bell ringer, Richard Pawley.
Edward said: "It was great to meet Richard and the team, and I'm very grateful to him for his patience in teaching me how to ring the church bells. Church bell ringing is a great tradition, and the sound of church bells is something we take for granted, but it is down to dedicated local volunteers, like the bell ringers at Thurcaston Church, that we continue to enjoy these wonderful traditional sounds. We had a very enjoyable morning, with many local people calling in, and I would encourage any local people interested in joining the team to get in touch with me and I will pass their details on to the Tower Captain who leads the bell ringing team."