Monday, 15 June 2009

Thérèse draws the crowds

There are still 105 days until the relics of St Thérèse arrive in Lancaster, but already the signs are that there will be a lot of interest in the visit. We are now fairly regularly hearing from people looking to organise group visits, and coaches are now being advertised in many parts of the Diocese and beyond. If you are looking for a coach in your area, the first point of contact is your local parish. However, here are some of the groups we know of so far: in Preston, Fr Chris Loughran is organising a group from St Clare's parish (Tuesday 29th, leaving mid morning; tel: 01772 719604); in Blackpool, Fr Bob Horn is organising coaches on behalf of the whole deanery (see local parishes or call Fr Horn on 01253 391002); in West Cumbria a deanery visit is planned for Tuesday 29th (see local parishes for details); the parish of Our Lady, Star of the Sea in St Annes is organising several coaches (tel. Mgr Turner, 01253 723661); coaches are being arranged from Carlisle and Penrith (details should be appearing in parishes shortly); Saints Mary and Michael, Garstang, are hoping to bring coach(es) for an evening visit to include Compline (Monday 28th/Tuesday 29th - call Fr David Elder on 01995 602164); coaches are also being arranged from the Morecambe parishes (see parish notices or speak to your priest). There are also a number of coach parties planning to make the journey from Scotland, and several schools have already booked for our school visits programme. You can find more about local events and coaches coming from each area on our regularly updated local pages - the links are at the very foot of this page, or click here for a list of areas. Meanwhile, if you are organising a group or know of a coach party which is not listed, please contact us.