Gaelic festival Samhain a very spooky weekend fundraiser

A fundraising event hosted by City Arts and Friends of Newtown Road Cemetery celebrated Samhain, the Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and beginning of winter or ‘darker half’ of the year, in a very eventful and spooky way…

£700 was raised, with 70 people attending eight quests, across three evenings in family groups, with friends and those on their own.

The quest began at City Arts, with plenty of arts and crafts, T-shirt printing, talisman making and Día de Muertos colouring.

Everyone was then treated to a storytelling experience with The Great Memorgiser himself. He shared the story of the three wise women who would be met on the quest and the tasks they faced in remembering the lost souls on their way to Newtown Road Cemetery.

After meeting the three wise women, The Memorgisers met the Sextons from the Friends of Newtown Road Cemetery who hosted the final part of the quest, with sound and light effects and a dark and spooky tour through the cemetery.

They also had a chance encounter with the ghosts of the passed souls and learned about their lives, and completed their quest with some hot spiced apple juice (made at City Arts at Applefest earlier in October.

Claire Struthers-Semple of City Arts said: “What a weekend!

“We are so grateful to everyone who made it happen, but especially to all the Memorgisers who joined in the quests and helped us to raise more than £700!”

Next up at City Arts Newbury are the Artisan Christmas Market weekends. See you all there!