THE 300TH anniversary of an historic Evesham charity will be marked with a celebration service at Worcester Cathedral.
Trustees of the John Martin Charity will be among the guests in the Faithful City on Wednesday (July 2) for the tercentenary service from 11am.
Organisers have devised the service to celebrate the life and legacy of John Martin and the charity established in his name following his death in 1714.
And 300 years on, the charity is now responsible for distributing £700,000 annually in Evesham for various charitable causes.
Born in 1637, John Martin was a yeoman farmer and owned 92 acres of land at the Cheltenham Road end of Hampton.
He lived under the reign of six monarchs and during the period of Oliver Cromwell but died in 1774.
Following his passing, his will gave instructions on how his personal estate should be dealt with which included the
establishment of the charity.
Today, the charity provides support to residents and organisations in Evesham and the surrounding parishes under four key themes, Religion, Relief in Need, Education and Health.
Local dignitaries, school pupils, representatives from the organisations supported by the John Martin charity will also be in attendance.
The service will also showcase artwork from first and middle school pupils from across the town while choirs from Evesham High School and Prince Henry’s High School will sing.
A clock flower bed has been planted outside the Almonry as part of the celebrations and conservation work has been completed on Martin’s tomb.
Visit www.johnmartins.org.uk for more information about the charity.
