VILLAGERS in Stoke Prior have come together to bare all for a quirky calendar to raise funds for a popular local woman who has terminal cancer.
Kim Chandler received the devastating news that her secondary breast cancer had moved to her lungs.
Despite being given no more than two years to live, Kim is always smiling and always ready to support others in the same situation as herself.
She regularly attends the Primrose Hospice ‘Gals Group’ where attendees speak of it playing a significant role in their lives. It provides them with some much-needed respite with other women who understand and support one another.
Following lockdown however, they have been left without a budget and are badly in need of funding. So in support, a group of friends from The Boat and Railway in Stoke Prior have got together for a ‘Calendar Girls’ style fund-raiser.
The calendar was proposed and initiated by Kim’s friends and acquaintances living in and around Stoke Prior, that reflected the popular story made famous in the 2003 film featuring Helen Mirren, Julie Walters and other screen stars.
The group feels there could be no better way to acknowledge the fun and friendship that is so important to Kim and the Gals Group.
‘Stoke Prior Bares All’ includes its villagers – the Butcheress, the general store manager, the hairdresser as well as licensees and customers of the local pub and Sports Club – all photographed artistically, as nature intended, in and around the village for the 2023 calendar.
The pictures were taken by Julie King Photography and Darren Shipman from Dpix who are regulars in the pub, committee members and Bromsgrove photographers.
Julie said: “We hope the buyers have as much fun viewing the calendar as we did creating it – it’s all for a great cause.”
The pair praised Bromsgrove businesses which they said had been amazing, sponsoring the calendar.
There is still time for others to get involved and they can do so by contacting Tracey at [email protected]
A JustGiving page – justgiving.com/fundraising/tracey-wolsey – has also been set up for anyone wishing to donate.
The official launch of the calendar will be held next Saturday at the Boat and Railway in Stoke Prior where the initial idea was conceived.
As proceeds will all go to the cause, the organisers are hoping people put their hands in their pockets and show their support whilst receiving this quirky piece of art in return.
Calendar also available from Stoke Prior Store/ Post Office, The Butcheress, The Boat and Railway and Capelli.
For more information and the latest updates, visit the Stoke Prior Bares All Facebook Group.
