The sun shone for the  Open Day which was  held indoors in the Crematorium Chapel  with several outdoor displays in the cemetery grounds. 

The event started with an appearance  of two stunning white horses and carriage trotting down the main drive. The horses Merlot & Vidam were resplendent in their finery and drew crowds from inside the chapel and from the public to watch them.  They remained in the public area for several hours so many people had the pleasure of seeing them up clos...

This was our 8th Christmas Tree Service of Remembrance and we had a standing room only  chapel in spite of the cold, wet December weather.

The service was conducted by Reverend Terence Dooley from St. Marys Blackbrook Church, the carols by   Citadel Choir. The event was attended  by the Mayor of St. Helens  Pat Ireland  and Mayoress Lynn Glover.  Personal messages were written and hung on the beautiful Christmas tree in the Book of Remembrance room . 

The choice of musi...

A great turnout again this year for our annual wreath making event with The St.Helens Rangers. Special thanks to Gaynor and Lesley who kept us refreshed with hot tea,coffee and mince pies. We had some splendid creations this year, they  just  gets better and better each year.  Thanks to Dave & Tracey from The St.Helens Rangers and of course to the  Friends volunteers  who turn out in all weathers to support our events. 

Poppies, wreaths and poppy crosses started to appear throughout the cemetery during October and November, this year is a special commemoration year and people throughout the Borough have ensured that the local men and families who sacrificed so much  were not forgotten.  

We requested from St.Helens Council  that the cemetery be considered for a Royal British Legion 'Tommy' silhouette when they   agreed to support the 'Thank You' movement.  Our request was granted and today thanks to the support of the Armed Forces Ambassador Cllr Lynn Clarke 'our' Tommy is on display for all to see in the cemetery.

This is our 'Thank You' to the First World War Generation who served, sacrificed, rebuilt and changed the nation.

The silhouette has been erected on a...

Our first tour was in March, the sun shone and  it was freezing cold!  Our tour  in August  poured down for part of the tour but it didn't deter our hardy walkers, we carried on an was rewarded with dry weather for the remainder of the tour. The September tour was cancelled as the weather forecast was a Yellow warning of storms, thunder and lightening....well, the forecasters got it wrong and we had a beautiful sunny day...our routes took us from the newer sections of the cemetery to the old secti...

What a great turnout  on yet again another rainy night for the bat walk....8 weeks of wall to wall sunshine and on the day of the walk  it poured down.   It didn't deter our hardy bat watchers though and about 70 of us did our walk in the dark through the cemetery listening and watching for bats.... a sight to behold in the dark with torches and bat detectors. This year we had a special visit by Anna from The Merseyside Bat Centre, she brought some rescue bats for us see, thanks Anna, everyone lov...

The service was conducted by Celebrant Darren Anders and attended by many people on this Fathers Day Sunday afternoon in the Crematorium Chapel.  The names of Fathers, brothers, uncles, nephews, and friends were read out as the families lit candles for their loved ones. 

We thought of you with love today

but that is nothing new

We thought about you yesterday

and days before that too,

We think of you in silence

We often speak your name

All we have are memories

and your pictures in some frames.

Your mem...

Many people just visit the cemetery to enjoy the well kept gardens and areas of solitude and peace.   Springtime is an special time at the cemetery, thousands and thousands of spring bulbs. First to appear is the snowdrops in February,crocus,  followed by the daffodils...a short time later the bluebells appear.   In April and May the many cherry blossom trees are showstoppers especially on the driveway lawns near to the crematorium chapel.   Pink Acers are a sight for sore eyes for a few weeks bef...

The Friends of St.Helens Cemetery have compiled a data base and record of all headstones in St.Helens and Newton Cemeteries which have a reference to a WW1 casualty.  Some are the grave of the casualty and many are a dedication to those that are buried in foreign soils or other cemeteries. Others are those named on memorials like The Menin Gate and Thiepval Memorial whose graves have never been found. 

In St.Helens Cemetery the record is more than 400 headstones, in Newton Cemetery more than 5...