The Rainbow Shop, next to St Andrew’s Church in Countesthorpe, celebrated its 40th birthday recently with a bit of a party and a special cake.
Over the last four decades, the shop’s hard-working volunteers from the church and village community have helped raise a staggering £275,000 for Christian Aid, supporting vulnerable communities around the world with humanitarian aid and long-term development projects.
The Rainbow Shop sells good-as-new clothing, wholefoods, Fairly Traded products, cards, books, toys, bric-a-brac and other items, as well as offering information on local places and events.
Customers are welcomed by the team and can sit and chat and enjoy a hot drink.
Among those marking the occasion was Revd Brian Davis, who started the shop and cafe in 1984 alongside his wife Sylvia, following shock TV coverage of the plight of people starving in Ethiopia.
Jez Gowers-Cromie, Christian Aid’s Church Engagement and Fundraising Officer for the East Midlands, said: “I want to thank The Rainbow Shop and all the wonderful volunteers who have worked there over the years for the way you have made a difference not only in the lives of the local community, but also helped some of the poorest communities around the world.”
We wrote a story about how The Rainbow Shop came to be. You can read more here.