Brave Waterlooville man shaves head and beard for local church funds

On Saturday, Andy Tolhurst, 59, shed his hair and beard in favour of a fresh look and to help raise donations for the Hart Plain Church’s kitchen refurbishment.

The church, in Waterlooville, is host to an array of community groups, holding coffee mornings and events for locals, however, the kitchen which is central to these activities has begun to reach a point that is in need of repair.

‘Me and my wife attend Sunday services as well as concerts and other social events, and I play ukulele and guitar in the music group,’ Andy said.

‘I try to be involved as much as I can,’ Andy adds.

Andy and his wife Eileen moved to Waterlooville from Spain 11 years ago, in search of work and to be closer to family, and have been keen to be a part of the church and community ever since.

‘I asked the church what they needed to raise funds for and they told me they needed to refurbish the kitchen, we’re all for doing things for the community,’ said Andy

A group of around 50 people attended the chop, carried out by Rachel Moyse, in support of Andy and applauded him in his efforts.

‘It’s a lot cooler, it goes towards my expectation of the coldest February on record,’ Andy laughed.

Andy, who works as a HGV driver, plans to host a raffle later this month to continue the drive for a new refurbishment following a donation from his company, Elliotts, the Hampshire-based building merchants.

Reverend Kate Macfarlane at Hart Plain Church said: ‘Thank you to Andy for organizing this event and to all those who supported us in raising funds to refurbish our church kitchen.’

‘It was a fun morning and we all enjoyed the lovely cakes too,’ she added.

To find out more about events or how to support the church visit hartplain.org.uk.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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