When the Waters Rose

Neil Hook relates a story of hospitality and hope in Haverfordwest

Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.(Romans 12.13)

When floodwaters devastated the VC Gallery’s building in Haverfordwest last year, it wasn’t just bricks and mortar that were swept away. In a matter of hours, a vital lifeline to the community - art therapy sessions for veterans, mental health support groups, creative workshops for those recovering from trauma, and a welcoming drop-in centre for anyone in need - was lost.

But the story did not end there.

Saint Martin of Tours Church, just a short walk across town, opened its doors wide. Recognising both the need and the opportunity for service, the church community, led by Revd Jude Bevan, Pioneer Priest, offered the use of their multi-function hall as a new home for the gallery’s activities. With warmth and generosity, St Martin’s provided more than just space: they offered care, welcome, and a place for community life to continue.

At the heart of it all was Revd Jude’s leadership. She not only stewarded the collaboration but provided quiet, faithful pastoral care to all who came through the doors. Within days, the hall was transformed into a hub of creativity, support, and belonging. Every Friday morning, the aroma of breakfast and the sound of laughter filled the space once again.

Week by week, the hall became a place of gathering where art, conversation, and companionship stitched a new tapestry of hope. Over 1,641 breakfasts were shared, each one an act of kindness, a small feast of restoration for those who needed it most.

This partnership was more than practical; it was deeply personal. New friendships blossomed. Barriers were dissolved. The church and the gallery, two communities shaped by different callings, discovered a shared mission: to stand alongside the vulnerable, to offer dignity, and to build places where every person is seen and valued.

Now, as the VC Gallery prepares to return to its restored home, the time shared at St Martin’s is being celebrated, not as an ending but as the beginning of something enduring. The ties formed through months of collaboration will continue to shape the life of Haverfordwest, a testament to what becomes possible when faith meets need, and hospitality becomes a living Gospel.

In every welcome offered, every breakfast shared, and every hand extended in friendship, St Martin’s has shown that the Church is at its most powerful when it simply loves its neighbour.