A church in Bovingdon is calling for donations of spades and mallets for their annual Harvest Festival.

Bovingdon Baptist Church plans to celebrate their harvest festival this year with a difference, by asking for donations of tools to help people in Africa.

Instead of distributing apples, jars of jam and vegetables to the needy locally, the church has decided to support the charity Tools with a Mission (TWAM) to help replace Third World poverty with prosperity.

Bovingdon Baptist Minister, Reverend Mary Moody, said: “We’re offering mallets, not marrows this harvest-time so that others may have the tools they need to harvest rain or crops, or to earn a living.

“In this way, we hope to help make a real difference.

“There are many inspiring stories of men and women in Africa who, through the gift of a sewing machine or even a simple screwdriver, have been able to transform their lives.”

Anyone with unwanted tools is asked to bring them along to the church in the High Street on Sunday October 10 at 10am, with the harvest service following at 10.30am.

For a full list of tools urgently needed, visit: http://www.twam.co.uk/toolss.html