Work has progressed on Bahrain’s desperately needed third Christian Cemetery, with the boundary wall improvement costs recently being funded by members of the British Club, the kingdom’s oldest expatriate club, after they successfully participated in the Bahrain Marathon Relay.
The perimeter wall of the new cemetery can now be raised to an appropriate height after the donation of BD6,000 towards the project.
“This marks a very real milestone in the development of this essential piece of social infrastructure as we celebrate the construction of the boundary wall,” John Luckie-Downe, who leads the Cemetery Working Group and the C3 Design & Construction Team, consisting of engineers, planners, construction experts and financiers, told the GDN.
“But not only that, looking at the span of history, today’s event marks the vision, generosity and co-operation of the broader community in Bahrain to come together for an act of service that will last generations into the future.”
As previously reported in the GDN, the 2,800-square metre plot of land in Salmabad, where the new cemetery will be situated, was donated by the government.
The first phase of the project cost BD25,600, with the second phase likely to cost just under BD30,000.
“The first phase of Stage 3 of this large project has been undertaken: the boundary wall is in the process of being raised,” said The Very Rev’d Dr Richard Fermer, dean of St Christopher’s Cathedral. “The construction of the guardhouse and washroom facilities will be next and a donor has been found for the new gate, incorporating symbolic vine leaves.”
Present at a recent donation ceremony were British Ambassador and Christian Community Cemeteries Committee (CCCC) chairman Alaistair Long, Bahrain Marathon Relay chairman Jackie Beedie, Richard Monkhouse, British Club manager Daniel McRae, Father Richard, CCCC member and architect Nicholas Bonaventure, Nathan Prince, Gerard Fernandes, William Farag and Dr Atef Nassaf Shenoda of the Egyptian Orthodox Coptic Church, Pastor Blaine Newhouse of the National Evangelical Church and businessman PS Balasubramanyam.
The third phase will cost a total of BD59,800 and is anticipated to be completed by the end of this year, as long as funding goals are met on time. During the third phase, a guardroom, storage area, toilets, pathways, lighting and CCTV will be installed, making the 700-plot cemetery fully operational.
“For Christians, we are in Lent, a time when we remember our mortality. ‘We are but dust, and unto dust we shall return’, so it is not inappropriate that we meet here, to secure a decent place of rest for those expats who die in Bahrain,” Father Richard said when receiving the donation for the wall on Thursday at the construction site of the new cemetery.
“We are extremely grateful to the British Club for the BD6,000 donation from the Bahrain Marathon Relay, especially Mr Beedie and Daniel McRae, Graham Bennett and Mr Monkhouse.
“Progress is being made. We are moving forward on this project and that is all thanks to the generous donations we have received.
“Work on this stage should be finished in three to four months and then we will have an operational cemetery.”
The plans for a modern, low-emission crematorium are set to be included in the final phase of the project, expected to commence in 2027.
Cremation will provide an alternative to burial of a loved one for grieving family members, friends and colleagues.
“After this phase, a new phase of fundraising will begin to raise the money for a chapel and a crematorium, which will serve a wider section of society,” Father Richard added.
The committee will be looking to raise an additional BD120,000 for the final phase, with a target final completion in 2027.
With the Old Christian Cemetery in Manama completely full, the currently used second cemetery, also located in Salmabad, is approaching capacity and in 2023 its central pathway was cut in half in order to create 22 new plots, with another 15 added last year.
“Huge thanks to Bahrain Marathon Relay and The British Club for their generosity in contributing to the development of Christian Cemetery 3,” Ambassador Long added. “The project is coming on a pace.”
naman@gdnmedia.bh
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