An organisation which has been serving the spiritual needs of seafarers and the wider community in Hull for more than 150 years has set out plans to host business, cultural and community events.
Leaders of the Danish Church, a hub for the Scandinavian community, is to launch Nordic House as a venue option, maximising its city centre location. The aim is to make its mark in the regional business community through the networks of Peter Aarosin, a Dane who has worked in shipping and logistics in the Humber for 40 years and whose career includes spells as chair of the Bondholders and as a board member with the Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce.
Activities being explored also include hosting gigs, plays and exhibitions, adding to the current list of community and cultural events as well as workshops and fitness classes.
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Peter said: “Since the first Danish Church was consecrated in Hull in 1871 its buildings and community have become an integral part of the city. However as the frequency of church services has reduced in recent years we have looked into other ways of opening up the building.
“The current property is nearly 70 years old but still has a modern design and feel and offers a wide range of opportunities. I will be promoting it to my business contacts for meetings and other corporate events and we are talking to various arts and culture professionals to find out what they could do with it.”
Nordic House already welcomes a variety of cultural and community organisations and the manager, Charlotte Theill, is confident the programme will expand as awareness increases.
Heritage Open Days are to be used to highlight the building, on the corner of Ferensway and Osborne Street. It will be open from midday until 4pm on both Friday, September 16 and Saturday, September 17. Artefacts on display will include a candelabra and part of the stained glass window from the original Danish Church, which stood nearby for 70 years until it was flattened in an air raid in 1941. The items were rescued from the rubble and took pride of place in the new building, which opened in 1954.
The centrepiece of the current church is the organ, built nearly 50 years ago by the Copenhagen firm Frobenius. Visitors will also be able to admire model ships including the Dronning Ingrid, which was moved to the Danish Church in Hull after the closure in the 1970s of its counterpart in Newcastle, and a replica of the steam frigate HDMS Jylland, launched in 1860 and one of the world’s largest wooden warships.
Charlotte is also planning the Scandinavian Christmas market which has been a highlight of the Nordic House calendar since the 1970s, and this year takes place on Saturday, November 26 and tie in with the football World Cup clash between Denmark and France. She said: “The Christmas market attracts a big crowd of local people and some of them have been coming for years. For them it’s not really Christmas until they have been to the market and this year we have the added attraction of the World Cup.”
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