A great number of us, friends and supporters of Hazelwood’s owners spanning some decades, would like to express dismay at last week’s Kingsbridge & ?Salcombe Gazette front page report.
In way of response, it is our wish point out some of the reasons why Hazelwood holds a treasured place in the hearts of a great number of us, virtually around the world.
To people with only casual connection to Hazelwood House, it was a beautiful country hotel with superb cuisine. But this was the mere tip of the iceberg.
Hazelwood, near Loddiswell, was a place with a vision of hope for a future of greater human kindness, tolerance and a meaningful life.
It was a space where the arts and creativity were fostered and individuals flourished in a spirit of warmth and inclusiveness, through an array of inspirational events and gatherings.
Above all else, every single event and activity focused entirely in bringing about all that’s good, beautiful and true in our lives.
Inclusive and democratic, many of us paid reduced costs for events, in exchange for some help in the house.
Here are the words of Anabel Farnell-Watson, beautifully summing up a philosophy that enriched countless lives, including mine: “Our job is to tend the riverbed, keep it clear, to allow the river of life to come in and bring what it brings.”
The Hazelwood vision extended to include the offering of sanctuary – a place to heal and recover – to children affected by the Chernobyl disaster, and to Bosnian and Croatian refugees.
Additionally, their yearly Peace Initiative “Through Heart to Peace” to Bosnia to offer support to victims of appalling violence still continues.
Such faith and perseverance in contributing to humanity at one’s personal cost surely deserves the highest recognition and praise.
Though not conventionally religious, when I look back on the overwhelmingly positive work achieved by the Hazelwood vision, as we approach Easter I would like to refer to St. Paul’s letter to the Phillipians, 4:8:
“Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise”.
Thalia Vitali
Hurrell Road, Kingsbridge; Dr and Mrs Alexander Matthews, Kingsbridge; Mr and Mrs Peter Lynch, Kingsbridge; and Ms Lindsey Stewart, South Brent