A KIND-HEARTED businessman has helped to get rid of graffiti damage at a village church.

Charlie Cartwright saw the anti-Christian messages daubed on St Augustine’s Church in Scissett after reading about it in Tuesday’s Examiner.

And he was so upset about it that he agreed to do the repair work for free.

Mr Cartwright, of CC Surface Restorers in Kirkheaton, said: “I’m not a religious man, but when I knew people had to see that on Remembrance Day it touched a nerve.

“I can’t understand why anyone would attack an historical building like that.”

It took Mr Cartwright and an employee 10 hours to put the damage right and he saved the church a lot of money.

“Seeing it for myself made me realise I had to help,” he said. “Whoever did it wrote obscene things no-one should have to see.”

Vandals daubed anti-Christian words such as ‘Lucifer is rising’ and ‘the Anti-Christ is coming’ over the stone walls at the Busker Lane church. There were also painted signs linked with the Devil and swear words.

The damage was discovered the day before Remembrance Day, leaving church members little time to clear it before people attended a special service.

Churchwarden Sandra Firth said everyone at the church was grateful to Mr Cartwright.

She added: “Words can’t describe what he did for us; he really did answer our prayers.

“They say God moves in mysterious ways and in this instance he really did.

“We are all so grateful and thankful for what he has done for us. The church looks beautiful now. I can’t thank him enough.”

Members of the community also got together to help clean up the church.

“People were coming to the cemetery, seeing the damage and then going home to get cleaning materials to help us,” said Ms Firth. “I’d like to thank everyone for their support.”

Police are still investigating and are looking into a reported sighting of two men acting suspiciously around the church at 11.30pm on Friday, November 9.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 0845 6060606.