ACW celebrates annual meeting in Petitcodiac
Sixty Anglican Church Women in the diocese gathered May 5 at St. Andrew’s church (Petitcodiac) in the Parish of Salisbury and Havelock for their annual meeting.
The day began with a service of Holy Eucharist led by Archbishop David Edwards and the Rev. Barb Haire. Readers were Colleen Bannister, Sharon Hopper and Barb. Cheryl Young was the pianist.
The day was organized by the parish ACW members and volunteers, led by Melanie Wade. Several clergy members from the deanery attended.
HOMILY
The theme of the day was Unity In Christ, and Archbishop David began his homily along those lines. He told those gathered that he recently read a report from the World Council of Churches, and asked for guesses on the number of protestant denominations.
Guesses began at a few hundred, then a thousand. In fact, the answer is 35,000!
“That tells us an awful lot on our view of unity in Christ,” he said. “Most are divided along very small issues, but we are one in Christ.”
David spoke of unity within creation, saying God didn’t just love the world, as John 3:16 says. The Greek translates our word ‘world’ to cosmos.
“Cosmos is the whole of creation,” he said. “We’re called to love, to be in unity with the whole cosmos.
“What a different that would make in our battered and bruised world.”
At the heart of this unity is love — seeking the best for the other person in a relationship, and the best for the cosmos, he said.
REMEMBRANCE
Jill Stewart looks after the Book of Remembrance, which honours members who have passed on each year. After reciting the ACW prayer, she and the Ven. Brent Ham presented 21 names, read a passage from Lamentations, had a moment of silence for the members and prayed.
BUSINESS
Outgoing president Peggy Boucher spoke as the leader of the group for the last time. She encouraged members to reach out to non-members in their parishes for help on specific events and projects.
While many work, they seldom say no to requests, she said.
Rollcall saw representation from all deaneries except St. Andrews. The Shediac deanery, where the meeting was held, saw the largest number of members present, 27.
“I’m happy with this,” said Peggy. “It’s very positive going forward.”
FARRALINE PLACE
Acting chair Darline Cogwell and director of care and operations Chelsie Ogden were present from Farraline Place, an ACW-affiliated home for seniors in downtown Fredericton.
They have had many challenges since Chelsie took over for Judy O’Donnell last fall. Vacant rooms, the emergency need for a partial new roof, staffing shortages and overdue upgrades have all hampered the smooth running of the facility.
“But things are looking up,” said Chelsie. “Every day last week I had viewings.”
With winter over, people are now more willing to move, she said.
One of the issues that has come up during viewings is the quality of the surroundings when potential residents and their families come for a visit.
To make the house more presentable, they’ve embarked on deep cleaning, painting, rearranging furniture and so on.
“Chelsie has been pounding the pavement, getting donations and donations in kind,” said Darline. “I’m optimistic by the time we come to the garden party, you’ll be amazed.”
The garden party, cancelled last summer due to extreme heat, is planned for Aug. 13, with a carnival theme.
TREASURER’S REPORT
Diocesan ACW treasurer Cathy Lutes began her report with a motion to change the Farraline Flooring Fund to the Farraline Refurbishing Fund. That way, branches will know when they donate that the money can be used for more than just the original carpet project. Members approved that change.
Secondly, after attending the special synod session on the future of Christ Church Cathedral, Cathy asked that members pass a motion to include the Cathedral Restoration Fund in the annual budget. She also suggested adding it to the branch financial report so they can contribute as well.
“It’s a beautiful church and we have to do something to keep it,” said Cathy.
The motion passed unanimously, as did the annual budget.
LUNCH
Many hands contributed to the presentation of an impressive spread of cold meats, salads, coleslaws, pickles, rolls and a wide variety of desserts. There were many leftovers and members were encouraged to take some home with them.
DIOCESE OF HO
Robbie Griffin, chair of the Companion Diocese Committee, was the afternoon guest speaker. He spoke briefly on the success of the mobile medical clinic, which in its first year of visiting outlying villages, saw 7,081 patients, many of whom had never seen a doctor in their lives.
This project was supported by parishes, ACW branches, the Diocese and the Rotary Club and has been a huge success. Robbie is a Rotarian in Grand Manan.
Now Robbie is on to another project for the Diocese of Ho, a vocational high school. All schools in Ghana are run by churches. The City of Ho has a population of 270,000 in a province of two million.
“It has three high schools but no vocational schools at all in the region of Ho,” said Robbie.
At the same time, there is an extreme shortage of tradespeople, and their school system is much like ours was from the 1980s and before, with shop, business and home economics programs, making graduating students ready for the work world.
The Diocese of Ho welcomes the project and has set aside a 10-acre plot of land for the school. As with the clinic project, Rotary will be heavily involved. An architect in Ho who is a Rotary member, has designed a school, while another Rotarian, a contractor, hopes to build it.
The aim is to have a student population of 800, with 504 housed. It will be a campus-style school, with various buildings housing the trades, plus buildings for administration, an auditorium, dorms and so on.
Concrete blocks will form the buildings. In Canada, they are $6 apiece. In Ghana, they cost 80 cents each.
“$100 buys 120 concrete blocks,” said Robbie.
“The masonry building will be built first,” said Robbie. “Once that’s operational, it can create the blocks for the other buildings.”
The project will be a phased-in approach, with buildings constructed as money allows.
“The Rotary Club of Grand Manan and the ACW of Grand Manan have donated $10,000 to get the project going,” he said.
To support this project, you can donate via eTransfer to finance@diofton.ca
IMPORTANT: When using e-transfer for any donation, include a note specifying the recipient (Ho school) and include your name and mailing address so a donation receipt can be sent.
You can also send a cheque, made out to the Diocesan Synod of Fredericton, and include the same information as above. Mail to 168 Church St, Fredericton E3B 4C9.
INSTALLATION
Archbishop David installed a new executive during the annual meeting. The new president is Diane Todd, with past president Peggy Boucher. The new vice-president is Melanie Wade. The treasurer and secretary remain the same: Cathy Lutes and Carolyn Pellow.
OTHER
Rosemarie Kingston gave a short update on the Pickett Scovil Fund, which is more than 100 years old. She encouraged members to read Canon Paul Jeffries’ report (Bishop McAllister College) in the meeting guide.
Lilian Ketch brought greetings from Mothers’ Union, including news from their rally, held in late April, celebrating the 150th anniversary of MU worldwide.
In late June, there will be a Canadian conference of MU at Villa Madonna, which Lilian is organizing.
Diocesan representative Debbie Edwards gave an update on Alongside Hope, formerly PWRDF, explaining the name change.
The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund was confusing for the public, some of whom assumed it was a fund for monkey wellbeing. It was also a top-heavy sounding name and a throw-back to an earlier era.
“The new name came alive for me in Africa,” said Debbie.
There are ongoing projects in Canada and 30 countries. The Canadian Response Fund helps with relief at home after such things as hurricanes and wildfires.
“And you can trust that your money will go where you intend it to go,” she said.
Alongside Hope has been named one of the top 100 charities in Canada, a designation many non-profits wish they had, she said.
The annual Quiet Day is planned for Sept. 9 at St. Mary’s in Chatham. The day will include a hot meal, craft, and perhaps even a biblical auction. Gwen McConnell is one of the organizers.
Next year’s AGM will be somewhere in the Archdeaconry of Chatham, though the exact location is not yet known.
The day’s offering was $620, and members voted to split it three ways: Farraline Place, the Ho school project and Christ Church Cathedral restoration.
The day ended with huge applause for all the parish organizers, including Melanie Wade and Sharon Hopper.
Photo captions:
1. Archbishop David Edwards, centre, installs the new diocesan ACW executive. From left: treasurer Cathy Lutes, secretary Carolyn Pellow, past-president Peggy Boucher, Archbishop David, incoming president Diane Todd and incoming vice-president Melanie Wade.
2. ACW members and guests during the service of Holy Eucharist at St. Andrews church in Petitcodiac.
3. Lunch was a relaxed and delicious affair, with lots of catching up and fellowship.
4. Robbie Griffin, chair of the Companion Diocese Committee, spoke on the vocational high school project in the Dioese of Ho, Ghana, Africa.
McKnight photos