Summer Message

Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
Summer Message
From
Sheena Findlay, Elder
Summer
St. David's Presbyterian Church, 98 Elizabeth Ave, St. John's, Newfoundland,
A1B 1R8, (709) 722-2382, stdavids@nfld.com
S
ummer - a time of relaxation
and rest after the long cold
winter, not to mention the
rather depressing ten days of
RDF we’ve just experienced.
I wonder how each person in
the family of God at St
David’s will be seeking rest,
relief, restoration this summer.
My favourite line from the 23rd psalm is the one that says ‘He
restoreth
t th my soul’.
l’ The
Th whole
h l psalm
l gives
i
a lovely
l l picture
i t
off
the kind of peace and faith that the Lord wants for all of us,
and it is a lifelong promise through good times and bad. I
particularly appreciate the idea of rest\restoration in this
verse, which to me implies a kind of healing in body, mind
and spirit… something which is in very short supply in our
society. When we think of summertime, I wonder, are we
looking for “where
where the living is easy
easy”, or are we searching
for God’s kind of rest and genuine restoration, for our souls
… our whole being?
My own first source of “soul restoration“ is spending time in
God’s word, closely followed by worship together with the
family of God at St. David’s. But next in line, for me, would
be the joy and challenge of working in my garden,
garden whenever,
whenever
and as long as, I am able to do so. God gets at me in the
garden with messages that I manage not to hear elsewhere! I
love being out there “working along with God” remembering
the first garden story in Genesis where the Lord tells all
humankind to be stewards of His earth …. and while I can’t
do global stewardship, at least I can do a little local!!
www.stdavids.nf.ca
of my 84 year old brother-in-law, crouched like a little
gnome on his mowing tractor, zipping up the 1 in 5 hills on
their five acre property, and still maintaining manicured
British style lawns, and he with both hips done! The lessons
are of encouragement, ‘as your days, so shall your strength
be’, but also common sense reminders to pace one’s self, to
spend more time than previously just sitting and enjoying the
beauty in spite of the dandelions, and to get some help with
what I can’t manage myself…. a humbling but useful
message!
M t off all,
Most
ll the
th garden
d touches
t h my soull andd heart
h t in
i many
different ways. It is a constant reminder of God’s goodness
and creativity - the sudden sight of snowdrops sticking up
through the snow; the delicate colours of a butterfly plant,
with several Monarch butterflies in place; picking one’s own
tomatoes , having fought off slugs and bugs (even as you
realize that they have cost about $5 per fruit). And in times
of sadness and grief,
grief I am comforted by the signs of God
God’ss
planning for all our lives as seen in the continuing cycle of
life, death and rebirth in the garden.
The garden provides many lessons to me concerning God’s
caring for my life and the lives of others. Like transplanting,
for instance… who ever likes change that’s imposed rather
than chosen…
chosen if moved,
moved do I sulk or do I bloom where I am
(trans)planted? Like weeding, for instance… do I keep up
with ‘weeding out’ the nasties which spoil my peace and\or
hurt others? Like pruning, for instance, … how do I react
when The Master Gardener takes away something or
somebody that I thought was mine ?
Well, these are some of the ways in which I find God
God’ss grace,
rest, and restoration in my garden. Of course this is not
necessarily anybody else’s cup of tea. It will likely be
something quite different that restoreth your soul… maybe
golf, maybe stargazing, maybe woodworking, maybe
relaxing on a beach far away, maybe walking with or without
dog, maybe getting your nose into a good book, or listening
p
g time with ggrandchildren.. or… or. I
to music,, or spending
pray that everyone at St David’s will enjoy God’s gifts of
‘soul restoration’ this summer, and perhaps come together on
Sundays to share these joys and to give thanks to the Giver.
Gardening challenges me physically, more so as aging limits
Sheena
what I can lift or dig, but in this I am heartened by the image
Gardening challenges me mentally as I try to figure out
where to plant to give things their best chance to grow, and I
do (eventually) learn by my mistakes e.g. the time I got
sucked in by a gardening catalogue‘s over optimistic offer of
melon seeds “guaranteed” to grow anywhere… they never
even germinated! The lessons from this were ‘if you can’t
lick ‘em,, jjoin ‘em;; ggrow onlyy accordingg to yyour own
temperature zone; work smarter rather than harder…. I could
probably find a proverb to fit if I had time.
The St. David’s Connection
SUMMER
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
Page 2
PEWS NEWS
On Sunday, July 10, 2011, St. David’s will host one of the
choirs participating in Festival 500. Twenty-five (25) members
of the Wits University Choir from Johannesburg, South Africa,
will be performing as part of our Sunday Worship Service at 11
AM on that date. We look forward to hearing them!
Andrea Greeley was a model for The Head
Room S
R
Salon
l iin St
St. JJohn’s.
h ’ Th
The S
Salon
l won with
ith
her photo and she is off to Montreal this month
(June) for a runway show. Fantastic!
Laura Bruneau was
Bradley Greeley is
awarded Junior Athlete of the
Year for Holy Heart of Mary
High School in St
St. John’s
John s In
early June. Congrats!
travelling to Florida with
his basketball team – to
compete in a huge
multinational tournament
– good luck Bradley!
Timi Olaniyan came to St David's the first week he was in St. John's in Aug. 2005 while he was staying in the group home next door. He started University in September to do a degree in sports psychology. He
started University in September to do a degree in sports psychology. He later changed to Business Administration. After 1 year he went to England to work to earn the money for his education. He returned for 5 months in 2007 to attend the university and then returned to England and completed his degree by distance education while working.
Penny Gillies and I, Barb Ellis had the great pleasure in attending his graduating ceremony on May 24th 2011.
Timi has applied for a work permit to stay in Canada to work. He really wants to live in St. John's. He will return to Toronto to stay with a cousin till that comes through and then will start applying for jobs here in Newfoundland. We may see him back soon.
Summer
The St. David’sThe
Connection
St. David’s Connection
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
Page 3
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Deaths: Marriages:
Births:
Olive Melendy - April 17, 2011
March 12, 2011 Karl Snow and Karen Bonnell
June 15th born to: Amereys Kebret,
Kebret a baby boy,
boy 7lbs.
7lbs
Photo of Olive
Melendy and husband
Ralph (that passed
away in 2005). Olive
passed away April 17
Church Directories – now available
from the office – payment voluntary.
Church History DVD – now available at
the office – payment voluntary. Also
on youtube linked here:
http://www.engr.mun.ca/~sbruneau/thi
ngstuff/morestuff/dissenters/
g
RETURNABLE RECYCLABLES
Recyclable items include juice, water
and soft drink bottles (glass or plastic),
bottles from the N.L.C, juice boxes,
pop tins etc.(Do Not crush these items
as the sharp edges are potentially
hazardous to the recycling workers.)
Items can be brought to the Church
during the week-day mornings or
otherwise left in the plastic crate in the
"new“ kitchen, or in the large
cardboard bin in the hall or deposited
y
byy the lower hall
inside the foyer
entrance door. If you wish to return
your own recyclables to Evergreen
Recycling you can designate that the
earnings go to the St. David's account
and they will issue a cheque directly to
the church annually.
*** All the money collected from the
returnables goes to the Atlantic
Mission Society and the Women's
Auxiliary at St. David's.
In
2009$192.00 was earned and was
divided equally between the AMS and
the WA.
The St. David’s Connection
Page 4
SUMMER
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
REPORTS
137 General Assembly of The Presbyterian Church in Canada
Submitted by Penny Gillies
This smiling boy is the youngest attendee at the
137th General Assembly of the Presbyterian
Church in Canada which was recently held on
the campus of the University of Western
Ontario. Proud parents accompanied him there
were Rev. Sandy Sutherland and his lovely wife
Marley.
David Sutherland
Prior to the Assembly outgoing Moderator Rev.
Dr. Herb Gale had solicited prayer shawls from
Presbyterians across Canada to give to
Boarding Homes Ministry residents as a
tangible sign of the church’s support and
compassion. St. David’s knitters and those who
crochet quickly rose to the request sending
several beautiful warm shawls knitted with love
for this. It was a wonderful sight to see 15 huge
baskets brimming over with colorful prayer
shawls on the stage of Alumni Hall where they
were dedicated by the incoming Moderator Rev.
Dr. Rick Horst. Almost 300 shawls to date have
been given for this mission with Rev. Rodger
Hunter Chaplain of this ministry as the recipient
of the Dr. E. H. Johnson Award for the cutting
edge of mission. The Boarding Homes Ministry
was founded in 1996 and nurtures Christian
community by linking residents with church
visitors.
The Newfoundland Presbytery sent three
Commissioners to Ontario,
Stacey Dent,
Penny Gillies and Rev. Ian Wishart any of whom
would
ld be
b happy
h
t recountt the
to
th highlights
hi hli ht off the
th
week spent at the Assembly.
Penny
Cutting Edge Mission
SUMMER
The St. David’sThe
Connection
St. David’s Connection
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
Page 5
REPORTS
Managers
I don't have a lot to report from the board of managers for this Newsletter quarterly.
We are exploring upgrading the computer system for Dr. Rev. Dent and the church
office since both systems are around 5 years old and getting quite slow. We hope to hire a
summer student to help with various office duties and other projects around the church. If you
have an idea for something the student can do, please let us know, especially if you have time to
supervise the project. Also, if you have any other suggestions that you think the board of
managers might consider tackling, please let one of the managers know. John McLean, Chair.
Thanks for to all those that contributed to
the success of our annual church picnic.
picnic
Thanks to our Korean friends for helping
with our service also!
Choir
St. David's Church will be holding it's annual
Sacred Side of Jazz Worship Service again for the
second year in conjuction with the Wreckhouse
Jazz Festival. This is a very unique service in which
we infuse our traditional woship with contemporary
jazz music. All of the hymns will be 'jazzified' and
there will be additional sacred jazz selections
throughout the service. This year we have another
fantastic lineup of musicians including Jenny
Gear/vocals, Brian Way/piano, Pat Boyle/trumpet,
Scott Mansfield/drums, and Mark Peddle/bass. This
is a fantastic opportunity to bring people into the
church
h h that
th t might
i ht nott regularly
l l attend.
tt d If you would
ld
like a poster to help advertise please contact
Monica at the church office. Many thanks to Amy
Palmer and James Munroe for the beautiful
posters!
Gordon Stockwell
The St. David’s Connection
Page 6
SUMMER
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
ACTIVITIES
Theme
Tea
“From the Fashion Files” Afternoon Tea
On Saturday, May 14th, St. David’s W. A. hosted their annual “Theme Tea”.
The ladies really got into the spirit of the theme, taking a few pages “from the
fashion files” and had great fun dressing up for the occasion. Fashions from
past decades – from the “Roaring Twenties” to the “Rock and Roll Sixties” were
evident. Even the cookies (handbag and shoe shaped) were worked into the
theme!
SUMMER
Quarterly Newsletter –Summer, 2011
Theme Tea continued.
One interesting piece of fashion trivia on display
was the suit worn by May Ash (now 93 years old
and in attendance) when she sailed across the
Atlantic in 1946 as a War Bride. Also on display
were a number of elegant evening dresses and
accessories gathered from a certain lady
lady’ss “tickle
tickle
trunk” as well as an evening gown from Greece that
another lady dons each year to commemorate New
Year’s Eve. As always, the tea was also a financial
success, raising approximately $1250.00.
A wonderful afternoon all round!
The St. David’s Connection
Page 7
The St. David’s Connection
Page 8
SUMMER
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
F. Y. Interest
Congratulations to Lawrence Boyd Noseworthy, B.A., B.Ed., M. Div.
Lawrence (Larry) Boyd Noseworthy was born in Corner Brook, NL. He
graduated from the former Herdman Collegiate in 1969 and then attended
Memorial University of Newfoundland, graduating in 1974 with a B.A.,
B.Ed. He moved back to Corner Brook where he worked as a classroom
teacher for thirty years.
Throughout his life, he felt a call to ministry, and after retiring from the
teaching profession, he became a candidate of ordained ministry. He
entered the M.Div. Summer Distance Program at Atlantic School of
Theology and graduated April 2011. During his studies he served St.
George’s Pastoral Charge, Elliston pastoral Charge and Pool’s Cove
Pastoral Charge.
Larry is married to Margo Thistle of St. John’s. They raised three children:
David (Jenn), a lawyer in Toronto; Heather (Danny) Neville, a nurse in
Fredericton; and Rebecca (Alan) MacDonald, who just recently graduated
with a B.N. Larry and Margo are the proud grandparents of three beautiful
granddaughters:
Sara, Maddy, and Katherine.
While at Memorial
University, he frequently attended St. David’s.
Words of Grace
S b itt d by
Submitted
b G
Grace Artiss
A ti
Lawrence Boyd Noseworthy,
B.A., B.Ed., M. Div.
SUMMER
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
The St. David’s Connection
Page 9
F. Y. Interest
M i
Musings
around
d John
J h Guy
G
As the quatercentenary celebrations for the
1610 founding of Cupids come to a close, they
are nicely rounded out with the very recent
publication of an outstanding biography of John
Guy and his times.
The late Alan Williams’ “John Guy of Bristol and
Newfoundland: His Life, Times and Legacy,”
edited by W. Gordon Handcock and Chesley W.
Sanger, Flanker Press Limited, St. John’s, is a
scholarly work with a difference.
Tragically, Williams died just as his manuscript
was completed and never lived to see the final,
excellent version — a tribute to him paid by his
two former students.
I read the original manuscript and I can say
without hesitation,
hesitation this is one of the finest
pieces of editing I have come across.
The work is superbly mapped, charted and
colour illustrated with information running the
spectrum of early Canadian and Newfoundland
history,
y, earlyy colonial developments,
p
, the earlyy
fishery, the daily lives of the settlers, the social
and political history of that time in England, the
meetings with the Beothuks — and the
archeological story is a thriller in its own right.
It is demonstrably a work of scholarship of a
high order and yet the editors have managed to
put a human face on the work and give it that
rare quality in academic writing: readability.
A case in point concerns the Beothuks.
Beothuks
Newfoundlanders have taken a lot of stick over
their subsequent brutal treatment of our
aboriginals and yet in all of Guy’s meetings with
them, his treatment of them was exemplary.
One does not need to be a history buff to enjoy
this book: it is eminently “dippable
dippable.”
Credit is given where credit is due, notably to
the main archeologist and mastermind, William
Gilbert.
Praise should also be given to all the
communityy folk of Cupids
p
for their p
persistence in
pursuit of a true recognition monument to John
Guy, resulting in the fine Cupids Legacy Centre
So if you want some good reading for those
lazy, hazy days of summer, this is the book to
get.
P.S. Fifteen years ago I discovered by
serendipity (and Gordon Handcock) that John
Guy sold his Manor Farm House “Gaunt’s
Earthcott” prior to leaving for Newfoundland in
1610 to my direct ancestor Thomas Sturge. I
had known of the house since childhood as it
was a Sturge Family home for generations.
Grace and I were able to visit it during the
Sturge Family Pilgrimage in 2005.
David Sturge Artiss
SUMMER
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
The St. David’s Connection
Page 10
HAVE A GREAT DAY
Shirley & Marcy
A mother was concerned about her kindergarten son walking to school.
He didn't want his mother to walk with him.
She wanted to give him the feeling that he had some independence
but yet know that he was safe.
So she had an idea of how to handle it.
She asked a neighbour
g
if she would p
please follow him to school in
the mornings, staying at a distance,
So he probably wouldn't notice her.
She said that since she was up early with her toddler anyway, it would be a good way for them to
get some exercise as well, so she agreed.
The next school day, the neighbour and her little girl set out following behind Timmy as he walked
to school with another neighbour girl he knew.
She did this for the whole week.
As the two walked and chatted, kicking stones and twigs, Timmy 's little friend noticed the same
lady was following them as she seemed to do every day all week.
Finally she said to Timmy ,
'Have you noticed that lady following us to school all week? Do you know her?'
Timmy nonchalantly replied
replied, 'Yeah
'Yeah, I know who she is
is.''
The little girl said, 'Well, who is she?'
'That's just Shirley Goodnest ,' Timmy replied, 'and her daughter Marcy .'
' Shirley Goodnest ? Who is she and why is she following us?
'Well,' Timmy explained, 'every night my Mum makes me say the 23rd Psalm with my prayers, 'cuz
she worries about me so much.
And in the Psalm
Psalm, it says,
says ' Shirley Goodnest (surely goodness ) and Marcy (mercy) shall follow me
all the days of my life', so I guess I'll just have to get used to it!'
The Lord bless you and keep you; the
Lord make His face shine upon you,
and be gracious unto you; the Lord lift
His countenance upon you, and give
you peace
peace.
May Shirley Goodnest and Marcy be
with you today and always
The St. David’s Connection
Page 11
SUMMER
Quarterly Newsletter – Summer, 2011
Quarterly Newsletter - SUMMER, 2011
The St. David’s Connection
98 Elizabeth Avenue, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. Phone: 709 722 2382 Email: stdavids@nfld.com www.stdavids.nf.ca
Sheena’s Garden!
Memorial/Flower Services
Memorial/Flower Services Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Hamilton Avenue Ext., - Monday, July 4, 2011 - 7 PM
General Protestant Cemetery, Topsail Road - Monday, July 25, 2011 - 7 PM
In the event of inclement weather, the services will move ahead to 7 PM the next evening
Regular WORSHIP HOURS are
SUNDAY at 11:00 AM
The editorial committee wishes to thank all those who
contributed items to this edition of our St. David’s
Connection newsletter. Please feel free to drop items or
notes off any time to members of the newsletter committee
listed, or, leave them in the church mailbox.
Newsletter Committee:
Jean Bruneau
Lillian Crawford
Monica Janes
Steve Bruneau
722-6436
754-2362
722-2382
722-6542
We encourage you to view the Newsletter in colour on the St. David’s website. www.stdavids.nf.ca
In addition, sermons and bulletins are posted regularly as are audio recordings of most services!