Incumbent’s Report, March 27, 2022
Since our last regular Parish Meeting at the end of January, All Saints’ has returned to in-person worship for the third and – we devoutly hope! – last time. (Please note that anyone who wishes to receive communion while attending church from home, is welcome to stop by during the week and picked up consecrated wafers.)
Cases are down from their scary January peak, and many restrictions are being lifted. We pray that this does not lead to another surge!
We continued to meet on Zoom throughout the Omicron peak and as cases ebbed again in February, including a BCP Morning Prayer service on January 30. We returned to worship in the church on Ash Wednesday, March 2nd. The previous evening, a highly successful Burning of the Palms service with lots of delicious goodies was held at the church and also live-streamed on Zoom. Peter Lekx and I also took “Ashes to Go” to the parking lot at the Dorval bus terminal, where a few hardy souls were glad to receive ashes.
My fourth Annual Vestry with All Saints’ took place on February 27, and was commendably efficient! Nevertheless, I pray that by 2023 we will be able to have the Annual Vestry over lunch as was our past custom. As of that Annual Vestry, Serena Capplette is our new Rector’s Warden (and introduced herself to the congregation in a meet-and-greet on March 20). Linda Smith has joined as a Deputy Warden. Heather McCance is our new Newsletter Editor and we have expanded Tim Klempan’s brief to include the Building Concierge duties (with pay).
We are still looking for a Garden Coordinator and an apprentice to absorb Bert Larocque’s accumulated wisdom regarding the geothermal heating system!
Wednesday Morning Prayer and Bible Study has continued to meet, mostly on Zoom, with a new start time of 10:15. Participants are welcome to come to the church in person as well.
On February 26 we bade a fond and sorrowful farewell to Bill and Dorothy Wilson, who have moved to New Brunswick to pursue their dream of building an eco-friendly “passive house”. We are glad to still see them for now on Zoom!
Confirmation class is in full swing, with our four young people learning about church history and worship, interviewing longtime parish members, and preparing to help lead the Easter Vigil on April 16. The Confirmation service is scheduled for Pentecost (June 5, 2022). Adults who wish to be confirmed or received are more than welcome to plan to be part of that service as well, so if you’ve never formally joined the Anglican church and would like to do so (or would like to reaffirm your baptismal vows), please let me know!
We are participating as a parish in Heather’s course on the Acts of the Apostles, and will be gathering for “discussion sections” on Zoom at 10 AM on March 26 and April 9. During Lent, we are also collecting items for Auberge Madeleine. In addition, the Corporation voted, at the recommendation of the Outreach Committee, to contribute $10,000 of the remaining funds earmarked for refugees, to RIVO in order to support its essential massage therapy program for the survivors of trauma.
After Easter, a speaker series is planned on Tuesday evenings and we will hear from the leaders of RIVO, Auberge, Action Réfugiés, and the Mile End Mission, as well as hopefully at least one other local organization. We are also tentatively planning to put on our Spring Garage Sale for the first time in three years.
We have a full schedule of Holy Week services planned, as well as a children’s event on April 9th from 2-4 PM. Pray for good weather as many of these plans have an outdoor component!
Easter Season is going to be a time of non-stop baptisms at All Saints’. We have two scheduled for Easter Sunday; at least one on May 15; and several more that have yet to be definitely scheduled. What a blessing that so many people are interested in deepening their connection with God in this faith community!
Looking a bit further ahead, I will be gone a little longer than usual this summer. I did not have the chance in 2020 or 2021 to use most of my Continuing Education money or time, so I’m making up for that this year, by doing a 5-week French immersion course at the Université Laval in Quebec City. The course runs from July 4 to August 6, and I plan to take two of my four weeks of vacation on either side of it (the other two will be taken later in the autumn). I’m in the process of arranging coverage thanks to our excellent Honorary Assistant, Lay Readers, and others, and will be working with the Corporation to ensure that there are lots of opportunities for relaxed summer fellowship as we work to rebuild our community in-person.
Finally, as was noted in the Friday email, the Corporation was notified this week that our Parish Administrator, Jennifer Gibb, intends to retire on June 30. Jennifer has been presiding over the church office for 20 years, through the tenure of four Incumbents, the merger that created All Saints’, and innumerable other changes. We are tremendously grateful for her faithful service and many contributions, and we’re sure she’ll be deeply missed! Stay tuned for an announcement about an anniversary/farewell celebration in June!
Enjoy the lengthening days and warming weather, and I hope to see you – in person or on Zoom – for our holiest season of the year!
Peace,
Grace+
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