Minister’s Message
This past June, I had the opportunity to attend my very first General Assembly of The Presbyterian Church in Canada. While new to me in a church context, the structured format—plenary sessions, debates, networking, and reports—felt surprisingly familiar due to my prior years participating in business conferences and seminars. [ Click to Read More..]
The Witch and the Wardrobe – But No Lion
On May 21, Bob and I went to Niagara-on-the-Lake to see the Shaw production of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first book in C. S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia series. I went with trepidation, because the Narnia series is very dear to my heart and I was afraid the stage production would ruin it for me, just as the Mirvish production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child managed to ruin Harry Potter. [ Click to Read More… ]
Welcome Dr. Glen DeLine
On June 8, our new organist/choir director, Dr. Glen DeLine, began his leadership of the musical portion of our worship services. He comes to us with a wealth of experience and has many ideas on how to improve and expand our choir. Welcome, Glen, and we all look forward to musical expertise which will, no doubt, enhance our worship every Sunday.
Attention all bell ringers! Glen is starting a new Bell Ringers Choir. Anyone of any age can join. No music knowledge or experience is required. Rehearsals will be once a month, every third Sunday for 20 minutes after church. The first performance will be Thanksgiving Sunday. This is going to be fun! You may think you can’t sing, but you can certainly ring a bell. Just show up on Sunday July 20 after church. I, for one, will be there with bells on.
Outreach – May & June
On Monday, June 2, Outreach had its final meeting before the summer. The short “wrap-up” meeting was preceded by a pot-luck supper at the church – a first for our Outreach Committee. It featured great food, as all pot-lucks do, great conversation, and general good fellowship among its hard-working members. [ Click to Read More… ]
Morning Has Broken – Eleanor Farjeon
Morning has broken, like the first morning;
Blackbird has spoken, like the first bird.
Praise for the singing, praise for the morning,
Praise for them springing fresh from the Word.
(Interesting note: I looked up the lyrics on the internet in two different places, and in both cases the last word of the first verse was “world”. Our hymnbook uses “Word”, which I believe is the correct version, but requires some knowledge of Christianity to understand.)
Happy Canada Day!
Since you-know-who took office you-know-where, Canadian patriotism has been soaring. In honour of Canada Day 2025, and in honour of Simcoe Day, celebrated in Ontario on the first Monday of August every year, let’s find out just who Simcoe was.
A First-time Observer’s Experience at General Assembly
It’s hard to use a single adjective to describe the General Assembly for a young observer. While it was a very valuable and eye-opening experience to see how the church operated, admittedly it was also quite dry and confusing at times. I’m very grateful that a pastor helped get me registered as an observer and that GA was close enough this year for me to attend.
Clara Barton, Angel of the Battlefield
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed individuals can change the world. In fact, it’s the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead
With help from an essay by Joanna Strong and Tom B. Leonard, from The Book of Virtues, edited by William J. Bennett.
The year was 1862. The Civil War was raging in America. In the battlefields of the country, men were dying, left maimed and bleeding on the field until the battle was over and they could be collected and taken to hospitals, far from the lines of battle.
You Have Voice Male – a Review
Oh, what a night!!! Nothing prepared me for the initial sight of the curtain rising and the stage being filled to the brim with row upon row of men prepared to sing their hearts out. With the first notes of the first selection, I was wrapped in the warmth of those wonderful voices as they sang one of my all-time favourites, Homeward Bound. After performing 3 pieces “en masse”, we then got to hear each choir individually. They were not all of equal calibre, but the support each choir received from the audience was stellar. Our own Kento Stratford was the emcee, and he did a great job with his dry, hysterical sense of humour. Everyone in the audience loved every note of every choir.
Susan Chopp
One Bowl Chocolate Cake
I found this recipe on Facebook and it has replaced Duncan Hines Devil’s Food cake as my go-to cake for family birthdays. Everyone loves it. I haven’t tried the frosting recipe – I use my own.