June 2011 - Celebration

Dear Friends

30th Anniversary Celebration

June marks our Patronal Festival and we celebrate the 30th Anniversary of our Dedication on Sunday, June 19th. Our organising and catering committee have been very busy getting everything in place, and we are looking forward to a truly awesome event! If you haven’t indicated you are attending, there is still time! The 19th is also Fathers’ Day, so we are hoping you will use this as an opportunity to give “Dad” a good lunch—it is a Spit-Braai! There will be a wonderful bottle of wine on auction, so bring a bit of extra cash to ensure your “Dad” gets an extra gift!

Easter Offering

Thank you so much to all who contributed to the generous Easter Offering that I received—it is clear that you love and appreciate me!

Budget Deficit

As you have all been aware, the budgeted deficit for 2011 has been of concern to Annual Vestry and an ongoing concern for Parish Council. There is good news, and a presentation will be given during both Services on Sunday 5 June 2011. The April Financial Report indicates that we have dropped the deficit from just under R80,000 to around R10,000. This is an amount Council feels we can manage. A BIG thank you to everyone for responding generously as you have done, and for taking seriously the financial needs of the Parish. However, let us not be tempted to relax on our laurels at this stage as the wider economic context in which we find ourselves still appears quite volatile.

Holiday—Meet the Parents

Excitingly, Dawn and I will be on holiday in the UK for the whole of July! As many of you are aware my whole family lives there, with my parents Tim and Kirstie being the most recent of the clan to move over to the UK earlier this year. What most of you have not been aware of is that I have a second set of parents and an additional set of siblings also living in the UK. I have been a “Long” since the age of four when my mother remarried. My last contact with my birth-father was in 1968 and as I was just two years old the memories are very hazy. So the main purpose of the visit is to “meet the parents”, and we will be immersing ourselves with the “Moore” clan for most of our time there, with a week or so in the south to catch up with the “Longs”. Please pray for Dawn and I as we make this pilgrimage. It is daunting, yet exciting, in so many ways. My birth-father, Tony, made contact some three years ago, and email and Skype have helped us develop an emerging relationship. Our visit will cement what has already begun, and enable us to build meaningful relationships going forward.  I worked out the other day that—between parents, siblings, spouses, nephews and nieces—I have twenty-seven close members of the family in the UK, many of whom we will meet for the first time!

A blessed Winter season to you all!

Mark