Our various outreach activities at St. John's
ACW (Anglican Church Women)
All women in the parish are invited to be part of the ACW. We meet on the third Monday of every month (except July & August) at noon in the church. Our purpose as Anglican women is to provide the opportunity for all women in the diocese to be united in fellowship of worship, learning and offering with a view to deepen and strengthen their devotional life.
We support our church through fundraising and then put these funds to work for our parish and diocese. Our ACW also looks after the kitchen in the church. Over the past few years we have provided a new stove, dishwasher, refrigerator and coffee urns.
We support our church through fundraising and then put these funds to work for our parish and diocese. Our ACW also looks after the kitchen in the church. Over the past few years we have provided a new stove, dishwasher, refrigerator and coffee urns.
|
Some of our yearly activities and projects include:
|
Our Outreach program includes:
|
Annual ACW Project 2020/2021:
Supporting Parents : Stories that matter
This project is to promote support for indigenous communities, positive relationships and support a healthy family life. Advocating for a
just society is the work of all.
The ACW at St. John's is a very active group of ladies who look forward to our monthly meetings and enjoy participating in all the various activities and projects throughout the year.
Supporting Parents : Stories that matter
This project is to promote support for indigenous communities, positive relationships and support a healthy family life. Advocating for a
just society is the work of all.
The ACW at St. John's is a very active group of ladies who look forward to our monthly meetings and enjoy participating in all the various activities and projects throughout the year.
Friendly Visitors Group
The friendly church visitors’ program at St. John’s is an outreach program led by the Rector encouraging congregational members to visit people who are no longer able to attend our church but have the desire to stay connected with us. Typically, two-person teams or individuals visit nursing homes or private homes, once or twice a month.
These visits are very rewarding to the visitor, mainly because the people visited are so very pleased to see people from the church and eager to explain to them what has been, or is, going on in their lives. Most visits consist of offering opportunities to ask questions about the church, listening to their stories, offering them a current bulletin, or any other information of interest to them and, if wanted, having a brief prayer.
The group generally meets together 2-3 times a year to report the status of the visitees, to exchange visitation experiences any new ideas for the future.
We are always looking for new members and anyone interested in this rewarding work is asked to contact either Patsy Clothier or Chris Maltby for information.
These visits are very rewarding to the visitor, mainly because the people visited are so very pleased to see people from the church and eager to explain to them what has been, or is, going on in their lives. Most visits consist of offering opportunities to ask questions about the church, listening to their stories, offering them a current bulletin, or any other information of interest to them and, if wanted, having a brief prayer.
The group generally meets together 2-3 times a year to report the status of the visitees, to exchange visitation experiences any new ideas for the future.
We are always looking for new members and anyone interested in this rewarding work is asked to contact either Patsy Clothier or Chris Maltby for information.
L'Arche Homefires
L’Arche Homefires was founded in Wolfville in 1981 with the support of friends and local churches. We are a community of people with and without developmental disabilities working and living together in five homes, two supported apartments and three day programs.
In 2012, L’Arche purchased St. John’s former Church Hall planning to renovate and expand it. With the support of St. John’s congregation and the generosity of many donors, we now have a resplendent building in which to consolidate day programs, create accessible workplaces, and enhance our community gatherings and welcome friends.
Our links with St. John’s continues to be close, sharing spiritual needs and community activities.
We seek to offer not a solution, but a sign - a sign that society, to be truly human, must be founded on welcome and respect for all people whatever their abilities.
In 2012, L’Arche purchased St. John’s former Church Hall planning to renovate and expand it. With the support of St. John’s congregation and the generosity of many donors, we now have a resplendent building in which to consolidate day programs, create accessible workplaces, and enhance our community gatherings and welcome friends.
Our links with St. John’s continues to be close, sharing spiritual needs and community activities.
We seek to offer not a solution, but a sign - a sign that society, to be truly human, must be founded on welcome and respect for all people whatever their abilities.
WAICC (Wolfville Area Inter-Church Council)
St. John’s Anglican Church was instrumental in the founding of the Wolfville Area Inter-Church Council. This was founded in 1970 as a form of ecumenical Christian commitment to address perceived spiritual and social needs. Some of the projects undertaken include Senior Citizen Housing which developed into Blomidon View Manor, the existing Meals-on-Wheels program, and most ambitious of all, the Interchurch Housing Society which created decent affordable housing for poverty stricken families. The Wolfville Area Inter-Church Council in conjunction with various community organizations, such as the Wolfville Rotary Club and the Wolfville Lions Club, has operated a Christmas Food Program. A year round Emergency Food Relief program has been added. These two food programs currently represent the major on-going social commitment of the Council and cover the area in which the supporting congregations are located.
The spiritual needs of the community have been attended to by a continuing program of public seminars, lectures, workshops, and religious services organized by the Council and financed out of annual dues paid by the member churches. These churches also contribute financially to the food programs in addition to monies donated by individual members of their congregations and various church organizations. This council fosters ongoing collaboration between the various denominations in the area.
The spiritual needs of the community have been attended to by a continuing program of public seminars, lectures, workshops, and religious services organized by the Council and financed out of annual dues paid by the member churches. These churches also contribute financially to the food programs in addition to monies donated by individual members of their congregations and various church organizations. This council fosters ongoing collaboration between the various denominations in the area.
PWRDF (Primate's World Relief and Development Fund)
The Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 has brought unprecedented challenges around the world and made the truth of our interconnectedness inescapable. It has exposed the stark reality of the immense challenges PWRDF’S global partners face as they strive to improve health for the most vulnerable, empower women, build food security, mitigate the impacts of climate change, partner with indigenous communities, support refugees and displaced people, and respond to humanitarian emergencies. In addition to its ongoing work with global partners, PWRDF responds to emergencies and humanitarian disasters through connections such as the Canadian Foodgrains Bank (CFB), Anglican Alliance and ACT Alliance.
In 2020 the people of St. John’s continued to show deep concern and generous support for PWRDF, despite the limitations of virtual Sunday services and restrictions on how we can worship in person. In 2020 our congregation supported PWRDF through regular offerings, special appeals and projects. The pandemic seemed to revive interest in sending “real” seasonal greetings and we also sold many PWRDF Christmas cards.
To keep “grassroots” supporters informed, PWRDF produces excellent resources such as posters, brochures, placemats, stories for bulletin inserts, and worship liturgies. There were fewer opportunities to use print materials in 2020, but PWRDF’s many online resources like the photos, films, stories, and interviews found on its website at www.pwrdf.org are a great way to learn more about projects and new directions. Why not sign up on line for the monthly “Update” e-newsletter, for Lent/Advent devotions, or join an educational ‘webinar” to meet (virtually) with PWRDF staff and global partners and see current projects in action?
In 2020 the people of St. John’s continued to show deep concern and generous support for PWRDF, despite the limitations of virtual Sunday services and restrictions on how we can worship in person. In 2020 our congregation supported PWRDF through regular offerings, special appeals and projects. The pandemic seemed to revive interest in sending “real” seasonal greetings and we also sold many PWRDF Christmas cards.
To keep “grassroots” supporters informed, PWRDF produces excellent resources such as posters, brochures, placemats, stories for bulletin inserts, and worship liturgies. There were fewer opportunities to use print materials in 2020, but PWRDF’s many online resources like the photos, films, stories, and interviews found on its website at www.pwrdf.org are a great way to learn more about projects and new directions. Why not sign up on line for the monthly “Update” e-newsletter, for Lent/Advent devotions, or join an educational ‘webinar” to meet (virtually) with PWRDF staff and global partners and see current projects in action?
|
What we do at St. John's:
Before the March lockdown began, we held a PWRDF Sunday on Feb. 16. After a soup lunch, the PWRDF guest speaker, Gillian Power, led us through “Mapping the Ground We Stand On” by using a large map of Canada laid out on the narthex floor to illustrate in a concrete way the many original Indigenous territories, Canada’s colonial legacy, and our own ancestry and heritage. This exercise helped us reflect on what it means to live in harmony in a place so many different people call home. In Advent it has been our custom to support a project from PWRDF’s annual “World of Gifts” catalogue through the sale of Soup-in-a-Bag. The project selected in December was All Mothers and Children Count (AMCC) COVID-19 Support. Since 2016 AMCC projects have improved health and food security for women and children in Tanzania, Mozambique, Rwanda and Burundi. This successful program was extended to June 2021 to help AMCC partners weather the effects of COVID-19 in their communities. |
|