Dear Friends,
I have received a lot of encouraging comments about last week’s message; it is good to know that so many of you support the parish’s boys and men tradition. I hope that many of you enjoyed not one, but two summer feast days surrounding the last weekend – St. Mary Magdalene and the Feast of St. James the Apostle. We also had the joy of three weekday evensongs sung by the girl chorister course. Mo. Turner, who acted as chaplain to the course, writes about this formational week below this message. On Sunday, the girl choristers will sing two services – 11am and 3pm (note the time for evensong) and we will welcome many of their families to church that day.
I am delighted that several people came forward to offer their services as High Altar acolytes. We have been training, so there is still time if anyone would like to find out more about this important ministry.
Our Back-to-school Drive has begun and you can read about it below; it is good to give practical support to other Episcopal Churches and their children and families in the Diocese.
We still do not have enough volunteers to re-start our soup kitchen program in the fall. We are now reaching out to other churches, synagogues, and societies to appeal for regular volunteers. If you or any of your friends or work colleagues would like to participate, please email us at [email protected] Jean Savage, who has made the most amazing soup for our clients over many years will be writing an article to share with you how the soup kitchen runs in the coming weeks.
Some time ago, just after the awful shootings in Buffalo, and Uvalde, I said that I would be writing to you all about safety measures at our Church and School. The Vestry has now made some important decisions that will enhance the security that we already enjoy; I will be writing to you all about that next weekend.
Alison and I are about to take our annual leave and visit our family and friends whom we have not seen for a very long time. If you are travelling this summer, I hope that it is uneventful and safe for you all. To end with, a simple summer recipe from my hero-chef Raymond Blanc.
Carl,
Your Priest and Pastor
Cherry Clafoutis – Recipe by Raymond Blanc
Raymond says, “Clafoutis has been a staple dessert in every French family since the 19th century. A clafoutis is a baked dessert featuring a thick batter over fruit. Traditionally, the fruit should be black cherries, but other stone fruits, such as peaches, plums, apricots or figs, work well too.”