Bishop McAllister College Appeal (July 2020)

Posted on July 22, 2020September 17, 2020

July 20, 2020

Dear Friends,

I am writing to update you about the status of the school and to request your prayers and support as Bishop McAllister School and Seminary face their greatest threat in my 23 years here.

On March 18^th all schools in Uganda were abruptly closed due to COVID 19 for a period of 30 days. After several extensions, all schools in Uganda were closed indefinitely. It is now unlikely that we shall reopen before February 2021.

When we closed in March we suffered a loss of $15,600 USD in unremitted fees and an additional $8,200 already spent on food that had to be given away. While this was an enormous loss to us (about 7% of our annual operating budget), we hoped to be able to survive assuming that we would collect fees for the second and third terms of this year. Now as we face losing the entire year of fees the financial challenges on several fronts could jeopardize our entire ministry. Our teaching and non teaching staff have remained unpaid for three months and could remain without any income until February 2021. The school continues to have a basic operating staff, security, grounds keepers etc, and there are bills mounting each day that we are closed. Our annual operating budget is based solely on the collection of school fees, of which 27% comes from sponsorship. We are in need of funds to maintain and secure our property and facilities, to provide some small support to our teaching staff whom we will need on reopening and to make sure that we have funds at opening to purchase food and other necessities for a boarding school of 750 students.

With the encouragement of leaders and supporters in both Canada and the USA I am launching an Appeal, BMCK 2020. I know many churches and individuals are facing financial constraints just now, and I would not ever suggest christians should divert their support from their local churches, but only appeal to those who are able to support this one time effort. My target would be to raise $40,000 USD. $20,000 would be to cover current operating costs, including the maintenance of the schools property and buildings, and ensure the school was ready to open smoothly with food and other necessities unhand as soon as we are given permission to open. The additional $20,000 would be allocated for teachers and non teaching staff, providing them with a small living allowance per month. Gifts may be sent for BMCK to the Diocese of Fredericton. Lastly, the other way of keeping Bishop McAllister College stable is by supporting the student sponsorship program. This important program not only provides needy students an opportunity to go to school, but also provides a certain amount of financial stability for the school. Currently we more than 30 students enrolled in their first year who are seeking assistance. Many of these may be forced to drop out when school resumes, a negative impact both for the young student as well as the school.

I am so grateful for your partnership in this work, for our hundreds of successful graduates who are serving in all walks of life (priests, teachers, doctors, lawyers, including several working internationally in the field of computer engineering), for the Child Sponsorship Programme and for our able and loyal staff. We have grown from a small two room to a two stream school know in the province and country for our excellence in morals, discipline, teaching, sports and music thanks to God’s grace and provision.

Your Servant in Christ,

Rev. Canon Paul Jeffries

Rector Bishop McAllister College

https://bishopmcallisterschool.com

Send Gifts payable to Anglican Diocese of Fredericton with a MEMO BMCK 2020

Mail to:

Anglican Diocese of Fredericton

115 Church St.

Fredericton, NB

E3B 4C8

A message from Bishop David Edwards

Posted on July 22, 2020September 17, 2020

July 21, 2020

Dear friend in Christ,

COVID-19 has had devastating effects which, unfortunately, have had an impact on our diocesan fundraising campaign to buy and equip a mobile medical clinic for our companion diocese in Ho, Ghana.

What began in early 2020 as a solid plan to fundraise here and access Rotary Club funding for this $268,000 (CDN) international project has been stalled by the inability to hold fundraising events in the diocese as a result of the pandemic, and a run on Rotary funding for COVID-related projects.

Yet the people of the Diocese of Ho still have little or no health care. We heard recently from health care workers in Ho that there is little help, limited testing, and incomplete statistics to add to the international database of cases. But the virus has not spared the region, and people are understandably fearful and desperate.

Our Companion Diocese Committee has reworked the application to Rotary and, thanks be to God, it has been submitted. In the meantime, we must raise a good deal more money than we originally planned. We need $93,000, but the good news is we have already received $31,000 in donations — from the generosity of parishioners and parishes here, and a good many kind people in Grand Manan, where Companion Diocese chair Robbie Griffin has been unceasing in his efforts to get this project off the ground.

The need for this mobile medical clinic is great and the hand of God is surely on it. In January, Robbie, Cheryl Jacobs (chair of the spiritual development team and my secretary) and Lilian Ketch (Mothers’ Union member) visited Ho on a fact-finding mission. They did a needs assessment, asking 14 different communities in the rural area of the Volta and Oti regions how their communities could be best improved. They met with teachers, parent groups and church groups. In every community, the primary need was health care.

But near the end of the trip, the group was dismayed. It seemed all the pieces were not fitting together. Then, suddenly, everything fell into place — attitudes changed, answers were provided and support offered. Now again, with this pandemic, when it seemed all was lost, money continued to trickle in, and Rotary opened up new grant opportunities. We, the Companion Diocese Committee, truly feel God is pushing this project ahead, and we must do our best to see it to fruition.

What I am asking is that you consider a donation to this most worthy cause. It’s not for us. We are well cared for. It’s for the two million people in the Diocese of Ho who enjoy virtually none of the health care services we do here at home.

If you’d like more background information on the need and the mobile clinic plans, please click these links to stories that have been published on this project.
New Brunswick Anglican September 2019, page 12
New Brunswick Anglican March 2020, pages 8-9
ENews story March 3
ENews story June 30

To donate, click this link and choose Diocese of Ho Mobile Medical Clinic from the drop-down menu. E-transfers are also accepted: send to this e-mail: [email protected] . Or you can mail a cheque to the Anglican Diocese of Fredericton, 115 Church St., Fredericton, E3B 4C8. In all cases, be sure to note the project: Diocese of Ho Mobile Medical Clinic. Tax receipts are available.

I appreciate your attention and time to this appeal. May God bless you as you consider this request.

Sincerely,
The Rt. Rev. David Edwards
Bishop of Fredericton

Episcopal Church of Roatan / Nelson and Kara Ministry (July 2020 Update)

Posted on July 22, 2020August 19, 2020

Roatan Update July 2020

Date: June 29, 2020Author: Roatan Episcopal Church Ministry

Roatán Update July 2020

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Philippians 1:3-5, NIV)

We give all glory and honour to the Lord for your partnering with us. Without your support and especially your prayers, our ministry would never have been possible or impact our generation. We give our heartfelt special thanks to all of you for your sacrificial giving.

Emmanuel Community Kitchen Project (Soup Kitchen)

Yes, in response to the effect of the pandemic, we are cooking for about 200 people. Every other week we cook for the congregation at Emmanuel Church and the people who work at the dump. In between, we cook for other people in need around Coxen Hole.

A website has been set up to publish the progress of the project and collect financial donations for food. It is capable of taking not only single donations but recurring donations as well. It will also be linked to our blog. To see weekly updates and support this project please go to: www.tttfmicro.com

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Please click on the link to see a small video of the project.

Please pray that all the resources will be obtained and any obstacles overcome to establish this project for the benefit of individuals and families on the Bay Islands who are impacted by Covid 19.

Impact of Covid 19

We continue to face Covid 19. To update you on Honduras, at the moment we have 18,082 cases, 479 deaths and 1,875 people who have recovered.

We in Roatán have 108 cases confirmed at the moment, 3 who have recove and we are expecting more confirmations in the next few days. These cases are located all over the island of Roatan.

The authorities are very concerned about the increase of cases, and at this point are calling for help from other countries. Here is the information if a Doctor or Nurse is willing to come to support Roatan.

By Amy Eader Beasley

Want to come to Roatan for diving or fishing? The island is requesting help from doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals, from around the world, who have (preferably) experience with COVID-19 and are willing to volunteer their services. Please complete this form and you will be contacted: https://forms.gle/ja8CtoHGA1Dx3JgaA Housing will be provided at a resort for volunteers. And we will take any volunteers that come through this post diving and/or fishing on Maxina (with proper biosecurity measures) on your down days.

Roatan Emmanuel Episcopal Church

At Emmanuel Episcopal/Anglican Church we continue to be closed.

We hope we can open our building soon, but the most important thing is to do it safely, according to the government regulations and those of our Diocesan Bishop and his team in the Episcopal Church in Honduras.

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Please pray that we can continue to be safe from the Covid 19 virus, and we pray the same for all of you.

Projects at Emmanuel Church

Just before the pandemic arrived in Honduras, we had started with the stucco of a side wall of the church, a small project that we had to stop due to government regulations. A few weeks ago we resumed work on it in order to finish the project and most importantly give some work to two or three people so that they could put bread on their table.

However, we will not be able to continue for long, since the resources we have are very few. We pray that God will provide the necessary resources for small projects and in this way provide a little work to some of the members of the Church.

If you as a person or as a Parish would like to help people with work, we have some small projects that we can develop at Emmanuel Church. Please contact us at: revnelsonmejia@yahoo.com

Bishop McAllister College – 2019 in review

Posted on July 20, 2020August 22, 2020

2019 In Retrospect -An Incredible Year for Progress! (July 16th, 2020)

“To God Be The Glory!” While 2020 may not have turned out to be the year we anticipated, much was accomplished in 2019, for which we are greatly appreciative. While the Library was our biggest accomplishment, much progress was made in other areas. The Dining Hall, a project started over 15 years ago was finally…

Pandemic – How did we do?

Posted on July 17, 2020August 13, 2020

Following an extraordinary time for everyone caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the church too was struggling, and continues to struggle, with new ways of doing what we do. Even in the midst of a society lockdown, there is even more need for ministry, need for worship, need for communication.

At Christ Church Cathedral, with the help of many, we continue to live into this “new normal.” Over the months March to June, we gained some experience with some very different ways of doing things. Most of what we attempted came with a considerable learning curve as most everything we did required new, unfamiliar ways. The good news is that we have that experience behind us and will without doubt be better prepared for our future because of it.

Some very good and interesting questions have been asked over the past several weeks. The answers too are interesting and its worth sharing them for the inquiring minds that want to know.

How much does streamed Cathedral worship cost?

YouTube is a free service provided by Google. There is no charge to upload or watch videos on YouTube. It is necessary for the YouTube account to “qualify” to be able to upload videos longer than 15 minutes. The qualification involves making an application for the account and a confirmation of ownership credentials, a relatively easy process. Other streaming services are also available at reasonable rates. But ...

While it’s free to stream, it’s not always “free” to create the content. It depends largely on the people with the skill set necessary and the availability of the equipment necessary. If either of those is lacking, it indeed costs. Production by a professional can easily be outside of a realistic budget for most churches. Unless someone is willing to loan personal computer and camera equipment, there is that upfront cost.

If you watched video streams from the cathedral during that time, you will have noticed changes to how the video was delivered. We began on that first Sunday in March with a “live” stream, meaning that what the camera was seeing was immediately broadcast on YouTube. There were some glitches in that attempt and we quickly came to a decision that pre-recording and posting for Sunday might be the less stressful approach. Pre-recorded and edited video was provided from then to the first Sunday of in-person worship on 07 July. On that Sunday, we returned to the live stream approach.

Why? Over the course of Sundays pre-recorded, the Dean began to experiment a bit with multiple video sources. Since the final product needed to be edited before posting to YouTube, there was an opportunity to put some additional polish on the project. Using several personally owned pocket HD video cameras, in addition to the one webcam feed being provided by Peter Jacobs, three additional angles were recorded. Using software and multi-clip editing technology, these were synchronized and an edited final cut produced using a relatively high-end computer and software. The recording itself is the thin edge of the wedge. Editing such a project means 8-10 hours of rather intense editing work, assuming all goes as planned. Even then, it’s an amateur product, although probably utterly impossible 10 years ago. Cost is not always measured in dollars. Needless to say, all things considered, the true “cost” is somewhat substantial.

So time is an issue. The skills required is an issue. The imposition, inconvenience, and perhaps even availability of using personally owned hardware is an issue - the moment the person isn’t available neither is the equipment.

How many people viewed streamed Cathedral worship over the last several months?

When viewing a YouTube video, at the bottom left (or in the brief description under the video thumbnail in a list of videos) you should see how many views the video has had. This number is not necessarily an assurance the viewer watched the whole vide, but it does give an indication of how many opened it at least once.

Cathedral Sunday Stream Views

Views	Date	Views	Date	Views	Date
* 62	12 Jul 20	487	31 May 20	539	26 Apr 20
* 131	05 Jul 20	426	24 May 20	567	19 Apr 20
176	28 Jun 20	402	17 May 20	947	12 Apr 20
162	21 Jun 20	453	10 May 20	1396	05 Apr 20
250	14 Jun 20	527	03 May 20	1109	29 Mar 20
290	07 Jun 20			* 1176	22 Mar 20

* Live stream

How many people listen to Cathedral podcasts (audio)?

Audio podcasts have been consistently made available for Cathedral worship and sermons since early in 2015. Since March of 2019, average subscribers are 77-80 with the maximum being 121 during that time. “Subscribers” are the number of users who have used podcast applications to “subscribe.” being notified whenever a new podcast file is posted. “Hits” to Cathedral podcasts average 125 per day, according to Feedburner, although most in the know point out that a "hit" is only an indication of a click, which could be from a person or a web search robot. Worship podcasts are a simple upload of the recorded audio with some edits to volume levels, and removing dead space and distracting imperfections in the recording where necessary. Sermons are primarily by the Dean and include an introductory and concluding voice-over.

How has the Cathedral been able to remain financially stable during the pandemic lock-down?

It is without doubt that the appeal, guided and prepared by our Stewardship Team early on, to “catch up and keep up” with offerings, was instrumental in communicating the reminder to all of us who support the ministry of Christ Church Cathedral. The efforts to begin e-offering or slide offering envelopes through the mail slot at the Memorial Hall have been responsible for our being able to stay ahead and meet on-going expenses. We continue to make cost-saving adjustments and some of those expenses were understandably lower during that time, but many also continue. We should be especially thankful that we were able to maintain staff salaries. Most members of staff continued to work without being physically present in their offices.

The other significant reality is the generous Federal Government initiative, extended to charitable organizations late in March, to keep Canadians working during the pandemic crisis,. The Cathedral was fortunate to have qualified for the federal wage subsidy (75%) for the first three periods. Future qualification for that subsidy remains to be seen. To the end of June 2020 we find ourselves $7,743 behind in expenses over revenue. It could have been much worse.

Will we be able to continue with streamed worship video even after we have resumed in-person worship?

It’s the question many are asking as many continue to rely on being able to join us “virtually” without being present “personally.” A valuable offering indeed.

The short answer is, providing a live stream version of worship requires some technical skill but is relatively less labour intensive than creating an edited, pre-recorded video. It’s a worship outreach the Cathedral needs to give serious consideration. The barriers include not being equipped with the hardware or the engaged skilled individuals necessary to make this just part of what we normally do.

With some equipment and some trained operators, we’d be able to do what we have “cobbled” together over the last few months. With some additional equipment, we would be able to do a good job of providing worship broadcast as a mainstay, making live streaming readily available for any event within the Cathedral.

We’re currently investigating the dollar cost of a set up for that possibility.

If you have a further question or a thought, why not leave a comment on this post? Type in the comment box and leave your name and email.

GMH

Ho Mobile Medical Clinic Project

Posted on July 9, 2020July 23, 2020

Psalm 46 begins with the words “God is our refuge and strength. A very present help in trouble”.

We are living in a different world than we were a few months ago. I am writing this letter to you today to ask for your careful prayer and consideration regarding the Mobile Medical Van Project in the Diocese of Ho, Ghana, of which I have been involved with.

THE PROJECT

History

In January 2019, The Diocese of Fredericton and with the Companion Diocese of Ho, began work to identify a project that could assist the Volta and Oti Regions of Ghana. Robbie Griffin visited the region in May 2019. As a representative for Mothers’ Union, I was asked to return with Robbie and Cheryl Jacobs in January 2020 to ascertain a required need. We met with various groups in 14 rural communities including teachers, school administrators, Mothers’ Union members as well administrators of the Ho Teaching Hospital, clergy and the local Rotary Club. Each group provided us with their feedback what they felt communities needed to assist in their everyday lives.

Unanimously, all groups stressed the need for specialized HEALTH CARE IN RURAL COMMUNITIES as travel to the city is so very difficult. A Mobile Medical Clinic was determined to be a great need and the Ho Teaching Hospital, and the local Rotary Club of Ho joined to begin the project. The Clinic will provide basic health care to approximately 2,000,000 people in rural areas of the Diocese of Ho.

The Clinic will provide some of the following basic services:

Pre and post natal care, with properly trained midwives
Diagnostic services for breast and cervical cancer
Prevention for outbreaks of typhoid, cholera, and measles, malaria and HIV
Monitoring for heart disease, diabetes, and cancer
And NOW as I write this letter there is a great need for testing and management of COVID the region. (Note, life expectancy for men is 42 years of age and for women, 65 years of age (if they make it to age 15). The government does not count anyone who dies under 15 in their statistics.

Lillian in the Diocese of Ho

The Mobile Medical Clinic

The Clinic will:

Be specially suited for Ghana and designed by Malley Industries in Moncton, worldwide leaders in designing medical vehicles for special needs.
Operate much like an army hospital, with the van being the nerve center of the unit, and examination and procedures being done in field tents. Tents will be on roof racks during transport.
Contain a diagnostic lab, pharmacy and specialized equipment (i.e. ultrasound machine).
Be staffed by a medical team provided by the Ho Teaching Hospital who will travel in a separate vehicle alongside the medical van. The team will also include medical students.
Be operated by the Ho Teaching Hospital which will maintain and staff the clinic; to ensure sustainability of the project.
Register rural citizens not currently registered with the Ghana Government Health Insurance Program.

Sustainability of the Project

The host Rotary Club of Ho will oversee the project and ensure elements required can be procured in Ghana. The Ho Teaching Hospital will provide staff and supplies; as well, maintain the vehicle. The project must be able to continue to be self-sustainable once initial funding has been provided. Funding will come from the Ghanaian Health Insurance Program to cover treatments, prescriptions and costs associated with the project (as citizens are registered as noted above). Rotary International will undertake period audits to ensure all requirements are being met.

Funding for the Project

The budget for this project is $280,000 CAD. Working with the Rotary Club of Ho, and the Diocese of Ho, the aim was to apply for a Global Grant from the Rotary International Foundation. If this grant was approved, it was possible for the Rotary Foundation and the District of 7810 - the District in which the local Rotary Club resides - to match some of our fundraising.

BUT COVID-19 has now disrupted the financial world. The National and International Rotary Foundation has depleted many of their funds for COVID-19 relief. Instead of the Diocese needing to raise the initial $40,000 (which would then be matched by District, National and International Rotary grants), this has now increased to $90,000. In addition to the needs identified above for this rural area, imagine coping with COVID-19 with no medical care at all. This is the situation for most of Western Africa currently.

Appeal for the Project

The Diocese of Fredericton has offered to help with the fundraising. The local Rotary Club has committed to supporting the project financially. Fundraising initiatives are being planned on Grand Manan Island (where Robbie Griffin resides) as possible (a couple of large ones were cancelled unfortunately due to COVID-19).

My plea, as your representative of the Committee and as a Mothers’ Union member, is to consider donating whatever you might be able, every little bit will help if we can all donate something.

Donations can be made by a cheque or money order made out to the Diocese of Fredericton (indicate Ho Mobile Clinic Project on the subject line of the cheque) and can be mailed to Diocese of Fredericton, 115 Church St, Fredericton, NB E3B 4C8. E-transfers are also accepted (email finance @ diofton.ca - indicate in comments for Ho Mobile Clinic Project). Tax receipts will be issued by the Diocese.

Thank you in advance, for consideration of donating to this life saving project. If you have any questions or need any further information, please let me know.

Many blessings

Lilian Ketch
Companion Diocese Committee Member
Diocese of Fredericton Mothers’ Union

More information here

Back to volunteering at the Community Kitchen

Posted on June 30, 2020July 23, 2020

While the Cathedral teams' regular Saturday volunteer shifts at the Community Kitchen have not yet resumed, Cheryl and Peter Jacobs have begun volunteering for a weekly shift, and they shared this reflection.

After three months of missing our every 4th Saturday evening shift at the Fredericton Community Kitchen due to the restriction of volunteers during our provincial lockdown, we discovered that the Kitchen was welcoming volunteers again with some revisions. In order to have as few different volunteers in the Kitchen as possible, they are asking people to commit to a weekly shift and those shifts are now four hours rather than the normal two. We decided that weekly on Saturday was not going to work for us, but with permission for me to leave work early one day a week, we have committed to Thursday afternoons from 2:00-6:00 and we started June 25.

Having volunteers in to help at all is a recent change. For several weeks, the amazing chefs and other staff carried the load of preparing and serving three meals a day on weekdays and two on the weekends - averaging 14,000 meals each month.

Much has changed at the Kitchen with the COVID-19 pandemic. Each meal is now placed in a take away container; this along with a wrapped dessert and baggie of cutlery, napkin, salt, pepper, sugar and coffee whitener, are bagged for quick and easy taking. Cold drinks are made ready and coffee is poured to order in paper cups. Meals are dispensed by the chefs on duty from behind a plexiglass shield mounted on a cart in the doorway. In the main dining area, most of the chairs are stacked on the sides and groups of tables are used as prep stations.

On our first Thursday shift, we helped prepare food items for use in future meals (e.g., Peter and a third volunteer Brian, cut 40 pounds of carrots while Cheryl cracked 40 dozen eggs for scrambling), prepared many cutlery bags, served up the take away containers and washed the pans and cooking utensils. The time passed quickly as it always did before. And Cheryl did not miss having to clean the chairs.

We did miss, of course, the interaction with the guests. Heather, the chef our Cathedral team had been working with on Saturdays for several months, commented she misses hearing the happy interaction of the volunteer teams and the guests. Expecting this new way of serving to carry on for a long time we mused about what it will be like in the winter when guests who have no place to go cannot come into a warm building to sit and eat.

The Kitchen is still looking for some volunteers to fill a few weekday and Saturday slots, on a weekly basis. The daily morning shift runs from 9:00am - 1:00pm. If you have some time to spare and would like to participate in this worthwhile activity, just send an email to volunteer@frederictoncommunitykitchens.com. You can also help by donating funds or food items to the pantry box program (supplying food to about 180 families with children from the school lunch program). More details can be found at www.frederictoncommunitykitchen.com/covid19.

- by Cheryl and Peter Jacobs

And when can we return?

Posted on June 17, 2020June 22, 2020

Someone recently asked a church member when they expected their church to "re-open." They responded with, "I didn't know it was closed!"

Just because doors of a building are locked doesn't mean we're closed. Over the days of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been forcefully reminded that "the Church" is not the building.

"The response of the Cathedral to the reminder that our financial commitments remain, even during a pandemic, is very encouraging and to be commended," said Dean Hall. "Many if not most of our usual ministries continue and there are many in new forms and disguises. We continue to be the Church and the financial support of our membership to the on-going ministry of the Cathedral needs to be recognized."

"While ceasing corporate worship and bringing in-person gatherings to a halt at Christ Church Cathedral was challenging," said Dean Geoffrey Hall, "re-opening and meeting new safety requirements is going to be the far more difficult task. We've learned many lessons along the way about how to be the Church even when not physically present to one another, and there are many lessons left to learn as we move towards what's often referred to as the new normal."

Following NB Health guidelines and implementing requirements and restrictions is going to need the co-operation of everybody. Summing up most of those requirements as they apply to the Cathedral is a detailed "operational plan" describing how we will proceed with gathering. The organization and the safeguards that will be in place need to be documented and understood.

What might be most challenging for us all is what the "new normal" is going to look like. Some of us are eager to return to gathering but at the same time, we need to be very conscious of keeping everyone as safe as possible. Physical distance and number maximums are going to introduce challenging aspects needing our full attention. No corporate singing, sharing of food (or hugs), or socializing, is going to make "church" look and feel very different. And, it's all still changing rapidly making the need to stay in step with what health authorities are telling us imperative.

We're not in any rush to open things up.

Among the changes we can expect are: the need to reserve for worship attendance, screening procedures upon entrance, directed seating, face masks, no corporate singing, and closely followed protocols around the administration and making of Communion.

"None of this is outside of our capability," said Dean Hall. "It's just going to need to be well planned, administered and maintained. We're not in any rush to open things up. We'll do it when we're ready, when we're confident we can minimize risk and can assure the safety of all."

Part of that process is creating the detailed "operational plan" required to be on-site should the gathering be monitored by Provincial officials. We need to be able to illustrate that we have carefully planned and be able to account for the circumstances under which we gather, the implementation of safeguards, procedures and restrictions.

"The current lifting of restrictions for religious gatherings by NB Health (up to 50 indoors) is very generous," said the Dean. "We need to receive that gift with all manner of seriousness."

A task group has been at work over the last several weeks considering the details of the "operational plan." That group includes Wayne Burley, Catherine MacDonald, Kathleen Snow, Thomas Gonder, Mike Tool and the Dean of Fredericton. It's a document that will be ever-changing and adjusted. The most recent version will be at the same link on the Cathedral website.

"We need to express our thanks to these individuals so willing to put the time and effort into the planning needed on our behalf," said the Dean. "There will be need for volunteers for all sorts and descriptions of the new and necessary. Even what we've "always done" may need to be done differently. Please consider saying 'yes' to requests for help."

The operational plan is very close to completion (current version here) but decisions are still being considered and nothing is carved in stone. Information should be available this week regarding our way forward.

Episcopal Church of Roatan/ Nelson and Kara Ministry (June 2020 Update)

Posted on June 10, 2020July 23, 2020

Roatán Update June 2020

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Philippians 1:3-5, NIV)

Emmanuel Community Kitchen Project (Soup Kitchen)

As we said in the previous update (Roatan Update May 2020) in response to the effect of the pandemic, on June 4th we started cooking for 100 people, most of them from the congregation at Emmanuel Church. We cooked rice, beans, tortillas and chicken, and a member of every family came to church to pick up the food, following the regulations of biosecurity and especially social distancing.

We expect next Wednesday to cook for about 150 people in the community of Brick Bay where we have St. Peter’s Episcopal Church. The goal is to cook one day for Coxen Hole and another for Brick Bay or more, if we can, as financial resources allow.

A website has been set up to publish the progress of the project and collect donations for food. It is capable of taking not only single donations but recurring donations as well. It will also be linked to our blog.

To support this project please go to: www.tttfmicro.com

We have already had a commercial smoker donated toward this effort, an electric stove, and an electric rice cooker for 300 people. We are looking for a propane stove, a refrigerator, and a freezer. After tourism returns and people get back to work, the kitchen equipment will be retained to help feed the very poor on the island but on a smaller scale.

Please pray that all the resources will be obtained and any obstacles overcome to establish this project for the benefit of individuals and families impacted by Covid 19 on the Bay Islands.

Impact of Covid 19

We continue to face Covid 19. To update you in Honduras, at the moment we have 5690 cases, 235 deaths and 583 people who have recovered.

We in Roatán have one case confirmed at the moment, and we are expecting more confirmations in the next few days. We hope most of the test results will be negative.

The Island is still closed — no one can come in or go out.

By now we have over 200 people in quarantine, including islanders that the authorities brought back home from the mainland, and the marines who were working for cruise companies.

Roatan Couldn’t open churches for services

At Emmanuel Episcopal/Anglican Church we expected to open our building for services on Sunday 24th of May.

This privilege to open our buildings was cancelled, because on Saturday 23rd the first case arrived in eastern Roatan. A group of nine people arrived in Roatan illegally by boat, the authorities put them in quarantine and tested them, and one of them tested positive.

Please pray that we can continue to be safe from the Covid 19 virus, and we pray the same for all of you.

Financial Support

On the financial side, we continue to be very positive and to pray and praise God with faith and thanksgiving. We also ask you to continue to pray about our finances, that for the rest of the year our support will stabilize and be sufficient to cover our needs. At the moment our balance is very low. Therefore, please consider sending a special offering to cover our expenses and needs.

To donate now, please click on the following link (or copy and paste it into your browser):

https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/13778

Or you can visit the Diocese of Fredericton’s website (www.anglican.nb.ca) then go to “Donate” for various ways to give online. Be sure to select “Honduras Mission Fund”.

Cheques should be made payable to “The Diocesan Synod of Fredericton” and sent to: Anglican Diocesan Synod of Fredericton, 115 Church Street, Fredericton, NB E3B 4C8

Phone: (506) 459-1801

All cheques should have “Honduras Mission” noted on the reference line.

We greatly appreciate your prayer and financial support to date and trust that you will continue to support us.

Please continue to pray for:

1. Please continue to pray for Roatan and Honduras at a difficult time caused by Covid 19.

2. Pray for Stephen Mejia Thompson, our son who was accepted at Providence University College in Manitoba. Providence awaits him in September 2020. His flight on June 10th was cancelled, but we hope he can get another one soon.

3. Please pray for our Diocese in Honduras that is starting the process to elect a Suffragan Bishop to assist our Diocesan Bishop, Lloyd Emmanuel Allen.

4. Continued and stable financial support for the next three years as we continue to serve the Lord in Roatán, Honduras.

5. The ongoing construction in Coxen Hole. Pray for the remaining installation stages: Cement concrete for the floor at the moment.

6. Our congregations: St. Peter by the Sea in Brick Bay, and Emmanuel in Coxen Hole.

7. Please pray for the Rev. Robert Browning and for his ministry to English-speakers in Eastern Roatán.

8. For youth leadership, that God will provide someone to minister to and guide the young people.

9. Spiritual and practical outreach in the local communities.

10. For leadership for the Church in Roatán.

11. The Episcopal Church in Honduras, for the process toward self-sufficiency and to be continued in 2020.

Thank you to all who have faithfully prayed and faithfully given to support this incredible work of ministering to the people in our congregations.

Matthew 25:40: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” Your prayers and continued support enable us to continue touching people’s lives with Jesus’ love.

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21

Empowering the Church

Learning, Growing and Serving

Nelson and Kara Mejia

Episcopal Church of Roatan/ Nelson and Kara Ministry (May 2020 Update)

Posted on June 10, 2020June 11, 2020

Roatán Update May 2020

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Philippians 1:3-5, NIV)

Emmanuel Community Kitchen Project

In response to the effect the pandemic has had on the people of Roatan, Emmanuel Episcopal Church/Teach Them To Fish is temporarily repurposing the glass recycling shop to be the ‘kitchen’ of a soup kitchen project. Our goal is to feed as many people as we can in the coming months until tourism can return to the island. Since about 85% of the population relies on tourism for their living, there are going to be families literally starving if we don’t pull together as a community to make sure everyone gets food for the rest of the year. According to the local authorities and the central government, local businesses will be open on May 18th from 6 am to 8 pm. Construction and churches are included in this and will be open.

We as the Episcopal Church/Teach Them to Fish are ready to set up the kitchen and begin training. Last Friday 15th we began training. We used the smoker and we fed about 50 people including 13 that are in quarantine by the Covid 19 team.

The church’s plan is to start serving lunch to the local area around Emmanuel Episcopal Church once or twice a week until we can scale the operation up to as many days per week as we can afford. Our goal is to serve meals daily for three to five hundred people around the Island.

A website is being spun up to publish the progress of the project and collect donations for kitchen equipment and food. It will be capable of taking not only single donations but recurring donations as well. It will also have links to other local efforts and events and a blog.

We have already had a commercial smoker donated toward this effort. We will begin training on how to use it now that the authorities will let us circulate. The first loads of wood and ‘practice’ meats have also been donated. We are looking for a six or eight burner stove, a refrigerator, and a freezer. We are talking with the local grocery stores to sell us food at wholesale prices. After tourism returns and people get back to work, the kitchen equipment will be retained to help feed the very poor on the island but on a smaller scale.

Please pray that all the resources will be obtained and any obstacles overcome to establish this project to benefit individuals and families affected by the impact of Covid 19 on the Bay Islands.

Impact of Covid 19

We continue to face Covid 19 and for two months we have experienced a new way of life. To update you on Honduras, at the moment now we have 2646 cases, 142 deaths and 289 people who have recovered.

As well, we remain under curfew until May 17th, by order of the president. We in Roatán have no cases at the moment, and we hope we won’t; as a result of this, the central government and the local authorities will let businesses open in Roatan from May 18th from 6am to possibly 8pm; this is to support the local economy and also as a pilot project to implement in other cities and departments on the mainland. The Island is still closed — no one can come in, and every business needs to implement all the requirements established by the government.

Solidarity Bags

In response to this difficult time for our parishioners we continued delivering bags of groceries among our congregation on May 5th and we expect to distribute more bags. Also one of the gas stations in Roatan brought groceries specially for the mothers in our church on Mother’s Day.

Roatan opens churches for services

At Emmanuel Episcopal/Anglican Church we expect to open our building for services on Sunday 24th of May. This privilege is just in Roatan, and in the next few days we will receive the regulations we need to follow for the services. Also we will need the approval of our Bishop Lloyd Allen. We will need to use shoe disinfectant, masks and hand sanitizer; otherwise the authorities said a person can’t come into the church building. If a congregation is bigger than 50 members, we need to hold two services to protect the people. Please pray that we can continue to be safe from the Covid 19 virus, and we pray the same for all of you.

Financial Support

To donate now, please click on the following link (or copy and paste it into your browser):

https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/13778

Or you can visit the Diocese of Fredericton’s website (www.anglican.nb.ca) then go to “Donate” for various ways to give online. Be sure to select “Honduras Mission Fund”.

Cheques should be made payable to “The Diocesan Synod of Fredericton” and sent to: Anglican Diocesan Synod of Fredericton, 115 Church Street, Fredericton, NB E3B 4C8

Phone: (506) 459-1801

All cheques should have “Honduras Mission” noted on the reference line. We greatly appreciate your prayer and financial support to date and trust that you will continue to support us.