Psalm 100 Verse 1
O BE joyful in the LORD, all ye lands:
serve the LORD with gladness,
and come before his presence with a song.
Opportunities to “come before his presence with a song” are a weekly blessing for members of St. John's Parish Choir. Music enhances worship at St. John’s through regular and special services.
The Year of Our Lord, 2016, began with the annual Epiphany Service of Lessons and Carols on January 17th. The month of February is one of fellowship, thankfulness and gratitude. During the month of February, the choir humbly takes responsibility for coffee hour. This is an opportunity for the choir to show appreciation for the generosity and commitment of this parish. The choir enjoys preparing tasty treats for this time of fellowship. Each year choir members ensure their culinary skills are as honed as their musical skills. Singers are a competitive lot, especially when it comes to hosting coffee hour.
Significant services of Evening Prayer were on Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday and Ascension Day. The Lenten season is a rewarding and moving time for all involved choristers, Jurgen and Noel. The Maundy Thursday service sung by the men and the Ante-Communion service and the singing of the Reproaches (a choir favourite) on Good Friday, may be from a chorister's point of view, the most intense worship experience of the church year. This serves to prepare us for the joy of Easter services, both Morning Prayer and Holy Communion. On Sunday, April 3rd a service of lessons and carols for Eastertide was presented. Throughout the year the choir continued to offer bi-monthly Services of Evensong, culminating with the yearly Coronation Evensong on Sunday, June 5th.
Although saddened by the news of Patrick’s retirement, we were honored to be part of the celebration of his ministry. A word of thanks must be included to the organizing committee for the wonderful event that marked this milestone. The choir was thrilled to have the opportunity to “Roast the Rector” with a psalm.
This fall, the Refugee Committee organized an evensong to support local refugees. This event raised funds to support Syrian refugees in the Centre Wellington area. The choir was delighted to be able to sing this service of worship.
Noel and members of the choir enjoy the opportunity to share in worship in Drayton and were also pleased to support the Founders’ Day Service at SJK. This year celebrated the 80th birthday of Founder and Chaplain, Canon Robert Hulse. These relationships are important elements of our shared history. The choir also continues to support parishioners as they mark life events such as weddings and funerals.
We would also like to acknowledge and thank Father Gordon Walls for his ministry and support of the choir this fall.
Noel’s patience and expertise has allowed the choir to gel and rise to meet the usual standard that parishioners love and enjoy. Members of the choir are humbled by the opportunities that the Parish Choir brings and are consistently moved by the music.
The choir would like to thank Joel Vanderzee, and Jurgen Petrenko for their occasional music direction, Jurgen for his work in the library and Lisa Jones for her consistent and detailed managerial assistance.
The opportunity provided by this parish for musical excellence in worship is unique to the region. People may travel from afar to partake in the musical magic that has made St John’s known and loved, however, it thrives because of the conviction of clergy and ongoing support and commitment from parishioners. Specific mention of our musical leaders must be made. Jurgen's kind manner and musical skill is a huge asset. We also continue to be inspired by Noel’s direction and vision for musical worship at St. John's.
Respectfully submitted,
Bryan Rankine