Adam Snook

On a sunny Sunday morning in August, Grace church on Green Lake Road hosted an outdoor service and picnic.  Notices had been placed in mail boxes across the community to invite families in the neighbourhood to join in on a special gathering.

Arrangements were made to have “The Intermittents”, a Pembroke area men’s choir on hand who opened the event with songs from memory lane and to lead with hymns during the service.

Pastor Leena led the service with communion under a tent that offered welcomed shade on the side lawn of the church yard.  There was an abundance of positive energy as the group, young and old, grandchildren and grandparents and those in the middle, shared the fellowship.  It was a God sent moment.

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The Eastern Synod Mission committee meets twice a year under the leadership of Bishop Michael Pryse. At their fall meeting, the committee reviews grant applications and decides which ministries will get financial support for the following year. This year over $300,000. has been granted to support 52 missions and projects. The spring meeting is generally more educational and the agenda often includes a visit to learn more about the projects that are funded. 

This year, the committee was invited by Deacon Scott Knarr and the Six Nations Anglican Parish to visit Six Nations of the Grand River Territory to not only strengthen the relationship within our communities but also to learn more about the Music for the Spirit program, a ministry that Eastern Synod has been supporting since 2016.

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“We have new people almost every Sunday in the worship service. Some of them start coming regularly, some occasionally and some may come only once,” says Hilla Lahtinen, who serves the congregation together with her husband Ronnie Smith as a ministry team. 

   One of our growing congregations, if not in membership but in worship attendance, at the moment is Peace Lutheran in Pickering On.

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Eastern Synod Council member Bonnie Weppler took these pictures of the baby sweaters that the women of St. Peter’s Lutheran in Ottawa made for the baby bundles which will be packed up on Mothers’ Day for CLWR distribution.

“This is the first time that I have seen the women hang the sweaters on the windows and I thought it was a great – and brightening – idea in what has been a very long and hard winter in Ottawa.”

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For those with dementia in Long Term Care, choices are often made for them – when they get up, what they eat, what they wear. With the Opening Minds through Art (OMA) program at Trinity Village Care Center, Kitchener, they can again make their own choices – where they place the paint on the paper, what colours they choose and what they name their art work. This creates autonomy and dignity through creative expression for those with dementia. 

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The closing of one of our congregations, St. Philip’s, Kitchener has led to new beginnings and a new partnership with Anishnabeg Outreach. 

Anishnabeg Outreach is a charitable organization dedicated to helping First Nations, Metis and Inuit people with training and employment services. The former St. Philip’s will become the home for a new Indigenous drop-in centre. The space will be a hub for various programs and services.

Since we, as a synod, are committed to working in the spirit of reconciliation and learning from our Indigenous neighbours, this is a wonderful opportunity to deepen our relationship and broaden our understanding of one another and our common vision. It is also a chance to work together to serve the community. 

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