FEILDING

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVI, Issue 121, 23 April 1936, Page 6

FEILDING

ST. JOHN’S CHURCH. ANNUAL REPORT. The following is the annual report of the vicar (Ven. Archdeacon F. H. Petrie) of St. John’s Anglican Church: “It has been a quiet and uneventful year, as far as our parish is concerned. Attendance at church services has been fairly well maintained and a considerable amount of interest has been shown in all our various church activities. The one disquieting feature is the falling off in attendance at Holv Communion. This no doubt is due, to some extent, to the fact that we had no special appeal to our people during the past year, such as was made to them in the previous year by those who conducted the Church Army Mission. But if this be the explanation, then it only shows that the effects’ of that mission have not been lasting and that the mission failed in its object. I am afraid the falling off can only be truly attributed to the slackness, carelessness and indifference of a large number of our church members. The Holy Communion is the main service of the day. It was instituted by our Lord Himself and by deliberately absenting ourselves from

that service we are refusing to obey His direct command, for He said ‘Do this in remembrance of Me.’ By refusing to come we are at the same time, too, starving our souls, for in the Feast of the Holy Communion there is provided for us the food that our souls need if they are to be kept alive. ‘Come unto Me,’ Jesus said —‘Come unto Me, if you are poor, if you are sick, if you are sa.d, if you are in sorrow. or in trouble —come unto Me, and I will give •you what you need.’ I do hope that during the coming year many who have become irregular in their attendance at this great service, will realise what they are missing and will mend their ways and become once more what all confirmed persons ought to be, weekly communicants. The forenoon services at St. John’s continue to be very poorly attended, due no doubt, partly, to the awkward hour at which these services are held. The evening services have been very well attended and so have the services in all the country churches, with the exception of Stanway, where the attendance has been disappointing. “Our Sunday schools still continue to flourish. This reflects great credit upon the teachers. Miss Slippherd and her assistants continue to do valuable work in the school at Colyton, and it is wonderful what Mr Revill and Mrs Hone have done with their little school at Halcombe. All our Bible classes continue to exist, > but every / one of them would welcome an increase in its membership. I have nothing but praise for our choir. Despite many changes in its personnel during the past year the membership of the choir lias been well maintained. The loyalty shown by the members, and the happy relationships that have existed between the members and the organist and myself have made my duties a’s' choirmaster easy and pleasant. Once again the Ladies’ Auxiliary has proved itself to be one of the most valuable organisations in the parish. After months, of preparatory work, its members held a bazaar which resulted in their being able to hand over to the vesty' a sum not far short of £2OO. The Mite Society is another of our organisations that has proved itself to be indispensable. During the year it was found necessary to purchase a new parish car. .Towards the cost of that the Mite Society, offered to contribute £IOO, and despite the fact that this society has only a very small membership, in five months the whole of that amount was raised and handed over to the vestry. The Girls’ Club still maintains its popularity and its large membership shows that it is proving itself to be a very useful institution for the town. The Boys’ Club is also in a flourishing condition, and the Men’s Club still meets regularly, though I should like to see its membership increased. Tho Ladies’ Crocpiet Club and the Lawn Tennis Club have both had successful.' seasons. “1 am pleased to say that the debt on the Parish News has been wiped out and so far we «have been able to pay our way. I am very grateful for the excellent response that was made to the appeal which I made towards the end of our financial year. Thanks to that our financial position shows an improvement as compared to what it was at this time last year

“I wish to express my sincere regret at the loss which the parish is about to sustain through the departure of Mr Hill. During the greater part of the time during which Mr Hill has heen living in Feilding he has been a member of the vestry and for a period he served as people’s churchwarden. In both capacities he gave faithful service. For some years, too, he acted' as secretary of the envelope system and while holding that position he threw himself whole-heartedly into the work and brought the system to a wonderful stage of efficiency. I am personally grateful for' the help lie has been to me and I wish him God-speed in his new sphere. In concluding my report, I wish to thank all who, in their various ways, have helped in the work of

the parish: Lay-readers, especially Mr Fitzpatrick, who has proved invaluable to me, synodsmen and vestrymen, churchwardens, Sunday School teachers and superintendents, Bible class leaders, ,organists and members of the clloir, the members of the Ladies’ Auxiliary and the members of the Mite Society, altar decorators and church decorators, Parish News distributors, the officers of the Girls’, Men’s and Boys’ Clubs, the, mission box secretary and the secretaries of the Parish News and the envelope system ; and the helpers at the Christmas tree and the Sunday School picnic. I especially wish to thank, too, the secretary and .treasurer of the vestry, who have given a great deal of time, freely and willingly, to the management of the affairs of the parish; and I wish to thank the parishioners generally for the loyalty they liave shown to me -throughout the year and for the response they have made to my various appeals. I pray that God will prosper the work of the parish during the year upon which we have just entered.

“Following my usual custom, I append the following satisfies:—Baptisms 41 (18), confirmations 35 (44); marriages 18 (18), burials 17 (14), Communions made in St. John’s Church 2989 (3352).” CHUR CHAV ARDEN’S REPORT. Messrs F. Mason and G. Shrimpton, churchwardens, report inter alia, as follows: —“We have pleasure in presenting the statement of receipts and expenditure. It is gratifying to report there is an improvement as compared with the position at the close of last year. The overdraft at date is £37 6s Bd,. whereas we commenced the year with a debit balance of £62 8s 6d. A contributing factor to this improvement _ was the liberal response by parishioners to the vicar’s appeal for the note offering at the harvest festival, which was approximately £9O. The amount of £361 4s 7d for general offertories is greater by. £35 12s than the previous year’s figure of £325 12s 7d, but it must be remembered that had it not been for the special note offering there would have been a fairly substantial decrease under this heading. Upon referring back to previous bal-ance-sheets, we note there has been a decided decline in general offertories over the past few years, namclv. 1931, £420 14s; 1932, £358 7s 9d; 1933, £335 I6s 8d; 1934, £325 Its lid; 1935, £325 12s 7d. Whilst it may be understood that during the years mentioned the financial conditions generally were difficult, we feel it our duty to point out to parishioners this is really the true source from whence the church should derive its funds; and the fact of the decline is a matter to bo deplored. However, with the depression behind us and with theAnore hopeful outlook in general we trust that an appropriate increase will be reflected in the general offertories Muring the coming year. The result of the bazaar was Exceedingly pleasing and we desire to congratulate the members of the Ladies’ Auxiliary upon their raising the nett amount of £lB5 6s 9d. Their splendid organisation has done so much to'wards rendering financial assistance on occasions when it is most needed. Similarly, the Mite Society have again proved a mainstay for supplying funds for special purposes and their voluntary contributions enable the vestry to carry out urgent necessary matters.

“During the year it was found necessary to replace the parish car. Towards the purchase price, the Mite Society have contributed £105; for this material assistance, the'vestry are indeed very appreciative. Arising out of the recommendation made at the last annual meeting of parishioners, the vestry decided to carry on the publication of the Parish News for another twelve months. The property of the church is being maintained in good order and repair, as far as funds wil lpermit. A matter requiring attention is the renewal of the coverings on the seats in the church. These are in a somewhat dilapidated condition, and if funds had been available the vestry would have authorised the expenditure. Perhaps some member or numbers may be willing to raise the amount required by means of some form of entertainment. We learn with much regret that Mr W. F. Hill has been transferred from Feilding to Taihape. The departure of Mr and Mrs Hill will mean the loss of two ardent church workers who have rendered help most willingly. To Mr and Mrs Hill we wish many years of contentment and continued activities' in the work of their church in the parish of Taihape. We desire to record our appreciation of the help accorded to the vestry by all those parishioners who so consistently and faithfully carried out their respective duties.' No doubt we all appreciate the privileges in doing church work and which we are permitted to enjoy. It is fitting and appropriate to record our grateful thanks to Archdeacon Petrie. His influence and assistance are a real guiding force and we are ever mindful of the inspiration we receive from our vicar.”

RETURNED SOLDIERS. ASSOCIATION. ANNUAL MEETING. Mr T. K. Hay (the president) was in the chair at the annual meeting of the Feilding Returned Soldiers’ Association last night. A large attendance of just on 80 members being present, the chairman expressing his pleasure at what he termed was even a larger gathering than usual. Moving the adoption of the annual report (already published) the president referred to the support the association had obtained from Haleombe, stating that about 30 members came

from that area. Dealing with the association’s finances Mr Hay eulogised the growth in the membership returns from £24 to £4O, figures which spoke for themselves. The canteen fund grant was down again, but this was only to be expected as the years went on. The balance sheet betokened a very flourishing condition of affairs for the association and Mr Hay formally moved the adoption of the report. Seconding the motion, Mr B. S. McLeod endorsed the president’s remarks. He was confident that in the future the association would grow into a much larger body. The report was adopted and officers elected as follow:—President, Mr B. S. McLeod ; vice-president, Mr T. K. Hay ; bon. secretary, Mr L. D. Miller; committee—country members—Messrs W. G. Booth, H. D. Richardson, H. Brooker; town members, Messrs C. H. Tate, F. J. Allen, It. H. Buchanan, A. K. Itobertshaw. A letter'was read from N.Z.R.S.A. headquarters congratulating the asso- j ciation on its increase of membership j of 41, and in commenting on the let- ' ter Mr McLeod said that, although the progress was good, he would like to see the figures still higher. There were still many ex-soldiers who were not linked up with the association and it behoved every member to do his utmost to secure further members.

It was agreed to hold another ladies’ evening this year, the date to be left to the executive..

Regarding the annual smoke concert and reunion it was decided to hold this on Saturday, August 1, and the usual lecture on Armistice night. Thanks were accorded the Feilding Borough Council for the support accorded the association. PRESIDENT’S SERVICES EULOGISED.

Regret was expressed at the retirement of Mr T. K. Hay from the office of president. Stating that he would not be able to accept office, Mr Hay said he was pleased to leave the affairs in a very stable condition. The work in the interests of the association had been hard but he had enjoyed every part of i.t and it was with feelings of regret that he handed over the reins to his successor. (Applause.) Mr McLeod said lie took over the position from Air Hay with some trepidation. He realised to the full the calibre of the president he was following. but apart from this he .was 10 miles out in the country and would much rather have seen the president located in Feilding. However, with the promise of help from Mr Hay and Air Miller (secretary) he hoped he would be able to carry out liis duties satisfactorily. Referring to the work of Air Hay, Air AlcLeod said that in the retiring president the association had had an ideal president. (Hear! Hear!) There! was no doubt that during the past two j years Air Hay had done yeoman work ! in placing the affairs of the association | oil a much sounder footing. In every \ other way Air Hay had shown exceptional ability in guiding the welfare of the association and it was with much pleasure that lie moved a motion of appreciation and thanks for Air aHy’s services.

The motion was carried by acclamation.

CHELTENHAM RIFLE CLUB

The Cheltenham Rifle Club fired a second series of the championship belt shoot on Saturday, the ranges being 300, 500 and 600yds. TJ>e following were the results : —P. Cliureher, 34—34—32—100; J. Fraser, 32—34 32—98; V. Barrow, 33—35—30—98; J. C. Williamson, 31—35—31—97 ; H. Buchanan, 32—32—32—96; S. Mayhem 29—33—31—93—: 11. Stuart 29 30—32—91; J. H. Williamson 29—32 —27-tBB. B grade: J. "Osborne, 30— 30—29—89; R. Taylor, 27—30—29 86; 0. Strawbridge, 26—27—32—85; R. Williamson, 21—31—24—76. NOTES. ALembers of the Kowliai Football Club held a practice at Johnston Park, yesterday, in preparation for the coming season. Next week the club will play a friendly game against a Palmerston North team. In connection with the usual Anznc Day service in Feilding on Saturday, the ladies’ luncheon committee would welcome donations of foodstuffs, etc., for the returned soldiers’ luncheon,

wdiich will bo held in the parish hall following the morning church service. All contributions towards the luncheon should be notified to Airs F. Cameron, when arrangements will be made to collect same. PERSONAL. Airs Haybittle, together with Aliss Zijlali Haybittle, and Air K. Haybittle, have returned to Feilding following a visit to Napier.