TOKOMAIRIRO PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

Otago Witness, Issue 3102, 27 August 1913, Page 4

TOKOMAIRIRO PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meeting of the Tokomairiro Presbyterian Church was held on the 18th inst. There was only a fair attendance of members The Rev. G. Miller occupied the chair.

The following are a few extracts from the reports submitted : —ln April our senior elder, Mr George Lindsay, passed a wayafter a long life of service to the church. In October Mr Alexander Nelson, Mr A. J. Ferguson, Mr Joseph Smith, and Mr William Moore were ordained to the eldership of the church, so that there is now a staff of 19 elders. The services have been fairly well attended, not as well as they might bo, but on the whole encouraging to minister and session. The communion roll numbers 445; baptisms, 17; marriages, 15; funerals, 21. Admitted by profession of faith, 12; by certificate, 15; removed by certificate, 26; by death, 7; otherwise, 10. The roll number of the choir stands at 30. The attendance of choir members is fairly good. The minister’s Bible class has a roll of some 50 young men and women. The attendance is very good, and a hearty interest is taken in the work of the class by the members. The class collected £42 0s 6d for the Ko T’ong Hospital. The P.W.M.U. and Ladies’ Guild held their sale of work in September, and realised £B2 10s, which was apportioned to the various missions of the church. The young women’s Bible class has had a very successful year. There are 33 members on the roll, and the average attendance was 24. The class has contributed to the support of Nurse Milne, and to the home mission and the youth of the church funds.

The Christian Endeavour Society lias a. roll number of 16 active and five associate members, (food work is being done by the society. The sum of £4 was contributed to the Maori Mission, The Sabbath School has a roll number of 262, with a teaching staff of 20 ladies and 11 men.

The Deacons’ Court report shows that the church door collections show an increase of £26, and the congregational account has improved by some £l2. The special collections amounted to £135 17s Id. The amount contributed to foreign missions was £lßl 3s Id; to homo missions, £6O; to the debt extinction fund, £23 4s; to the Sunday School account, £64 2s 3d. The. organ fund stands at £4l 5s lOd. The total income from all sources, including the balance of £55 10s 9d from the previous year, was £llsß 11s 2d. and the expenditure £1124 6s 3d, leaving a credit balance in all accounts of £3l 4s lid. The total indebtedness has been reduced by £46, and new stands at £IOO. The Hov. G. Miller said that on the whole the year had been a successful one. The various organisations in the congregation had shown great activity. It v. as a very great pleasure to meet them in their homes, where a very warm welcome always awaited him. The P.W.M.U. and Ladies’ Guild were as energetic as in the past. The Young Women’s Bible Class had held strangers’ teas in the Miller Hall, and hud invited all the young women who were at work in Milton, but whose homes wore in other towns. These teas had been a great success. One pleasing feature of the Christian Endeavour work was the letter of sympathy sent by them to bereaved families. That act of kindness was greatly appreciated. Mr Miller also thanked the office-bearers and others who week by week carried on the services in flic out-stations, and spoke of the splendid work that was being done by Mr A. E. Stewart and his splendid staff of teachers in the Sunday school. . Mr James Reid said tney were delighted that Mr Miller was getting appreciation outside the congregation for his children’s sermons in the Outlook. His own people appreciated his work. He was proud of the splendkl lot of men they had in their Deacon’s Court, and hoped they would continue to have the same class of men to manage the affairs of the congregation. Mr J. W. Petrie, the treasurer, spoke of the improvement that had taken place during the year in the financial position of the congregation, and moved the adoption of the report and balance sheet. This was carried. Mr John Porter spoke on the advisabiences of adopting a new hymn book. It was agreed that the new Church Praise be adopted by. the congregation, and introduced later on.

Mr D. M'Gill moved a hearty vote of

thanks to the office-bearers and the other workers in the congregation for the work that had been done dunng the year. The motion was carried. Mr A. E. Stewart said he wished to express on behalf of the congregation its appreciation of Mr Miller’s work in the pulpit, of the deepening interest in his sermons of both grown ups and children, of his interest and help in all the branches of church work, of the friendship that they all felt towards him, of the good that was done, and the value that was attached to his visiting the houses of sorrow and mourning, and of his work among the young people. They were glad to notice his renewed vigour, and he was sure that he voiced tho whole, congregation when ho expressed its warm appreciation of Mr Miller’s work.