PRESBYTERIAN SOCIAL SERVICE ASSOCIATION.

Otago Witness, Issue 3327, 19 December 1917, Page 58

PRESBYTERIAN SOCIAL SERVICE ASSOCIATION.

ORPHANAGES AND HOMES.

(See "Illustrated pages.)

I The Presbyterian Social Service Association has now become one of the institutions of which Otago as a whole and Duneclm in particular are proud. Though controlled and financed by the Presbyterian Church, it knows no creed or sect, whenever a case of real distress comes before its agents. It was founded in 1906, and has grown yearly, until last year its expenditure (apart iroui the purcnasa of properties) amounted to £4OOO. The Christmas festival is a suitablo occasion to draw attention to the eminently Christian work carried on by the association, and we enumerate only three branches of this work: — * Juvenile Court. —Mr Axclsen attends practically every sitting of this court, and is consulted by both police and magistrates from Oamaru to Invercargill. More than 1000 lads have been placed under his guardianship by the court. Until formally discharged these lads report regularly to .Mr Axelsen. He arranges homes for them, finds them situations, both in town and country, banks their wages, buys their clothes, pays all their incidental expenses, and disburses their pocket monej. ! Orphanage Work. —The children are very carefully classified and divided between four j homes. Every care is taken to make the ; homes not mere institutions, but true I homes. The Glendining Homo has about 75 children in residence (girls and the ! youngest boys). Sister Mary is in charge, and makes a splendid "mother" to this great family. The handsome building was ! erected by the late .large-hearted Mr Robert j Glendining. Grant's Braes: A fine proj perty, with 15 acres of land adjoining; I overlooks Otago Harbour. Mr and Mrs I D. H. Fawcett have the oversight of about j 40 schoolboys, and have been very successful in their work hero. The Clyde Street Home, Dunedin, has from 15 to 25 inmates, mainly lads at work in Dunedin, with a I few of the older schoolboys. The Cameron Home, Invercargill, has been recently opened. The Southland people are standing by it handsomely, and eventually it will become a centre of the Church's social work in Southland.

Old People's Home.—This is now being erected on a splendid 10-acre block of land on the tram line, near Normanby. The land was generously Riven by Mr John Ross. Only the main block of the proposed building is being gone on with now. It will cost about £SOOO. The remainder of the block will bo erected as funds permit. The following facts speak for themselves: About 36 soldiers' children are under the association's care. About 60 Old Boys aro at the front: seven have gained commissions on the field, six were killed on the western front on October 12 last. One hundred and fifty children are now in tho homos; 50 children aro boarded out; 150 young people are in situation. 1 ? in town or country.