HOLY TRINITY CHURCH

Taranaki Daily News, 28 April 1934, Page 8

HOLY TRINITY CHURCH

WORK IN STRATFORD PARISH. PROGRESSIVE YEAR REVIEWED. A year of progress in nearly all departments and one that financially was satisfactory was reviewed at the annual meeting of parishioners of the Holy Trinity Church, Stratford, last night. The units of the church in the town did excellent work and were well supported by the country centres. The Rev. K. J. McFarland presided. During the seven months since he was instituted as vicar of the parish he visited over 200 families, though they represented only about half the parish, reported Mr. McFarland. Owing to the great variety of duties that fell to a parson’s lot it became more and more difficult to find the time for regular visiting. The parish was at the awkward stage of being too big for one man and not big enough for two. In his opinion it was impossible to over-esti-mate the importance of youth work, a much neglected side of the church s work, and he had put in a good deal of time laying the foundations among the younger members. In that they had to go a great deal further than merely holding the young people together by social activities.

It was encouraging to see the gradually increasing attendances at services. The evening services were distinctly good and on Easter Day and the harvest festival the church was full. The services at all the country centres were most encouraging and at several of them a large number of children and young people were present. The wardens, Messrs. E. H. Young and H. C. Johnson, stated that since the vicar was inducted he laboured strenuously and effectively. Fine work was done by the ladies in successfully conducting sales of work. The guilds at Stratford, Midhirst, Toko and the mission guild made handsome contributions. By exercising rigid economy it was possible to show a small credit balance in the working account, made possible by the special appeal in August, when £72 was collected. The “birthday shilling scheme” would be devoted to the eventual rebuilding of the church, and the contributidns of Is would be specifically set aside for that purpose. After Easter the experiment was tried of holding a harvest thanksgiving on a week night in each country centre, the service being followed by a short annual meeting, reported the honorary secretary, Mr. H. Cutfield. The experiment abundantly justified itself and in every case there were large' congregations; the churches and halls were decorated and over lOcwt. of produce was sent to the children’s home at Palmerston North and the Wellington city mission. At each annual meeting committees were formed and a representative nominated for election to the parish vestry. The following Revised assessments were agreed on for submission to the vestry: Midhirst £6O, Toko £4O, Huinga £3O, Cardiff £l5, Pembroke Road £lO. The vestry accepted those for the year. On March 27 the choir of the parish church gave a successful rendering of the sacred cantata “Olivet to Calvary.” The choir was conducted by Mr. C. J. Hickson, and was assisted by an orchestra under Mr. C. H. Rogers, while Miss Middleton presided at the organ. The solos were taken by Mesdames Johnson, Stokes and Cutfield, Miss Burgess and Messrs. Walker, Betts and Whitworth. The choir was starting to practise Mendelsohnn’s “Hymn of Praise.” The report' of the ladies’ guild mentioned that bridge drives, euchre parties, annual bazaar and garden party were held, as the result of which £B5 was handed to the vestry and £l4 held over to start the New Year.

During the year four Bible classes were started with a total of almost 50 members. Three of these, for young men, boys, and girls, met in connection with the parish church, and a mixed one for boys and girls met at Midhirst. The vicar was the leader of all classes, with the exception of the one for girls, of which Miss Johnston was the leader.

Miss M. Middleton reported that the mission guild continued to function throughout the 'year, bi-monthly intercession services being held by the vicar. The missionary sale was held on June 15 and £24 was netted.

The Sunday school re-opened in February and the weekly attendance of the older children was much improved, there being an average attendance of 60 children each Sunday, reported the superintendent, Mr. W. D. Young. Prizegiving was held in December. The attendance during the year of several children was excellent. Lent collection cards in aid of the missions were given to the children and the result was very satisfactory. The teaching staff was Mr. W. D. Young (superintendent), Mrs. Cutfield, Misses M. Middleton, Sears, L. Penn, J. Anstiss, Messrs. R. Dobson and Walter Rogers. In the kindergarten Mrs. Hickson was superintendent and was assisted by Misses . Molly, Mona and H. Femmel, L. and V. Carryer, Richardson and Z. Burgess. Mrs. Hickson reported that despite a very small staff the year 1933 was successful in the kindergarten. Meetings of the Mothers’ Union were held regularly once a month throughout the year and were well attended, stated Mesdames D. T. Johnson and F. Erick-

son. The membership increased by 15, bringing the total up to 45. The services at Toko and Huinga were well attended. A harvest festival service was held at each place, and was followed by an annual meeting, at which the following committees were elected: Toko, Messrs. Hine, Were, Harper, Kilsly and Needham; representative on vestry, Mr. Harper. Huinga: Messrs. Martell, Woollaston and Cook; representative on vestry, Mr. Martell. The ladies of Toko and Huinga held a sale of work on. March 22. A confirmation class was be-' ing held in the district and fifteen young people were attending. Real progress was reported from Midhirst. The services were well attended, and on several occasions ti church was practically full. On the Sunday afternoon nearest to All Saints’ Day, the pastoral festival, the choir of the parish church journeyed to Midhirst and rendered a fully choral service. At the harvest festival annual meeting the following committee was elected: Mesdames Platt, Graham, Downes and Vivian, Messrs. Hunt, Bunning and Graham. Mr. Graham was nominated as the representative on the vestry. The ladies’ guild did yeoman service during the year, and held a very successful sale of work, as well as several other functions.

The services at Cardiff and Pembroke Road were well maintained with the exception of the Sunday evening service at Cardiff. In neither of these centres was anything special being done as yet for the children. That important side of the work would have to receive some attention during the coming year. The committees elected for the districts were:— Pembroke Road: Messrs. Belcher and Gibson and Mrs. Hunt. Cardiff: Mesdames Marchant, Myers and Horne, and Messrs. Shannon, Manders and Hawkes. Messrs. Belcher and Hawkes were nominated as representatives to the vestry. Messrs H. C. Johnson, E. H. Young, W. H. H. Young, W. D. Young, G. Were, A. S. Harper and Mrs. E. H. Young spoke on various phases of the church work and complimented the vicar, particularly on what he had done among the younger people. Appointments were made' as follows: Vicar’s warden, Mr. E. H. Young; people’s warden, Mr. H. C. Johnson; vestry, Messrs A. Marfell (Huinga), A. S. Harper (Toko), A. Graham (Midhirst), C. Hawkes (Cardiff), R. A. Belcher (Pembroke), and W. Mclnnes, J. W. Crowe, J. Edwards, F. R. Anstis, E. S. Walker (Stratford); auditor, Mr. W. Power. The vestry was recommended to take over the special appeal for the Maori, home and Melanesian missions.

The vicar was asked to call a special general meeting to form a committee for sacial activities.

MIDHIRST FARMERS’ UNION.

MEMBERS’ ANNUAL MEETING.

The annual meeting of the Midhirst branch of the Farmers’ Union was held on Tuesday night, Mr. M. Davis presiding over an attendance of 65. The president (Mr. T. T. Murray) and the secretary (Mr. H. A. Hunt) of the Stratford executive were also present. The membership of the branch had been well maintained, as there had been only six resignations, stated the annual report. Eight ordinary meetings were held and the attendance was fair. Lectures were given by Mr. Harold Graham on Produce Board matters, Mr. Woodyer-Smith on grassland management, Mr. G. Gibson on free marketing of produce, and Mr. C. J. Harris on pig marketing. An invitation to Mr. W. lorns, chairman of the Control Board, to address a meeting was accepted and a largely attended meeting was held in the town hall, Stratford. A»number of remits went forward from the branch during the year and were all treated to members’ satisfaction. The most important remit was relative .to the dairy industry, and was passed onto Cabinet, which promised immediate action. All farmers were acquainted with the result. The balance-sheet showed a credit of £9 12s lOd. The election of officers resulted:—President, Mr. M. Davis (re-elected); vicepresidents, Messrs A. Sauli, H. J. Kirkby, P. Paul; auditor, Mr. H. Graham; secretary and treasurer, Mr. J. E. Schumacher; executive, Messrs J. Graham, W. Vickers and officers ex officio; delegates to Stratford sub-provincial. executive, the president, a vice-president and the secretary. The following remit was passed and treated as a matter of urgency: That when evidence is being called for the Royal Commission the Government be asked to include land mortgages in "the order of reference. JUNIOR RUGBY REFEREES. CENTRAL DIVISION SELECTIONS. Referees selected to control the junior Rugby games in the central division next Thursday are:— First juniors: Pukengahu v. Stratford, Mr. Harrison; Old Boys v. Inglewood, Mr. Aitken; Eltham v. Tariki, Mr. Carter; Toko v. Cardiff, Mr. Robson; Midhirst, a bye. * Thirds: Inglewood v. School, Mr. Fussell; Cardiff v. Old Boys, Mr. Nolan; Stratford a bye. Fourths: Stratford v. Toko, Mr. Blackstock; School v. Inglewood, Mr. White. TUNA GENERAL AND PERSONAL. It has been decided by the young women of the Tuna district to form a basketball club. Mrs. Jones, sen., is spending a holiday at Christchurch. Mr. and Mrs. Proffit have returned from an extended holiday at Tikorangi. Mrs. H. Vickers has returned from New Plymouth. Mrs. T. Henderson is spending a holiday at Christchurch. Miss M. Reading is staying at Wellington. ELTHAM TALKIES. “PADDY THE NEXT BEST THING.” “Paddy the Next Best Thing,” to be shown at the Eltham theatre to-night and Monday night, is a charming rom-ance-drama that has universal appeal. Janet Gaynor and Warner Baxter have the leading roles, and are themselves sufficient to attract attention. The personalities of the two stars are perfectly suited to one another, and fit delightfully into the characters of this famous Irish romance. Warner Baxter, handsome, muscular, and good humouredly strong, ds a complete contrast to Janet Gaynor, petite, whimsical, gentle, and all that is feminine. She appears as Paddy, the daughter of an old but impecunious Irish family, and when her father plans to marry her sister, Ellen, to the wealthy Lawrence Blake (Warner Baxter), her indignation rises to such a height that she does everything possible to prevent what she considers is the use of her sister for a mercenary purnose. There is a dramatic sequel.

PERSONAL ITEMS. Mr. W. C. Gibb, of the staff of the Eltham post office, will leave on Monday on transfer to the chief post office at Wellington. Another member has Leen transferred to Hawera. ELTHAM LADIES’ GOLF. DRAW FOR BOGEY MATCH. A bogey match will be played by the Eltham Ladies’ Golf Club on Tuesday. The draw is: Mrs. Mo.rton v. Mrs. Lambie, Mrs. Wills v. Miss Fountaine, Mrs. Leo Quin v. Mrs. de Launay, Mrs. J. Quin v. Miss Whiting, Mrs. Saunders v. Mrs. McKay, Mrs. Stewart and partner, Mrs. McGarry v. Mrs. Taylor, Mrs. Fisher v. Miss Carncross, Mrs. Stanners v. Miss Syme, Mrs. Chrystal v. Miss Harcourt, Mrs. Turner v. Miss T. Gibson, Miss Riddle v. Miss M. Gibson, Miss Jackson V. Miss Valentine. Non-handicap players will play a competition for the best card of 12 holes returned during May. The first draw will be: Mrs. Guthrie V. Mrs. Fountaine, Mrs. Belcher V. Miss D. Newland, Miss E. Newland v. Miss Burgess, Miss Fraser v. Miss Griffin, Mrs. Finch and partner. Week-end players: Miss Gibb v. Miss - Collins, Miss Carter v. Miss Kelly, Miss O’Hagan v. Miss Ritter, Miss Welch and partner. DOUGLAS EUCHRE PARTY. A euchre party in aid of tennis funds was held in the Douglas hall on Tuesday. Despite the rough weather a good crowd assembled from Toko and Douglas. Mrs. A. Walter and Misses P. Needham and A. Walter tied for the prize and agreed to share it in preference to playing off. For the men’s prize Mr. C. Wilyshurst was first and Mr. E. Rodgers second. A competition for a trophy donated by Mrs. Needham was won by Mr. lE. Rodgers. Mrs: Latham is a patient in the Strat[ford public hospital. '