PARISH NOTES.

Waiapu Church Gazette, Volume 27, Issue 6, 1 June 1937, Page 2

PARISH NOTES.

Wairoa. On the evening of the Feast of the Annunciation j 6th April, our Mothers' Union held a special service,' at which . Archdeacon Butterfield dedicated their banner. It is a very fine piece of work, and fit to adorn any sanctuary of God's House. It is a print of the Madonna and Child, with the boy John Baptist standing by. This is mounted on black velvet with a gold fringe, and under the print is written "M.U., Wairoa." The banner is mounted on a blue pole and crossbar. Our Mother' Union is progressing, and meets regularly once a month. We held a men's service on the fifth Sunday m January. I think everyone was surprised, including the Vicar, at the fine muster of over 100 men. After the service, the men adjourned to the hall for light refreshment and a discussion. The outcome of the service was the forming of a Men's Club, which meets once a fortnight m the parish hall. The evening takes the form of pingpong, tenni-quoit, cards and short talks. The membership is about 48. The young women of the parish, not to be outdone by the men, also decided to have a Club. This is running very satisfactorily, and has a membership of 47. A band of young Church people undertook to run a Parish Ball on Coronation night, which was a tremendous success, and part of the proceeds are to go towards renovating the interior of the Church. The Ladies' Guild, which has done great work m the past, still meets regularly, and has a full programme of activities for the Winter. There are certainly signs of great activity from the social side of our Church life. But that is only a means to an end. We have started Confirmation classes, and some 28 people are attending the instruction. We are thankful to see a good congregation each Sunday at our services, and look forward to a real

spiritual revival among the Church people of Wairoa. CLAUDE E. HYDE, Vicar. Tolaga Bay. We held our official Coronation service on the morning of Sunday, May 9th, when there was nearly a full Church. On the Coronation Day itself we had a celebration of , Holy Communion at 10 a.m., and afterwards planted a memorial oak tree m the grounds to the east of the Church. We sent down quite a large supply of goods to be put on board the "Southern Cross" when she paid her recent visit to Gisborne. Unfortunately, Whit Sunday was one of the stormiest Sundays that we have had, with the result that the collection for Melanesia was not as large as we had hoped. We shall probably make a further effort for missions before the end of the financial year. Clive. The visit «f the "Southern Cross" stirred a great deal of interest and brought distant Melanesia close for once. Clive made a splendid effort to help with the tuck-boxes. A house-to-house canvass was made, and £4 10s was collected, which was spent on a good big order for tuckbox goods, and besides that a box of books and material for bandages was sent m. Well done, Clive! If all the places the ship visits get on to the job like that, many a lonely missionary will be blessing New Zealand m the months to come.