Church of St. Stephen
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR

WORSHIP

WORLD MARRIAGE DAY:

On the second Sunday of February, about twenty couples participated in a ceremony, renewing their marriage vows.

GOOD FRIDAY PROCESSION:

As part of our Good Friday liturgy, once again, we went on a procession of witness through our Chalkfarm neighbourhood.

PLANNING FOR FUTURE:

Lee Bingley of Ward Funeral Home addressed our congregation on May 16th on the benefits of making plans for our future, addressing such issues as wills, power-of-attorney, funerals.

CHILDREN'S SUNDAY:

May 5th was Children's Sunday in our parish. The members of our Sunday School played a leading role in the 10:30 service.

REVIVAL "5":

We celebrated Revival "5" during the weekend of The Feast of Pentecost. The theme was "Empowered for Service". Our preacher was Fr. Charles Davidson, rector of St. Vincent's Episcopal Church in St. Petersburg, Florida. The feedback received suggests that those present were quite pleased with the experience. The Revival ended with a Revival Concert, "Spirit-Filled". There was no admission cost. The participating artistes included The Cherubic Singers, The Alexander Band, Voix Antillaises, George Cox, The Willowdale Male Chorale, REECH, Nicola Nwosu, and our own Senior and Youth Choirs, Falomi Keyi, Marc Fields and Julian Asiedu. Our organist and choir director, Arlene August, Lucy Fields, who trained the Youth Choir, and Bev Brown were very instrumental in yet another great weekend. Several members made telephone calls to encourage participation.

DEDICATION OF PIANO:

The children of one of our late founders, Betty Thompson donated a piano in the name of their mother at the end of 2003. On June 6th, Trinity Sunday, they joined us for its dedication. Our sincere thanks and appreciation are extended to Marianne Cassin, Bruce and John Thompson.

BISHOP'S VISIT - SENIORS' SUNDAY:

Our Area Bishop, The Rt. Rev'd. Ann Tottenham made her pastoral visit for 2004 on Sunday, June 13th. On this day we also celebrated the ministry of our Seniors.

MEN'S CELEBRATION:

On June 20th, we celebrated the ministry of our Men. The guest speaker was Mr. Carl Narraine, the facilitator of the four-week session, Men's Spiritual Journey. (see below).

YOUTH YEAR-END:

The Youth Year-End celebration was held on June 26th, the final of the two-day "Youth Weekend". The guest speaker was author, Austin "Tom" Clarke, the winner of the 2002 Giller prize, the 2003 Commonwealth Writers Prize Best Book Award and the 2003 Trillium Book Award.

FAMILY DAY & OPEN-AIR EUCHARIST:

July 18th was designated "Parish Family Sunday". An open-air Eucharist was held at 10:00 a.m. in the car park. This was followed by our family Bar-B-Q and a time of fellowship. Members enjoyed the change and suggested that it should become a regular feature on the parish calendar.

HEALING SUNDAY:

Our annual service of Prayer for Healing was held on Sunday, October 17th. The guest speaker was Giselle Gedeon, Manager Community Relations, of The Leprosy Mission Canada.

REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY:

Once again on Remembrance Sunday, we remembered the sacrifices of the war dead and celebrated the lives our departed loved ones. Allan Austin and veterans Albert Jeffries and Hal Mays participated in our wreath laying ceremony.

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION

LENTEN SERIES:

During the 10:30 services in Lent , Andrea Brosgall, a member of our parish and student of Wycliffe College led a study of some women of the Old Testament

• The Relationship between Hagar & Sarah
• The Faith of Hannah
• The Strength of Deborah
• The Relationship between Ruth & Naomi

AREA MINISTRY DAY:

On Saturday, March 27th, several members of our parish attended the annual Credit Valley Area Ministry Day. This is an opportunity for us to meet with other Anglicans in our area and explore issues which relate to our work and ministry. The theme was "Parish Life". Workshops included Welcoming Newcomers, The Parish as A Community of Healing, Youth are Important, Encouraging Worship with Children, Leading The Prayers, and much more.

MEN'S SPIRITUAL JOURNEY:

From April 17 to May 8, there was a 4-session discussion group for our men. This series focused "on the value of spirituality in deepening a man's understanding of himself, his relationships with other men and women, and ultimately with God". The series sought to enable those who attended to

" Embrace the role spirituality has in life " Consider where they were on their spiritual journey " Explore the role of spirituality in life's crises, challenges and celebrations " Develop an improved relationship with God through personal reflection.

CHURCH ARMY STUDENT:

We hosted Molly Walton between the months of May and July for a period of practical training. Molly is a mature Jamaican student who is preparing for ministry in the Church Army in the Diocese of Jamaica. She is currently completing her studies in New Brunswick. She worked closely with Ena Hordatt and our youth program during her time with us.

DIOCESAN & COMMUNITY LIFE

Several members participated in the following events in the diocese.

OUTREACH CONFERENCE:

The Social Justice and Advocacy Board (SJAB) sponsoring its annual conference for laypeople and clergy from across the diocese interested in outreach and social justice on Saturday, October 2nd. "Making a Difference in Our World" was the conference sub-theme. Workshops included Tips for Working With Politicians, Spirituality for Social Justice, How to do Advocacy, Community Outreach. The keynote speaker was Cathy Crowe, a Toronto "street nurse" and respected advocate for the homeless.

ROMNEY MOSELEY LECTURE:

This annual lecture, sponsored by Trinity College, was held on Tuesday, October 5th at Trinity College. This lecture celebrates the work of the late Rev'd. Dr. Romney Moseley, a Caribbean priest who was a former Associate Professor at Trinity College. This year's speaker was Canon Petero Sabune, Canon for Global Ministries at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York City. This year's lecture was titled Urban Ministry: The Gift of Joy and Wonder.

ARCHBISHOP'S RETIREMENT:

There was a service celebrating the Episcopal ministry of Archbishop Terence Finlay on Sunday, June 6th in St James' Cathedral.

PICNIC:

On Saturday July 10th, we joined with the Caribbean Chorale Of Toronto for our Parish Picnic at Bruce's Mill Conservation Area, Stouffville. Thanks to Anthony Holder for making arrangements for this time of wider fellowship.

OUTREACH

THE DISCRETIONARY FUND:

Some members continue to support this fund. We were able to respond in small ways in support of several members of our parish. Let us continue to bear one another's burden and so fulfil the law of Christ.

HURRICANE IVAN:

We are all saddened and concerned about the people of the Caribbean and the USA who have suffered much loss as a result of Hurricane Ivan. The damage done in Grenada and Jamaica is immense. Churches, schools, homes and lives were destroyed. The relatives of several parishioners were affected. Through the generous donations of members, we were able to deliver three vanloads of relief supplies for shipment to Grenada.

TSUNAMI RELIEF: In solidarity with the Ravindran family and in support of those affected by the Tsunami in South East Asia, members have been making financial contributions the our Tsunami Relief Fund. Ravi will assist in getting our support to those in need in his family community in Sri Lanka.

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

FR. COLLIS MACHOKO: Fr. Collis came to our community at the end of May. Our Area Bishop, Bishop Ann, has granted him permission to function as a priest in the diocese. He is very involved in the 20-Minute Workout on Sunday mornings. We are pleased to welcome him as an Honorary Assistant.

YOUTH & WORSHIP:

The fourth Sunday of each month was designated "Youth Sunday". On this Sunday, the youth either plan and lead the service or take leading roles in the regular service.

TALENTS & STEWARDSHIP SUNDAY

25 members participated in our first "Talents for God" project. On Sunday, October 3rd, Stewardship Sunday in our parish, we celebrated the return of the talents at both services.

STEWARDSHIP MEETING: Several members attended a meeting with diocesan consultant, Peter Mesiasek. A determination will be made about the form our Stewardship program for 2005 will take.

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