HomeMy WebLinkAboutLakeshore Advance, 2013-04-17, Page 11Wednesday, April 17, 2013 • Lakeshore Advance 11
Port Franks church reaches out to community
Lynda HNlman-Rapley Lakeshore Advance
Shown here Rev. Andrew Wilson with (R) Betty Price, Kathleen Johnson and Dean
MacLeod and (L) Isabel Moore, Marlene Bannister and Stephanie Donaldson in the hall
and the same group at the alter and the outside of the church.
Lynda Hillman-Rapley
Lakeshore Advance
It is with pride that Dean
MacLeod talks about the reno-
vations of St. Anne's Anglican
Mission church in Port Franks.
And he should know, his fam-
ily had attended this church
since it opened in the 1950s. As
a matter of note his grandfa-
ther Geurney Kimmerly was a
trustee for the Board of Educa-
tion in 1939 for what was origi-
nally Port Frank's first church.
In 1873 that church became
the first school and was moved
to where it stands today. Kim-
merly and MacLeod's father
Pat were always known to be
instrumental In the success of
St. Annes church. Kimmerly
was also responsible for donat-
ing the church bell.
The white siding on the out-
side is new and the hall is only
a few years old, but the dedica-
tion from this congregation is
certainly not new. Since it was
the only church in Port Franks,
it is open to any denomination.
When the congregation was
originally made up of summer
people, that fact was a plus.
With the help of the commu-
nity, and donations the church
was built on land that, if the
church no longer stands, goes
back to Larnbton county.
For many years those at the
helm did not know how many
people would attend from
week to week and in February
2005 the church closed. That
lasted for a few years and the
congregation of some 40 peo-
ple, decided they wanted a
full-time church and hall so in
2011 they worked together to
build a kitchen and hall and
fixed up the failing roof of the
church.
"A church is not a building, a
church is people," says Rev.
Andrew Wilson who shares the
Sunday alter with Rev. Gray -
ham Bowcott. From the tiling
to the drywall, to the
painting- the 500 volunteer
hours with 40 people and the
$5,000 raised in fundraising to
make it happen- it surely was
the people who created this
church. Rev. Wilson said there
are still projects to be done -
but that will come in time.
The hall, ready for weddings,
funerals, Christmas parties
and celebrations and non-
political meetings, is a place
many don't realize they can
rent. "Our mission is to serve
and we want to serve the com-
munity," said Rev. Wilson.
Ile said he would like to see
this hall a place to reach out to
the community. The hall can
hold 200 people standing or
100 seated at tables. And the
facility has a kitchen. "lt is a
gathering spot, public space,"
said the members who came to
the weekly coffee hour, which
they hold Thursdays from 9-11
a.m.
To book space call 519-234-
1418 or 519-238-2489
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