The Worshipful Company of Engineers The Swordsman Newsletter ...

The Swordsman Issue 29
Cathedral. Once there were as many as twelve Minor
Canons but this has now been reduced to just three. All
three Minor Canons share the various duties. Sarah
works particularly with the Education Department
which welcomes over 25,000 school children who visit
St Paul's each year. She also works with the Canon
Pastor in ministering to the Cathedral congregation and
staff. Sarah has to prepare and proof-read the various
services, which include Baptisms and Weddings in the
British Empire Chapel. These latter Services are for
people who have been made members of the Order by
the Queen, together with their families.
After University, Sarah was involved in a very bad
road accident and nearly died. Her parents' Church at
that time gave her a different vision of what the
Church is and can do. She then got involved in her
Church and this led her to where she is today. She is
the only woman Canon at St Paul's, and has been at
there for two and a half years. The usual time in any
post is five years and Sarah may become a Parish
Vicar next. Sarah was indeed an inspiration to us all.
Mrs Gillian Scahill with Principal Guest Rev Canon
Sarah Eynstone and Guest Mrs Janet Ward
The Luncheon concluded with a vote of thanks by Mrs
Margaret Skinner, The Senior Warden's lady.
Jenette Parker
THE MASTER’S MUSINGS
I would like to start my Master’s Musings by
recommending that you read again IPM John
Banyard’s Musings written this time last year in Issue
27 of the Swordsman, and also the Valedictory
Message of the then IPM John Robinson in Issue 26.
Their comments about the role of the Master, and the
responsibilities and reputation of our Livery: with the
other Livery Companies; with the City and with our
Charities, merit re-reading rather than repetition here,
by me.
I would simply encapsulate what I feel is the essence
of what they said: we have established a well deserved
46
standing and “punch above our weight” because we
have the enthusiastic
support of our
Liverymen and
partners which
provides an example
to other Liveries on
how we take our
Engineering, and
City, and Charitable
objectives seriously,
but in an environment
which encourages
“friendship and
fraternity” – now
where have I heard
that phrase before?
Previous Masters have eloquently espoused the
strengths of our Engineering message and the quiet but
significant influence we have at home and indeed
overseas. So I would like to spend a little time on the
“friendship and fraternity” theme and how Gill and I
set out in our year to encourage it together with my
other theme of “Manufacturing Engineering.”
A goodly number of our members and their partners
have been able to join us at the five informal events
that have so far taken place around the country
organised by fellow liverymen; a mixture of technical
visits, social events and Mini Out of Town meetings
which are described elsewhere in this, and the previous
edition of the Swordsman. More to come next time.
One of the joys of these informal functions is that
Liverymen and friends who have not been able to
attend the formal Dinners and Banquets, some for
many years, have joined in and experienced again the
“friendship and fraternity” of our Company – oh! there
I go again! They have also provided the opportunity
for everyone to get to know the other attendees better
which is just as true for Gill and me. This is a good
place to acknowledge the sterling, oft unseen work of
the Clerk and Assistant Clerk and Beadle in
maintaining our formal programme of events and
meetings, and the freely given assistance in the
Informal Programme of events when required.
Gill and I thoroughly enjoyed planning and arranging
the Out of Town Meeting in Basel which I guess will
be reported in some detail in this issue of The
Swordsman, (‘it is Ed’) and all we can say is that if
those who attended had half the fun during it, as Gill
and I had in organising it, then we are well content.
But I bet none of them slept as long or as deeply as we
did when it was all over!