good_news_2012_02 - Bloor Street United Church

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loor people Welcome to Douglas Helliker who joined our congregation on November 13. Born in Toronto, he grew up attending Humber Valley United. He has also lived in Windsor, Edmonton and Quebec City. Douglas enjoys baking, stand-up comedy and writing. He has published over 300 letters in various newspapers about social and political issues. He and his wife Diane enjoy living with their cat Molly. Heather Hilliard is organizing a fundraising Arts Cabaret and Bazaar for Third Culture Theatre. Heather co-founded Third Culture Theatre in 2004 with a mandate to “view the classics through a multi-cultural lens”. The fundraiser will be at El Mocambo on March 28. Contact Heather for more details: hrhilliard50@gmail.com. Welcome to Greg Powell our new Youth Coordinator. Greg recently moved from Calgary to study his Master of Divinity full-time at Emmanuel College. In 2008, Greg co-led a three-week youth exposure tour to Zambia with Calgary Presbytery. That trip simultaneously confirmed and denied romantic perceptions of Africa and reminded Greg of the joys and challenges of exploring the world through the eyes of youth. Adventures in alpine touring, canoe tripping, triathlon, and travel have shaped Greg’s world view as much as his background in engineering and the four years he worked for the Pembina Institute, an environmental thinktank that focuses on climate change, the tar sands, renewable energy, and transportation. Greg is really looking forward to the trip with our youth to visit the Dene region this summer and engaging the youth of Bathurst, Trinity-St.Paul’s and Bloor Street Churches on theological, environmental, colonial, justice, and other relevant issues. Feel free to contact Greg at greg.a.powell@gmail.com. Congratulations to Martha ter Kuile who successfully defended her Ph.D. thesis in December at Saint Paul University/University of Ottawa. Martha’s Ph.D. is in Theology (Ethics). The thesis title is: The Virtues of a Christian Realist: Toward a Niebuhrian Virtue Ethics in Conversation with Martha Nussbaum. And a second milestone for Martha occurred on January 3 when she welcomed her first grandchild. Daisy May McCuaig was born to Paula and Scott McCuaig. The Oma, Martha, says she is besotted. Martha ter Kuile with flowers from congregation after her thesis defence. Photo by Harold Durnford Rebeca Rosales Venegas is the new Nanny for our nursery. Rebeca has raised two children and has extensive experience with children in church schools. An active member of the congregation, she has assisted with the Information Table in McClure Hall and also helped plan several South American lunches as part of the monthly lunch after the service. Welcome Rebeca. Welcome to Aaron Zhang who joined our congregation on January 8. Aaron grew up in northwest China in the city of Urumqi. He studied civil engineering and economics in China before journeying to the University of Toronto where he received his Master of Applied Science degree in 2009. He now works at the Bank of Montreal as a senior financial risk analyst and serves on the board of directors of the LGBT Affinity group for the bank, helping to create a diverse friendly work environment. He came to Bloor St. shortly after his arrival in Toronto four years ago. Aaron’s been active in church activities including being on our Finance & Administration Committee. 2
The Healing Lodge by Mary Sanderson Ispent most of December working at The Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge in the Cypress Hills of southwest Saskatchewan. This was my fifth visit to the medium security federal penitentiary for aboriginal women made possible by a generous grant from The Donner Foundation. I do Art Therapy with the women during the day and read aboriginal stories to them around the fire in the Spiritual Lodge in the evenings. Mid-way through my visit, there was an ‘institutional search’. All 44 women were held for eight hours in a medium sized room while sniffer dogs searched every corner of the institution for drugs and cigarettes. All the women were frisked. Some women played cards; some tried to sleep on the floor, others chatted. Around noon, two staff members made salmon sandwiches. Women were escorted to the washroom by guards, known as ‘Older Sisters’. Nothing was found. However, the search and the demeaning treatment of the women, just days before Christmas, demoralized everyone. The Parole Board met while I was there and saw eight women over the course of two days. One woman who had done a lot of Art Therapy with me was granted parole. She is in her early thirties with five children in five foster families. She had had a childhood of abuse and alcohol and a condition of her release is that she abstain from using alcohol or drugs. The woman’s mother, at 32, and her grandmother had both died of cirrhosis as a result of alcohol. She is determined to break the cycle. For the next six months she will live in a halfway house in Edmonton. A few days before Christmas, at 3:00 am on a cold, dark morning a staff member drove this woman about 40 km north to the trans-Canada highway to catch the bus to Edmonton, via Calgary. I pray for her. Just before I left to fly home for Christmas, there was a potluck luncheon for staff and residents. Each bungalow has a small kitchen but the inmates have limited resources and few cooking skills—most of them brought bannock to the meal. Because of some money I was given for the women, I was able to buy a large grass-fed roast of beef (this is ranch country!) and twelve pies from the Maple Creek bakery. It added a new dimension to the meal and was greatly appreciated by everyone. I am very aware of the support of the congregation for my work at The Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge. I like to think what I am doing is an extension of Bloor Street’s ministry and that I am there on your behalf. Thank you for your support. ❅ ❆ ❉ ❅ ❆ ❉ ✼ ❆ ❆ ❈ ❉ ❅ ❆ ❅ Nurse’s Corner by Nancy Gordon A Little Help in This Season This is the season with short and frequently cloudy days. These conditions often have the effect of making people feel blue and it is not always easy to find enjoyment. There is an interesting fact, though, that I would like to pass it on to you. I have learned that contrary to popular belief, attitudes often follow behaviour. “Now, what does that mean” you ask. It means this: Since attitudes follow behaviour, if you make an effort to act happy and see the funny side of things, you will actually feel happier. Fritz Strack, a German psychologist, demonstrated this with an interesting experiment. He found that if people held a pen with their teeth while watching cartoons, they found the cartoons funnier than if they watched them while holding the pen with their lips. You may have to try it yourself to see what I mean. Holding the pen with the teeth uses smiling muscles, while holding it with the lips uses muscles incompatible with smiling. If our face is physically smiling, our feelings go along with the behaviour and we feel happier. So even when it is dark and cloudy, “smile, and the world will smile with you” as the saying goes. It sounds silly, but try it – you’ll feel better! 3
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Page 5 and 6: Terrific Talent Auction on Nov. 5 O
Page 7 and 8: Quick Sketches Redevelopment Inform

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