St John's Congregation

 

 

 

 

 

Our rector is based at St Jude's Church in Oudtshoorn.

The incumbent priest visits the village to attend the Parish Council meetings and to celebrate the Eucharist on the fourth Sunday of each month and spends the rest of the day visiting parishioners.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 St John's celebrated the 120th anniversary of the consecration of the church in June 2016.

A procession was led from the hall in North end to the church by Willem Hinkman and the Lutheran Boy's Brigade band from Oudtshoorn.

 

St John's Men's Guild at the annual Diocesan meeting in 2018

The St John's Men's Guild at the Diocesan General Meeting with their Chaplain, Father Peter Minnaar, 2018

 

St John's Sunday School 2018

 St John's Sunday School 2018

 

'Juffrou Blom' - Michelle May, Sunday School Superintendent 2018

'Juffrou Blom' - Michelle May, our Sunday School Superintendent with a gift of resources for the Sunday School in 2018

 

Pop up cake sale to raise funds for our Sunday School 2018

 

From our archives

 

 

The Parish Council and lay-ministers at a training session some years ago.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our Sacristan, Bertie Nero, who died in 2015, served at the Altar from 1951. Here he is in 2007, with our servers, two of whom are his granddaughters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our Sunday School children attend classes at the Hall in North-end. Their teacher, Michelle May is known as "Juffrou Blom" - Miss Flower.

 

 

 

A Catechism class outside the Mission School Hall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pentecost Sunday 2008, the congregation wore red and Renee Finn's flowers reflected the fiery import of the day. The 'vase' was her pasta pot - a real bubbling forth of the Holy Spirit!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first week in June 2008 saw us host a Retreat in Daily Living. Mary and Lindsay from the Centre for Christian Spirituality in Cape Town accompanied eight participants as they explored  prayer in their journeys with God.

The group occasionally gathers for meditation and a shared meal. We held a second Retreat in Daily Life in 2009 and a residential weekend retreat at the Klaarstroom Guesthouse in 2010.

Quiet Days are held from time to time. 

 

 

 

 

Blessing St John’s new building  25 March 2012

 

It took nearly ten years from the first suggestion that “we really need to do something about those toilets!” to the official opening and blessing of the new building in the St John’s Chapel grounds. Fundraising had to be channelled into renovating the church and the halls in Bank Street and de Witstraat before a building fund could be started, but eventually the finances mounted up and work could begin.  

 

 

John Whitton drew plans for a small building which would complement the church and hall and look as if it had always been there. He also designed a permanent ramp for wheelchair access to the hall and a new door on the South wall of the lobby, both of which needed to fit into the ethos of our cultural heritage site. A year of consultation with the local Cultural Foundation and Heritage Western Cape followed, leading to our obtaining Municipal approval and permission to go ahead from the Diocese. In January 2012 building commenced and three months later the congregation held a service of dedication as the additions finally came into use.  

 

 

Brick paving with a gentle rise leads from the church vestry to the new building, whose cream walls and blue framed windows appropriately match the older structures. Inside a neat office and two toilets, one with wheelchair access, open off a small foyer.  

The sturdy ramp leading to the new hall doors extends into the building at the same height as the hall floor, eliminating all the steps which made it difficult for our older members to enter.  A number of cultural organisations and clubs in Prince Albert make use of our buildings and it is good to know that the facilities are now far more user-friendly.  

At the end of the Communion service on Sunday 25th March the congregation processed from the church to assemble and join the prayers as Father Peter Minnaar blessed the new building, the hall ramp and entrance to God’s service. The two most senior members of our congregation Peggy Clow-Wilson and Dottie Lodewyk each opened a door into the future of St John’s in Prince Albert. Peggy at the new building and Tannie Dottie into the hall and then the congregation shared a cup of tea and a good chat.  

 

 

There are many people to thank: John Whitton, Dick Metcalfe, John McKenna, Ian and Jacky Canning, Kay Howes, Shirl Southwood, Andrew Tudhope, builders Peter Bloemental and Kallie and all the fundraisers and encouragers.  

 

 

 

Dottie Lodewyk taught both Sunday School and Catechism classes in the hall and remembers the sturdy benches from more than sixty years ago. In those days the area which is now a kitchen was the stage and many concerts and special events were celebrated there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

During the weekend of 6 - 7 October 2012 we celebrated 140 years since the hall was built with a Flower Festival and the unveiling of the Patchwork Doll’s Heritage Quilt, which records the history of Kweekvallei and Prince Albert during the last two hundred and fifty years. An International Tea Party simultaneously took place, organised by the Thursday Group.  

The little Mission School Hall, built with money provided so long ago by Bishop Robert Gray, and the new building, serve our congregation and the wider community, continuing God’s work in this place.