Under Sail

I met with Mr. André Chenard, Director of Green Infrastructure Programs for the Province of New Brunswick (PNB), on January 10th regarding the Beulah Wastewater Project. Mr. Jochen Schroer, an environmental engineer with NaTech Environmental Services, accompanied me to the meeting to give the technical detail relating to our project. As I previously shared, in December a Framework Agreement was signed by the governments of Canada and NB under Building Canada. As a result of that, the new Infrastructure Program for NB is expected to be signed by the end of April, and the specific funding agreement for the Beulah Wastewater Project is expected to be signed by the end of June. Mr. Chenard has no control over this time frame. Many have asked me when construction of the wastewater project will actually begin. Mr. Chenard was very clear that we cannot start work on the project before signed approval is given or the project won’t qualify for government funding. Our next immediate step is to apply for a watercourse and wetland alteration permit which takes some time to acquire. We have already satisfied the studies that are needed as part of this process so this application was submitted today. I believe Mr. Chenard is favorably disposed towards our project, and we’re grateful for this.
Joanne and I were in Brazil Lake January 13th. Pastor Reg and Janice Thomas are serving in their 14th year of ministry in this church. They are both well respected and loved by their congregation. There was a wonderful spirit in the service, and an excellent cross-section of all the age groups. We enjoyed a brunch with the pastoral staff, LBA, and their spouses following the service. We also stopped in for a very pleasant visit with Mrs. Myra Sanders, wife of Rev. Charles Sanders, who is now deceased. She is in her early 90’s, and is doing well. The Sanders served a good number of years in South Africa as missionaries.
This past weekend I was in the Hartland Wesleyan Church. Pastor Mel and Sandra Norton have served here for the last five years. It was my first opportunity to be in Hartland since the new sanctuary was built. Again, we enjoyed the worship service, and we appreciated connecting with people we have known over the years as well as making new friends. The opportunity to spend time with the pastoral staff and their spouses over a meal was delightful. Our thanks to the Nortons for their kind hospitality. We also had opportunity to visit with Rev. Walter Fernley and Rev. Brian and Darlene Murray in Lakeville while we were in the area. Pastor Fernley has rebounded remarkably from his recent illness last fall, and is in great spirits. The Murrays operate Birch Haven Manor. They consider it their ministry, and it is making a difference in the lives of the seniors that live there.
The Pre-Assessment Seminar for Church Planters was held at Bethany Bible College last week. This was a pilot project for the Dept. of Evangelism & Church Growth (E & CG). There were just under 40 people in attendance including students, and the people outside the college. There were fifteen people in attendance from the Atlantic District including the DS and 4 pastors that were presenters. The main presenter was Rev. Chris Conrad, Director of Church Planter Development, E & CG.
Amherst Wesleyan Church will be dedicating their new church facility (which they purchased from the Roman Catholic Church) on Sunday, February 17th. This will be in conjunction with the 77th Anniversary of the church. Some major remodeling and up-grading was made to the property. This has made it more appealing, and enhances the church’s ability to minister to the community. Special guests for the Dedication Service, which will be held at 3:00 pm, include: The Daybreak Trio, local clergy, many former pastors and members, and DS David LeRoy. I would encourage our pastors and people that are in closer proximity to attend this significant event. A pot-luck style meal will be served at 4:30 pm, and Daybreak will hold a concert at 6:00 pm. Everyone is invited to join the Amherst congregation for all the events of the day. The new church is located at 50 Cornwall Ave. For further information please contact the church at 902-667-9126, or email Pastor Raymond Fancy at awc@ns.sympatico.ca
Rev. Ken Foote recently went through an evaluation of his physical condition. A couple of weeks ago, the family received the results and the tumours are shrinking! The doctor reminded the family of how close to death Ken was when he came in to see him the first time. And now, he can almost walk again, and his sight is improving. This is encouraging, and we give thanks to God, but Ken is not out of the woods yet. He is having a lot of back pain. Tomorrow (1-22-08), he will be going in for his 7th round of chemo. Please keep praying that Ken will continue to improve and that all of this will be used to the benefit of HIS kingdom. Remember his wife Judy and the family as well.
The Theodore Russell cottage at Beulah Camp is for sale. The cottage is located at 3 Archer Avenue on the campground. It is a two bedroom, and winterized.  It comes with a drilled well (shared by 4 cottages), air conditioning unit, appliances, furniture and dishes. Asking price is $49,999.  Phone (506) 662-3503 or send an email to Shelley.Veysey@nbed.nb.ca
Mr. Lev Bradley, Saint John First, was recently advised by Mrs. Thabsile Thwala, World Hope Director in Swaziland, that the new Counseling Center Building is basically completed and ready for occupancy. Churches and people from the Atlantic District did the planning design, financing and construction (assisted by the Swazi workers) on this project. Lev and Iva Bradley, and Ken and Faye Neilson came up with the original rough design and estimated costs in a meeting with Mrs. Thwala while she was in the region on an information and fund raising mission in November, 2005. Work teams from Saint John First, King’s Valley, and Presque Isle Wesleyan Churches were involved in the project. Presque Isle Wesleyan Church covered the initial estimated cost of $30,000 to build the center. In late September Mrs. Thwala advised Lev that the $30,000 had been spent and an additional $7000 (approximately) was needed to complete the project. Most of this amount would be used for a security fence around the property and the cost of having the power connected. These items were not included in the original cost estimate. Lev shared this need with Pastor Rick Kavanaugh and a couple of weeks later the Presque Isle Church gave $4000 toward the additional need. The missions budget at Saint John First contributed $1000, and then the people at First were given an opportunity to participate in a special offering beyond that. The result of the special offering was far above expectations with a total of $5080 received. This will be enough to complete the project and perhaps provide for a few extras such as furnishings. Congratulations to the churches involved on seeing the project through to this point, thanks to the volunteers that contributed their time and talents, and thanks to those who provided the prayer support.
“In the end, it is important to remember that we cannot become what we need to be by remaining who we are.”                                                                                                  – Max DePree