SWRC Retiree Gathering and Luncheon
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
St. Andrew’s United Church
10:00 a.m Gathering and Breakfast Snacks
10:30 a.m. Worship, Session, followed by luncheon
You are invited to gather in person at St. Andrew’s United Church, located at 117 Bloor St. East, in Toronto. (MAP). If you are using TTC, get off at Yonge Street, walk west on the South side. OR…. use the drop off and underground parking available off Hayden Street.
On a United Church pension and looking to connect? Join a group of fellow pensioners meeting four times a year to catch up with one another and hear fascinating speakers.
It’s been another interesting year of meetings of Shining Waters retirees. We have had a wide range of excellent speakers and presentations since last September. Most recently, at our March meeting, we heard Prof. the Rev. Peter Wyatt explain the lengthy timeline of how Canada got Indian Residential Schools and Egerton Ryerson’s very modest part in that wide-ranging, 19th century national discussion. Prof. Jonathan Hamilton-Diabo responded to Peter’s presentation as a person whose grandfather attended Residential School, asking those present to remember not so much the role of any one person, but the whole culture of racism that led to a two-tier education system, helping to deepen the colonial project of erasing Indigenous cultures.
At our June meeting we will begin upstairs in the sanctuary with morning tea and coffee at 10:00 a.m. This time the focus is on the 100th anniversary of the United Church. Our worship at 10:30 a.m. will include material from both the inaugural service and the 100th commemoration service, being held at Gower St. United in St. John’s on June 8. Then panelists will discuss their journey into/in United Church ministry with a view to the changing context of the call to ministry over the years.
Our panel: Revs. Nancy Hardy, Ken Ramkeesoon and Katie Vardy. Nancy and Ken are well known to our pensioners group. Katie is much newer to ministry, and serving a congregation in Scarborough. Given their diversity it will be interesting how much similarity there is to their individual presentations. A time of discussion follows, then a catered lunch together downstairs in the Centre Westminster Room. We hope to see you there!
Blessings,
Wenh-In Ng, Ross Carson, Dale Young and Robin Wardlaw – planning team
Our lunch menu will be BBQ Chicken with roast potatoes and salad, with fruit and sweets for dessert. If you have dietary concerns, let us know on the registration form and we will pass that info on to our caterers. Cost $10.00 per person and registration is required. A subsidy from the budget, generously provided by Shining Waters Regional Council, enables the per person cost to be significantly reduced.
Registration for this event is required. Deadline to register is Wednesday, June 11, 2025.
Retiree Gathering Registration - June 17, 2025
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If you have any technical difficulties with this form and need assistance, please contact Donna Rutz at drutz@united-church.ca