Parish Notices

Papal Visit

Four parishioners have been chosen to participate in the events in Westminster Hall on 17th September and in Westminster Abbey on 17th September. Information concerning these events will be sent to chosen pilgrims directly from the national organisers.

Hyde Park and Birmingham: Please note there are still some vacancies. Those who wish to go please write their name, address, phone number and email address on a slip of paper and deposit it in the relevant boxes in the front of the church.

The list of those who have already submitted their names can be viewed on the two tables. Everyone should check that their details are correct. Those who have not given addresses or phone numbers should add them immediately, otherwise their names will be removed.

People who have put their names down for both Hyde Park and Birmingham are most welcome to attend both. However should they be having second thoughts about it, they should cross out their names on one of the lists as the organisers do not want people saying they are attending and failing to turn up on the day.

'Pilgrim pack': Each Pilgrim will receive a 'Pilgrim pack' for the journey, which I understand is planned to contain an access 'bracelet' for each event and a CD, containing liturgical and musical elements and other travel and background information. This will be included as part of the contribution made by each Pilgrim - £25 each for Birmingham and £ 10 for Hyde Park. (Fr. Kevin)

Open Air Parish Mass & Picnic

Many thanks to everyone who contributed to making last weekend's Open Air Mass and Picnic the success it was. So many groups in our Parish family came together to share their gifts and talents: we are particularly grateful to our choir and musicians for the enhancing liturgy and making the Mass so prayerful.

We could not have staged this wonderful event if Mrs Mansi, the Headteacher, had not given us permission to use the school field once again, so a special thank you to everyone at St Vincent's School for their generosity.

Thanks to everyone who came to the Mass, we know that there were competing events at three of our local Catholic schools, so it was good to see so many families at the Mass.

We are grateful to our parishioners who organised the raffle which raised £365 for the work of the Daughters of Charity.

We are especially grateful to the businesses in Mill Hill, who so generously gave the prizes. Please support these businesses and let them know we are grateful:

The Edgwarebury Hotel, Cooksley Butchers, Day of the Raj, Finchley Nurseries, Hendon Times Group, Hena Salon, Marisa Contino Photography, Olive's Restaurant, A & P Resources, The Gardiner family, Princess Daisy Florist, Boots the Chemist, Toni & Guy, Waitrose.

Thank You

The Friends of St Vincent would like to thank everyone who attended the Barbecue on Saturday June 26th and contributed to the continued Minibus Service in the Parish. We raised £1925.35. Thank you for your support.

Family Mass - Music over the Summer

We are looking for volunteers to help with playing the piano/organ at the 10am Mass over the summer holidays. It would be ideal to have a few volunteers each helping for one or two Masses so that no one individual is doing too much. Please note that without this help, we may not have music at the Family Mass during summer. If you would like to help, please speak to Father Kevin as soon as possible.

New Vicar at John Keble Church

After five years as Canon Chancellor at Blackburn Cathedral, Canon Chris Olivers (42) is to be the new Vicar of John Keble Church, Mill Hill. He brings wide experience to the post, having previously been in charge of worship at two of the world's most contrasting communities: Westminster Abbey and St George's Cathedral, Cape Town. He has pioneered interfaith work on local, national and international stages after his interest was kindled during his curacy in Friern Barnet, where he established close relationships with the local Jewish community. He is also a freelance journalist and broadcaster, published composer and author of several books. Canon Olivers and his wife Mary have three young sons. He will be taking up the position in September, and the congregation of John Keble are looking forward to welcoming him and his family at his induction service which will be held on Wednesday 8th September at 7.30pm in John Keble Church. All are welcome to come along.

Children's Chapel

The Day Chapel doubles as a Children's chapel on the Sundays. A new floor has been laid, which is washable so that it can be kept fresh. A selection of children's religious books has been provided together with cushions for the little ones to sit on. Some beautiful pictures and a cross of the Good Shepherd are to be put up shortly and it is hoped to paint the chapel during the summer. All of this is to encourage Parents with toddlers and babies to make use of the children's chapel and to worship in comfort. For safety reasons the narthex must be kept clear of all chairs and prams as it is the main exit from the church in an emergency. Fr Kevin

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People

We, the year 6 children at St Vincent's School have been helping the Hearing Dogs for Deaf People. We have been bringing in ink cartridges (not Epson), used stamps, old phones and laser ink cartridges. We would really appreciate if you could help us too! So far we have changed over 60 dogs and deaf people's lives and we can help even more if you start collecting with us! Please ask anyone you know who might have any of these items. We are sure you agree that this is a life changing opportunity for many deaf people and it is up to us to help them! Your help would be greatly appreciated.

Priest Training Fund

Thank you for helping the Priest Training Fund. On April 25th this parish raised £875.17, and all of this money will be used to fund the preparation of men for the priesthood and their seminary. If you have not yet made a donation, please give as much as you can. You will find envelopes at the back of the church. You can also see a short film about the work of the Priest Training Fund and make a donation online by visiting www.rcdow.org.uk.

SHARE Foundation

The Trustees wish to thank you for your generosity during the recent collection. The total amount is £851.53. Thanks for your continuous support.

This U.K. registered Charity which has been a Sacred Heart Church project, celebrated its tenth anniversary on the 15th November 2009. The event was marked with a thanksgiving service conducted by the Bishop of Anuradhapura in St Lucia's Cathedral, Kotahena on 4th of January this year.

The Community Nursing Service for the poor set up in Kotahena, Sri Lanka in 1999 by one of our parishioners. It has expanded since then to two other areas; Kalutara in the south and Anuradhapura in the north. All three projects continue to be managed very well by the local trustees and management committees and our nursing teams have provided excellent care and assistance to thousands of helpless families.

Celine inaugurated our fourth project Anuradhapura in February that was set up to assist victims of a chronic kidney disease caused by toxic substances in the water in the area. Many of them need kidney transplants but are unable to have any treatment due to extreme poverty. Unfortunately, the Government hospitals do not have the resources to provide medication and the necessary items for dialysis leading up to transplant and thereafter. SHARE has stepped in to help some of the poorest of them.

All this has been possible because of the generosity of people like you. We hope your financial support will continue to help our service to the marginalised in Sri Lanka. Their situation is desperate but with your help and God's grace we will be able to continue making the difference between a dignified life and an early death for many of them.

Matched Funding

MATCHED FUNDING We have recently received a donation of £500 from a company called Arbourtech which came our way because one of our parishioners who was involved in the Christmas Card and Cake Sale, asked his company if they would support his endeavours on our behalf, which they kindly agreed to do.

This is in addition to a similar sum we received from Abbey, thanks of another one of our parishioners, meant that we almost doubled the total cash the parish received from the card sale — of course the charities we supported had some £900 sent direct to them.

Many companies support charitable works by their employees. It would help the parish enormously if you would check whether your company do so and then you could become involved in one of our fund raising activities or suggest one yourself.

If we are to improve the facilities of our church premises for our children and future generations we need to sharpen up our approach to fund raising. It takes an awful lot of sales and dances to raise serious money!

Speak to Fr Kevin or any member of the Parish Pastoral Council if you think you could help with this matter.

The Reverend Canon Barry Wright

The Reverend Canon Barry Wright, the Vicar of St. Michael and All Angels Church in Flower Lane, will retire in April. He was born in Tamworth 1938 and left home at the age of 17 to become a Police Cadet. Following National Service he resumed his career as a policeman at Brixton Police Station. After promotion he followed his vocational call and trained for the ministry at London University becoming ordained in 1969 and was known as a priest in secular employment.

After further promotion he was transferred to The Royalty and Diplomatic Protection Group to review the protection of royal palaces following a break-in at Buckingham Palace.

In 1979 he was appointed Honorary Canon of Southwark Cathedral for his work as Dean of Priest-Workers in the Southwark Diocese. In 1989 he was selected as Senior Chaplain to the West Midlands Police and after four years in Birmingham he was summoned back to London to become Senior Chaplain to the Metropolitan Police, a position which he held until January of this year.

Appointed as Vicar of St Michael and All Angels in Mill Hill in 2004 his last service will be on Easter Sunday. A keen dog lover, he and his wife, Pam, regularly exercised their dog on Arandene open space where he made many friends. His enjoyment of music led him to join the Pro Arte Choir as a baritone.

He will be missed by many residents of Mill Hill, not least of all by his congregation at St Michaels. We all wish him and his wife Pam a very happy and contented retirement. (D.W.)

CAR PARK INCOME

All parishioners are asked not to use the reserved car spaces from Monday to Friday. The company renting them have complained that some people are not observing this notice. This is a source of income for our Parish which we do not want to lose.

Singing Group - Saturday evening Mass.

Are you interested in helping lead the singing at the Saturday evening Mass? We will group on the left side of the church in the 2nd & 3rd rows. Please join us. Also if you can play an instrument that would be very helpful. We look forward to your joining us. Celia.

Thank you for your generosity.

Sunday Collections

Thank you for your offerings. Over the past few months the total amounts collected have been: