Hello Everyone, 

TONIGHT:  Maundy Thursday -  Lenten Soup dinner at 6:30 followed by service of communion and foot washing. 

 Holy Week Services

April 19 – Good Friday – 10:00 at St. Catherine’s Anglican.  Pr Vida will be preaching

April 21st – Easter Sunday – Come and rejoice as we dig up the Alleluia!  There will be an Easter egg hunt for the children.

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April 28th – Pot Luck lunch for April birthdays.  Bring your favourite lunch dish and share time with our community.

Bring pictures of farm animals if you have them, for the Sunday School lesson.  Thanks!

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The Memorial Service for Carole Falck will be held on Saturday, May 4th at 2pm with Pastor Sylvia Schmidt presiding as Pastor Vida will be away on holiday. 

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REGIONAL EVENT THAT YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN ATTENDING: PILGRIM COURSE ON THE LORD’S PRAYER

You are warmly invited to join a group of people who want to learn more about being followers of Christ. 

The group is for:

- those who want a chance to think about the Christian faith

- those who have recently started attending a Church

- those preparing for baptism or confirmation

- those who have been Christians for years and want to renew their faith.

We will begin by exploring the words of the Lord’s Prayer - a prayer that Jesus taught us - using video, readings and discussion.

When: SIX Sundays starting on April 28th, 2019 from noon - 1:30pm

Where: St Catherine’s Church - Mary Pellatt Room (max 8 people)

Register at the St Catherine’s church office: 604 985 0666 or email scadmin@shaw.ca.

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REFUGEE NEWS

Malis and his children have now completed their year of sponsorship! Wow, did that go fast. Malis' brother Mambo and other family members have done an amazing job of helping them to settle. Malis is a very hard worker and travels from Surrey to Annacis Island every weekday to work in a recycling facility! The boss there speaks French, as does Malis, so this is working well for him. All of the children have learned English quickly and his daughter Furaha has put her dream of becoming a police officer on hold so that she can work and save money in the hope of sponsoring her two older sisters and her niece.

Bukhari is doing well. There was a delay in the start of his new job, at Vij's restaurant, but he will be starting soon. He is very excited to do so. Many tests have determined that Bukhari does NOT have an autoimmune disorder, which is wonderful news. The reason for his recurrent bouts of illness is most likely Malaria, which he contracted as a child. He will be getting some advice about how to manage this best. Bukhari is signed up for another round of English classes and he is now is level 6!

Mousa- Mousa has been called for his interview on April 15 and will go to Beirut today, in order to be ready for that appointment early tomorrow morning. He is very excited and nervous. Some sad news is that Mousa recently broke off his engagement with Nour. We are very sad for Nour and this has been a difficult time for Nour and her family. Please keep Nour in your prayers to help heal her heart and find a love in Canada. 

Neema- (Mambo's adopted daughter) is waiting on her travel arrangements to be made by the visa office. She should be arriving in a matter of weeks. 

Fundraising: We will need to raise additional funds to provide adequate support to Neema and Mousa. I am working on a plan to show a film about some Syrian musicians that looks like it will be wonderful. The filmmaker has offered us the use of the film for free, because it is a fundraiser for Syrians. Please stay tuned, I hope to arrange this for the end of May. Any and all fundraising efforts are gratefully received and all money raised goes directly to refugee sponsorship. 

Honada's Brother, Ariad: Honada's brother has a young wife and two small children. Ariad was the victim of torture in a Syrian jail and for some time, he was unable to walk. However, he is doing better now. We have a group that is considering raising the funds to sponsor this family, but they are not able to do the settlement. If you or anyone you know might be interested in forming a group to provide a year of settlement support to this lovely family, please contact me. This would be a huge help to Honada, as well as to Ariad and his family. Honada tells me that Ariad does have English skills and was a chef previously.  

Thank you to everyone for your ongoing support. So many people in desperate situations! 

Happy Easter to you all,

Shannon Muir

Coordinator REST

Chair, Diocesan Refugee Unit   

Peace, Lin