As
our Parish
Nursing office
is still closed
at this time,
please reach out
to us by phone
at (416)
494-5364
or contact any
of the agencies
below:
Toronto Mental
Health Support -
211
Seniors Help
Line - (416)
217-2077
Seniors Safety
Line - (416)
899-1011
Crisis Help - crisisservicescanada.ca
_________________________________________________
Your
latest Parish Nursing Health Tip
posted for the Week of August 22, 2021
An
Important Life Lesson
At the end of our worship service on
Sunday, August 15, Rev. Victor Li asked if there
were any announcements for Iona. I responded with
an update about Iona’s Search Committee. Then I
went on to say that my prayers are with both
Iona’s and St. Cyprian’s Search Committees, as we
seek to “replace two irreplaceable men”. Victor
thanked me but continued, “Everyone can be
replaced. No one is indispensable”. My answer to
that is “Yes and no”.
Several years ago a very wise person said to me
that when a beloved pet dies, we grieve the loss
of one of our family members, but after a period
of time, many people get another pet to keep them
company, cheer them up, just be with them. Does
that mean that you stop loving the previous pet?
No! It just means that we make space in our hearts
for the new pet, but the new one doesn’t take the
place of the previous one. And so our hearts grow
larger to make room for more love.
The lesson I take from this is that when someone
leaves a position, we can find a new individual to
fill that position, but that person doesn’t
replace the previous person in our hearts. We just
grow bigger hearts to make space for the new
person. For us, Victor and Robert will always
remain as beloved spiritual mentors and good
friends.
This is good news for our Search Committees and
congregations. We need to think about God’s
mission for us in this community and the wider
world, as we pray for others each day. Both
congregations will grieve the loss of these two
men, but we need to listen to God, as he seeks to
lead us into the next chapter of our lives in His
Kingdom. We must not be tempted to give up and
think that there is no point in going forward. We
need to believe that God will eventually bring the
right person to lead each of our congregations so
that we can continue and hopefully grow our
ministry. The world around us is full of pain,
grief, loss, anger, hopelessness, poverty,
violence and injustice. God calls us to fight the
things that are destroying our society and help to
bring others to Him and gradually help to build
His Kingdom here on earth. Even if it’s one person
at a time, one day at a time, everything helps.
Together we have a strong, loving community at
Tri-Church, which can enrich the lives of so many
others. We can give them hope, a sense of
belonging, support, comfort, and love. For
those who are alone and afraid, these are
life-changing gifts. This is God’s will for us and
a lasting testament to Robert’s and Victor’s
ministry with us.
Blessings,
Margaret Black
Tri-Church Parish Nurse
_______________________________________________
"Thank You" from
Northwood
Montessori
Daycare
posted September 4, 2021
In
July 2021,
Northwood
Montessori
Daycare, who
rents space in
the Tri-Church
building,
received an
appeal from
Mademoiselle
Louisa asking if
they could help
with supplies
for Cuba
urgently needed
due to the COVID
virus.
Through the
generosity of
Northwood
Daycare, people
in the
surrounding
community,
and the people
within the
Tri-Church
building,
including the
Iona, St
Cyprian, and
St. Christopher
congregations,
Northwood was
able to send
over 300 face
shields,
200 boxes of
masks for both
adults and
children, hand
sanitizer, boxes
of gloves and
much more.
Medicines and
needles were
also included in
the shipment.
Also, donations
of over $2,000
will be used to
make more
purchases.
Our Northwood
staff, families
and friends have
‘stepped up to
the plate’ and
hit a grand
slam.
We are thanking
you so much.
_________________________________________________
Pastoral
Message
posted February 28, 2021
Dear members of the Tri-Churches congregations
We are deeply saddened to share with you that our
beloved minister, the Rev. Robert Reid, died last
Sunday on February 21, not being able to recover
from the Covid-19 complications.
We are so grateful for all the prayers that were
offered not only by this congregation, but by so
many friends, along with the Presbytery of East
Toronto - prayers for healing, for peace, for
courage and for comfort.
Robert himself knew that his life was safely in
God's care, and though this is not the outcome we
had prayed for, we too trust, as Marg Black puts
it, God has chosen to heal him in a different
way. We grieve together with the Reid
family, our family of faith here at Iona, and all
our friends of the Tri-Church. We give
thanks to God for Robert's life and witness to the
Risen Christ, for his ministry and wonderful
friendships in our midst.
We ask that you continue to pray for the Reid
family.
