As we discern our path forward, we have held a number of joint parish meetings with All Saints Westboro. On Sunday, September 27th, we worshipped together (for the first time) at the 9:30 am service at All Saints. Blessed with some very fine weather, about 50 St. Matthias parishioners joined the All Saints congregation in worship and at the following coffee hour. We were warmly received and it was a very congenial and informative time. Our next joint event will take place on Monday, October 5th, when the Bishop will be present at a 7 pm Town Hall meeting to which both congregations are invited.
For the interest of parishioners, the votes related to the amalgamation of St. Michael and All Angels and St. Richard's took place on Sunday, September 27th. The vote results are:
St. Michael and All Angels: 47 votes cast; 43 Yes & 4 No
St. Richard's: 117 votes cast; 106 Yes & 11 No
According to a pamphlet issued prior to the vote, the congregation of St. Michael's will worship at their current location through to the end of October, when they will start meeting permanently at St. Richard's. The consolidated parish will take 1 to 2 years to research and plan a location on which to build a new church and multi-use facility. In the short & long run both current church buildings will be sold.
On other matters, over the last number of years the Corporation of St. Matthias has made a concerted effort to boost revenue from Church rentals. Latterly these efforts have led to rental arrangements with the Montessori School next door and with CAMMAC, the Amateur Musicians Association. We are investigating Sunday afternoon rentals to an Ottawa Pipe Band. We have also been approached by the Pastor of a French language Evangelical Church regarding the possibility of renting space at St. Matthias. He explained that his church's current East End location would no longer be available come November 1st. They are looking to find suitable rental space for a short term rental of two to three years, following which they hope to be in a position to acquire or build a church building of their own. At an initial meeting our Incumbent explained our current situation and the uncertainties it presents in terms of considering a major rental at this time. Nevertheless, subsequent to this meeting, the Pastor requested the opportunity to have a delegation visit St. Matthias to view the facility first hand. On September 23rd a meeting took place between members of the Corporation and the other church representatives. After a guided tour of the building, the Pastor and his board members expressed interest in renting our building. With considerable regret the Corporation indicated that for reasons of timing, the financial implications of taking on a major rental which would require changes to the Nave to accommodate their musical needs, and concerns over the church's overall financial perspective we were unfortunately not in a position to entertain their offer further. We suggested that they may be interested in pursuing a rental at other Diocesan properties.