Carers Week this year runs from 5-11 June and is designed to highlight the challenges unpaid carers face and recognise the contribution they make to families and communities.  By raising awareness of unpaid carers, it is also hoped that more people will recognise themselves as unpaid carers and be able to access the help and support which is available.  An unpaid carer is defined as “a person of any age who provides unpaid help and support to wife, husband, partner, son, daughter, parent, relative, friend or neighbour who cannot manage without the carer’s help”.  The support provided may vary from shopping or collecting prescriptions to making meals, to dealing with personal hygiene issues, to just being there to provide emotional support in a difficult time for the cared for person.  A reduction in external services may mean that the cared for person is with the carer 24 hours a day 7 days a week while struggling to cope with a change in routine.  This can increase stress levels for both!

There are an estimated 800,000 unpaid carers in Scotland and this includes at least 30,000 young carers under the age of 18.  The value of unpaid care provided by carers in Scotland is £10,347,400,000 a year.  Recent polling – following COVID-19 – indicates that this number may have grown to over a million.  Unpaid carers can be of any age from young children to very elderly people.  Many people do not realise that they are carers but over the course of the last 2 years there has been a marked increase in the number of people who are realising that they are carers.  Often a carer carries out the extra “because it is my Mum or child or spouse and it’s just what you do”.  Unfortunately, this can have an adverse effect on the health and well being of the carer which can then impact on the cared for person.  Recent research has shown that more than a third (35%) of people caring unpaid for family members or friends feel unable to manage their caring role and 72% of carers have not had any breaks from their caring role during the pandemic.    Many day care and respite services have not yet restarted which adds to the pressure.  The Carers Act gives carers more rights than they used to have and the Review of Adult Social Care also recognises the value of carers.

There is help and support available and the local Carers Centre is always ready to listen and help carers to get the support they need.  During Carers Week, local Carers Centres provide activities for carers to give them a short break from their caring role.  Support locally is provided by Falkirk and Clackmannanshire Carers Centre who also have a Facebook page.  Two local carers – a parent carer  and a young adult carer – recently told how support helped them

Within our congregation there will be many unpaid carers of all ages – you may be one of them.  Please remember them in your prayers but also reach out and offer practical support with even a 5 minute phone call.  Please remember that carers need care too.

There will be many in our congregation who remember the Brodie family as Peter Brodie was minister of St Mungo’s for many years.  We were delighted to see that Jonathan Brodie KC has been appointed as Procurator of the General Assembly.  Sang wrote to him to offer our congratulations and best wishes and his tribute says:

Dear all,

When I gave my only speech at the General Assembly in 2022, I began with: “413.  Sang Yoon Cha.  Minister of St. Mungo’s, Alloa.  Peter Brodie’s church.”

Most of the old ex moderators turned around to see from which microphone I was speaking, for Peter’s service of 40 years here at St. Mungo’s bore nothing but the truth and weight of such a statement.

They smiled.

At the opening of this year’s General Assembly, it was announced that Jonathan Brodie KC, the fourth and last child of Connie and Peter Brodie, will soon take on the role of Procurator, the Kirk’s own King’s Counsel.  The insert underneath his photo read:

“Jonathan Brodie KC will soon take on the role of Procurator, succeeding Laura Dunlop KC who is standing down after 18 years service. This is her last General Assembly as Procurator.”

Having met Jonathan in 2019 when he joined us to celebrate 200 years of St. Mungo’s in its present building, I wrote to congratulate him on behalf of our beloved church.  Jonathan’s response was characteristically he – gracious and modest.   He replied:

“(T)he important thing will be whether I can help bring the law to serve mission, as opposed to it being an end in itself.”

Some fine and true words.  Words written by a son of the manse turned King’s Counsel.

Perhaps the best stories really must begin with lines like: Here am I, send me.  My ancestor was a wandering Aramaean.  For God so loved the world.  There was a man who had two sons.  In those days John the Baptist came.  Perhaps even, I am a son of the manse, you know…

But Jonathan is not a son of just any manse but rather, our manse.  His manse.

It is an extraordinary family.

Jonathan Brodie KC has lifted us to an altogether higher place, and we lay a small claim upon his life as Christ’s witness just as the Lord laid claim upon him even before he was born.

To be implicated together in such an adventure is to know that God is great.

It is good and right, therefore, to bestow upon Jonathan one of the highest appellations of which we know as St. Mungo’s, Alloa.  He is, and always shall be, a gentleman and a Scot.  Thanks be to God.

As ever,

Sang

Pentecost

The UN designated 5 June each year as World Environment Day 50 years ago this year.  At an international conference held the year before, it was recognised that action needed to be taken to preserve and improve the human environment.  Over the last 50 years, a different theme has been adopted for the day to highlight one aspect to raise awareness of what the problem was and what could be done to mitigate the effects.  A wide variety of topics have been covered over the years and some of them have been linked to International years for example, in 1986 the theme “A Tree for Peace” coincided with the International Year of Peace.

This year’s theme is Beat Plastic Pollution and asks people to consider ways that they can reduce plastic pollution.  It is increasingly being recognised that the increasing use of plastics is resulting in a variety of environmental issues with about 400 million tonnes of plastic waste being produced every year.  As well as the obvious signs of plastic bottles left lying as litter there is also the problem of microplastics entering the food chain.  Antonio Guterres in his Secretary-General’s Message speaks about not only the problems but also the possible solutions.  We can all make a difference if we try to reuse and recycle more.  The UN Environment programme has an information page about what the problem is and steps we can take to reduce the problem.  If we can all make one small change then, hopefully, it will have a big impact!

Billy, our Beadle and the chef in the café, had a busy Coronation weekend.  On the Sunday he cooked a roast lunch for approximately 50 people which was enjoyed by all who attended.  Although the café was closed the next day, Billy was hard at work.  On the Monday of the Coronation’s weekend celebrations the Friends of Greenfield hosted a very successful multicultural buffet lunch at which he was invited to contribute British fare.  Billy produced a wide range of food which added to the variety available for those present to taste and enjoy.

The café is normally open on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday each week between 10 and 4 and the spring/summer menu is available on the newsletter tab above.

Booking is advised for afternoon tea.  Please phone Billy to book a table either on his mobile, 07395 091107 or, during café opening hours, on the church number 01259 723004.

Summer Jazz Concert

St Mary’s Music School pupils will present a programme of jazz favourites and improvisation from a variety of the School’s ensembles and groups in the surroundings of St Andrews and St Georges West Church, Edinburgh at 7 pm on Wednesday 7 June.  All profits from the concert will go to Amnesty International to support their work.

Life and Work –  General Assembly 2023: Special Supplement

Life and Work is the magazine of the Church of Scotland and was established in 1879.  They have once again produced a summary of the General Assembly which is free to download using the link above.  The magazine is published monthly and you can either subscribe to a digital version or a paper copy.

Moderator taking part in Aberdeen Kilt Walk

The Moderator, Rt Rev Sally Foster-Fulton, is walking the 3.7 mile ‘Wee Wander’, one of two walking events taking place as part of the Aberdeen Kiltwalk on Sunday June 4th.  All monies raised will go to Christian Aid.  You can sponsor the Moderator and support Christian Aid by donating though her Just Giving page.

Scottish Grove olive oil receives award

Olive oil produced from a grove supported by the Church of Scotland in Israel has won two international awards.  Planted in 2012, the Scottish Grove serves as the missing link between the Arab farmer and the Israeli market – the first flourishing organic olive grove of its kind in the region.

This Sunday, 4 June, the service will be taken as usual by Rev Cha at 11.15 am.  We are always happy to welcome new members as well as those who have attended in the past.

Elders are reminded that Parishioners and communion cards will be available for uplift on Sunday.

The Sunday School meets during the Sunday service and children aged between 3 and 11 are welcome.  The Sunday School will finish for the summer on 4 June and restart when the school summer holidays end.  The children will enjoy a picnic in the grounds at the back of the church to mark the end of the Sunday school year.  The wildflower seeds which the Sunday School sowed at easter are now in full bloom and hopefully attracting bees and other pollinators.

At a recent Kirk Session meeting it was agreed that we would reinstate the use of the display boards in the Porch to highlight matters of interest in St Mungo’s and the wider community.  This month the focus will be on The Gate charity and in particular the Food Bank as there is an ongoing need for this in the local community.  We have a box in the porch where donations for The Gate foodbank can be put and we will deliver them to The Gate.

The café continues to function and is normally open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.  We are currently using the summer menu and Billy and his team of volunteers are happy to welcome friends old and new.  If you would like to volunteer to help in either the café or the church garden, please contact Billy.

Tullibody St Serf’s Church are pleased to welcome a choir from Germany who are visiting Scotland and will be singing in the Church Hall on Thursday 8th June at 7 pm.  Entrance is by donation, including refreshments.

If you know of anyone who has moved, passed away or gone into residential care, please let either your elder or Andrena know so that we can keep our information up to date.

As we have marked the coronation of King Charles III on 6 May, we can look back at the link that St Mungo’s had with the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth 70 years ago.  For the first time, the Moderator of the Church of Scotland played a part in the coronation when he presented the Bible to the Queen.  The Moderator at that time was Very Rev James Pitt-Watson, who presented the Queen with a Bible during her coronation ceremony and said: “To keep your Majesty ever mindful of the law and the Gospel of God… we present you with this Book”.  Dr Pitt-Watson was the minister of St Mungo’s from 1929-1946 so he was minister here at the time of the coronation of King George VI in 1936.  Later in 1953 Mr James Smeaton presented to the church a framed and enlarged photograph of the ceremony and it was in place when the Moderator visited the church in November of that year.  This picture can still be seen on the wall in St Mungo’s today.

To mark the Coronation in 1953 the church held a Treasure Palace in the church halls on 8 and 9 May which was a combination of a fund-raising bazaar and an exhibition.  The halls were set up with the rooms having different themes eg Royal Kitchen, Nursery and Queen’s parlour to name but a few with stalls selling items to fit that theme.  Visitors could enjoy coffee or tea in the Banqueting Hall, watch a Mannequin Parade featuring costumes through the ages, see a cookery demonstration and, of course, come together to watch the ceremony on television.  At the close of the Treasure Palace, Moderator’s robes were presented to Very Rev Pitt-Watson as a gift from the congregation and these robes were worn by him at the Coronation.

Flower Rota

4 June                                     Mrs I Duncanson

11 June

18 June                                   Mrs E Barrett

25 June                                   Mr D Mudie

Duty Groups

4 June                                     Group A

11 June                                   Group B

18 June                                   Group C (Communion)

25 June                                   Group D

The Church is now open for the Sunday service , and the other work of the church is still continuing.  This means that there are still expenses to be covered so please help if you can. You can either fill your envelope each week ready for when you are able to join us for the Church service again or if you would like to set up a Standing Order or give a donation please get in touch using the email address connect@alloastmungos.org or contact our Treasurer, Scott Maxwell (07711148762), and he will be happy to give you more information.

To find out about the ways in which you can support the Church – financially and otherwise – please click on the Support Us tab above.