St. Margarets Pioneer Cemetery Restoration

St Margaret of Scotland Pioneer Cemetery Restoration Committee

Meeting in St. Margaret of Scotland Church Vestry

January 18, 2010

Present: Anne Kells, Helen MacDonald, Carol Lesperance, Chris Blaisdell, Kelly Stephen and Ray Malone

Regrets: Fr. Doug MacDonald

The Chair, Anne Kells, welcomed the new secretary, Ray Malone She also welcomed Kelly Stephen as the successful candidate in the competition for the position of Coordinator / Writer for the New Horizons Project, “Honoring Our Ancestors: Then and Now”. A contract was presented to Mr. Stephen outlining the terms of employment:

•    Six month period from January 18th to July 16th
•    Coordinate the New Horizon Project
•    Writing a book on the history of the Parish & the Pioneer Cemetery
•    Supervision by the Pioneer Cemetery Committee
•    Regular bi-weekly meetings will be held with the committee and the coordinator

The contract was signed with the Committee as witnesses.

Treasurer, Helen reported that a new account for the project has been opened at the Souris Credit Union.

Anne read a letter stating that we are receiving another Heritage Award to be presented in Summerside on Feb. 14th.

A wide ranging discussion ensued regarding the writing of the book. Kelly shared that the binder he received from Pat contains a huge amount of information. He asked how much detail the committee wanted? Stories will be planted in between the history of the church and the community.

A list of seniors in the community that should be interviewed was generated. It was noted that Florence Deagle, a great source of information, died today. The list included but not limited to: Emalina Crossman; Hilda MacDonald; Bertha McCormack; Reggie Flynn; Marion Sutherland; Mary Malone; Teresa Wilson; Helen MacIsaac;

Anne gave Kelly a guide for interviewing the seniors.

Kelly shared with the group how he envisioned the book unfolding:

• Introduction - Why we are writing this story.
• Description of the life of persons in Uist, the religious persecution they suffered, why they couldn’t practice the Roman Catholic religion and ultimately why they made the decision to emigrate.
• The first seven families of the original group that moved to Naufrage & then moved East
• Four Churches – Description and history of the four churches
• Conclusion- Work of Restoration     

With regard to the seniors’ piece of the project, Kelly suggested that he spend two hours a week on Thursdays on this part of the project. He suggested how he would proceed. First there would be tea and a social time followed by some form of physical activity. Carol & Kelly thought that he could work for 3-4 months with the seniors’ project and then it should be self-sustaining.

Kelly shared with the group that the two most popular programs on the Wii are "Fitness" and "Sport". More passive programs include: Family Feud; Trivia; and Jeopardy. Kelly talked to a colleague in Ontario who works with seniors. Kelly reviewed some items which could be purchased at Future shop:

•     Wii Fit with Balance Board, Wii Console ( Sports included), Nikon Digital Camera (12.4 metapixels), Panasonic flat screen TV

Anne circulated a letter written by Helen to Future Shop requesting a discount for our committee.

The next item of business was the chair lift for the hall. Carol told the committee that the stairs were measured on Friday. Kelly suggested that he feared that if we proceeded with the chair lift, we would be ineligible for funding later on for an elevator. Chris informed the committee that funding is available through the Island Communities Fund (ICF) for an elevator. An application could also be made through Skills PEI. The addition of a garage also was mentioned. A discussion took place voicing the pros and cons of a chair lift or an elevator.

The following motion was moved by Carol and seconded by Helen:

Be it resolved that the committee forgo the chairlift in order to explore the possibility of an elevator. Passed.
Carol will get an estimate for the next application.

Other items discussed:

•     Reporting by Kelly- Bi-weekly to the committee
•     Regular meetings- Mondays, late in the day at St. Margarets Church Vestry
•     Mileage
•     High speed internet & phone
•     Heat for the hall- Donated
•     Space for the hall- Donated

A member of the committee requested that Kelly submit a work plan to the committee outlining his plan for detailing the work.

Next Meeting- Feb. 1, 2010 at 3:30 PM in Church Vestry

Respectfully submitted,

Ray Malone, Secretary