Ralph Connor Memorial United Church
Weekly
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Friday, June 18, 2021
by Thursday at 11:00 AM
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Please also note: if you are sending letter mail to RCMUC, please include “Box 8901” in the address to make things easier for the folks at Canada Post.
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Sunday, June 20, 2021
Indigenous Sunday
We are hoping to have a couple of outdoor Worship services starting in mid-August... stay tuned! In the meantime, our Worship life will continue on YouTube for the foreseeable future.
Two services this Sunday! At 10 AM (or earlier! – it’ll be posted by suppertime Saturday), we welcome Glenda Crawler, Trudy Wesley and Tony Snow to lead our RCMUC Sunday service, at our Ralph Connor Canmore YouTube channel,
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Recent revelations – whether new information, such as the terrible discovery at Kamloops, or information about processes that have been ongoing for nearly a decade, such as the investigations of the Residential School grounds in Brandon – remind us of how important it is to be aware of the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and its 94 Calls to Action.
Our hope is to highlight many of the calls of the TRC in upcoming Newsletters.
The first one, is Call #62: 62. We call upon the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, in consultation and collaboration with Survivors, Aboriginal peoples, and educators, to:
i. Make age-appropriate curriculum on residential schools, Treaties, and Aboriginal peoples’ historical and contemporary contributions to Canada a mandatory education requirement for Kindergarten to Grade Twelve students.
ii. Provide the necessary funding to post-secondary institutions to educate teachers on how to integrate Indigenous knowledge and teaching methods into classrooms.
iii. Provide the necessary funding to Aboriginal schools to utilize Indigenous knowledge and teaching methods in classrooms.
iv. Establish senior-level positions in government at the assistant deputy minister level or higher dedicated to Aboriginal content in education.
In order to hold Alberta Education accountable to this call, and its closely-related companion, call #63, we encourage RCMUC congregants to contact our elected representatives regarding the curriculum draft that is to be piloted in the 2021-2022 School year, which is woefully inadequate in its treatment of the Residential Schools. Click here for details~.
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June is The Canmore Library tribute to Helmi Bracco month |
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The Canmore Library was extremely important to Helmi Bracco, a well-known Canmore resident and beloved Ralph Connor member who fought cancer for many years as a young mother and passed away in 2014. She was totally involved in the library, served on the board in the 1990's, and was deeply committed to issues related to literacy. Her family appreciates the tribute to Helmi, noting that she was always surrounded by books and has passed on a deep love of libraries and literacy.
Like many of us, Helmi appreciated all the things a library represents in a community – a welcoming “hub” where people can connect, a place for people to explore and learn at their leisure, a place for reflection. All made possible because of dedicated and passionate community-minded people… people like Helmi. People like you.
The Canmore Library partnered with the Banff Canmore Community Foundation to establish the Library Endowment in 2019, the same year they abolished library membership fees to ensure all members of the community are able to access the library without cost. We invite you to donate to the Library Endowment Fund, even if it’s as small as what your membership fee might have been. Big or small, everything contributes to the long-term sustainability of the Library.
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EVENSONG NEWS
Wednesday Night Worship
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Our Wednesday night Contemplative Service has concluded for the season. We look forward to resuming Evensong's next season in September! During the pandemic we have gathered Worshippers from far and wide, including Calgary, Camrose, Saltspring Island, the Sunshine Coast, and the UK, as well as Canmore, Harvie Heights and Banff. Many thanks to Jan Tissandier and all the lay leaders who make this such a meaningful gathering. |
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We have two prayer groups at RCMUC: The Healing Pathway Prayer which meets on Wednesdays and Fridays, and Tuesday's “Morning Prayer” group.
We request that the person gives consent to have their name mentioned in prayer as privacy/confidentiality is of utmost importance. We also would appreciate knowing when the situation changes and we can release them from our prayers or update the prayer to a changing need.
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Rundle & Ralph Connor
Update
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Here is the eighth installment of our update regarding the ongoing process being followed by Ralph Connor Memorial UC, Canmore and Rundle Memorial UC, Banff, as we consider the various aspects of a shared journey together...
Mark your calendars! As mentioned in last week's Newsletter, there will be a "Rundle & Ralph Connor Information and Accountability" Zoom session - on Friday, June 25 from 12:00 noon to 1:30 PM. Bring your questions and we will do our best to provide answers.
Meeting ID: 858 2097 7520
Passcode: 320789
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Greetings from the Rundle Memorial United Church Thrift Shop!
We are hoping to expand the operating hours of Banff's Rundle Memorial United Church Thrift Shop as restrictions around the virus are relaxed.
We would also like to keep expenses lower, by increasing the mix of volunteers with some paid staff. To that end, we wondered if a group of Ralph Connor Memorial congregants and friends could commit to working one day a week?
Our model is to open for three hours, so the commitment would be to work for three and a half hours – ten minutes before opening to turn on lights and set up cash, and twenty minutes after closing to make the bank deposit and turn off lights.
Duties are light, honestly! One person would handle cash and card payments. We offer no receipts since we take no returns. The other person would work in the store, mostly tidying the racks and shelves, answering a few questions and occasionally showing a few “valuables” in two locked cabinets.
We’d be delighted to have a Canmore Crew operate the shop one day a week or an individual work with one of our team. Should anyone want to commit to two or more days, we’d love to work with you!
We’d like to return to opening two afternoons (2-5pm) and two evenings (5-8pm).
Interested persons are kindly invited to email us at [email protected] We guarantee a response by the following Wednesday!
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The next “season” of Faith@Home children’s resources have arrived, focusing on Pentecost (May 23) and following Sundays.
If you would like one of these for children or grandchildren in your circle of care, and have not yet received one, please contact the Church Office and we will get one to you. And...please let us know if we should order kits for the 2021 Fall and Advent seasons, even if we resume meeting in person.
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Ongoing Ministries
& Community Programs
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Alpine Voices Threshold Choir
Alpine Voices offer their voices in service, singing at bedside as a gift to those at life's thresholds. Rehearsals, on the 2 nd and 4 th Mondays of the month, are continuing on Zoom. Contact [email protected] for more information.
Bow Valley Refugee Project
Canmore Young Adult Network - CYAN
CYAN is hiring a Program Coordinator for a 13-week summer contract thanks to a grant we received from the Federal Government. Please help us share the word with any people you know who are under 30 and looking for a meaningful job for the summer. Details on the job as well as how to apply can be found here: link here~.
For recent news see http://cyancanmore.ca/ or contact Caylee LaBranche, CYAN Executive Director, at [email protected].
Prayer Shawl Ministry
Missing hugs? If you'd like a woollen hug, i.e. prayer shawl,
please contact:
Rundle United Thrift Shop
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Community Connection:
Canmore Hospital Ladies' Auxiliary
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Starting today, June 18, we will be hosting the Hospital Tuck Shop crew in the courtyard at RCMUC on Fridays and Saturdays.
On Saturday afternoons, we’re also going to resume BELL RINGING at RCMUC as a thank you to Health Care Workers, Teachers, Servers & Frontline staff who have been faithfully on-the-job for public benefit throughout the pandemic.
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Bow Valley Affordability Guide
A good resource to reference services available in the community. Link here~.
Food Security
Many organizations in the Bow Valley help to provide healthy, affordable food and meals. For a listing of these, go to
This includes Community Food & Friends, Food Recovery, Bow Valley Good Food Box, Food Banks, and the Bow Valley Root Cellar. If there are other programs that should be added, please let us know!
Three Communities...One Valley
Friends and neighbours in the Bow Valley are still needing support during these times of COVID-related restrictions. If you would like to help others as a volunteer, or if you need support, please email [email protected] or text 403-679-3340 and we will get you signed up and do what we can to get you what you need. |
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National Indigenous History Month & Indigenous Day of Prayer - June 21 |
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Chinook Winds has a wide range of events throughout the month of June, both online and in-person.
Click here~ for information and registration links. See also "Robin's Web", below.
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Our gratitude to Robin Slater for offering the following feature in our weekly Newsletter, as part of our efforts to be a more broadly inclusive, and affirming, Community of Faith.
ROBIN'S WEB
CONNECTING DIVERSITY
The Senate has finally approved Bill C-15 to implement UNDRIP. A landmark piece of federal legislation aimed at harmonizing Canada's laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples has passed third reading in the Senate, paving the way for the bill to be enshrined into law before parliament rises for summer recess. Chief Perry Bellegarde of the Assembly of First Nations said this marks an important milestone for First Nations, Indigenous Peoples and all Canadians on the path toward reconciliation. "Canada must now take all measures necessary to enforce the Bill. UNDRIP will help right the injustices of past, and ensure that Indigenous Peoples have a bright and prosperous future in Canada." The UN declaration, which Canada endorsed in 2010, but never passed, affirms the rights of Indigenous Peoples to self-determination and to their language, culture and traditional lands, and specifies the minimum standards for the survival, dignity, and well-being of Indigenous peoples of the world. It also spells out the need for free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) from Indigenous Peoples on anything that infringes on their lands or rights.
Now I, and we, can finally move past the incongruity of celebrating National Indigenous Peoples Day as settlers while no substantive action was happening. I always had a difficult time in June trying to reconcile our appreciation of an abstract Indigenous culture with our appalling, contradictory behaviour towards the reality of First Nations people. This year we can celebrate new laws moving us forward while still acknowledging our painful past.
June is Indigenous History Month and this year the Indigenous Day of Prayer falls on Sunday, June 20. You are invited and encouraged to recognize, and reflect on, the many words of truth and witness Indigenous leaders in and beyond the United Church have shared with us over the years.
Lunch & Learn: Indigenous Peoples Day 101, June 21, 12-1:30 pm MST (for those who need to return to work, the presentation will end at 1 pm followed by a half hour for questions). This session will be about the history of National Indigenous Peoples’ Day, the meaning behind the celebration, and how it connects to the United Church. Bring your questions and curiosity, no previous knowledge required! Register here~.
To celebrate National Indigenous History Month, the Calgary Public Library is offering a variety of virtual Indigenous programs and events. Click here~.
There will be an HIV/AIDS Vigil on June 27, 5:00 p.m. MST. Please join Indigenous Ministries and Justice’s Executive Minister, Murray Pruden, for an evening of remembering, honouring, and celebrating those lost to and those who live with HIV/AIDS. The event will be livestreamed. Facebook link here~.
Making Visible Our Shared History, with speaker Dr. Crystal Fraser, June 24, 6:00 p.m. MST will explore the importance of renaming institutions as a step towards reconciliation. Dr. Fraser teaches in the History and Classics department at U of A. She is Gwichyà Gwich’in and originally from Inuvik and Dachan Choo Gęhnjik in the Northwest Territories. Click here~.
Save-the-date for the Alberta Métis Fest, being held virtually on June 26. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. MST. Click here~.
While we advance reconciliation in Canada, we must remember those still being oppressed. Call to End Violence in Palestine and Israel through Meaningful Negotiations. The United Church is following the lead of its partners in Palestine and Israel and has released a letter calling for the cycle of violence to stop. Click here~. “Palestinian and Israeli partners are clear that negotiating a just peace is the only way out of the cycle of bombs and guns” says Moderator, the Right Rev. Dr. Richard Bott. “I invite United Church people to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and to put faith into action by writing to urge Minister Garneau to uphold international law.” In some cases, media coverage is missing the fact that a spark for the current violence was the eviction of Palestinian families from Sheikh Jarrah, a neighbourhood in East Jerusalem targeted by militant Jewish settlers. Read more background and see a related action here. Click here~.
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Ralph Connor Memorial
United Church (RCMUC)
CONTACTS
Note 1: The church offices are closed in compliance with Alberta Covid mandatory office workers Work At Home restriction. The mail, email and phone messages will be picked up regularly between Tuesday to Thursdays.
Note 2: For RCMUC business please contact at the following phone or email designated for business purposes. Please respect that questions often may not be answered afterhours without access to business resources. Access to personal mobile phone and personal email devices are intended for emergency purposes.
Administration: Trish Campney
Minister: Rev. Greg Wooley
Music Director: Tanya Sullivan
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Rundle Memorial
United Church (RMUC) Contacts
The mail, email and phone messages will be picked up regularly.
Administration: Nancy Murray
Mailing address: P.O. Box 1086
Street address: 102 Banff Ave
Banff, Alberta, Canada T1L 1B1
RMUC Website: http://rundleunited.ca/
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Ralph Connor Memorial United Church
Mailing address: P.O. Box 8901
Street Address: 617 Main Street
Canmore, Alberta, T1W 2B1
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