Holding Grief and Joy.
Welcome to my July Newsletter...
The last few months have felt very full. The last time I wrote you in this space, I mentioned that a few of our community members had passed away in close succession. Unfortunately since that time three more have passed. We are in a heavy season of loss here at The Dale and our community needs all the prayer we can get. Mark Roberts died unexpectedly after falling ill in the hospital. He was a quiet presence at our drop-in, always with a book in hand. He now rests peacefully with his beloved cat Mocha who he loved so much. Bernice Sampson died after battling cancer for a number of years. She was strong and full of life, always bursting with song and prayer. She was ready to go to heaven to be reunited with her daughter. And Kenny died mid-June, after being tragically hit by a streetcar. He was always checking in on people, bringing them extra food and never without a good outfit and a story to share. His death was very public and traumatizing for this community. All are missed so deeply and have left huge holes in our hearts.
As is our practice here at The Dale, we walk alongside each other through our grief and also in our joy. We have been holding memorials and visiting hospitals, calling family and printing pictures, sharing stories of our friends and crying a lot. And yet… we must also make space for joy in order to keep going.
In the last newsletter I talked about the grant that Erinn got for us to do more art workshops. We held another one at the end of May that was facilitated by a friend and community member, Helyn. She is a talented artist who finds peace in painting rocks, so she shared this skill with us and a group of artists who frequent our Thursday morning art drop-in. We also just had another workshop on June 18th that was facilitated by Erinn’s daughter Cate who is a talented young photographer. She led a workshop on photography with disposable cameras!
Summer around here means lots of hellos and goodbyes! We often get the chance to meet new friends as Summer brings youth groups visiting with their churches for various missions. We love to tell them the story of the Dale, go for a walk around the neighbourhood in small groups, and meet up after for a freezie and a space to debrief. The youth sometimes get to witness the city like they haven’t before (as many come from the suburbs), hear about a church without walls, and meet some great people. We love their comments and questions as they discover the Dale.
The beginning of July marks the end of our six month period with German interns that we have every year from Liebenzell Mission (an international, evangelical Christian mission). Two students from their group integrate into our community, lend a helping hand, learn about our church, and participate in our programming. We often become very attached and are sad to see them go…. thank you Lisa and Ems for loving our community during your time here! We had a small picnic with some of our church community at the end of their time here to send them back to Germany with love.
Pre-Covid we held a weekly Tuesday afternoon drop-in that often ended up in the park during the Spring and Summer. We recently reinstated this drop-in a couple of weeks ago, and its been a small but cute little time for us to be together, have a snack, and chat for an hour. We gather at the park across from 201 Cowan every Tuesday from 1-2pm (unless its raining!). Come hang with us! We continue to make space for intentional fun-time with our community, and this is one of many ways we can do that.
Thank you to those of you who reached out in prayer about our renovation situation. We were able to move back home mid-June and have been settling back into to our new space and routine. I feel so much more at peace since being back in our space, and I am so grateful that we were able to return home. I know many do not have the same privilege. Charlotte has finished up Junior Kindergarten and is now in daycare for the summer. This has been a bit of a transition for her to adjust to but I think we are on the right track.
I am also really needing to fundraise more if I want to maintain my hours here at The Dale. I am about $650 short of what I need to be fundraising monthly! If a handful of people donated $50-$100 a month (or less if that’s what you could manage!), that would help me so much. I am grateful for the support of you ALL and I would really ask that if you know any friends or church folks that are looking support a missionary (me!) that they get in touch. They can also visit here to donate. Thank you!
“So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.” John 16:22
Prayer Requests
Prayer for me that I would be able to find the courage to navigate my grief through counselling. I am starting to notice the impact on my mental heath from the constant death here.
Prayer for The Dale and the neighbourhood as we grieve our friends Mark, Bernice, and Kenny.
Prayer that I would be able to find new folks to share The Dale with that could help with fundraising.
I always look forward to writing this seasonal newsletter and sharing our life with you. It brings me great joy to share about our life at The Dale, and that you WANT to know about it. Thank you for being part of our community if your own ways. I also trust that I can be honest with you, and I know you will pray for us and for me. I would also love to be praying for you. Please reach out to me with any prayer requests or use the “Message Meagan” button below. I love hearing from each of you! I can never say thank you enough for your support, love, and generosity - but I will try time and time again. Thank you! I can’t wait to see you here again next time. Have a great Summer! Be well and safe!