As Ashburton’s St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church celebrates 150 years, another Mid Canterbury church from the denomination is closing. Susan Sandys reports.
‘‘Maybe I should have gone to church, maybe we all should have,’’ says Dan Symons.
The Mayfield Religious and Charitable Trust member is lamenting the closure of the Mayfield Trinity Presbyterian Church.
Its final service, for decommissioning the church, was on Sunday.
The 1967 building will now be prepared for sale.
In line with the church, the trust which has supported it is now winding up and dispersing its funds.
Symons, as a member of the trust, presented more than $200,000 to various groups at a morning tea function last week.
The presentation was in the church itself. Representatives of various groups received their funds against a backdrop of serene blue, beaming from the church’s coloured altar windows depicting religious parables.
Symons said the event was ‘‘bittersweet’’. It was rewarding to give funds to groups doing good work, but sad to reflect on the loss of the church.
‘‘I wasn’t a church goer, but I was quite happy to raise funds for the church and the ministry,’’ he said.
The reason behind that had been his respect for the role of the church – how it brought the community together and was there for people when they needed it.
‘‘It’s something we assume it will always last, but hasn’t,’’ he said.
‘‘It’s gone.’’
About $80,000 from the trust is going ‘‘back to the church’’, meaning towards the Presbyterian continued fellowship project in the wider area, its Three Peaks Mission.
Other funds presented were $30,000 went to Presbyterian Support in Ashburton, $20,000 to Westpac Rescue Helicopter, $60,000 to Mayfield St John, $2000 to foothills fire brigades of Alford Forest, Mt Somers and Mayfield, $2000 each to children’s play groups at Carew/Peel Forest, Mt Somers and Mayfield, and $2000 to the Opuke Trust.
