Fundraising

Marriage blessing

On 13th June 2019 Laura and Ben Benson brought their families from the USA for a blessing of their marriage. They had been married a month before in the USA and had a second ceremony here. It was a miserable, wet day but they didn’t seem to mind and everyone was warm and dry inside the church. The service was conducted by Rev Canon Michael Last, Rector of the Isla-Deveron group of churches.

The party stayed at the nearby Dowans Hotel where they had their reception. We wish Ben and Laura a long and happy married life together.

Antiques Valuation Day

We had a very happy and successful day on 25th May with lots of people bringing their collectibles for valuation. The experts from Lyon & Turnbull in Edinburgh were helpful and informative and so lovely with all the visitors. We are very grateful to them for coming.

There were mountains of sandwiches and cakes on offer so no-one went home hungry. All in all, a very good day for St Margaret’s.

Easter Day 2019

We had a good sized congregation for our Easter Day service. Rev Roy Vincent led the worship which started with bringing the light into the church. The paschal candle was processed to the chancel steps and then all the other candles were lit from its flame.

There was also a baptism during the service when we welcomed Susan McDowall into the church.

Tree planting

On Friday 29th March a team from the congregation planted an avenue of ornamental rowan trees down the church drive. Thankfully, one of the team had organised the hire of a small digger which considerably reduced the workload. Hopefully there will be lots of colour once the trees flower and produce their berries.

2018 Accounts

The audited accounts for 2017-2018 were presented to the congregation at their AGM.

Christmas Day 2018

What a lovely Christmas Day service we had!  There was a good sized congregation who all sang the carols with great gusto.  The church looked lovely with a splendid tree and the repaired crib figures.  We were delighted to welcome so many in the church – regular members, their families and visitors made up the number.  The service was led by Rev Roy Vincent and was very uplifting.  As he said ‘Jesus is the reason for the season.’

Christingle Celebration

On Sunday 23rd December we held a Christingle service in the church where we were joined by members of the Aberlour and Craigellachie parish churches.  There was a good sized congregation and we were fortunate to have three clergymen present.  Rev Roy Vincent opened the service, Christian Lontzek gave the address and Rev Morris Smith led the final prayers and blessing.  The children all received Christingles and sang by candlelight on the chancel steps.

Preparing the Christingles.

Rev Roy Vincent welcoming the congregation.

Sarah reads the nativity story from St Luke’s gospel.

St Nicholas with the Aberlour Toddler Group

On Wednesday 5th December we welcomed the children and parents of the Aberlour Toddler Group to celebrate the feast of St Nicholas which falls on 6th December.  We all listened to the story of St Nicholas and the Pirates and then the children hunted round the church to find their boots which had mysteriously filled with treats.  Following refreshments the children sang songs before leaving with their booty.  It was so nice to have all those children in the church and we look forward to welcoming them again.

The blessing of Otto

On Sunday 18th November, Otto Findlay Lontzek was welcomed into the church.  His parents, Christian and Kerstin, and his sister, Mathilde, have been with us since the beginning of September and have added greatly to our congregation.  We wish the family all the best when they return to Germany at the end of December.

Remembrance Day 2018

We had a good congregation for our annual Act of Remembrance.  Christian Lontzec piped us all out to the war memorial where Sandra played the Last Post before the wreaths were laid.  These were from the Lord-Lieutenant of Banffshire, the Scouts, our own congregation, the Western Front Association and Aberlour Childcare Trust.  We were pleased to have Oliver Russell, the 1st Aberlour Scouts and SallyAnn Kelly, Chief Executive of Aberlour Childcare, present for the occasion.