It's Done!

Several things are done today.

1. Finally, finally, our office has been repaired. New ceiling, new paint, and even a fresh wax job on the floor from the wonderful custodian at our host church. We're still not sure about that mould in the ceiling, but there's not much to be done at the moment. We're working on the alternative. That will take a bit of time, but if it all works out, we will be in a wonderful space with lots of options for ministry.

2. Bingos. Now, the propriety of supporting a church through bingos is another post (which I feel coming on and will try to post today sometime), but the fact remains that we have used them. However, the bingo industry (and it is just that, don't fool yourself, at least here in River City) has been sliding downhill for years. A lot of our bingo players used to come from the States, since the exchange rate was good, there was plenty of parking, and the prizes were generally better. But after 9/11/2001, it became harder to cross the border, and things slackened. This summer, the province instituted a smoking ban. And then the car makers laid off a lot of people. Taken together, these have done severe damage to the bingo system. The hall where we ran our bingos has closed as of the end of the month. We can find another location if we want to, and we will make the attempt. But we are also looking into some other options. Bingo is done, at least for us.

3. Pride. The chair and the finance committee were meeting last night to finalize the financial report--all those invoices that hadn't been paid yet, the past-due bills the vendors hadn't paid, etc. It was amazing and magnificent this year--ten days with events almost every single day, from a play to an AIDS vigil, from bowling to a church service, a night and an afternoon of entertainment that was just outstanding, and a parade that was the largest ever. We garnered more sponsors this year than ever, and the publicity and press coverage was amazing. So now we meet to review the final report, and then catch our breath and elect officers for next year.

4. Summer's about over. I know we theoretically have a few more days of summer here in the northern hemisphere, but I've seen the leaves changing, and we haven't had temperatures over 75 in weeks. If I want to enjoy the porch, I'd better get out there and do it!