Killiskey

€100 was raised during August to support the work of the Royal National
Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). Many thanks to those who contributed.

The Parish Harvest Service will take place at 11am on 4th October. The
speaker will be the Newpark School Chaplain, the Revd Suzanne Harris.
“ONE SWALLOW DOES NOT A SUMMER MAKE”
Shakespeare popularised Aristotle’s expression “One swallow does not a
summer make” (although even this probably pre-dates him in a poem by
Aesop three centuries earlier): an early sighting of a spring swallow does
not mean that summer weather has arrived, as bitter northerly winds can
plunge us back to winter temperatures. Cold, wet springs delay the onset
of breeding, as flying insects are not available.
Swallow, swift and martin numbers have reduced dramatically over the
past few decades, due to declining populations of insects. Agricultural
intensification has resulted in more insecticides being used and less field
margins and wild areas. Gentrification of urban areas reduces wildflowers
still further. There is then less food for insects and thus less food for
swallows, martins and swifts.
Good numbers still do occur in places, e.g. near horses (dung provides
food for insects, provides food for birds). We can all help though – sow a
patch of wildflower meadow and you will be rewarded with a riot of colour
and a lovely humming of bees, hoverflies and a host of other insect
species. Short cut lawns have their place, but leaving some areas uncut
reaps dividends for wildlife. Aristotle and Aesop would be saddened by
the paucity of swallows today.

We need more help with cleaning and arranging flowers for the church and
with sanitising the church at the end of services. We are very grateful to
those who help the church in these ways but would like to spread these
tasks more widely. Rotas are posted on the church notice board

Sadly a range of events which would normally take place in September
cannot occur this year due to coronavirus;
• Re-commencement of Unity Gospel Choir practices
• Animal blessing service
• Hospice Coffee Morning Fundraiser
• Sunday Afternoon Children’s Service
• Culture Night at Nun’s Cross
• Table tennis
• Saturday Morning Bible Studies
• Wicklow Parish BBQ
• Camino de Glendalough

Sunday Services have now returned to Nun’s Cross church.

The Wednesday evening service, held jointly with Wicklow Parish, is continuing to be held online via zoom. A link is provided in advance on the parish website, together with the service leaflet.

If you would like service leaflets delivered to you either by email or to your home, please contact Rev Ken.

The Hub is now open most days of the week and a rota of volunteers has been put in place to allow for six day opening. Many thanks to all our new volunteers! Many additional items have been donated since the shop re-opened and trade continues to be good.

Please consider renewing or beginning your financial commitment to Killiskey Parish by way of Planned Giving. By doing this you can maximise the amount of money received by the Parish and greatly assist the Parish to meet its financial commitments. Planned Giving is making a pledge to donate an amount of money regularly over the course of the year whether weekly, monthly, quarterly or by a single donation. Under the tax regulations, the Parish, as a registered charity, can obtain a tax refund from the government for recorded donations from tax payers (PAYE and Self-Assessment) who contribute a minimum of €250 in the tax year. This is the equivalent of €4.81 per week. The parish can claim a further approx. 45% of the amount donated from the government. Cash donations on the plate, while very gratefully received, are not eligible for a tax refund. If you are contributing more than €250 over the course of the year through this method, you might like to consider Planned Giving.

Planned Giving can be done in any one of the following ways:

*The envelope system enables parishioners to donate regular cash amounts which can be recorded for tax refund purposes. Envelopes can be obtained from the churchwardens.

*By setting up a standing order with your bank for a minimum donation of €5 per week (or monthly or quarterly equivalent).

*A donation or donations totalling at least €250 can be made directly to the Parish Treasurer, Scott Golden, Malvern House, The Glebe, Wicklow Town.

The Easter General Vestry (Annual General Meeting) was deferred due to the lockdown. The Diocesan Office has now advised us to proceed with its arrangement. Accordingly, this meeting will take place after the church service on 30th August (i.e., starting around 11.45am).

The  elections to be conducted this year will be:

Two churchwardens (one nominated by registered vestry members)

Two glebe wardens (one nominated by registered vestry members)

Twelve select vestry members

Two members of Diocesan Synod and two supplementalists

Two Parochial Nominators and two supplementalists

 Partly due to the Covid19 crisis, it took a record time to form a government, from the general election in February to the formation of the three-party coalition in June. Going into government posed a huge dilemma for the Green Party members: would they enter government and, almost certainly, fail to keep to all their manifesto promises or would they join and be in a position to exert as much pressure as possible on the other two, less environmentally conscious, parties. Now, being in power, there is definitely a stronger green agenda than there would otherwise have been, including commitments to: reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 7% annually; ban the importation of fracked gas; improve public transport, cycling and pedestrian infrastructure; introduce a Climate Action (Amendment) Bill within 100 days of the new Dail; increase carbon tax to €100 per tonne by 2030. Perhaps now is a good time to introduce more sustainable living practices and establish green companies while the economy, so devastated by the pandemic, is being re-booted. This approach should benefit all members of society.