MCC set to address COVID-19 threats
As COVID-19 spreads and worsens, Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) continues its worldwide work while attending to the health and well-being of its staff. MCC is well positioned through its ongoing water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), health and food programs to address the threats of the novel coronavirus for some of the world’s most vulnerable people,…
Westview adapts outreach during pandemic
How does a community fellowship deal with the current physical distancing and self-isolation situation that everyone is facing? Caleb Ratzlaff, the convener of Westview Christian Fellowship in St. Catharines, Ont., which also serves as the hub for the Westview Centre4Women, says staff needed to be creative to reach people in the neighbourhood during this time…
Caring during COVID-19 crisis
How do you stay home when you don’t have a home? How do you physically isolate when you already seem invisible? How do you wash your hands frequently when public facilities are closed? For people who are struggling, the COVID-19 pandemic adds “another layer of challenge,” says John Neufeld, executive director of the House of…
Doing justice in a pandemic
COVID-19 has altered the lives of most Canadians, but for those in prison and those reintegrating into society after prison terms, the pandemic’s impact is enormous. Parkland Restorative Justice in Prince Albert, Sask., offers inmate visitation through its Person to Person (P2P) program. Executive director Heather Driedger says visitors have not been allowed into the…
Bread, masks and serving seniors
Tim and Sandra Kuepfer of Vancouver are among those doing their part to keep themselves and those in their neighbourhood safe during the current pandemic. Sandra works at Swiss Bakery and routinely brings home extra artisanal bread loaves. Tim, who is the English pastor of Chinatown Peace Church in Vancouver, then takes the bread to…
20 tips for surviving school at home
Many families are spending more time together at home these days, requiring greater parental involvement in schooling. While some parents can calmly slip in a Zoom meeting from an “Instagramably” tidy house while their virtuoso kids make an organic lunch without being asked after having peacefully completed the tasks their teachers “Seesawed” them that morning,…
Online paska contest a resounding success
She couldn’t gather family and friends around her table to eat paska this Easter, so Heather Driedger decided to hold a virtual paska bake-off instead. Paska is a rich yeast bread popular among those of Russian Mennonite heritage. Traditional paska is served at Easter with a sweet cottage cheese spread called glums. Modern-day bakers often…
‘A well-nourished spirit’
Sue Steiner left behind a huge legacy when she passed away on Aug. 26, 2019. As beloved wife to Sam Steiner for 50 years, treasured aunt to a number of nieces and nephews, and a cherished member of several circles of close friends, she left personal legacies. As a woman who served the church as…
We need more Peters!
“We need more Peters! He’s only one man,” exclaims ex-offender Kayel Truong, when asked about the Bridges Ministries program run by Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Alberta to help prisoners of faith successfully reintegrate into the community. Peter Worsley, MCC’s offender reintegration chaplain, loves his job. “I get to experience the joy of seeing God work…
Not so radical after all
While people across Canada and around the world self-isolate from COVID-19, work continues on the Coastal GasLink (CGL) pipeline in northern British Columbia, without the full consent of the Wet’suwet’en people. The 670-kilometre long pipeline plans to snake through Wet’suwet’en territory and export liquefied natural gas around the world. Steve Heinrichs, director of Indigenous-Settler Relations…
