Earlier in the year the Anglican Church at its General Synod adopted Mary MacKillop into its Lectionary of Saints. Canon Chris Rogers of Lumsden invited us to join in a celebration at Nokomai on the 8th August.

Snow was forecast for Friday and so it happened! We had been invited to lunch with one of our Parishioners and to travel with her to Nokomai. It was snowing when we left Gore, and it snowed while we had lunch, and it was still snowing when we set out for Central. I felt rather dubious about it all! However, it was wet snow so it didn’t settle and by the time we got on the Queenstown Road it was fine – overcast but fine – and the mountains were beautiful.

There were about thirty five of us – Anglican and Catholic who had gathered in the remaining wing of the Cameron home. The original home was made of wood and stone. Only the stone wing remains and it was restored in 2000 as a Millennium Project. The present owners Anne and Barry Hore welcomed us warmly around the open fire.

The service was led by Canon Rogers, assisted by Bishop Len Boyle who had come over from Queenstown; Barbara read the Introductory Rite and I gave the Reflection on Mary MacKillop.

Afterwards we enjoyed a Southern afternoon Tea, as well as enjoying meeting many new people caught up in Mary’s story, among them, several Cameron descendents.

I think we were all very much aware that history was being made that day – and so Mary MacKillop returned to Nokomai.

Jennifer Schollum rsj