The afternoon of Thursday, July 25 was one that Baby Bear of Goldilocks fairy tale fame would have approved — not too hot, not too cold, in fact, just right! — and it proved ideal for our 20th Anniversary GES outdoor summer picnic, ably organized by Catherine Woodward, our Social Events Coordinator, and Del McCarthy. These two stalwart board members once again handled the lion’s share of the shopping and organizational work that makes this time together so special.
Under Catherine and Del’s direction, GES volunteers had prepared a summer feast of burgers and hot dogs with all the trimmings, veggie platters, cold beverages and tea, followed by assemble-your-own ice cream sundaes, and supplemented by generous additions from picnic attendees — our warm acknowledgement goes out to Gary Badke who helmed the barbecue, and our event prep volunteers Mah Naz, Carol Heimrich, Jinny Hayes, Maggie Mooney, Shelagh Houston, June Hope, Lynette Jackson, and all those who contributed to dishwashing and cleanup.
A wonderful concert of nostalgic tunes was provided once again by leader John Bryson and his band of merry music men — Gary Holmes, Bob McKechnie, Robert Turner, and Mike Super — as we nestled into the glorious gardens of Brenda Gaertner’s Net Loft to chat and feast. Our sincere thanks to these wonderful musicians for adding so much enjoyment and fun to the afternoon, and to Brenda for her gracious sharing of venue and equipment.
Thirty-five members registered in advance for this nostalgic summer gathering. Lynette Jackson, our SpiritQuest events coordinator, welcomed one and all, noting the joy generated by this annual opportunity to greet old friends (and hopefully make some new ones too), to feast together, listen to live music, and appreciate being alive on a gorgeous summer day in the exquisite Net Loft grounds and gardens. She led us in a traditional participatory grace from the Chinook Psalter, our West Coast First Nations neighbours to the south.
Lynette reminded us that our GES theme this year is “Celebrating 20 years of Spiritual Questing, Welcoming Future Growth”, “and that welcome is extended to each of you. We truly welcome your ideas, your enthusiasm, and any time you have to devote as volunteers or board members — without you this lovely little non-profit, almost totally volunteer organization cannot go on. We need each other, now more than ever in these turbulent and uncertain times. So please do consider whether you might be willing to join us in ensuring that vibrant spiritual questing continues on Gabriola.”
She announced that, following our Annual General meeting this fall, we will be launching into our 21st year, and our 2024-25 theme will be “Spirit Quest for a Sustainable Future” — our warm thanks to Colleen McCarthy for putting our intention into words. In alignment with our new themes, GES will serve as a co-sponsor together with other island organizations, of an exciting multi-month series created and facilitated by Shelagh Houston, one of our GES founding members and a much valued island treasure. Shelagh’s weekly series “Living into the Earth Emergency” will be offered January through March 2025. GES will wholeheartedly support participation in this series in lieu of our monthly event offerings during these months. We invite you to stay tuned for more information via our newsletter as it becomes available.
Thanks to one and all for sharing in this idyllic afternoon of spiritual community.
