Much joy on Saturday afternoon when Rev Gerry Livingstone was licensed and installed as Priest-in-Charge of St Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Tain by Bishop Mark.

Although Gerry comes originally from Glasgow, he has always had a connection with Brora where members of his extended family have lived and he has therefore been a frequent visitor over the years. Gerry now lives in the cottage in Brora which was left to him by his Aunt and Uncle and during the week works for the NHS in Golspie.

Bishop Mark conducted the service, assisted by Rev Stuart Thomson. In his address Bishop Mark reminded the congregation that whilst Gerry was to be their leader, they had to play their part, not least because Gerry has a full time job during the week.

The church was full of friends of Gerry, the St Andrew’s congregation, members of local churches, other Episcopal clergy and also clergy from other denominations. Music was provided by Jamie Campbell at the organ, a choir of local singers who amongst other things sang the anthem “There’s a wideness in God’s mercy” during communion and of course there was also enthusiastic congregational singing.

Afterwards Gerry was presented with an engraved vase depicting St Andrew’s Church, a gift from his new congregation. As always there was a splendid buffet prepared by members of the congregation. There was lively conversation and fellowship from those gathered as they ate and drank.

A huge thanks to all who contributed to a very uplifting occasion and we all wish Gerry well in ministry amongst us.

A lovely group of performers from Strathfleet Buttons and Bows gave a splendid concert of Scottish Traditional music last evening in St Finnbarr’s Church. This was the third Autumn Concert that the group have performed in St Finnbarr’s, with the largest number of musicians.

The music ranged from the wonderfully evocative tribute to “The Heroes of Longhope” to the bouncy “Crossing the Minch” and along the way we left Stornaway and Lismore, said Fairwell to Golspie and experienced a Starry Night in Shetland.

There were refreshments at half time and the enthusiastic audience enjoyed a sing-song of war-time favourites immediately after their tea break. As they say, a good time was had by all and a huge thanks to everyone involved.

The concert had a retiring collection to be shared between the work of St Finnbarr’s and the work of Buttons and Bows.

On Friday morning in St Andrew’s, we said farewell to one of the longest-standing members of the congregation – Margaret Fox – who to the many members of her family around the world, was always referred to as ‘Auntie’.

Margaret was born in 1927 and was therefore 98 when she died the week before last.

St Andrew’s Church was full to overflowing for a lovely service conducted by Fr Gerry.

Over the last wee while Margaret was clearly quite comfortable with the fact that she was nearing the end of her time on earth and would soon be meeting her Lord and Saviour. She was baptised in St Andrew’s where her family worshipped and she continued to worship with us until she moved to Invergordon in 1955.

Margaret worked in the post offices in both Tain and then Invergordon which she moved to with her mother, who she cared for for many years. After her mothers death she had time for her own interests: country dancing, baking and cookery classes, playing the organ at St Ninians, singing in the Gaelic choir, WRI to name but a few.

Holidays were a whole new world for her. Starting with a cruise up the Rhein she really enjoyed travel over the next 40 years she had many holidays in Britain and abroad. She also moved back to Tain and rejoined the St Andrew’s congregation.

Margaret’s large extended family are spread around the UK and the rest of the world. Cousins and friends world wide received regular missives and she loved it when she got the replies. All letters were shared with those who would be interested. She would read you the letter and then hand it to you so that you too could read it. Whenever she received a letter and any place was mentioned, it had to be looked up in her trusty atlas.

Her birthday book was a vital part of her daily life and each month she wrote a list of everyone who’s birthday was coming up – family friends and people in the congregation. If you wanted to know when someone’s birthday was, it was Margaret to whom we all turned.

Until the Post Office changed its rules a years or two back, parcels were tied up with string with lots of knots. Those who knew her well half expected that her cofin would be tied up with well knotted string!

To quote from the greetings she was sent on her 90th birthday:

“She enriched the lives of 6 generations of family and Her years of generosity, caring and love have given us and those who have gone before us such a wonderful treasure store of memories.“

If you want to read more about Margaret’s life, her Eulogy can be found here.

On a lovely sunny Saturday afternoon (26th July) Tom and Julia opened their garden at Arabella House under the Scotland’s Garden Scheme and generously donated 60% of the proceeds to St Andrew’s, Tain. Julia describes the garden as “a work in progress” but it is a lovely space to saunter round and admire the majestic trees and all the wonderful nooks and crannies of a really lovely garden. The event has contributed £734 to St Andrew’s who are very grateful for Tom and Julia’s generosity.

Of course no such event would be complete without refreshments. These were enjoyed by the large number of people who visited, sitting in the shade of the ‘parasols’ at the tables. A dedicated band of volunteers baked and provided excellent refreshments which were much appreciated.

As well as all that, there was a well stocked plant stall with a wide variety of stock lovingly prepared and staffed by another band of volunteers.

As they say, a great time was had by all, so a huge thank you to everyone who helped to make it such a success whilst at the same time raising funds for Scotland’s Garden Scheme and St Andrew’s..

Yesterday (22nd February) was the 99th annual World Thinking Day – a very special day celebrated and promoted by the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts – and so a number of members from the Sutherland Trefoil Guild joined the congregation at St Finnbarr’s in Dornoch this morning to mark the occasion. Our theme was Love Your Enemies and in the sermon we heard about two young girls, from very different places and very different times who were models of grace and forgiveness – Maria Goretti and Myriam from Qaraqosh – read today’s sermon to find out more!

An interesting article in this week’s Church Times, spot anyone you know?

https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2025/10-january/features/features/how-to-count-your-blessings-at-all-times-and-in-all-places

St Andrew’s Tain was very busy on 5th January for a joint service for the Feast of the Epiphany, with folk from St Finnbarr’s Dornoch and St Columba’s Brora joining those from St Andrew’s.

In the sanctuary Canon James and Janet were joined by Fr Simon and Jamie, all getting on with their allotted tasks.

The singing was superb with some very talented singers leading the large congregation in a joyful celebration of the coming of the magi, the revelation to the gentiles and the presentation of gifts. In the sermon the three youngest members of the congregation brought up the gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh accompanied by the appropriate verse of ‘We Three Kings‘.

It was also Canon James’s last service as Priest-in-Charge of St Andrew’s and the Mission Congregations and representative of St Andrew’s and St Finnbarr’s brought up gifts for James and Anna after which the congregations prayed for them in their retirement.

That was all followed by splendid refreshments and noisy fellowship in the hall – a fitting celebration of one of the key feasts in the Christian calendar.

Yesterday afternoon we had a splendid Service of Readings and Carols enjoyed by a full church drawn from right across the area. There were readers from several local churches and fellowships and a wide selection of traditional and other favourite carols sung by many members of choirs and the congregation at large, with great gusto. Afterwards there was a collection for the Samaritans which raised almost £250.

The service was followed by mince pies, Christmas cakes, shortbread and biscuits made by the youngest person there, washed down with mulled wine or spiced apple juice. It was great to see so many people 
enjoying themselves..
.

A huge thanks to all those who helped to make it the wonderful afternoon that it was and those who have helped to decorate the Church in the last couple of days, the readers and the singers and of course to Tom for accompanying the carols on the organ.

Yesterday Evensong, St Andrew’s, Tain resounded to the joyful thanksgiving for the reconstructed Belfry Tower in a service of Choral Evensong. A splendid choir assembled and led by Jamie Campbell aquitted themselves with great distinction, a superb organist in Gordon Tocher threatened to bring the tower back down again as he showed us what the Harrison and Harrison organ is capable of. Then of course there was the packed congregation who joined in the hymns with great gusto.

A huge thanks also to Myra and Carol who ensured that the choir, who rehearsed all afternoon, were fed and watered and then went on to repeat the exercise for the congregation after the service.

The readings were: Ezra 1:2-7, 2:68-70, 3:7-11: Psalm 84: John 2:13-22

The music was:
Henry Balfour Gardiner’s Evening Hymn
Anton Bruckner’s Locus Iste
Joanna Forbes L’Estrange’s Kings College Service
Setting – S Wallace in G
Voluntary – Sigfried Karg-Elert’s Chorale-Improvisation on “Nun Danket Alle Gott”