Minutes of September Council Meeting

387^th meeting of St. Paul’s Chaplaincy Council – 10^th September 2023 at 12 noon

Introduction: The Minutes of two previous meetings were approved, actions taken noted and the following were pending: rota for supervision of St. Paul’s Sunday merchandising table /a TRIO (The Responsibility is Our) financial presentation / official advice on church evacuation procedure in case of a major event.

The vacancy: Paperwork had been submitted and, following advice from our Bishop, amendments were made due to the importance of St. Paul’s within the Diocese and our fruitful relationships with the Orthodox Church and other faith groups. The post would now be advertised not only on the Diocesan website but also in the Church Times.

Finances: These were slowly recovering following losses due to Covid and helped by the much-appreciated legacy of the late Sylvia Hill. Looking forward, fundraising events needed to be expanded in order to avoid the use of UK funds.

Safeguarding: Certificate-holders were reminded to note the date of expiry and apply for new ones if necessary. Any congregation member could obtain Level 1 certification, free and with an online course.

Environment: Local Environment Officer (LEO), James Papageorgiou, presented his report and it was agreed that St. Paul’s should aim to become an Eco-Church as part of the Diocesan project to become a Green Diocese.

Chaplaincy Apartment: A new washing machine and some furniture needed replacing and the floor repairing due to flood damage earlier in the year caused by a blockage within the building.

Ministry Team and Locum (visiting priest): Assistant Chaplain Deacon Chris reported that the team was working successfully to ensure continuity of services and Diocesan Office would notify us of the availability of locums. Other Chaplaincies and individuals would also be approached for support.

Pastoral Care: Father Ted Wetherall, now elderly, had been hospitalised and official services were no longer held in Tolos. Phone calls and home visits to the sick and housebound continued and any cause for concern could be referred to our Ministry team or a council member for action.

Refugee Giving: The final date for distribution of these funds was approaching and Cosmo Murray of the ‘Mazi’ Housing Agency for homeless immigrants would give a Sunday presentation on their work.

Fundraising: Community Connect Coffee mornings, quiz evenings and book sales continued, the Harvest Festival would take place on 22^nd October and the upper floor of the War Museum was booked for 3^rd December.

The meeting closed with prayer at 2 p.m. – next meeting Sunday, 19^th November.

Jean Mertzanakis (Hon. Secretary)

St Paul’s Harvest Festival – Kokotos Winery Sunday 22nd October 2023

Join us on Sunday 22nd October to celebrate the Harvest in the beautiful surroundings of the Kokotos Estate, 1 Ktima G. Kokotou, Stamata, 145 75.

Starting at 11.00 hrs with the Harvest Service, followed by Wine Tasting and a Harvest Lunch.

To book seats on the St. Paul’s coach contact Lynn Stavrou on 211 183 8414 / 6938 325 088 / lynnstav@gmail.com   Depart St. Paul’s 10 a.m. prompt. Depart from vineyard 4.30 p.m. Please note that numbers are limited.

For event tickets and further information contact :

Lynn Stavrou (see above) OR Shirley Poulakis – 210 934 2830 /

Michaelmas Edition of St Paul’s Magazine

The Michaelmas Edition of the Parish Magazine is now availabe to view and download  HERE

Please note that due to difficulty in obtaining contributions for this edition the magazine will only be published quarterly in future in the hope that more people will feel inspired v to send in an article, comment or even a recipe.  Any comments should be sent to Oliver Knight or to the website.

St. Paul’s Church Council Meeting – 29th April, 2023

The meeting was the first following the March Annual meeting and opened with a prayer at 10 a.m. Archdeaconry representatives James Papageorgiou and Vassilis Kotsikogiannis were welcomed at the beginning of their three year appointment, along with Dr. Judy Triandafillou, co-opted for one year.

Appointments: Lynn Stavrou (Vice-chair and Safeguarding Officer); Jean Mertzanakis (Hon. Secretary); Nelly Paraskevopoulou (Hon. Treasurer); James Papageorgiou (Local Environmental Officer/LEO).

Secretarial Report: Annual Statistics for Mission re: attendance numbers, type and regularity of services etc. had been completed by Father Leonard and sent to the Diocesan office; Jean had updated the St. Paul’s information published on the “A Church near You” website.

Chairman’s Report: The Bishop of Truro’s visit had included many official meetings re: his report on Freedom of Religion and Belief for the British government and it was hoped that a committee consisting of ourselves and other churches in Athens could be formed to promote this work. Bishop Philip had conducted a baptism, a confirmation and two receptions into the Anglican Church and said that his visit had reminded him of the diversity he so much appreciated when he was posted in Europe.  Treasurer Nelly reported that insurance claim paperwork had been submitted re: the flooding of the Vicarage that had occurred whilst Father Leonard and Lynne were in Scotland. The Ministerial Team (Father Leonard, Father Bjorn, Deacon Chris, Nelly and Angelos) would take place before Father Leonard’s end of tenure on July 23^rd in order to arrange services during the interregnum period that would follow his retirement.

Financial Report:  A legacy of €28,000 had been received from the estate of the late Sylvia Hill, last member of the Hill family, who had served the church as Council members and Officers for many years. €8,000 would be donated to Greek charities and the remainder would support St. Paul’s. Sylvia’s legacy had been gratefully acknowledged.

Re: online fundraisers, it was decided that there would be one  per year during the Christmas season.

Safeguarding Report: New council members must complete Level 1 online Safeguarding training – any member of the congregation could do this if they wished – no cost was involved and a certificate would be issued.

Fundraising/Social Events: The 2023 date would shortly be booked and relations with the War Museum were good. The renting of two tables to “Paidiki Trauma” had been successful and the possibility of renting to other charitable organizations (including our partners) would be considered. Preparations for the Summer Coronation Bazaar were in hand. €2,818 had been raised from book sales between April 2022-2023 and Father Leonard was thanked for his donation of theological works. Books were also sold at Newcomers meetings, attended by Assistant Chaplain Deacon Chris. Sales of the church guide “Opening the Doors” were going well.  Coffee mornings and quiz evenings had restarted and were popular fundraising events.

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter: In accordance with Diocesan best practice, more than one person should be involved in the running of our online communications and teams were currently being formed, involving Caroline Daniels, Churchwarden Trevor, Treasurer Nelly and Chloe Smith.

Council meeting dates: 8^th July / 10^th September / 12^th November.

The meeting closed at 11.30.

Jean Mertzanakis (Hon. Secretary)