On Monday and Tuesday 28th and 29th May 2018, Richard Taylor along with several members of Spott Parish Church organised an outing for the P5 children from the local school. Some photographs of the event taken by Fraser Stewart have been included in the above slideshow of DCT events. Richard wrote the following letter of thanks:-

 

Dear friends at Spott Parish Church,

 

On behalf of the Dunbar Area Christian Youth Project and all the Primary 5 children who visited your church during the week, I would like to pass on a huge thanks to you all.

 

When the idea of bringing 140+ children up to Spott to learn about its Christian heritage came to mind in a conversation with Peter MacIntyre at the Belhaven & Spott open day, I went away and learnt about the fascinating, if not slightly blemished history of the church. It is a story that has to be told and a story that continues to this day through you. Pulling off such an event needed a shared vision and a lot of faith on your part.

 

The visit of the children helped them learn more about the story of the church, but more than that to discover some of the Christian values we hold dear. It also challenged them to reflect on their own beliefs. At several points throughout the 2 days we saw children take moments to reflect, pray and take in some important life lessons.

 

The warm welcome they received will have made them feel at home and I have no doubt some will return with families and friends. Peter and Charlie had them captivated with endless historical facts and it was wonderful to see them enthusiastically standing in the pulpit sharing their own personal messages, and to be be at ease in a place that traditionally would have kept children silent and contained.

 

Over at the village hall I have learnt that this was probably the first time since the school closed in 1968 that a class of children have been in there to learn. Fiona Jones and her team had them creating some very colourful art work which we hope to share with you some time in the future. 

 

We hope the school will want to repeat the event next year and I hope that it will become a regular fixture in your calendar. Either way we should give thanks to God for the visits and the gifts he has given to this church that enabled it to happen. I look forward to working with you all again soon.

 

Every blessing,

 

Richard Taylor