Friendship and Service Making Wafers for the Wider Church Family
Jo Cotton speaks to Shirley-Anne and Charles Collins about the fabulous Wafer Room ministry and their experiences over the last 9 years coordinating this ministry.
Charles and Shirley-Anne Collins have been the Wafer Room Coordinators at St Barnabas now for about 9 years, a role that they both love and are very good at. They run a team of about 30 volunteers who come in regularly to bake, bore and pack communion wafers to go out to various churches and denominations throughout New Zealand, from Invercargill to Auckland, including a number of cathedrals.
They value the friendships they have made, which is something that our volunteers also agree with. They enjoy the fun and fellowship with others when they are in the wafer room. Some have commented on how much they miss going in if they have been away or couldn’t make it that week. Others have said how much they like going in for a chat. At the end of every year Charles and Shirley-Anne host a fabulous end of year Christmas party at the Vicarage to celebrate and thank all the volunteers. It sounds like a very rewarding and enjoyable way of serving our church.
They also see this ministry as part of St. Barnabas’ outreach to other churches. In a sense St. Barnabas becomes part of the worship in other parishes.
The other thing that I think is important to highlight about the wafers that are produced at St Barnabas, is that they are free of any plastic packaging! Both the priest's and people's wafers are all packaged in cardboard boxes which can be easily reused or can be disposed of in the recycling bin. Shirley-Anne is also looking into the possibility of using the new NZ Post recyclable postage bags. As we are now part of the Eco Church NZ network, it is very important that we continue to improve our impact on the planet and offer eco-friendly wafers.
If you are looking for an enjoyable way to help serve and have some fun and fellowship and are interested in becoming a volunteer in the Wafer room, please do contact Shirley-Anne or Charles collins5@xtra.co.nz or the Parish office.
