With listening sessions conducted in congregations across the diocese, the first phase of the plan is now complete. In January and February, Bernadette Arthur, the founder and lead cultural strategist at Co:Culture Collective, who is leading the 15-month anti-bias and anti-racism training, held listening sessions with members from different congregations and heard about the issues, challenges, obstacles and hurt experienced by Anglicans because of racism and bias in the Church.

Participants expressed a range of experiences around belonging and inclusion in parishes and in the diocese more broadly, Ms. Arthur says. “We heard things like, ‘I’ve found belonging in my local church, but I’ve experienced barriers to accessing
diocesan resources and have felt tokenized by leadership,’” she says.

The experiences shared at the listening sessions will be used to inform the training that will be rolled out over the coming months. “If we’re finding that there’s a pattern with people’s experience of belonging on the parish level, we’ll allow those experiences to inform how the training is designed,” she says.

The listening sessions will inform the content and focus of the training, to ensure that it is relevant to the context of the Diocese of Toronto. “We’ll bring in quotes and stories that we heard,” she says. “It will help us scratch the areas of community life that’s itching.”

The training will address issues of racism and bias at both a parish level and at the structural level of the diocese. It will help promote gender, racial, sexual and ability diversity and inclusion in parishes and in the leadership of the diocese. It will do so using an intersectional lens and biblically inspired approaches.

“Through individual and corporate prayer, and sustained commitment to the learning, unlearning and relearning process, we expect that this journey will result in a different, transformative way that ministry is happening in the diocese. Ministries will operate in a way that people know they are welcome and are able to fully participate in all areas of diocesan life,” she says. “People would know on a gut level, ‘I belong here. I am accepted and loved.’”

With a more inclusive culture, the Church would have a greater capacity to identify issues, address divisive behaviours and develop solutions that reflect the values of the diocese as a faith community. But first, the hard work of addressing racism and bias in the Church needs to be done so that Anglicans can live out the mission that God calls them to.

In the next few months, a group of clergy and lay leaders will be trained to deliver the anti-racism and anti-bias workshop to clergy and staff. “It’s been really promising and encouraging to see the high level of interest and commitment to this work from people across the diocese,” Ms. Arthur says.

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“We are asking you to consider being good stewards of creation as we grapple with the growing climate emergency,” he wrote. “We invite you to consider setting a goal to reduce our collective carbon footprint.”

Beverley Dowling, a parishioner at St. George, Pickering Village, took up the bishop’s challenge by looking at what she could do in her own community. In Pickering, thousands of acres of land are owned by the federal government for the purpose of building an airport, but Ms. Dowling says there is no need for one.

“That land is prime agricultural land,” she says. “So, I just decided to start a petition.”

The petition, launched on Oct. 15, asks that Parks Canada be the agricultural custodian of the lands. In the first week, it gained 300 signatures. More than 900 people have signed the petition. If successful, the changes the petition is asking for would allow the lands to continue to be used to grow food for surrounding cities and communities.

“The biggest city in the country gets most of its food from other places, but most people in Toronto have no idea how important farmland is,” she says.

In addition to providing food to the surrounding communities, local agricultural lands would help cut down the carbon footprint of the produce sent to bigger cities by reducing the distance it would need to travel, she says. “The longer the mode of transportation, the more energy it takes to get there.”

There is not a business case for an airport in Pickering now, she says, and developing the airport on the lands would take away the option of using it as farmland and potentially disrupt the surrounding ecosystem.

“When you take thousands of acres of farmland and pave over it, you can never bring it back,” she says. “We’re going to have an absence of what nature has created to protect the Earth.”

Ms. Dowling is not against building new airports, but she says their development should be considered alongside environmental preservation. It’s that concern for creation that inspired her initiative.

“We don’t realize the importance of these things until they affect us,” she says. “We forget sometimes that the environment is something to be treasured.”

Caring for the environment in one place helps promote a better global climate, she says. While the petition seeks to protect lands in Pickering, the benefits would be seen in the region, the country and the world, she says.

“We need to be in communion with the Earth,” she says. “We’re all spinning around on this small planet.”

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When the pandemic hit and the lockdown came, the organizers knew they couldn’t have everyone run the same route at the same time, so they opted for a virtual run. That meant anyone could participate anywhere. With people participating or supporting the run from as far away as Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and British Columbia, the virtual run became a surprising success.

“In some ways, it has eliminated a lot of logistical issues and because it’s virtual, we’ve had people participating or supporting all over the place,” says Bishop George Elliott, interim priest-in-charge of the Parish of Lloydtown, which organizes the run each year. “It’s kind of opened it up in a nice way.”

With 108 participants, many of whom were whole families registering as one participant, the run exceeded its participation from 2019.

The annual run was started 10 years ago by the then-incumbent of the Parish of Lloydtown, the Rev. Sheilagh Ashworth, who died this past June from cancer.

At the diocese’s 2018 Synod, the Rev. Sheilagh Ashworth spoke about how she started the run to engage the Schomberg community and invite newcomers to their church. At the time, less than one per cent of the town attended church. So, if they’re not going to church, she asked herself, what are they doing instead? And how can the church engage with them in activities they are already doing?

“What do people do religiously in our town?” she asked at the time. “We thought about it and came to the conclusion that running is something that people in Schomberg do religiously.”

In the first nine years, the run raised over $50,000, which was shared between Pikangikum First Nation, an Ojibwe First Nation located in Northern Ontario, and the Parish of Lloydtown. When they started the run in 2010, Pikangikum had the highest suicide rate in the world, and the same population as Schomberg.

“She was absolutely horrified at Pikangikum First Nation possibly being the suicide capital of the world,” Carol Ann Trabert, who has helped organize the run for 10 years, says. “The water was so bad, you couldn’t even bathe in it.”

One way to support the First Nation was to help it address its infrastructure needs. The funds raised by the run, along with additional funds from the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund, supported it to secure an improved water source and run safe water to houses on the reserve.

The commitment to supporting Indigenous communities to access safe water and address environmental issues came from the Rev. Sheilagh Ashworth seeing these as central to her ministry.

“She was a person who cared for all people. That’s what called her to ministry in the first place,” Geoff Peat, another long-time run organizer, says.

Before she died, she asked that the run organizers raise funds for the Toronto Urban Native Ministry.

“She said ‘Don’t stop the run. Give everything to them,’” Ms. Trabert says.

The organizing committee wanted to fulfill her wish and honour her legacy. In recognition of her immense contribution, this year’s run was in commemoration of the Rev. Sheilagh Ashworth and her commitment to Indigenous issues and reconciliation. All the proceeds went towards supporting Toronto Urban Native Ministry.

“She was the original inspiration and we wanted her to be part of the 10th anniversary,” Mr. Peat says.

The organizers raised $20,000, which will be matched by FaithWorks for a total donation of $40,000 to the Toronto Urban Native Ministry.

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“I don’t want to pay $7 for cauliflower, and I’m not on a fixed income,” she says.

With rising food prices and a lack of fresh produce, she knew there was a need in the community for locally grown fresh produce. In the spring of 2018, shovels went in the ground at Flemingdon Park Ministry’s urban farming project, the Common Table, located at the Church of Our Saviour, Don Mills.

That summer and fall, staff and volunteers pulled spinach, kale, tomatoes, peppers, onions, eggplant, Swiss chard, bok choy, herbs and cucumbers out of the ground.

Since that first harvest, the project has continued to grow, adding a greenhouse and learning hub, building community partnerships and distributing more produce to more families every year at its weekly community farmer’s market.

“The farm is legit,” Ms. Williams says.

In the first year, 129 families registered at the ministry’s farmer’s market, held every Friday. In 2019, 250 families registered. But in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic presented challenges to safely hosting the market, and it looked like they may not be able to keep it open.

“We were inundated with phone calls saying, ‘Where’s the market? We miss you,’” Ms. Williams says.

Knowing that they had to keep serving families in the Flemingdon Park community, the Common Table partnered with FoodShare, a non-profit organization that tackles food insecurity in Toronto, to distribute their produce at the nearby Angela James Arena. With 700 families registered, the Common Table delivers 200-300 lbs. of produce every week.

“We wouldn’t have been able to keep everyone safe,” Ms. Williams says. “This is the best way to distribute our produce.” Having shown itself to be an important community asset by growing and distributing healthy food to hundreds of families, the next step is to deepen those relationships and build more community bonds. “We hope to start building relationships with kids and families in the community,” Ms. Williams says.

With its lands sitting between Our Saviour and Three Valleys Public School, they are aiming to build discipling communities in urban farming by launching a Bible study group focused on Jesus and the environment.

“It’s going to be about discipling through farm and food justice,” she says.

The farm is also developing a learning hub to teach local students about food sustainability and urban farming.

These relationships will help ensure the farm is part of the community, and the community is part of the farm. “The community is connected to this, they’re involved and it’s having an impact,” she adds.

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“It wasn’t professional at all, but we were making it work,” Ms. Taylor says.

She emailed the recorded sermon to parishioners, and the response was almost immediate. “Everyone was so grateful to feel connected to their church family again. I wanted to offer them more. I wanted to offer them a little bit of home.”

With that encouragement, she got fancier. She downloaded a free video editing software and started adding in music and readings to make it as close to the experience of an in-person church service as possible. “This way, they can see the stained glass and hear the old organ in the church.”

Trinity, Barrie is just one of many churches across the diocese that have adjusted to delivering online worship services during the pandemic.

In downtown Toronto on a typical Sunday morning, as parishioners of St. Matthias, Bellwoods, attend the service, they all say hello to each other and greet one another with a friendly smile or a wave. The service is about to begin, but rather than sitting in pews facing the altar, they’re all sitting at home facing a computer on a Zoom call – including the Rev. Canon Joyce Barnett.

With items from the church, Canon Barnett has converted her dining room table into a makeshift altar. While Sunday morning service in the Anglo-Catholic parish would run 75-90 minutes, on Zoom they are less than an hour, accommodating parishioners’ virtual attention spans. But around 30 parishioners join the call every week.

“It’s really been lovely to use Zoom and it feels like a gathered community,” she says.

To support these and other churches, the diocese is handing out grants of up to $5,000. The Reach More Grants, as they are called, are helping churches upgrade their capabilities to deliver services online. This will be even more important with churches reopening for public worship and some parishioners may not be able to worship in person, says Elizabeth McCaffrey, the diocese’s Volunteer Resources Coordinator.

“That’s the biggest hurdle. How do we broadcast beyond our walls?” she says.

To apply for the grants, parishes must submit a two- to three-page proposal with a fully costed budget that is supported by their area bishop. They are given a time slot to make a pitch to a panel of five people. Since it’s an expedited process, successful pitches are approved within a day, and the money is out the door within five business days.

That’s exactly the process that St. Matthias went through. After a successful pitch, it is now using the grant to upgrade its sound system, Internet connection, and broadcasting capabilities. As some, but not all, parishioners re-enter its church building for public worship, the equipment will be key to integrating the in-person and online experiences.

“We’re looking to broaden the gathering and maintain community connections,” Canon Barnett says.

The church will start posting its services on its website and on YouTube to reach more people who may be curious about Church but aren’t ready to step into the building. The recorded services will allow people to experience a worship service online before coming to the church in person, says Mario Bartolozzi, a Diocesan Tech Volunteer and parishioner who also pitched the proposal to the Reach More Grants panel.

“Going forward, this is going to be an asset to attract new people,” he says.

The grant will also help them expand their outreach ministry. Outreach events such as Saturdays at St. Matthias, an art show, and History Coming Out, an outreach event for parishioners to share their experiences of being LGBTQ2S+ in the Church, attracted 45 people in person, but with online tools, they expect to reach over 100 people, Mr. Bartolozzi says.

“If we use this correctly, we’ll be able to punch above our weight,” he says.

At Trinity, Barrie, Ms. Taylor’s recorded services are also reaching more people. She now uploads the weekly recorded services to the church’s new YouTube channel that reaches 150-200 people per week, up from their 75 weekly parishioners before the pandemic.

That broader reach has helped the parish raise $4,850 from parishioners, and receive a $5,000 Reach More Grant. “They have just seen attendance explode online. It’s brought more life to the parish,” says Ms. McCaffrey, who hosts the grant panel meetings. “They really built something out of nothing.”

To grow even more, the grant will allow the parish to get a new computer, camera, microphones and lights to improve the quality of the recorded services. Continuing and improving the recordings is important to providing worship services to parishioners who may not feel comfortable returning to church buildings for public worship, Ms. Taylor says.

“It’s been a wonderful thing to be able to serve the people of Trinity, Barrie in this way,” she says. “It has allowed us to have a new ministry and the Reach More Grant has allowed us to do that.”

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After a survey of the clergy who have gone through the program in the last five years, the diocese learned that they enjoyed and appreciated the support and opportunities to build collegial relationships with fellow clerics, but many of them found the program to be a large time commitment and contained a lot of content to digest.

“So, we decided to revamp the program,” says the Rev. Canon John Wilton, who led the program’s redesign.

Among the changes to the program are a reduced number of modules, dropping the length of the program from two years to one with the number of monthly sessions now 10. The revamped program will run from September to June, but clergy can join the program at any point. Another change is that the topic of the June module will be chosen by the participants themselves, giving them more control over what they focus on in the program.

“We’ve pared it back to the essentials,” says Canon Mary Conliffe, who also worked on the program’s revamp.

The essence of the program is a focus on sharing, problem-solving as a group and building relationships. To do that, the program is keeping a critical-incident section for each module, in which a member of the group gives an example of a problem they are facing in their ministry, and the presenter listens as the rest of the group discuss their reaction to the issue presented and what insights they may have about what is going on.

“Every time people go through the program, I hear how grateful they are for that support,” says Canon Wilton. “It lets them know they are not alone, and it also lets us celebrate their accomplishments.”

That approach to problem-solving is part of appreciative inquiry, which is a guiding principle of the program that looks at what works and how resources could best be used to implement solutions, rather than focusing on the problem.

“It’s a much more positive way to look at transitional issues,” says Canon Wilton. “It shifts the focus from what’s the problem to what’s working.”

Those supportive experiences form the basis of relationship-building, which is at the heart of the Fresh Start program, says Canon Conliffe. “The relationships are the product,” she says. “And we’ve seen the payoff for that in the life of the diocese.”

The Fresh Start facilitation team spent two years reworking the content of the program, deciding what modules to keep, compress or remove. Updated graphics and presentation slides have also been created. Finding the balance between providing participants with informative content and creating more space for participants to interact with each other was key to successfully revamping the program.

“While this is a mandatory program for clergy, we also want to make sure it’s worthwhile” says Canon Wilton. “We’ve listened to our clergy, cut down the content and increased opportunities for support.”

While the program is mandatory for clergy, there are also valuable and meaningful ways for congregations to support a new cleric entering their church. In workshops such as history-sharing, facilitated by volunteers, members of the congregation have the opportunity to tell their stories and new priests can see what challenges and opportunities exist in the parish, says Elizabeth McCaffrey, the diocese’s Volunteer Resources Coordinator. The stories often bring out themes of resiliency, and people see themselves as being able to withstand trials and hardships, she says.

“Fresh Start reminds us of the importance of our stories, and we are people of the story,” she says. “I think history-sharing is the most helpful and fun workshop, and it can be transformational.”

The revamped program launches in September with groups in each of the diocese’s four episcopal areas. With the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, these first participants benefit even more from the program.

“In uncertain times like these, transitions will be more difficult, which makes Fresh Start more important,” says Canon Wilton.

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“I’ve been so impressed and encouraged by churches engaged in outreach and continuing this work,” says Ms. Hocking.

She knows how much people rely on services that churches provide. As the director of outreach at the Church of the Redeemer in downtown Toronto, she oversees its drop-in program, The Common Table, which serves people experiencing homelessness, mental health challenges and addiction. Typically, daily life for them is stressful and precarious, but the pandemic – and the public health measures to combat it – have made it more complicated, she says. “Things were already on thin ice for them. A pandemic just cracks that ice wide open.”

Keeping the church’s program open wasn’t an easy decision, considering the health risks posed by the pandemic. “There are very good reasons to close and very good reasons to stay open,” she says. “We decided that we’re going to focus on what we can do really well. We’re going to commit to being a good food provider and a good community anchor.”

That decision to stay open has proven to be a lifeline for hundreds of people experiencing homelessness in Toronto. Since the onset of the pandemic, the number of people using the program has nearly doubled, from about 70 people per day to about 130. Meanwhile, the drop-in has been reduced to providing meals at the side door. Partnerships with local restaurants provide 100 meals per day, while staff make 30 meals per day for those with dietary restrictions.

“Our people are so grateful to show up and get a meal” she says. “It shows how hungry people are.”

Around the same time, staff at All Saints Church-Community Centre, east of Yonge-Dundas Square in Toronto, were anxious that there wouldn’t be enough personal protective equipment to continue to safely provide frontline services, such as food, tents, blankets and other essentials. The Rev. Dr. Alison Falby, priest-in- charge, was worried she wouldn’t be able to keep the church’s drop-in program open without her dedicated staff.

“I really wasn’t sure if we would have the staff to stay open. That was my biggest worry,” she says. “But our staff and volunteers are a very committed bunch.”

They’re so committed that in the first month of the pandemic, volunteers cooked big batches of casseroles and chili off-site and brought them safely to All Saints to feed their clients. Now, Dr. Falby has arranged for individually packaged meals to be delivered five days a week, but the dedication of her staff and volunteers in the early stages was invaluable. “

We couldn’t have gotten through without them,” she says.

For them, there was never a question of not wanting to continue to support the people who visit All Saints. The work is meaningful for them, which is what keeps them going, she says. “They love the people.”

Due to social distancing restrictions, they have had to limit the number of people admitted to the drop-in to 25, reducing the number of people they can serve. Staff members aren’t able to provide as much support as they would like to. “We have fewer opportunities to connect with people on a human level, and that makes me really sad,” she says.

The human connection that All Saints provides has a significant impact on the people its frontline workers serve, and its loss is that much more deeply felt. In 2015, the Halo Project found that All Saints prevented 69 suicides, 150 incarcerations, and helped 260 people with drug or alcohol abuse. If All Saints hadn’t stayed open to serve people through the pandemic, there would be more overdoses, suicides, crime, and more people experiencing hunger and sleep deprivation in its community, Dr. Falby says.

The Rev. Leigh Kern, the Diocese’s Indigenous ministries coordinator, has been serving members of Toronto’s Indigenous population, including pregnant mothers, elders and residential school survivors who live on the street.

Through the Toronto Urban Native Ministry and Church of the Holy Trinity, they have been serving 200 meals a day, six days a week, and arranged for culturally appropriate mobile testing of COVID-19 to be provided where people live.

“It’s been an exhausting 11 weeks in providing for our community’s basic needs and helping them survive,” she says. “Their way of life needs to be supported.”

But providing that support comes at a significant health risk, she adds. Despite wearing personal protective equipment, there is still a chance that she or her colleagues could get COVID-19. “We knew that we were all taking a risk. But the health impact on this community is devastating.”

It’s not just churches in downtown Toronto that are continuing to provide essential services. St. John the Evangelist in Peterborough has continued serving meals at the door to anyone who needs one. Typically, St. John’s One Roof dropin program serves meals on plates with silverware like a restaurant. Now, after scrambling for takeout containers, it serves individually packaged meals by the door, says the Rev. Brad Smith, incumbent.

“The staff were amazing at being able to pivot,” he says. “Everyone was on board.”

The early dedication of the staff was critical, especially in the first week when St. John’s was the only meal program in Peterborough, he says. They knew there was a need for their services, but due to physical distancing restrictions they couldn’t provide the medical, social and hygienic care they usually provide.

“It was easy to decide to stay open. It was hard to decide not to do everything else,” he says.

For now, at 1 p.m. every weekday, tents and picnic tables are set up outside the church and visitors stand behind orange lines six feet apart. Staff wearing personal protective equipment place a meal on the table, step away and then the visitor takes their lunch. The process minimizes physical contact as much as possible.

“We’re doing the best we can to keep everyone safe,” he says. “We depend on our fantastic staff and need them to stay healthy to continue the program.”

Back on Zoom, Angie Hocking continues to host a weekly Zoom call with over a dozen churches doing outreach across the province. They share resources, establish best practices and host guest speakers. Churches across the Diocese say funding and supplies of personal protective equipment are common challenges. But these are challenges best met together, she says. “The least we can do is band together. We have a nice group now that we didn’t have before.”

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“We had some concerns about whether we could conduct the service safely,” he says.

That same day, the Diocese of Toronto provided guidelines to suspend in-person worship at all its parishes in response to the emerging COVID-19 pandemic.

Even though church buildings were closed, Mr. Webb wanted to keep parishioners connected to the church. Absent an obvious solution, he prayed for advice: “God, give me guidance to keep people focused on you.”

Then came a revelation. “I had this idea of drive-through blessings.”

On Palm Sunday – the first day that he offered drive-through prayers – 30 parishioners came to the church’s parking lot to receive blessings.

“I thought, ‘if we just have one person come out, then I’ll do it again,’” he says. “That day got us going.”

Since that first Sunday, he has been offering prayers and blessings in the parking lot of the church to about 20 parishioners every week. Now, his Sunday mornings consist of hosting a Bible study on Zoom from 9 a.m. to 9:45 a.m., and from 10 a.m. until noon he provides prayers to a lineup of physically distanced parishioners who can catch up and connect with each other.

“Parishioners have enjoyed seeing other parishioners when they come,” he says. “It’s given them a way to feel connected. It’s given them time to reflect on what they’ve missed and what they appreciate.”

Most often, they ask him to pray for protection from COVID-19, for their neighbours, for compassion, for frontline workers, for those suffering from the virus and for those who have lost a loved one during the pandemic. The response from parishioners shows that they are craving a worshipping community when they can’t gather in person, he says.

On top of offering drive-through blessings, he has been trying anything he can to create and maintain connected communities among parishioners during the pandemic. He has set up a YouTube channel to post pre-recorded sermons and sent packages to every parishioner containing small crosses and a reflection guide to remind them of the certainty of Christ in these uncertain times.

“I was game to experiment and adapt on the fly,” he says. “I’m up to try anything to get people thinking of one another and thinking of Jesus.”

When he came to the Church of the Incarnation less than a year ago, he couldn’t have imagined that he would be praying for parishioners from the parking lot, but he is grateful for the chance to keep people connected to the church even if they aren’t physically in the church.

“There was no sense that there was going to be a pandemic, but God doesn’t waste anything,” he says. “There have been many positives that have occurred already and many more that will come.”

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“I don’t suppose I would do it for any other reason,” says Mr. Gearing. “This is for people who are really in need. It speaks to me.”

Sticking to his routine all summer, he planned to walk 1,000 km and raise more than $2,000 in donations.

The idea for the campaign came to him back in the spring, on a Zoom call with Peter Misiaszek, the diocese’s director of stewardship development, and Peter Mentis, the FaithWorks campaign manager. The call was to discuss fundraising campaigns during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I thought, ‘I could walk and get people to sponsor me’” he says. “The idea of making a big walk by breaking it into chunks was appealing too because I am not typically a walker.”

He mapped out his routes using his car. As soon as he drove 5 km, he turned around and drove back. Through the walk-a-thon, he has seen the full gamut of Canadian weather, from snowfall in May to unforgiving heat in July and August. But that hasn’t been the only challenge he has faced.

In late June, he started to be targeted by a red-winged blackbird. For 10 days in a row, the bird divebombed him, and he couldn’t help but notice that it just squawked at other passersby.

“I couldn’t figure out why me,” he says.

He tried crossing the street. He tried walking at a more leisurely pace to seem less aggressive.

“Nothing I did stopped this bird until I took off my hat.”

It turned out that Mr. Gearing’s black hat was setting the bird off. After he doffed his cap, the bird merely squawked at him like everyone else.

He has been sharing stories like these on his Facebook page to keep his followers and sponsors in the know about the walk-a-thon, and to make an occasional appeal to them to donate to FaithWorks.

It was fitting that FaithWorks’ theme is to walk humbly with your God, says Mr. Gearing. “It wasn’t planned, but it was validating.”

Boasting 1.2 million steps and a farther distance than going to Montreal and back, Mr. Gearing admits that his campaign may not be quite the picture of Christian humility evoked by the FaithWorks theme.

“That dichotomy is not lost on me,” he says. “But it’s for a good cause. I’m walking for the homeless, the abused women and for everyone else to whom FaithWorks reaches out.”

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“I’m sure Judy can come up with masks for you,” he said.

Judy Hutcheson, his wife and a lifelong sewer, quickly got to work and made about 15 masks to protect the staff. “I was very happy to do it,” she says. “I don’t want them spreading the virus, either.”

Her masks helped ensure the virus didn’t spread at Flemingdon Park, and word about the masks quickly got around. She soon received requests to make dozens and then hundreds of them.

Just a few days after making the first batch for Flemingdon Park Ministry, All Saints Church- Community Centre asked Judy for some masks to support staff at its drop-in program. A friend also got some masks for St. Michael and All Angels church in Toronto. A whole Toronto police division asked for 175 masks for its frontline officers.

Then, Judy noticed a need for protective equipment in her own community. “Looking out my living room window, I saw lots of people passing without protection.”

She started making masks and hanging them from a tree on her front lawn with a sign saying “Keep Port Credit healthy. Please take one.”

The months wore on. Social distancing reduced the spread of COVID-19. Churches started to think about what worship services would look like when they eventually reopened. The Rev. Canon Jennifer Reid, incumbent of St. Peter, Erindale, knew that masks would be key to reopening safely, so she asked Judy for some help.

“It would be great if we had liturgical masks to match my stole,” Canon Reid suggested.

So, Judy got to work on the liturgical masks at her cottage, where she has a room with two sewing machines. “I’m very happy to be in there helping others stay safe and healthy,” she says.

The masks are similar to the ones she was making before, with one important difference: champagne embellished sparkly crosses. “I’m a bit of a glitzy girl,” she laughs.

Canon Reid is grateful that Judy made liturgically coordinated masks to match her stole and is happy to do her part in reducing the spread of COVID-19. “I have no problem with it at all. It’s appropriate and it’s the right thing to do,” she says. “Judy is a woman who loves to sew and be creative. She has a huge heart for helping people.”

The people Judy is helping with her homemade masks are now all over the world. She has advertised the masks on Facebook and is selling them, with the proceeds going to the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF). She has made masks for people in Washington, DC, and Newfoundland and Labrador. She has even been asked to make red masks for an entire church choir, but with one important change.

“Instead of a cross, it will have a treble clef,” she says.

Having made more than 500 masks, her project has been very popular, but she says she didn’t do it for the spotlight. “I wanted to do it to make sure everyone was safe and healthy,” she says. “I really thought this was an important project.”

And with requests for more masks coming in, she is staying very busy. “I’m heading back to the cottage – got to get back to the sewing machine.”

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