Easter Services at Beach United Church will include a Good Friday service on April 7th at 10am in our Main Hall. You may also join us for a Sunrise Service (6:45am) at Leuty Station on April 9th. Our regular Sunday Worship service will be taking place at 10:30am in our Main Hall with communion.
Good Friday, April 7th, 10am – Beach United Church, Main Hall
(Download Bulletin for Friday’s Service)
Easter Sunday, April 9th, 6:45am – Sunrise Service, Leuty Station
Easter Sunday, April 9th, 10:30am – Beach United Church, Main Hall
(Download Bulletin for Sunday’s Service)
Beach United Garden – 2022 Year in Review
Written by Hastings Withers:
Beach United Church’s gardening group is a small group comprised of members of the congregation and interested members of the local community, who would get together once a week on Saturday mornings to tend the church garden. The garden itself expanded three years ago from around the building to include landscaping around the parking lot.
The garden continued to be a wonderful mix of bright colours and imaginative new ideas – the latter evidenced by Matt and Andy planting tobacco in the veggie containers, producing giant bright pink flowers and a shed full of drying leaves which were shared with an indigenous group for ceremonial purposes.
Acknowledgements
That once again this lovely display reappears in our church garden is a tribute to the many members of the congregation who have generously donated plants, and to the past gardeners at Beach United. Special acknowledgement is due to Sally Evans and Matt Canaran, who have now indicated they can’t continue with the garden due to other priorities. They are featured in the pictures above with other regular volunteers.
In the left picture is Matt (centre) with Shah and Andy at the initial planting of vegetable beds in May. The centre pictures includes Lynne (left), the other regular member of the group. In the picture on the right, Sally is tending the fast growing okra in the veggie beds, which have been regularly watered and cared for by Britta (right).
The Vision: local plants, minimal watering
An important feature of this garden is that it concentrates on local plants adapted to our climate, which do not need regular watering. So, NO WATERING is the rule, (apart from some special cases: when planting, and the raised vegetable beds).
What it all adds up to.. “A garden of colourful flowers”. The picture at the top of this page shows the garden at its peak, in early summer. To be followed shortly by late summer’s colourful flowers, sumac, hosta, bee balm, Japanese anenome, brown-eyed susans – lorded over by the three gloriously blooming Roses of Sharon!
LOOKING FORWARD TO 2023… It will be challenging: the departure of Matt and Sally will leave a huge hole, and new avenues may be required to provide the expertise and time required to maintain the garden in its present form, perhaps including reconfiguring for a new future.
If you are interested in joining or assisting with our gardening group, please contact Hastings at: hastings@withers.ca
Joni Mitchell – Words & Music Lecture Series
Beach United Church presents Dr. Mike Daley, musicologist and storyteller, with a six-part lecture series exploring the iconic Joni Mitchell.
Mondays at 10am – April 17, 24, May 1, 8, 15 & 29
All Lectures – $120
Single Ticket – $30
Explore the life and music of one of the most influential and beloved singer-songwriters of all time, Joni Mitchell with Dr. Mike Daley. In this course, we’ll do a deep dive into the career and artistic journey of this iconic artist, from her early folk roots to her groundbreaking forays into jazz and pop. Along the way, we’ll listen to and analyze classic songs like “Big Yellow Taxi,” “Both Sides Now,” and “Woodstock,” as well as delve into the personal and cultural influences that shaped Mitchell’s unique and enduring sound. Whether you’re a long-time fan or new to the music of Joni Mitchell, this course will deepen your appreciation and understanding of her enduring legacy.
Wearing a mask is strongly recommended at this event. Coffee will be available.
Lecture Outline
Monday, April 17 at 10am: Early years in Canada
Joni Mitchell was born into a middle-class family in western Canada, growing up as an artistic and spirited child. After an unplanned pregnancy, Joni moved to Toronto to bear a daughter (and soon give her up for adoption) and begin a career as a folk musician. We’ll examine her early years playing the coffeehouses in Yorkville and the start of her songwriting career.
Monday, April 24 at 10am: Joni’s breakthrough
Even as the folk scene declined, Joni’s engaging live performances and finely crafted songs attracted the attention of influential tastemakers and put her in the upper echelon of rock music. We’ll examine her first album Song To A Seagull, her more accomplished follow-up, Clouds, and a third album, Ladies of The Canyon, which contained the massive radio hit, “Big Yellow Taxi.”
Monday, May 1 at 10am: Rock stardom
The release of Blue in 1971 confirmed Joni’s legendary status in the popular music of the ’70s and cemented her image as the model of a singer-songwriter. We’ll examine the emergence of Joni’s new full band sound on her albums For The Roses and the mega-selling Court and Spark, establishing a format that she would retain throughout the rest of her career.
Monday, May 8 at 10am: Jazz explorations
Her fame assured, Joni spent the latter half of the 1970s developing a new jazz-influenced approach to her music. She collaborated with legends like Charles Mingus, Jaco Pastorius and Pat Metheny, and produced a series of fascinating albums that never found large audiences: The Hissing Of Summer Lawns, Hejira, Don Juan’s Restless Daughter and Mingus.
Monday, May 15 at 10am: Navigating the changing pop landscape
The 1980s represented a sea change in the music business – and in Joni’s music too. After a return to form with her 1982 album Wild Things Run Fast, she tried to update her sound and subject matter on Dog Eat Dog and Chalk Mark in a Rainstorm. Meanwhile, a second marriage and a reunion with the daughter she gave up for adoption provided her with the personal stability to start revisiting her past.
(Monday May 22 is the Victoria Day long weekend)
Monday, May 29 at 10am: Latest works and legacy projects
Over the last 25 years, Joni has balanced interesting new albums with orchestral remakes of her greatest hits. A brain aneurysm suffered in 2015 lowered her profile, but her influence as a performer and songwriter remains huge. We’ll close the series by examining the many tributes she’s received in recent years and her enduring place in the pantheon of popular songwriters.
Coffee will be made available during the morning lectures.
Children’s Choir at Beach United Church
PLEASE NOTE: Our Children’s Choir is currently on break! Please stay tuned to our website, and/or our social media accounts for further updates.
Sheila Brand, a member of our choir, is leading our new Children’s Choir! Sheila is a former music teacher using the Orff Approach, for vocal, ukulele and drama/dance programs at Williamson Road Public School. Children ages 7-12 are welcome, and free to anyone to join!
Below is a 60 second clip of the Children’s Choir performing This Pretty Planet at our Sunday Service on Sunday, May 21st. Click on “Watch Full Video” to watch the rest of the performance!