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A VISIT BY TWO BOYS FROM THE ISLE OF HARRIS
by Chris Yovino

What does the Isle of Harris look like? We got a better idea when Aaron and Nathan arrived on July 20th with pictures of their home and church. Rocky shoreline, mountainous terrain, luminous light . . . beautiful! [Click here or on the thumbnails.]
. . . And so different from our usual view . . . Concord Pike, malls, fast food restaurants, I-95. We quickly found that all of us had a lot to learn from each other and a wonderful opportunity to look at our own way of life through the eyes of others.
. . . The boys arrived on a Saturday and began their visit to Delaware in Pennsylvania!! They had a wonderful greeting at the home of the Royals--Lynn, Dennis, Jon and Steve. A large number of St. Davidites and friends had gathered for a typical summer barbecue complete with a bonfire for making s’mores and then fireworks. In spite of a very long transatlantic trip and a couple of hours at Newark airport getting through customs and immigration, the boys took part in everything and charmed the guests.
. . . On Sunday morning, they were introduced to the Parish during the 10:15 a.m. service. They brought greetings from Christ Church parish, a book of pictures of their home and Church, and a beautiful icon of St. David. (Look for it to appear in a prominent place after renovations.) We learned that we have a special connection to Christ Church because the boys’ father, Daniel, who is the priest there, is a Welshman and he was interested in his church being paired with a church named after the patron saint of Wales, St. David.
. . . While the boys were staying at the Royals, they got to experience something new for them . . . the Mall and shopping for jeans and sneakers!
. . . Lynn and Steve Royal, Mary Lindquist and Kristen Smith went along to give advice. Sneakers are not standard footwear in Harris as they are here. Wellies (rubber boots) are ideal for getting around there, hence the need to get new footwear for their time in the States.
. . . On Tuesday, the boys moved on to the Myers household where Amy, Dennis and Greg were their hosts with Kim and Spencer DeHaven going along on a beach outing and sightseeing in Baltimore and Washington, DC. They went to the Jersey shore for swimming at Strathmere and the boardwalk in Ocean City. All the boys enjoyed the Arcade on the boardwalk and especially pin ball and air hockey. The next day, they went to Baltimore and the Inner Harbor to visit the Aquarium and on Thursday, they went to Washington, DC and the Smithsonian Museum. The boys loved the Air and Space Museum and the IMAX movie. They also visited some of the other museums and Nathan was particularly thrilled to see a Japanese Samurai outfit that he had seen in a book. He was able to get a really good look at it and learned what it was made of, something he didn’t get from the book.
. . . As we all know, sightseeing generally means you eat in Food Courts. This was another new experience for Aaron and Nathan. Amy Myers had a hard time convincing them that Americans actually eat at home! There wasn’t much time to relax but the boys did get a chance to visit a video store one evening, pick out a movie and take it home to watch. The Terminator wouldn’t have been Amy’s choice. However, the boys seemed to love it (often with eyes half covered)!
. . . Too soon, their time with us was over and Amy took them down to Newark to joint the group from St. Thomas’ going out west to the Dakotas. We’re hoping this is just Chapter One of our story of Christ Church and St. David’s.
. . . This was written with help from Lynn Royal, Amy Myers, and Pat VanCatledge. Click here to see the photos the boys brought of their. There is also a picture of the boys with some new friends taken by Ken Francis. Have a look!

A short history of our relation to Christ Church, Scotland
by the Rev. Mary Lindquist

As many of you know, the Diocese of Delaware has a companion relationship with the Diocese of Argyll and the Isles, in Northern Scotland. Although we are only in the beginning stages of this relationship, several people from Delaware have already visited Argyll and the Isles and a few people from Argyll and the Isles have visited Delaware.
. . . Last winter while thinking about an intergenerational idea for St. David’s Day, the Christian Education Committee thought it would be fun for St. David’s to be paired with a church in Argyll and the Isles; that way, St. David’s could have a church-to-church relationship with a congregation in another part of the world. Although we weren’t quite sure which church this would be, we made up a book of pictures and letters about St. David’s (at our St. David’s Day event), which we planned eventually send to our partner church in Argyll and the Isles.
. . . Meanwhile, we communicated to Thom Jenson, rector of St. Thomas’ Church in Newark and part of the Companion Relationship Committee, that we were interested in having a companion relationship with a church in Argyll. Coincidentally, Thom was preparing for a trip to Argyll and the Isles and he said that he would look for a church for us!
. . . Thom came back from his trip with a great church in mind for St. David’s, named Christ Church. This is a small church on the island of Harris. Harris is located in Western Isles in the northernmost part of Scotland, near the Island of Lewis. Christ Church began only 20 years ago, with people from the island meeting in people’s homes. They then converted a garage into a small church in the middle of the island.

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