Haste ye back!

Referencing his appointment as being a great honour and humbling opportunity, the Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland 2021, HRH Prince William highlighted during the opening, the role afforded time to see and hear something of the challenges and opportunities faced by people, old and young that are supported by areas of the work of the Church.

It was therefore a delight and privilege to welcome His Grace to our Queen’s Bay Lodge residential home on Sunday 23rd May.  Whilst restrictions prevented a visit into the home, residents, members of their families and CrossReach staff welcomed him to a marquee based event in the home’s grounds.

Today [27 May '21], as His Grace reflected on his experiences throughout the week, we were not altogether surprised when he spoke about Betty Magee as being the “star of the show at Queen’s Bay Lodge who is full of beans despite the horrid year she’s had” before adding “Betty’s certainly got my number!”

Our Queen’s Bay Lodge team were included in his recognition of the compassionate staff from the organisations he met with during the week, emphasising that they all “brought to life that the church is not a building but a community bound together by a common creed and shared commitment to serve”.

The Rt Hon Lord Wallace of Tankerness QC noted that every photo from the visits showed people readily engaged with His Grace and that was certainly our experience. As the General Assembly 2021 has now formally concluded, we wish everyone who attended in person a safe journey home.

In bringing his presentation to a conclusion Prince William said to the people of Scotland, “See you soon”.  In response, the people of CrossReach and in particular, those of Queen’s Bay Lodge would like to say “Sir, haste ye back!”