History of St. John's Parish Church (2009 - 2010)
The new year started in style with a special award.
In the 2009 New Years Honours List, St. John's Boys' Brigade leader, Captain John Methven was awarded an MBE for "voluntary service to the Boys' Brigade in Kirkcaldy, Fife". The award could not have gone to a nicer and more dedicated person. At the time of the award John had been associated with the brigade for 72 years.
Well done to John! And a great start to the year!
As part of Kirkcaldy Presbytery’s review of churches in the local area, a union between the congregations of St. John's and St. Andrew's Churches in Kirkcaldy was required to be formed during 2009.
Various meetings were held to keep the two congregations informed and the process continued for the remainder of the year.
Rev. Nicola Frail decided that a fresh start would be needed for the combined church so, after leading St. John's for five years, informed the congregation that she would be leaving in mid-March.
At the end of January a special "Sponges or Scones" fundraising event was held in support of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution SOS Day: SOS - Sample our scones or sponges. Stalls and a raffle also entertained the many visitors.
At the service on 1st February, long service certificates were received by Janet Ferguson, Tom Harrow, Jack Jarvis and Mary Struthers. The certificates were signed by the Moderator, Rt Revd David W. Lunan, and were for more than 30 years service. Congratulations from all at St. John's.
The Boys' Brigade Cairn was topped out at the start of March with a short ceremony where four time capsules were inserted and sealed. These included items made by the boys and memories of the day.
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Boys' Brigade Cairn Topping Out |
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View pictures from the Cairn Topping Out |
On the 15th March, Rev Nicola Frail led her final service at St. John's. After the service, a finger buffet was organised so that members of the congregation could say thank you for the five years together. Nicola was presented with a card from the Church organisations and a folder of pictures drawn by the children of the North Primary School.
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Farewell to Rev. Nicola Frail |
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View pictures from Rev. Nicola Frails farewell |
Nicola has now moved to the parish of Ardler, Kettins and Meigle which is in rural Perthshire.
St. John's services were now shared by an excellent selection of guest ministers. These included Rev. Graham Blount, Rev. Jack Gisby, Rev. Dr. Andrew Munro, Rev. Alex Fosyth, Rev. John Thomson, Rev. Ian Gordon, Rev. Bryan Tomlinson, Rev. Jim Dick, Rev. Leslie Barrett and Rev. Peter Elston.
March saw a concert by The East Fife Ladies Choir hosted by the Guild. This well attended event offered a wide range of music from the 40 strong choir with refreshments available in the Methven Hall.
The Get-Together annual Tea Afternoon in April supported the Fife Society for the Blind.
Christian Aid week in May was marked by our special Soup and Sweet Lunch held after the morning service.
At the end of the month a Photo Book was published which reviewed the centenary year in pictures. Many images from the special events and the people involved provided a great reminder of the celebration.
The annual Guild/Get-Together bus trip was again held in May. Over forty members headed off in a big bus and visited Dobbies Garden Centre in Perth, Crieff High Street and finished with a meal at Freuchie.
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View pictures from the Perthshire trip |
The fundraising team held a very successful Big Quiz at the end of May with tables of four answering questions which got more difficult as the evening progressed! Over 50 people enjoyed a great Saturday Night out!
The Boys' Brigade attended an Activity Weekend at the start of June at the National Centre, Inverclyde. It was designed to be a large adventure weekend for boys and included a varied selection of water sports.
The Strawberry Tea season got off to a great start with one of the warmest weekends of the year. Over 100 enjoyed the strawberries in the church grounds.
At the end of June a new Walking Group was formed. Leaving from the church in shared cars, the first walk was around Silverburn in Leven and was enjoyed by all the walkers, although the weather was a bit damp!
For the second year running a sponsored walk around Beveridge Park was held with proceeds going to Christian Aid.
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John Methven with his MBE at Holyrood Palace |
At Holyrood Palace on the 30th June, John Methven received his MBE for services to the Boys' Brigade, see picture on the right. John has written a report on the celebrations held for the 125th anniversary.
The 5th July saw an increase in the church outreach programme with new short services being held at the Bennochy Lodge Nursing Home at regular intervals.
The second Walking Group event circled Kinghorn and included a visit to the to the Ecology Centre.
In August, the 20th Kirkcaldy Brownie Pack, which had met at St. John's since 1934, was merged with the St. Andrew's Church Brownie Pack with all meetings being held at St. Andrew's Church Hall.
The Taekwondo Club hosted the 2009 European WTTU Camp at Kirkcaldy High School during the second week of August with students flying in from all over Europe joining instructors from America. During the week a series of workouts and seminars were held with a special Tournament closing the meeting on the final Saturday.
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Taekwondo European Camp 2009 |
On a very windy day in October the Walking Group enjoyed a Mystery History Walk led by Bob Docherty. A minibus was provided for the large number of walkers who secretly made their way to St. Andrews. Lunch was taken at the University.
The Guild's 80th birthday was celebrated with a special dedication service on 1st November with Guild members participating in the service. Afterwards, a special cake was unveiled to mark the occasion.
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The Guild's 80th Birthday Cake cut by Mrs E. Craig, the longest serving member of over 60 years, and Sandra Marshall |
The Christmas Fayre was the usual great success with a large number of home baked items and jams for sale including a vast amount of bric-a-brac.
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Christmas Fayre 2009 |
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View pictures from the 2009 Christmas Fayre |
This years Christmas celebrations got off to a fine start with a nativity play performed by the Children of the North Primary School led by their own choir. The Salvation Army were also present to collect the many gifts donated by the congregation to needy children in Kirkcaldy.
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Donated presents are collected by the Lieutenant Ali Friday (pictured) and Elna Robertson from the Salvation Army, for distribution around Kirkcaldy at Christmas. |
2010
The Union of St. John's and St. Andrew's Churches moved a step closer at the start of the year with the visit of Church of Scotland arbiters on the 27th January. At a special meeting held at St. Bryce Kirk, the buildings of St. John's were chosen for the sole place of worship for the new Bennochy Parish Church of Scotland.
A special Homelessness Sunday service was held at the end of January with a soup and Shepherds Pie lunch being provided. The Worship Committee led the service with contributions from the Bethany Christian Trust and a drama group from Kirkcaldy High School. Food left over was taken to a local hostel for homeless people and was gratefully received. Additionally, a sponsored Sofa-Surf realised an amazing £378 which was split between Scottish Churches Housing Action and The Bethany Christian Trust.
At the end of February two special fundraising events took place. Firstly a Scotland wide Souper Sunday soup lunch in the Methven Hall raised over £400 for HIV/Aids work via the Church of Scotland and the annual RNLI SOS tea afternoon raised over £700 for this vital service.
In March 2010, the St. John's congregation formed a union with St. Andrew's Parish Church to become the new Bennochy Parish Church which worships today in the new St. John's buildings.
Acknowledgements
This history of St. John's was based on the works of Mary Sherrard and other contributors, most of which was originally published in 2002.
Church Magazine (The Echoes)
The St. John's Parich Church magazine, "The Echoes", is available online with a full archive from 1950 to 2009.
Read the collection of magazines ...
Organisations
The table below shows a few of the St. John's organisations which have been formed over the years.
| Organisation | Formed |
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| Boys' Brigade | 1925 |
| Women's Guild (now Church of Scotland Guild) | 1929 |
| Girl Guides | 1934 |
| Brownies | 1934 |
| Young Wives and Mothers Group (now Women's Group) | 1970 |
| St. John's Playgroup | 1972 |
| Men's Association (now Bowling Club) | 1973 |
| Get-Together | 1981 |
| Mothers and Toddlers Group | 1993 |
| Taekwondo | 2004 |
| Walking Group | 2009 |
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