It takes a village to raise a
child…. and the village of St John’s has raised a lot!
‘It takes a village to raise a child’ is a frequently used Nigerian Igbo proverb. Michael won a Young Game
Designer BAFTA this summer. A real BAFTA
from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. They have been awarding
them for computer games programmers for 10 years. As you can imagine I am a
very proud mum. He worked very hard on the project and his game design was
chosen as the best in the 15-18 category.
The award ceremony was different this year, the announcement was online
and the trophy has still not arrived as the factory that makes them has been
closed due to the pandemic! I am sure it will arrive soon with his ‘goody bag’
of games and more importantly the opportunity to be mentored by some industry
experts. In the grand scheme of things the delay is the least of things and it
has not spoiled the celebrations too much.
I know many of you know Michael but equally you may know the
stories of the successes of the many other of St John’s alumni. Young people
need a foundation on which to grow and our young people are testament to the
support and nurturing of our church community.
Our alumni have gone out into the world and are making it a better
place. They are making a difference as medics; musicians; youth leaders;
defenders; programmers; engineers and many, many more. They are successfully
running their own businesses, representing us at prestigious universities and
giving their time to help others.
I would like you to take a moment to acknowledge that as a
part of the worshipping community you have contributed to all of this and
accept my thanks, and I am sure the thanks of those generations of parents who
came before and I am sure will follow.
Extending our Christian fellowship provides a framework that
other young people may not have. They are given the confidence to read and
speak before a large group because they know you will catch them if they fall.
They have the ability to take time to reflect because you sat with them in
prayer. They can see how their actions impact on others because you helped them
consider another way. All of this is freely given in a safe place where they
are told that they are held in an all encompassing love.
As one of the proud mum’s, thank you.
Barbara Ballantyne
‘Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is
old he will not depart from it’
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