E-NEWS FRIDAY 24TH APRIL 2026
As Rev. Fei is on leave, today’s e -newsletter is from Parish Convenor Pat Booth.
First, our thanks to Rev. Reg Weeks who will leading our worship this Sunday.
Tomorrow is ANZAC Day. One hundred and eleven years ago, Wellington tram driver Corporal Alfred Bade (my husband Graham Booth’s maternal grandfather) was serving in the Medical Corps at Gallipoli on the NZ Hospital ship “Maheno”.
Below is an edited extract from his diary after the battle of Chunuk Bair
Friday 27th August 1915 11 A.M. in Anzac Bay [now called Cove]
We received our first wounded & sick men on board who were wounded last Night, about 40 men came on board … I was stretcher bearer. There are only 3 serious cases. We had 3 operations mostly taking bullets out. There was another terrific battle today… Shortly afterwards we started to get patients who were engaged in the heavy fighting for hill 60 from 4 in the afternoon. The fighting men were covered by gun fire. At about 10.30 the patients started to come in to our ship by all kinds of boats and they kept coming in until about 11 A.M (Saturday morning). The wounds were of all sorts and kinds, some hideous, we took about 550 patients on board, but some 8 walking patients went off again into lighters. This is our first action. We took 450 patients to Lemnos.
28th Saturday Continued on Stretcher bearing from boats into our Ship, some patients were slung up, we were complimented on the quick way we load our wounded …. 4 men died and were buried at sea, we stopped at quarter hour for burial service. We left the Peninsula at 12.15 PM. midday.
We arrived at Lemnos at 4.30 Everybody working, our Nurses, Officers & men worked long hours, we finished bringing in patients about 11. AM. We left 12.30 mid Day and arrived at 5.30 at lmbros Is., and anchored for the Night, I went on Night Duty ….. Later we went around to Mudros. Our men captured hill W or 60 and held it, we had 1000 casualties.
I wonder what diaries will be available in 111 years’ time recording what is happening in the Middle East today.
St Andrew’s declared itself a Peace Church on the 8th of August 1983. Let’s keep that in the front of our hearts and prayers as we struggle to know how best to respond to the daily news in 2026.
I offer you the last verse from Shirley Murray’s song about white poppies for peace:
It is time: let the white petals float
over countries and cultures and lands;
it is time that the dreams that were lost
be reclaimed by our hearts and our hands.
Sad News:
Yesterday we heard from Rev. Fei that her very special Aunt Tili had died in Samoa. Some of you may remember that Aunt Tili was present at Fei’s birthday celebrations early in March.
Fei will be travelling as soon as possible to Samoa to honour a lady who has had a profound influence in her life.
This means that Fei will probably not be back in Wellington until after 4th of May. Jim Cunningham has kindly agreed to be our worship leader on Sunday 3rd of May. 3
If you like to read the full E-news please click this link https://mailchi.mp/16ed2495ce9a/this-weeks-newsletter-from-st-andrews-on-the-terrace-10140120
