SACO — St. Augustine of Canterbury held a bottle drive on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 168 North St. in Saco. All funds raised during the event, which was held on the front lawn at the church location in the Grange Building, are used to support the homeless and less fortunate in York County.
During the event, people dropped off whatever unredeemed bottles they had. One person even donated a pick up truck-load of bottles.
The church’s next project for the less fortunate will be collecting bicycles for foster children, which is in its fourth year.
The next fundraising event will be the Christmas fair and yard sale, which will be held on Nov. 22.
St. Augustine of Canterbury is a member of the Anglican Church in America and the worldwide Traditional Anglican Communion, and remains faithful to the Holy Bible and worships according to the traditional Book of Common Prayer. The parish worships at 168 North St. in Saco at 10 a.m. on Sundays. The parish is lead by Vicar Jeffrey Monroe and Rev. Deacon Allen Ryan.
For more information, call 229-8700.
Audit of Portland diocese complete
PORTLAND — An independent, on-site audit of safe environment procedures has found the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland in full compliance with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. The charter calls for an effective response from the diocese to any report of sexual abuse by church personnel, background checks on all diocesan employees and volunteers who work regularly with minors, special sexual abuse prevention training, and other mandates for the protection of children, according to a statement from the diocese Thursday.
The on-site audit reviewed the period of July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014. One hundred percent of all diocesan employees and active clergy have had background checks, according to the diocese. Auditors also reviewed the implementation of the Think First/Stay Safe Prevention Program for children in Catholic schools and those that participate in religious education offered through their parishes, and the implementation of the Protecting God’s Children Program for all those working and volunteering in the Diocese of Portland.
“A successful audit represents the hard work of many people,” said Bishop Robert P. Deeley. “We will work diligently throughout the diocese to guarantee that our safeguards remain in place to prevent future abuse, and, as always, we continue to pray for the healing of and to care for all who have been harmed.”
The Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People was approved by the U.S. Catholic Bishops in June 2002, revised in June 2011 and is reviewed every two years. The mandates include removing clergy or Church representatives who have sexually abused minors; reaching out to victims and their families with patience and compassion; reporting all allegations of sexual abuse of minors to civil authorities and investigating all complaints of abuse in a timely, thorough manner; implementing safe environment programs, which include abuse prevention training and awareness for all personnel and volunteers; and completing background checks on all personnel, according to the statement.
The on-site audit was conducted in September by StoneBridge Business Partners of Rochester, New York. The independent auditors commended the Diocese of Portland for its commitment to protecting children and for its cooperation during the audit process, according to the statement.
Deeley encourages anyone who may have information about any case of sexual abuse of a minor by a church representative to contact civil authorities, as well as Michael Magalski, director of the Office of Professional Responsibility for the Diocese of Portland, at 321-7836 or michael.magalski@portlanddiocese.org.
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