Helen's Bay
News and Events
Chaplaincy Booklets
Our Advent Project, all those months ago, was to raise money to buy booklets for the Hospital Chaplaincy work. Revd. James Cunningham came to speak at church in December, and the congregation responded very generously to the appeal to buy the booklets. A big thank you to everyone who gave so generously! Here is the Trust article reporting on the subsequent delivery of the booklets:
"On 12 June 2026 representatives of Helen’s Bay Parish visited the Ulster Hospital to present the Chaplaincy Team with a large supply of Daily Strength booklets. These booklets, produced by Lifewords, have Bible verses for 31 days along with Psalms and the Lord’s Prayer.
The Church of Ireland chaplain at the Ulster Hospital, Revd James Cunningham, was delighted to have been asked by Revd Peter Hilton, Helen’s Bay Rector, if there was a practical way in which the parish could support him and the chaplaincy team. Having previously used Daily Strength booklets the answer was easy. The Parish undertook a fundraising campaign and soon had enough to pay for 2500 booklets! James said, “This is such an encouragement to me and the whole team. Due to the generosity of the folk of Helen’s Bay Parish, we will also be able to distribute booklets to other hospitals within the Trust area.”
Revd Don Gamble, lead chaplain, thanked Peter and the team from Helen’s Bay for their generosity and support, adding, “The booklets will be a great source of help for patients, their families, and also staff. We are delighted to have such good relationships with churches in the Trust area.”
Revd Peter commented, “When the need for these booklets was made known, it really captured the imagination of the church, and people gave generously. For our congregation, it is a real joy and inspiration to partner in this small way with the chaplaincy team, and support the invaluable work of hospital chaplains in the local area.”
Presenting the Books at the Church in the Ulster Hosptial
Back Row: Revd. James Cunningham, Chaplain, Revd. Peter Hilton, Louise Tully, Gemma Hilton
Front Row: Vivienne Manley, Chaplain, Revd. Don Gamble, lead chaplain, Lydia Hilton.
Music Festival
Helen's Bay Musical Festival Hosted by St John's
We are delighted to play host once again for the 4th year of the Music Festival.
There is a great variety of music over the course of the weekend 7th-9th August.
Take a look at the flyer and click the link below to find out more!
https://www.ticketsource.com/helensbaymusic
As well as the events above, you can find out more about all that goes on at St. John's by emailing us to sign up to receive the paper copy of our bi-monthly magazine, Views from the Bay.