Rev. Gloria MacLean not "in sync" with some changes in our denomination in recent years, I am forever grateful to the United Church of Canada for allowing me to minister to wonderful folks in Dundas , Annandale , and Georgetown ( Prince Edward Island ), Grandview , Manitoba , Emo and Devlin, Ontario , and, until June, at Rosser and Grosse Isle in Manitoba . But my earbest love of the church, its faith and its people, go back to all of you, in Lot 16 , when I was a young man in my twenties. My time among you laid the foundation for my faith and life ever since . . . and for the good part your con¬ gregation played in that, I deeply thank you! Rev. Gloria MacLean Written by Rev. MacLean Every family has a past that is rich and unique, having a distinctive tapestry all of its own. All too often one's heritage is left unexplored and thus unappreciated. While recendy reviewing the history of our local church and of the MacGregor-MacLean family, I became more aware of the tremendous contributions of my ancestors for the advancement of the Gospel and, undoubtedly, for the betterment of the communities they settled. I am a pro¬ foundly grateful beneficiary of the sacrifice of those early missionaries who left 'all' to answer the 'call' in a new land across the sea. On a September afternoon in 1997 after my paternal grandmother, Isabel MacGregor MacLean, aged 100, was laid to rest in the churchyard at United Church, I wandered over to the tombstone of the Rev. William MacGregor , Grandma's great-grandfather, who came as a missionary from Scodand in 1820. There I read the words "faithful and zealous," testifying of a life lived in service to God and his fellowman for thirty years in the Parish. In that moment, I welcomed the inheritance of faith that had been handed down to me, his great-great-great granddaughter. As a youngster back on the farm, I found enjoyment in solitary pursuits, especially lengthy walks to a special place in the woods. There I experienced a closeness to God and, 143 CHURCH MINISTERS