Even during a pandemic, babies are born, and children grow.
Sarah and Derrick had planned to have their son baptized at SouthWest United last March. Instead, there was lockdown and the celebration was postponed to an unspecified date. As the months wore on and baby Gryffin’s first birthday came and went, Pastor Beryl proposed a more private ceremony.
This baptism took place on October 10th with a small number of friends and family members in attendance, but without the traditional presence of the regular congregation. Pastor Beryl poured water on the baby’s head, but did not carry him out to present him to the community. In fact, she never held him at all. Just another instance of doing things differently in this age of Covid-19. The family was presented with a baptismal candle and a facecloth embroidered with the name and date made by our own Anna Christe.
Congratulations to Gryffin Ronan Miele, age 14 1/2 months, and his parents Sarah Allaire and Derrick Miele. Sarah is the daughter of Melissa Brushett, niece of Doreen, and a grand niece of Shirley Wood. She kindly shared these photos of the celebration with us.
Although we could not be present, we nevertheless take seriously the Congregational Commitment to “support and nurture this family within a community which worships God, loves and serves others, seeks justice, and resists evil.”
