The Church of Ireland Diocese of Connor

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Connor Bishop’s BBQ a virtual success!

Monday June 29th 2020

Summer Madness Connor Sub Camp’s virtual Bishop’s BBQ. Top row, from left: Diocesan Youth Officer, Christina Baillie; Archdeacon Paul Dundas; Bishop-designate George Davison. Bottom from left: Archdeacon Stephen McBride; Canon Mark Taylor’s silverside roast; and the Rev Philip Benson, Chair of the Connor Youth Council.

As always, the Rev Canon Mark Taylor set tastebuds tingling as he cooked up a treat for the Connor Summer Madness Sub Camp Bishop’s barbecue.

You may not have been able to smell the delicious Glenarm short horned silverside roast cooked on the barbecue, but chef Mark’s description of the beef and its accompaniments would have had online viewers – for this was a virtual barbecue – licking their lips!

Due to the cancellation of the annual Summer Madness Festival because of the Covid-19 pandemic, Connor Youth Council has been sharing a range of content on the Engage Connor Youth Facebook and Instagram pages over the weekend.

One of the highlights of the festival is always the Bishop’s BBQ, which this year moved online.

Christina Baillie, Diocesan Youth Officer said: “We were disappointed that we couldn’t gather at Glenarm for the annual Diocesan Bishop’s BBQ at Summer Madness, but we knew we wanted to mark the moment.

“It was great to gather online to share stories about Summer Madness over the years and remember how the Sub Camp has grown, with many diocesan visitors attending.”

Christina was joined at the virtual barbecue, which was streamed live on Facebook, by head chef Mark, who is rector of Whitehead and Islandmagee; the Rev Philip Benson, Chair of the Connor Youth Council; the Ven George Davison, Connor Bishop-designate, the Ven Dr Stephen McBride and the Ven Paul Dundas, archdeacons of Connor and Dalriada respectively.

Mark shared his expert barbecuing skills with the group, while the bishop-designate, who admitted that he was a ‘Summer Madness newbie,’ had staged his BBQ outdoors for the benefit of the event!

Stephen, who is vicar of Antrim Parish, shared his experience of Summer Madness when it took place in Gosford and getting free access for the parish youth group, while Paul reminisced about being ‘John Kee’s right hand man’ in setting up the Mainstage. Philip commented on the benefits of diocesan visitors attending the event as an encouragement, giving the visitors the opportunity to see first-hand how youth ministry in Connor is flourishing.

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