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The
Friends of Prayer Committee started in 1995 after the closing of the
Richer Catholic Church, l’Église de
l’Enfant-Jésus. A group of ladies from the
village, headed by Mrs. Émilie Claeys, gathered once a week
to pray for the re-opening of their church. In 1999, during one of
their meetings with the Saint Boniface Diocese to discuss the
acquisition of the church site and buildings, Mrs. Claeys and her group
were advised that before any consideration for acquiring the site be
given, the group had to get incorporated.
The group obtained the incorporated status of a NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION
on February 9, 2000 from the Manitoba Corporations Office (BN #:
873280127MC0001). Once incorporated, Mrs. Claeys was given the key to
the church so that she and her group of ladies could use the church as
a sanctuary to gather for their prayer meetings. The building could
only be used during the summer as hydro service had been disconnected
upon its closure in 1995. Nonetheless, the ladies, their families and
friends gathered regularly to pray and did minor repairs and
maintenance to preserve the building: poly over the broken windows,
boarding up of the basement windows to prevent vandalism, repairs to
the chimney, soffits and eaves troughs, and annual cleaning bees of the
inside of the church and of the grounds. In 2004, the committee
organized a community celebration with the mass celebrated by the
Archbishop of Saint Boniface in the church, followed by a banquet at
the local community hall. As one of their fund raisers and souvenir,
they produced a calendar featuring historical photos of the parish.
Their endeavours to celebrate the centennial of the Parish of
l’Enfant-Jésus was an astounding success with a
participation of well over 400 local people and former parishioners.
After the centennial celebration, interest in the committee’s
activities dwindled and the handful of ladies willing to continue their
mission to save the church kept up their efforts in trying to obtain
directorship and titles of the church site. In 2006, at the
committee’s AGM, Mrs. Claeys and the ladies on her committee
could not continue their efforts to save the church because of poor
health. They made an all out call to the citizens of the surrounding
area to assist by taking over the committee and continuing her mission.
The community responded and on January 18, 2007 (the 2006 AGM was
postponed from December…) well over thirty-five persons were
present at the AGM when a new Administrative Council was elected and a
list of volunteers willing to help with the project was drawn up.s.
On
July 18, 2008, The Friends of Prayer (le Comité des ami.e.s
de la prière inc.) obtained the status of a Charitable
Organisation from the Canada
Revenue Agency
(http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/chrts/menu-eng.html).
This status allows the organization to give official income tax
receipts for donations. If you donate $20 or more to the Friends of
Prayer for their mission in the town of Richer, you
will be given a receipt that may be used to reduce your income taxes
for the current year.
.....
On
July 30, 2010, the committee name was officially changed from Le
Comité des ami.e.s de la prière inc. to The Enfant-Jésus Heritage Site Corporation. At
our AGM held on October 28th, 2010, the name change was ratified by the
assembly. The name of the committee has changed but our vision, mission, and
mandate remain the same.
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EXCERPTS
FROM THE GENERAL STATUTES of
The Enfant-Jésus Heritage Site Corporation
(formerly, Le
comité des ami.e.s de la prière Inc.)
Ratified
at the December 2007 AGM
Business no. : 873280127MC0001
(incorporated
February 2000)
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Article 1:
Name
1.1 The name
of the organization is: “The Enfant-Jésus Heritage Site Corporation”.
Article 2:
Registered Office
2.1
The registered office of the The Enfant-Jésus Heritage Site Corporation is located
within the region of the Richer community.
Article 3: Vision
3.1 A
non-profit organization with the goal of acquiring and directing the
site of the Richer Roman Catholic Church, including the church,
Église de l’Enfant-Jésus according to
the rules and stipulations laid out by the Saint Boniface Roman
Catholic Archiepiscopal Corporation.
Article 4:
Mission
4.1 The Enfant-Jésus Heritage Site Corporation agrees to promote spiritual, cultural,
social and community development opportunities for the residents of
Richer all the while keeping in the forefront the Francophone and
Métis cultures.
Article 5:
Mandate
5.1
To show appreciation for the contribution of elders and of
the original inhabitants of the region.
5.2
To promote the historic and tourist values of the
Église de l’Enfant-Jésus heritage site.
5.3
To preserve and direct the Église de
l’Enfant-Jésus site.
5.4
To invite and collaborate with different ethic groups from
the region and its surroundings in the promotion of the site and of the
church, Église de l’Enfant-Jésus.
Article 6:
Membership
6.1
All
residents of the Richer community and its surrounding regions, 16 years
and older, who have an interest in our history may obtain a valid
membership card and exercise membership rights at the general assembly.
Membership is valid for one year and ceases through member cancellation
or non-renewal of membership fee of $5.00.
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