The vestry of St. James’ was enlarged in 1985 to provide much needed extra space. It was used for Church School until the completion of the Memorial Centre in the basement of the rectory. The vestry expansion, in memory of William J. and Ruth Dennis, was generously donated by family members. A special service of dedication was held on August 18th with former rector, Rev. M.J. Findlay, as guest speaker.

The St. James’ Church horse shed was built in 1939 at a cost of approximately $270.00. The labour was voluntarily given by the parishioners. The building served its purpose until the general use of motor cars. It was purchased by Henry Birch who moved it to his farm nearby.

As is always the case, donations and fundraising go hand in hand with repairs and renovations. Over the years many and varied activities have been undertaken for the improvement of the church. Rev. Henry Harper reported particular events of 1909 to the Diocesan Church Society:

St. James’ Guild is again in working order with about thirty members. They held

a concert and Basket Social in December which was quite a success. The proceeds amounted to about $45.00.

An Ice Cream Social was held by the young people of Port Hill last August at which the sum of about $45.00 was realized. Had the evening been more favorable they would have taken in a much larger sum.

In the following paragraphs, Mrs. A. Enid Birch recalls some very enjoyable and

successful fundraising activities of St. James’ congregation:

In the early 1900’s, the yearly Sunday School and church picnic was first held on the Glebe farm. Men would build a large booth for eating and tables would be set up with planks for seats. The booth would be covered with boughs to keep out the sun and heat. Later these picnics were held on the premises of King George Hall and meals would be served in the hall. These gatherings lasted all afternoon until dark.

Then there were the strawberry and ice cream festivals. Milk at this time was hauled to local cheese factories. The morning of the festival the milk cans would be skimmed, and cream and eggs would be collected for the frolic in the afternoon. Ladies would mix the custards while the young men would turn the freezers. These were emptied many times into ten gallon milk cans. In the evening the festival began. A well-filled saucer of ice cream covered with

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