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How wonderful to be almost normal again. We had our first bi-monthly Mass at St Margaret Mary’s parish in September which was celebrated by our chaplain, Father David Potter.

It was attended by most foundations and was a very moving Mass with beautiful music provided by the music ministry. We met for refreshments in the parish centre afterwards and everyone enjoyed catching up with old friends.

This has been a busy period for our diocesan committee. Apart from monthly meetings, we went to the Hayes Conference Centre in Swanwick, Derbyshire, for a national meeting on the weekend of 8-9 October. It started off on quite a negative note with some members feeling that the Union of Catholic Mothers has had its day and that the time may have come to end it or change it.

On a positive note, though, three ladies came forward and volunteered to be national officers. We also voted in a new national president in Mrs Joan Hodge and a national secretary in Mrs Cath Lydon.

I came away confident that the UCM does have a future – and the fact that we will be enrolling five new members at our next bi-monthly Mass provides further cause for optimism.

• Our next bi-monthly Mass will take place at All Saints, Anfield, on 10 November, starting at 7.30pm. We have still not confirmed a Mass for January.

• And finally, a £25 deposit for the 2022 UCM pilgrimage to Walsingham is now due. Any members who wish to cancel their deposit should note that £15 will be retained.

Maria Pimblett, media officer

After much planning and preparation, the Order’s annual supreme conference went ahead successfully in Liverpool between 1 and 3 October at the Liner Hotel on Lord Nelson Street. To mark the historical significance of Liverpool acting as host, one of the first events of the conference involved a group of delegates crossing Lime Street to the St George’s Hall concourse opposite. It was just over a century ago that two senior representatives of the order, then recently founded in Glasgow, decided to address the 1920 Catholic Congress held at St George’s Hall with the hope of getting the Order established in England. Their efforts bore fruit and the first English council and province were created in Liverpool, with other councils soon following across Merseyside and beyond. The first session of the conference started on the afternoon of Friday 1st and featured the election of Brother Harry Welsh as the new supreme knight, replacing Bro Bertie Grogan who had held the position for four years. That evening, following dinner, delegates and their wives and guests were entertained to an exhibition of Irish dancing. On Saturday 2nd there were three conference sessions staged between 8.45am and 5pm during which the remainder of the supreme council members were elected and other important business transacted. During those Saturday sessions, the wives and friends of the delegates were taken by coach on a conducted tour of Liverpool’s two cathedrals. Saturday concluded with a banquet attended by members of the Order nationwide, their wives, friends and families, and distinguished guests. There were a number of presentations made at the banquet including one for Meritorious Service to our own provincial grand knight, Ray Pealing, whose profile appeared in the September edition of the Pic. Bro Ray and his planning team worked extremely hard to make the conference a great success and he sees this award as a tribute to the whole of the team. He is pictured (above) receiving the award from Bro Bertie Grogan. Another award which merits special mention is the presentation of a cheque for £10,000 to Sheila Hargreaves, administrator of the John Foster Memorial Home in Kamamour village, Southern India – an institution dedicated to the education and wellbeing of poor and deprived children which the Order has supported over the last three years as part of its national action programme. She received her cheque from newly elected Supreme Knight Bro Harry Welsh. The conference concluded with Mass at the Metropolitan Cathedral on Sunday 3rd, at which Archbishop Malcolm McMahon was the chief celebrant and where the newly elected members of the supreme council and board of directors were installed. Next year’s annual supreme conference will take place in Jersey.

Websites: www.ksc.org.uk www.kscprov02.weebly.com Email: dpokeane@aol.com