After our celebration for St Benito Menni’s day, the staff and Sisters at St Augustine’s received this lovely letter from Fr Martin Ashcroft.
Him, together with Fr William and Brother Patrick – from the Josephites order, came on Saturday (April 24th) to visit Fr Jude and celebrate his birthday together, as he is one of our residents at our care home in Addlestone.
We could not be happier to receive this beautiful letter and want to share it with our community too. This is the hospitality we believe in:
“Good evening Aurea and Sister Isabel,
I could not let the sun go down without thanking both of you for your wonderful hospitality earlier today.
It was a real joy to be at the Mass on the feast day of San Benito Menni, the Founder of the Sisters Hospitallers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. As usual, the Mass commemorating San Benito Menni was celebrated in a manner truly befitting the occasion. After Mass, there was the amazing buffet lunch to celebrate Jude’s birthday in the large training room. What a spread of food and fine wine!
Jude was on really good form during lunch chatting away with great aplomb until he asked to go back to him room after about an hour as his knee was becoming a tad painful. As a result, coffee and his birthday cake were served in his room as he sat back, legs up, in his huge reclining chair.
What a week Jude has enjoyed! He concelebrated Mass with me on Sunday, Wednesday, Friday (St George’s Day) and today not to mention also celebrating his 89th birthday today.
What made today so special for him was the great surprise that Fr William, Brother Patrick and myself were able to join him for his birthday lunch. He kept telling us he had no idea this lunch was going to happen nor that we would be with him for it. It was also a real pleasure for Bill, Patrick and myself to enjoy the lavish lunch with Jude on his birthday.
I am so grateful that the two of you permitted the three of us to come to the Mass and for facilitating the lunch. I will also be extremely grateful if you could pass on grateful thanks on behalf of myself and the Josephites to your kitchen staff for the lunch they prepared for us. They did us proud.
The generosity we all experienced today is very much in keeping with the charism of the Order and the Gospel reading we heard at Mass this morning.
Once again very many thanks.
KEEP SAFE – TAKE CARE – ENJOY LIFE
Best wishes.
Martin”
