St. Macartin's Cathedral
Enniskillen, Northern Ireland
A Featured Cathedral Family
Member
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Beth Rennick
Married to George, Beth has two daughters and has been secretary in the Cathedral Office for the past eleven years.
Tell us about your early days?
I grew up on a farm outside Magheraveely the eldest of five children. I attended
Midhill Primary School and the Collegiate Grammar School. We belonged to the
Clones Methodist Circuit and attended church and Sunday school in Clones
Methodist Church on Sunday mornings and Magheraveely Methodist Church.
My Grandfather (who lived just down the lane from us) was a Methodist Lay Preacher. We also attended special services in Aghadrumsee Parish Church.
And your employment history?
My first job was in the office of John Cathcart & Sons Ltd, Dublin Road, Enniskillen where I was the accounts clerk. I then worked as a registered child minder when my own children were small and for a time in school meals. We moved to Enniskillen in 1994 and I then worked in various shops before beginning work in the Cathedral Office on Monday 3rd December 2001. Margaret MacLean, whom I had known from my Collegiate School days as she was secretary there, and who worked in the Cathedral Office from time to time after she retired, showed me the ropes and was always on hand to advise until she became ill. Norman Hilliard, the treasurer for over 50 years, called most mornings until his sudden death in 2011. These are only two of the lovely people I have worked with, or met through the office over the past eleven years and I still miss them. The office does get very busy but I enjoy my job and get great satisfaction from it as I feel I am also serving God through my work and hope I am of service to the parishioners, select vestry and clergy alike.
What about your family?
I married George in 1976. He now works with the Western Education and Library Board as a grounds maintenance operative having previously served with the UDR/RIR for twenty seven years. We have two daughters. Linda is a senior research scientist in Boston University and is engaged to Colum Murphy, an electronic engineering technician at Queen’s University, Belfast. Shirley works in retail locally and is married to Ivor Malone, a laboratory technician for Acheson and Glover. They live in Enniskillen and have two little boys, Ethan and Aaron. Ethan is at primary school and Aaron at nursery school.
What are your hobbies/interests?
I enjoy walking, reading, gardening, knitting, DIY, cooking and baking. I belong to the British Diabetic Association. (Shirley and Ivor are both type 1 insulin dependant diabetics).
Favourites in life—food/film/books?
I love wheaten bread and jam and am partial to a tray bake. Coffee cake is also very moreish! I have read all Maeve Binchy’s novels and have really enjoyed them, especially‘Circle of Friends‘. The film did not live up to the book, but then they rarely do. I saw ‘How Green Was My Valley’ for the first time about thirty five years ago and there are few films that can compare. ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ and The ‘Green Mile’ do come close though.
Do you travel/hope to travel?
I have been to Great Britain, Isle of Man, France and America. We visited our daughter Linda in Boston about eighteen months ago and she also took us to New York, New Hampshire and Cape Cod. While it is lovely to travel and see the world and other cultures to me there really is no place like home. Going away helps you appreciate it even more.
What are your best days to date?
Any day spent with my family is a good day. There are four generations in our family now and it is very special when we are all together. Red letter days have to be the day George and I were married and when our daughters and grandsons were born.
Have you a favourite Bible verse/hymn?
‘What a friend we have in Jesus’ and ‘God who made the earth’ are hymns I love and are among my earliest memories of church. I go back to the words often to help me through life’s ups and downs. Micah 6:8 'And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God' is a favourite Bible verse which I try to live up to.
Any challenges?
I have recently moved house and I love the garden and watching things grow. I have a blank canvas at present and plan to make it my garden soon, if the rain ever stops!
I grew up on a farm outside Magheraveely the eldest of five children. I attended
Midhill Primary School and the Collegiate Grammar School. We belonged to the
Clones Methodist Circuit and attended church and Sunday school in Clones
Methodist Church on Sunday mornings and Magheraveely Methodist Church.
My Grandfather (who lived just down the lane from us) was a Methodist Lay Preacher. We also attended special services in Aghadrumsee Parish Church.
And your employment history?
My first job was in the office of John Cathcart & Sons Ltd, Dublin Road, Enniskillen where I was the accounts clerk. I then worked as a registered child minder when my own children were small and for a time in school meals. We moved to Enniskillen in 1994 and I then worked in various shops before beginning work in the Cathedral Office on Monday 3rd December 2001. Margaret MacLean, whom I had known from my Collegiate School days as she was secretary there, and who worked in the Cathedral Office from time to time after she retired, showed me the ropes and was always on hand to advise until she became ill. Norman Hilliard, the treasurer for over 50 years, called most mornings until his sudden death in 2011. These are only two of the lovely people I have worked with, or met through the office over the past eleven years and I still miss them. The office does get very busy but I enjoy my job and get great satisfaction from it as I feel I am also serving God through my work and hope I am of service to the parishioners, select vestry and clergy alike.
What about your family?
I married George in 1976. He now works with the Western Education and Library Board as a grounds maintenance operative having previously served with the UDR/RIR for twenty seven years. We have two daughters. Linda is a senior research scientist in Boston University and is engaged to Colum Murphy, an electronic engineering technician at Queen’s University, Belfast. Shirley works in retail locally and is married to Ivor Malone, a laboratory technician for Acheson and Glover. They live in Enniskillen and have two little boys, Ethan and Aaron. Ethan is at primary school and Aaron at nursery school.
What are your hobbies/interests?
I enjoy walking, reading, gardening, knitting, DIY, cooking and baking. I belong to the British Diabetic Association. (Shirley and Ivor are both type 1 insulin dependant diabetics).
Favourites in life—food/film/books?
I love wheaten bread and jam and am partial to a tray bake. Coffee cake is also very moreish! I have read all Maeve Binchy’s novels and have really enjoyed them, especially‘Circle of Friends‘. The film did not live up to the book, but then they rarely do. I saw ‘How Green Was My Valley’ for the first time about thirty five years ago and there are few films that can compare. ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ and The ‘Green Mile’ do come close though.
Do you travel/hope to travel?
I have been to Great Britain, Isle of Man, France and America. We visited our daughter Linda in Boston about eighteen months ago and she also took us to New York, New Hampshire and Cape Cod. While it is lovely to travel and see the world and other cultures to me there really is no place like home. Going away helps you appreciate it even more.
What are your best days to date?
Any day spent with my family is a good day. There are four generations in our family now and it is very special when we are all together. Red letter days have to be the day George and I were married and when our daughters and grandsons were born.
Have you a favourite Bible verse/hymn?
‘What a friend we have in Jesus’ and ‘God who made the earth’ are hymns I love and are among my earliest memories of church. I go back to the words often to help me through life’s ups and downs. Micah 6:8 'And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God' is a favourite Bible verse which I try to live up to.
Any challenges?
I have recently moved house and I love the garden and watching things grow. I have a blank canvas at present and plan to make it my garden soon, if the rain ever stops!
