Bishop & Mrs. Ford
by Lydia Graham
Lydia Graham and Robin Harvie visited Bishop Ford and Doris Ford at their home on February 10th, 2005
Bishop and Doris Ford served at All Saints Cochrane from 1981 to 1985. When Bishop Goodman heard that Bishop Ford was retiring as Bishop of Saskatoon, he asked, "Why don't you come out here and minister to a small parish in Cochrane, and give us help as Assistant Bishop of Calgary?"
The Fords drove out to Cochrane following Bishop Goodman. Doris recalls driving into Cochrane from the St Francis Retreat road.
They met the vestry at the Goodman home, and liked Cochrane immediately.
"Some of the happiest years," Doris said.
The rectory was a nice little house. Bright, with sunshine through the dining room windows. It was the first time they had lived in a place that had a dishwasher.
They thought they ought to entertain people at the rectory.
One of the first people they visited when they came to Cochrane was Frances Hill.
"She was the Queen Bee," Bishop Ford said. "Her husband, a Canon, used to be the incumbent of All Saints Parish. I said to Doris, let's make sure we visit her first."
Bishop Ford remembers Cochrane as the nicest ecumenical community he ever worked in. "I had regular meetings with the clergy from other churches. Any divisions were forgotten."
Some of the events that were organized with other parishes included the Walk a Christmas Mile, Remembrance Day, Women’s World Day of Prayer, the Good Friday Walk, and an inter-denominational choir.
Mrs. Ford recalled one parishioner who thought this poor old couple would be lonely so he came to visit after Scouts every week.
"Pews were an event!"
Bishop Ford recalled the time the men of the parish said they could build more pews. We removed the two rooms at the back of the church and added more pews to seat more parishioners.
The construction of Ford Hall was an important development. People told Bishop Ford that they had been saving for a hall, and had a great building crew at the ready, but had not been able to make a start.
Bishop Ford told Robin and Lydia, "I said, we are going to do this thing... and no one disagreed."
Pearl Parker was the organist at All Saints and probably organist all the while Fords were there.
Mrs. Ford recalled cross-stitching wheat sheaves for the kneeling pews that were to go into the Cathedral of the Redeemer in Calgary. All parishes had been asked to make kneeling cushions for the Cathedral's 90th anniversary.
Doris Ford recalled one day sitting in her usual pew before the service, adding up the numbers of the hymns as she often did.
"People thought I was holy! A parishioner came in and sat down beside me, and I leaned over and said to him, 'The hymn numbers add up to such and such.'"
The parishioner immediately raised his hand in the air, counting the numbers up for himself.
"I could have killed him—now the entire congregation knew what I was up to."
Doris recalled Vicki Savage's little boy at the Christmas concert sitting up at the front. Vicki was in the front row with him.
"He was excited to do his part in the play. He kept pestering his mother asking, 'Is it my turn now, Mom?' No, not yet she replied. 'Is it my turn yet?' No, not yet... this went on throughout the play, until finally he asked 'Is it my turn yet?' and she said yes.
"He 'stood proudly and proclaimed: 'God bless us, every one.'"
Bishop Ford remembers that before the plate for the memorial rock that Jim Kerfoot had arranged to have placed in front of All Saints could be engraved, Jim and Bishop Ford visited the Mitford Cemetery to gather all the names that had been on the headstones in the old cemetery.
"We dedicated the rock memorial the following Sunday, commemorating the people who were buried in the Mitford Cemetery."
The congregation built a room in the rectory basement that Bishop Ford used for a study—a good-sized room. Bishop Ford said he hesitated about bringing couples downstairs, as "they could become cellar members."
