World Animal Day and St Francis' Festival

World Animal Day was started in 1931 at a convention of ecologists in Florence, as a way of highlighting the plight of endangered species.  October 4 was chosen as World Animal Day, as it is the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi – the patron saint of animals.

At St Michael's we celebrate both St Francis' Day and World Animal Day during our Sunday service, with a blessing of the animals and a talk from an RSPCA speaker.  This is a wonderful event where many from the community come along with their furry friends to receive a blessing. The parish makes a donation  to the RSPCA, and those attending are able to get more information about the organisation's important work in Queensland.