This banner was constructed by a group of Deacons and Deaconesses at a National Diaconate Conference held in Melbourne in February 1993. The banner was originally held at Catherine Ritchie House. It is significant because it was put together by a group of Deacons who were ordained in December 1992 and Deaconesses who gathered for the biennial National Diaconate Conference which was held in Melbourne in February 1993 prior to the formal establishment of DUCA (Diaconia UCA, the national body of Deacons and Deaconesses in the Uniting Church in Australia). This conference happed at a time leading up to a special service in Wesley Uniting Church in Melbourne when 12 Deaconesses were ordained as Deacons in Feb 1993. The banner was first used in this special service of Ordination in February 1993. Calico wall banner with 54 individual square panels. The banner has four loops at the top and bottom for hanging. catherine ritchie house mount martha, national diaconate conference melbourne 1993, rev dr alison f mcrae (deacon)