EXCITING TIMES FOR RUTH !

Ruth Walker has some exciting news to share ….As most of you will now be aware Becky Wood, who has been working for the children and youth department since September through SUMT, has moved back to England. We are thankful for the time, effort and energy she put into the work here, and know that she will be missed by both the leaders and the young people she has been working with.

 Also some of you may have worked out that the three year contract I was initially given In September 2012 is almost finished and many of you have been asking me what my next move is, so to remove any further suspense, I will be staying at the Cathedral for the foreseeable future.

However along with the work I am doing at the Cathedral and across Peel I have also been offered, and have accepted, the new role of Diocesan Youth Missioner. This will mean that as well as working within the old parish of Peel I will also be working a few hours a week across the island as a whole. This role will involve me meeting with all the youth leaders and clergy across the diocese to work out the current situation of work with 11-30 year olds in our churches and then making recommendations of how this work can be moved forward.

By taking on this new role I will have to reduce some of the work that I was involved in, in the parish, but this will be done in such a way that the work, or those involved in it will not suffer. I will be stepping back from some of the work that is being incredibly well handled by groups of volunteers, though still being involved in some ways, as well as handing some aspects of my work over to others, for example the Mother’s Union taking back responsibility for Baptisms, which happened before Christmas, as well as attending some of the groups on a less regular basis enabling other leaders to take the front role.

This is an exciting venture for me, the Cathedral and the Diocese as we work out how to best serve the 11-30’s both currently in our churches and those who live on our Island.