Over the next few months we will meet our Chanel Centre teams - this month: meet the Pastoral Team

Naumai haere mai tēnā koutou katoa,

Welcome to Clearly! By way of introduction, I am six months into my role as Pastoral Services Manager, serving our Lord, the Hamilton Diocese, Bishop Richard and the Pastoral Team. With a background in teaching, journalism, communications and marketing, I am leaning on all of that experience as I find my feet. That said, I am very much taking a ‘listen and learn’ approach, as well as trusting the experience of my team.

Jil Yong will be known to many of you already as our Youth Office Manager. Jil has energetically served the diocese over several years and her deep Catholic faith has provided the inspiration for our ever-popular youth festivals, Set Free and Heaven Come. Juanita Raman lends her bright and bubbly personality to the facilitation of a variety of youth groups,  most often with guitar in hand, as she splits her time between us and the Cathedral. Taila Burton as Diocesan Graphic Designer and Photographer is our creative genie, turning out beautiful resources while also contributing her talents to enhance our youth activities. Kirsty Muir seems to always be in several places at once, as she holds our communications and events portfolios in her very capable and generous hands. Ally Mourits looks after our NET Team with a natural energy and love borne of her own experience some years ago as a member of the NET Team in Australia. Meanwhile, the ever-personable Robert Garan, another well-known face in our parishes, is the go-to person for safeguarding matters and marriage preparation.

Our team has just come off organising two retreats, one for our extended Chanel Centre Staff and one for Parish Staff. Both retreats ran with the theme, Pray, Reflect, Connect and were simply designed to bring our people together in a spirit of gratitude for all that we are as God’s children and all that we do as His faithful servants. Having connected face to face, this new e-letter is a means to carry on connecting with each other, to both inform and inspire. 

Communication, as we understand it, is a two way process and so Te Rourou will be a vehicle for all groups under the Hamilton Catholic Diocese umbrella to have a voice, while also learning from each other. 

All new initiatives should be launched with a ‘wait and see’ approach, allowing time to evolve and mature. That is our intention with 'Clearly', and your feedback is always welcome.

As I continue to find my feet, I feel both grateful and humbled that the Lord has led me, albeit on a long and winding path, to this special pastoral role. My thanks too to Bishop Richard for entrusting me to help him to share his vision for the diocese. I look forward to meeting you face to face at our various events, as well as reading your faith filled stories in both Te Rourou and the Kete Kōrero.

“So we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.” (Romans 12:5)