The end of the year is fast approaching, and we’ll all be heading our separate ways for a much-needed time of rest before next year begins.
Leave time is important to recharge our batteries, but there’s still a lot of valuable work that can be done in school holidays. Chaplains have the time and space to develop new resources and programs; build relationships with local church leaders and youth/ children’s workers and service providers; plan and prepare for 2015; and enhance their skills through training. Ultimately, all that ‘ground work’ helps chaplains support students more effectively when school is ‘in’.
That’s the beauty of chaplaincy… there are always new things to learn, new programs to develop, and new ways of meeting community needs. It’s a role that constantly evolves, so is always relevant to the community it serves.
As the year comes to an end, I want to thank you for the vital role you’ve played this year. Thank you for your dedication to attending regular LCC meetings, for planning and volunteering at fundraisers, and for serving your school communities so sacrificially. Without the ‘hand and feet’ on the ground – you – chaplaincy would not exist, so thank you.
I love seeing the great ways LCCs and school communities have supported their chaplains this year. I think of the way Buderim Mountain State School and its P&C got behind their much-loved chaplain David Larkin, who underwent lifesaving heart surgery in September. Students wrote more than 1,000 ‘get well’ cards, and held a ‘Super Hero Day’ in honour of David’s alter ego ‘Super Chappy’, to raise money for David and his family. You can read more about the story here.
I’m so aware that LCCs have had to withstand a lot of change this year – a new levy structure; changing chaplaincy salary bands and new contracts; and the new ‘OurChaplaincy Dashboard’ that has just been launched. And, we’re currently implementing the Queensland Government’s funding arrangements for school chaplaincy.
There’s been a lot of change, but we are nearing the end of that season – and once we get through the last of these changes, you should have more stability from 2015 to 2018.
Once again, thank you for your dedication this year. I wish you and your families a hope-filled Christmas and a restful break.
God bless,
Peter James
CEO, SU QLD