The Ashburton Anglican parish will welcome the new Archdeacon of Mid Canterbury at an induction service this Sunday.
The Venerable Indrea Alexander is taking up the role after being the Vicar of Waimate for almost 10 years.
Rev Alexander said she was looking forward to coming to Ashburton despite not being familiar with the area, ‘‘so I look forward to getting to know the area and the people in the churches and the wider community.’’
She is passionate about connecting church and community.
‘‘I am always looking at what are the needs of the community, what can the church offer, I feel we very much exist to serve in our community.
‘‘One of my personal passions is in grief support, I have been involved with groups providing grief support for children and for adults, so that might be something that is helpful in the community.
‘‘Initially I am going to be learning what I can and seeing what makes sense,’’ she said.
Rev Alexander believes one of the main functions of the church is to serve their community and provide support in difficult times, whether personally or community wide.
‘‘I think the gospel of Christ is still relevant in every age so one of my greatest joys is when people discover God’s love for them however broken or messy their life, God loves them, that’s the bottom line, we still carry good news for the community.’’
The Ashburton Anglican parish has two churches in Ashburton; St Stephen’s (on Park Street) and St Andrew’s (in Tinwald).
Rev Alexander’s induction service will be led by Diocesan Bishop Peter Carrell at St Stephen’s Church on November 20 at 3pm.
Rev Alexander enjoys walking and cycling but she is also keen to find another cellist so she can play cello duets.
She is moving to Ashburton with her husband Neville who is retired, ‘‘so he is quite flexible, and he is a keen indoor and outdoor bowler so he will immerse himself in the community pretty readily.’’
