A little information on our new Assistant Priest
Cathy was brought up as an Anglican and has always been involved in church life. In lay ministry she has held numerous roles within the church including leading GFS and teaching CRE at primary school, Synod rep, Parish Councillor, Server and church archivist.
While worshipping in the Kilmore parish, she spent 4 years from 2009 working with people impacted by what become known as the Black Saturday bushfires, co-running a women’s support group through the church, gathering stories of bushfire experience and recovery and co-ordinating volunteer workers for fence rebuilding working with Anglicare Victoria. She was a VCC Emergency Ministries Chaplain for 10 years and served on the committee developing a strategic plan for future expansion of VCCEM.
Following that experience, Cathy felt a call to ordained ministry as a Deacon. That call was put on hold for a few years when her husband Glen in October 2012 was hit head-on by a truck which had drifted across to his side of the road. The next seven months were spent by Glen’s bedside in hospital then caring for him back at home.
As Glen slowly recovered from his injuries the call to ordained ministry returned. She began training for ministry at Trinity College, Melbourne in 2015 obtaining a Bachelor in Theology in 2018 with the University of Divinity. Cathy was ordained as a Distinctive Deacon in February 2019 in the Diocese of Melbourne and began ministry as deacon/curate and children and families’ minister at Christ Church Essendon.
When the 2019/20 summer bushfires hit East Gippsland, Cathy contacted Bishop Richard asking if she could help in any way in light of her previous experience in bushfire recovery. The result was a secondment part time from the Diocese of Melbourne to work 2-3 days a week co-ordinating the work of bushfire recovery for the Diocese of Gippsland. She resigned from Essendon at the end of 2020 to focus solely on the work in East Gippsland as a Missional Deacon for the East in Bushfire Recovery. The role involved spending many hours on the road ministering to remote farming communities and individuals across far East Gippsland and creating opportunities for communities to gather and heal in-between COVID lockdowns. The role included providing support to clergy on ‘the ground’ and working with Beyond Blue as they did an in-depth survey of trauma in rural communities. As part of the bushfire recovery role, Cathy also worked a couple of terms as chaplain at Buchan Primary School.
Following her work as Missional Deacon in Bushfire Recovery she was appointed Deacon-in-charge of the Episcopal District of St John’s Nar Nar Goon and Pakenham East which is the most westerly parish in the Diocese of Gippsland. It was while in this role that she felt a call to the priesthood.
Cathy took up a role as Locum Deacon at All Saints Tatura in the Diocese of Bendigo in Dec 2024 to be closer to home and able to drive each day to the parish and back each night to be with Glen. Due to Glen’s dependence on a wheelchair Cathy did not wish to uproot him from the home which he is now settled in at Lancefield. Cathy returned to study in 2022 and is 3/4 way through a Master of Theology at Trinity College studying part-time.
Glen and Cathy live on a 20 acre hobby farm at Lancefield with a number of goats, sheep, a llama, two rescue donkeys and some chooks. They also have two cats and two dogs, a border terrier and a welsh corgi. Hobbies include being with animals, gardening, bushwalking, reading, music and spending time out and about with Glen exploring Victoria.
Cathy is looking forward to this new chapter in her ministry now as a priest and is looking forward to renewing old acquaintances and meeting new people in the parish.