Eight new rest home chaplains – Bernie Leckie, Carol Barker, Caroline Gordon, Heidi Iseli-Strasser, Jane Jensen, Lenore Lawrence, Nadine Hinton, and Rachel Graham – graduated on Wednesday afternoon. These lovely people follow a training programme which includes aspects such as boundaries, death, grief and loss, listening, self-care and the process of change.
They are now attached to a rest home or care facility where they offer a few hours a week of engaging with people – residents, staff and families.
Nelson Tasman Rest Home Chaplaincy is an interdenominational group, trained by the Nelson Diocese to serve the entire rest home community. The focus is on connecting with, engaged listening to, and supporting each person on their life walk.
The speakers were Atje Faber and Jan Northfield, who explained how the ministry was born about four years ago and has grown to 17 active chaplains attached to 11 facilities. The concept of God creating us for connection was constantly repeated throughout the morning.
The following is what one of the graduates, Jane Jensen, shared to celebrate the day:
Over the past 18 months, I have learned, reflected, and grown – guided by our workshop training, our monthly peer support programme and thoughtful leaders. This combination taught me the value of true presence, compassionate listening, and delight in spending time with senior citizens.
As I look back on this journey, I’m reminded of the words in Philippians 1:6: “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
This verse reminds us that the work we begin as chaplains – in care facilities or churches – is not just ours. It is God’s work through us. We are simply his vessels of comfort, love, and peace.
During my training, I was inspired by the seniors in my church community. I saw their quiet resilience, their deep faith, and sometimes, their loneliness. I realised that what I was learning could bless them too. And so, out of that inspiration, the “Happily Ever After” programme was born – a year consisting of 45 meetings designed to walk with seniors through life’s later chapters with dignity, faith, and joy.
We’ve talked about moving, facing poor health, grief, and finding support. We’ve created together, through creative memories, advance care plans, and planning our own services. We’ve learned how to visit the ill effectively and how to offer pastoral care that truly supports loving fellowship.
It has been a privilege to walk beside them, to laugh, cry, and pray together. And through it all, I’ve learned that chaplaincy is not about having all the answers, it’s about showing up – with love.
In 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, Paul writes: “Praise be to the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”
That is the heart of chaplaincy – to pass on the comfort we have received.
May we go forth with open hearts and willing hands. May we continue to bring hope into care homes, hospitals, and communities. And may the Lord strengthen us to be his light wherever there is darkness, his peace wherever there is pain, and his love wherever there is need.
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We have invited these writers to share their experiences, ideas and opinions in the hope that these will provoke thought, challenge you to go deeper and inspire you to put your faith into action. These articles should not be taken as the official view of the Nelson Diocese on any particular matter.
Eight new rest home chaplains – Bernie Leckie, Carol Barker, Caroline Gordon, Heidi Iseli-Strasser, Jane Jensen, Lenore Lawrence, Nadine Hinton, and Rachel Graham – graduated on Wednesday afternoon. These lovely people follow a training programme which includes aspects such as boundaries, death, grief and loss, listening, self-care and the process of change.
They are now attached to a rest home or care facility where they offer a few hours a week of engaging with people – residents, staff and families.
Nelson Tasman Rest Home Chaplaincy is an interdenominational group, trained by the Nelson Diocese to serve the entire rest home community. The focus is on connecting with, engaged listening to, and supporting each person on their life walk.
The speakers were Atje Faber and Jan Northfield, who explained how the ministry was born about four years ago and has grown to 17 active chaplains attached to 11 facilities. The concept of God creating us for connection was constantly repeated throughout the morning.
The following is what one of the graduates, Jane Jensen, shared to celebrate the day:
Over the past 18 months, I have learned, reflected, and grown – guided by our workshop training, our monthly peer support programme and thoughtful leaders. This combination taught me the value of true presence, compassionate listening, and delight in spending time with senior citizens.
As I look back on this journey, I’m reminded of the words in Philippians 1:6: “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
This verse reminds us that the work we begin as chaplains – in care facilities or churches – is not just ours. It is God’s work through us. We are simply his vessels of comfort, love, and peace.
During my training, I was inspired by the seniors in my church community. I saw their quiet resilience, their deep faith, and sometimes, their loneliness. I realised that what I was learning could bless them too. And so, out of that inspiration, the “Happily Ever After” programme was born – a year consisting of 45 meetings designed to walk with seniors through life’s later chapters with dignity, faith, and joy.
We’ve talked about moving, facing poor health, grief, and finding support. We’ve created together, through creative memories, advance care plans, and planning our own services. We’ve learned how to visit the ill effectively and how to offer pastoral care that truly supports loving fellowship.
It has been a privilege to walk beside them, to laugh, cry, and pray together. And through it all, I’ve learned that chaplaincy is not about having all the answers, it’s about showing up – with love.
In 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, Paul writes: “Praise be to the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”
That is the heart of chaplaincy – to pass on the comfort we have received.
May we go forth with open hearts and willing hands. May we continue to bring hope into care homes, hospitals, and communities. And may the Lord strengthen us to be his light wherever there is darkness, his peace wherever there is pain, and his love wherever there is need.
Check out other articles in the
series below.
More articles in the
series are to come.
