The Body of Christ:
A few stories about Chaplains in our congregation
Jennifer Holtslander was our guest speaker at North of 60 in May. Among the many ways Jenn continues to deepen and share her pastoral ability is as Chaplain at Pasqua hospital, which includes the Palliative care ward. Jenn is there regularly and remains on call for people in crisis. She is also helping to rebuild the connection between the hospital and churches (the previous system was eliminated by our provincial government) to ensure churches know when someone asks for a visit.
Chris Senger’s full time job is Chaplain at Luther High School. This pastoral and counselling role also involves teaching classes and serving as one of the lead administrators. Every May, Chris organizes a volunteer workday for his 400 Luther students and the teachers. They spread out across the city helping with a long list of services: Carmichael Outreach, Food Bank, YWCA, and the Salvation Army, to name a few. The past few years, some of his students have put together a free lunch out of our church with Louise and other’s help. They come early morning and prepare and then serve the lunch. It is great to see the great young people getting a sense of complexity of the struggles in our city and the amount of work charities put in.
Ron Phillips has been serving as Chaplain to First Baptist Place. He holds a weekly time of bible study and prayer in main floor sitting room which is open to all the residents. He has made pastoral visits to the apartments and visited residents in hospital.
There are many more stories of folks serving in similar ways in our congregation, in our city’s music, sports, arts, charities, gardening, long term care facilities, and more. Thank you for all each of you do or have done in Jesus’ name over the years in our city and in your neighbourhoods.
Pastor Joel
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