Every second Sunday of the month, a group of around 20 young leaders from across the diocese have gathered at Anvil House, in Wellington Central to share stories, learn from one another, and hear the wisdom of those who have also walked through the challenges of leading.

The group is Pathfinders – a training programme for people in our diocese between 20 and 30 years old who are leading or developing leadership skills. Each cohort is encouraged to stay for two years, with an intake of new leaders at the beginning of each year.

In 2020, themes of justice, mission and wholeness were looked at in detail. Guest speakers have included Bishops Justin Duckworth and Ellie Sanderson, Rev. Spanky Moore from Christchurch, and Jay Ruka, the new co-Dean of Taranaki Cathedral. Even lockdown didn’t stop the group from meeting: for two months the sessions were held on Zoom, utilising breakout rooms to have small group discussions on the content. Tommy Livingston, who joined the programme this year, found the different perspectives helpful, “each speaker brought something completely different and gave insights into what leadership can look like,” he said. Being part of Pathfinders “was an incredible privilege” because of both the people he met and the speakers that he got to hear. 

Each year Pathfinders begins by spending a weekend at Ngatiawa River Monastery – getting to know one another and setting the scene for the year to come. This is often a highlight, forming close relationships among people who might lead in different contexts. In 2021 the hui will happen from March 12-14. It’s also strongly encouraged that participants get along to Diocese events, like training days, and Thanksgiving and Ordination.

2021 will hopefully see engagement from more people outside of the Wellington Central/Porirua/Hutt area. Church leaders are encouraged to shoulder tap potential participants and can get in contact either through scottie@anglicanmovement.nz or jessie@anglicanmovement.nz for more information. A factsheet is available on Movement Online.

By Jessie Black