Rector of Minchinhampton with Box and Amberley
The Reverend Dr Christopher Collingwood

Chris was ordained deacon in Hereford in June 1983 and priest in June 1984. He became Priest-in-Charge of Minchinhampton with Box on 3rd May 2009 and became the Rector of the newly-created United Benefice of Minchinhampton with Box and Amberley in the Autumn this year. Prior to his appointment to Minchinhampton he was for ten years the Chaplain and Senior Tutor of Chigwell School in Essex, a thriving independent School founded by Samuel Harsnett, Archbishop of York, in 1629, just on the edge of the border with London, where all of the world's major faith traditions are now represented. Chris has had a varied and stimulating ministry, first as Assistant Curate at St Paul's, Tupsley, in Hereford, from where he went as Precentor to the Cathedral and Abbey Church of Saint Alban. Seven years were then spent as Vicar of St Paul's, Bedford, after which he went to Guildford Cathedral and then to Chigwell. He is married to Sue, a complementary therapist, specialising in Therapeutic Massage and Aromatherapy. They have four children: Ben, who works for BBC Radio 3; Andrew, who works at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; Dominic, a Choral Scholar at St John's College, Cambridge; and Teresa, a student at Durham University. As well as maintaining his own theological interests and research, especially in Spirituality, Inter-Faith Issues, and Education, Chris is also a musician.

Associate Priest
The Reverend Jane Walden

Jane was ordained deacon at Gloucester Cathedral July 2005 and priested at the cathedral on 1st July 2006. In October 2009 she became an Associate Priest. While she was curate at Minchinhampton she also taught part time at Amberley Parochial School. She has been a teacher for almost thirty years and for twenty-nine of those, has been married to John. They have two grown up sons, Ed and Dan and for the last ten years they have lived in Brimscombe. Prior to that their home was in Maidenhead, Berkshire, where they still have many friends and where for a while Jane worked with the deaf, mainly children and the elderly, which necessitated learning basic sign language. More recently she studied part time at the University of Gloucestershire for a degree in Religious Studies and Theology and followed that with ministry training on The West of England Ministerial Training Course whilst continuing to teach part time. If there were time for hobbies, they would include reading, cooking and walking.

 


Associate Priest
The Reverend Ann Morris

Ann has spent most of her life in and around Minchinhampton, setting foot in Minchinhampton Church for the first time at the age of five for her cousin’s baptism. But it wasn’t until her marriage that Holy Trinity became her village church community – her family church where weddings, funerals, baptisms and confirmations were celebrated. After many years as a wife and mother, and working in the family business, a new path opened up to ministry. While training at WEMTC, the people of Minchinhampton helped train Ann in the practical aspects of ministry, including working with children, the art of the sacristan and the organisation of church life as a member of the PCC. On being ordained Deacon, in 2001, she was sent as Curate in Amberley, where she continues to live… finally being brought back into the larger family of the new Benefice.

Sandy was ordained deacon at Gloucester Cathedral in June 2010, having trained at WEMTC West of England Ministerial Training Course for the past 3 years. She has a professional background as a nurse, midwife and teacher. When she retired she was Head of Department for Midwifery & Women’s Health in a London University, a far cry from the outset of her career as a nurse/missionary on an Indian Reservation in remote British Columbia. Sandy is disabled with osteoarthritis and has mobility issues. She uses a mobility scooter, which she wishes could go faster than 8 miles an hour! Sandy is a Canadian but has lived in England since 1974. She lives in the village of Edge with Glynnis her friend and registered carer. Also sharing her home are two cats, an extremely disobedient Airedale and five tortoises. For relaxation she enjoys reading, listening to Classical music, and gardening, which has been a challenge whilst sitting on her scooter!