Helen Bartlett
North East, Newcastle
What a time we’ve had. Resourcing ourselves and each other is imperative.
Some of this emanates from supporting staff in the wake of around 400 serious incidents. In your prayers, please give thanks for these people of God who bring the presence of Christ into an often dark and difficult workplace. Angela Levitt-Harwood
Great Northern, LNER, York to Kings Cross London
We’ve had two deaths in service locally at Network Rail, with two very different funerals, all wearing orange ribbons. The Crematorium was full, and it was pretty packed in the RC Requiem Mass. The wakes were full and respectful, at the start, and folk were emotional.
I always say that there can be no other job like this, even other chaplaincy roles, the work is so diverse.
‘Bereavement’ was the title at the Interfaith Network Rail coffee morning. It is vital that we share our stories when we can. Psalm 23 says ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want’, and talks of ‘still waters’ and ‘restoration.'
Northern Trains have asked me to accompany 20 ladies who live in the North but have not really left their hometown on a trip to York Minster so they can learn more about the Christian faith which is, of course, a privilege.
Sometimes we just need to quietly trust God that He is there, even when life feels upside down.
In addition, I am helping with an engineering project in a school which involves both Northern apprentices and others who might not usually consider working within the railway industry.
Andrew Hall
Area Manager North, West Midlands, Avanti, Chiltern
It's a constant struggle to understand chaplaincy as people-centred and yet have to quantify our activity and demonstrate our value in operational and fiscal terms. Despite this seeming contradiction, we can demonstrate that this small team of wonderful and diligent chaplains are engaging with around 9000 people per year. This ranges from brief encounters bringing encouragement to in-depth sessions with people in desperate circumstances.
The day job, of course, continues but do give thanks for the value these companies put on our help and input and the opportunity to raise the profile of the work we do at Railway Mission. John Robinson
Southern, Gatwick Express, GTR & TfL for Southern Routes
One area of staff welfare in which I feel I struggled to make headway last year was the engineering side of Southern Railway. Engineering, whilst very important, can be difficult to access on the railway, as it requires the correct business contacts,
14
