Here is the good news that many of us have been waiting for - summarised in the statement below from Bishop Karen.
‘We are delighted to announce that following an appointment process, involving benefice representatives, the Team Rector Elect and the Bishop of Sherborne have appointed the Revd Joanna Levasier to the role of Team Vicar and Schools Missioner. Jo is currently Associate Vicar, and acting Incumbent, of Burpham Parish Church in the Guildford Diocese. She will bring pastoral, preaching and teaching experience to the role, as well as a background in children’s and youth work. As Jo’s daughter is in the middle of her A levels, we have agreed to a delay with this appointment, which we feel is well worth waiting for, and will look to licensing Jo early next July. In the meantime, we hope that there will be many opportunities for Jo and her family to visit Swanage during the course of next year. Thank you to all those involved in the appointment process.’
You may be interested to know that this was a unanimous decision by the seven members of the panel in deliberations which lasted for less than an hour. Personally, I am excited and enthused by this appointment and I believe that Jo will be a wonderful asset to All Saints and to the wider team.
In due course, Jo will write a couple of paragraphs to introduce herself and this will be included in Church Alive and circulated to everyone in All Saints. In the meantime, please be praying for Jo, her husband, James, and their two children, Joshua and Grace, as they prepare for their move to Swanage in 2023.
Tim, Claire and Michael