Revd Sally Wheeler was licensed as Priest-in-Charge of Marshfield Benefice on 8 October 2012.
Sally writes:
I am looking forward to coming to minister in the four parishes of Marshfield, Cold Ashton, Tormarton and West Littleton. I was born in Gloucester where my parents still live, and so it is good to be coming back into Gloucestershire.
I have been ministering within Chippenham Deanery for fifteen years and my move to Marshfield comes after eleven full and happy years in the Greater Corsham and Lacock Team. Before that I was in the North Chippenham Group of Churches.
Ministry is a huge privilege and I look forward to building up links between the church and the communities of this benefice, and helping more people to explore faith and come to know God.
I was ordained at Bristol Cathedral in 1997 after training in the Diocese of Oxford. We moved to Chippenham for my husbands job and so I came into the Diocese of Bristol. Before ministry I had been a teacher and busy bringing up our family: I qualified to teach French and PE but actually spent most of my brief teaching career in primary education.
Since entering full time ministry my involvement in education has been on the governing side - being Foundation Governor for Lacock School for 11 years. I look forward to being involved with Marshfield School too.
Im married to Bob who is a business lecturer at Wiltshire College and we have five children, three of whom have left home. Our youngest two have moved to Marshfield with us - Sarah who has graduated and now works in Chippenham, and Samuel who has just begun Hardenhuish VIth form: Sam already has several friends in this area from school.
There is a lot of change for our family at the moment: our eldest son Jonathan is about to move to Malaysia with his wife and daughter, our eldest daughter Amy has just moved to Suffolk with her family, and our middle son Peter is now living and working in London and to be married next year!
Bob and I enjoy walking so we plan to explore the four parishes footpaths and I look forward to getting to know the four church and village communities in the months ahead.