Judith Swaine ...supporting Naval Families in Portsmouth

Judith Swaine is part of the Chaplaincy team at HMS NELSON and is very excited about the opportunity to work for the RSR as a part time Chaplaincy Support Worker with her colleague Connie Sherman. We welcome her and take the opportunity to learn about her Christian life.

Judith served in the Women's Royal Naval Service for several years. In Judith's words, she has been a Christian all her life and whilst serving in the WRNS she attended Naval Christian Fellowship (NCF) meetings and was later confirmed. It was at the confirmation classes that she met her husband David who subsequently served in the Royal Navy for nineteen years. David and Judith were blessed with a daughter Tina, who also lives in the Gosport area.

The fellowship that was shared in the NCF at that time gave Judith great strength, support and comfort. She hopes that through her work with RSR she will be able to offer similar help and support to service personnel and their families by demonstrating God's love for all with the joy and comfort that knowing Jesus Christ can bring. This is summed up in Judith's own words, "In this diverse world we live in, it is important that we are all willing to listen to each other and respect other's views. To let what we have in common draw us together and, through our differences learn to grow in understanding. I very much hope that my time with RSR will be a two-way thing and that I will learn from those I meet and grow to better understand their needs."

Judith is also a trained counsellor and a licensed Reader in the Portsmouth diocese and Gosport Deanery. RSR will be truly enriched by all this experience, knowledge and understanding of life as a Naval Service family that Judith will bring to her work. We wish her well and pray for her ministry.