Christian LIFE Parawai

an informal Home Gathering

in Parawai Community,

Thames, Coromandel

Lives Invested For Eternity

Hosts

Gavin & Alison McIntosh

• Gavin & Alison served as pastoral workers at the Thames Church of Christ for the year 2008. They have a passion for connecting with locals in the Parawai and wider Thames community with a view to introduce them to Christ.

•email Gavin & Alison

HAURAKI HERALD, FEBRUARY 29, 2008 P47

Couple Relish Community

Christ's Church Open

by Mathew Grocott

Creating a strong sense of community in the Parawai area of Thames is the goal of two of it’s newest residents.

Gavin and Alison McIntosh are the new pastoral workers at the Church of Christ on Parawai Rd and want Parawai people to feel like they are a part of a community.

“We want to build a sense of community in this area. We’ve been brought in to try to raise the numbers and raise the profile of the church, raise it’s involvement in the community. We want it to be the church for Parawai,” Mr McIntosh said.

“Parawai is sort of stuck out at the end of Thames and has it’s own little identity,” Mrs McIntosh said.

Mr McIntosh sees the church and Parawai School as being the key community facilities in Parawai.

“We want the school and church to co-operate and support each other to the benefit of the community.”

The couple met with community leaders in Thames to introduce themselves and create networks and said they were impressed with how approachable Thames people are.

Married for 31 years with four adult children, the couple moved to Thames for the “friendly, healthy, laid back lifestyle”.

“It’s nice and quiet,” Mrs McIntosh said. Mr McIntosh's grandfather lived in Thames and in his youth Mr McIntosh completed an apprenticeship at A&G Price.

“We’d always kept contacts here,” Mrs McIntosh said. “We heard there was a position coming up and thought it could be for us.”

(Article and photo reproduced with permission from the Hauraki Herald—a Fairfax Media publication)

Advent Christian Conference

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