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Take Care: Mid-Career Stretch held in Halifax in May 2011

Comments from past Take Care participants:

“Thank you for telling us that we matter! For reminding us that the Church was here before, will probably be here after, and that we have a stewardship/a responsibility to care for ourselves.”

"It helped me to see the persona we take on as ministers, and that we need places to let them down and be ourselves. We need to build in time to be intimate with God, with self and with others."

"Rediscerning the call with the Biblical story – this gave me a lot of peace! Talking to colleagues – knowing that their insecurities are the same – or that they even have problems I don’t was helpful!"

Learning to Take Care

All Take Care events have focused on the middle years of ministry, with an emphasis on self-care and well-being in the midst of pastoral ministry.

What began as two workshops in 2003 entitled Take Care: Self Care as Stewardship (the MacDonald Lecture at Knox College) and Take Care!: Nurturing Identity with Integrity (Knox College Clergy Wellness Workshop) grew into longer residential events. The need for this kind of retreat was evident from the feedback. In 2005, Take Care: Holding a Sacred Trust with Integrity in Today's World was offered through Knox College's Continuing Education program.

Since the Centre's inception in 2006, Take Care has been part of our work. Andrew Irvine, the Centre's Director, has consistently been the facilitator of these opportunities, bringing a wealth of knowledge in the areas of small church ministry, pastoral psychology and leadership dynamics.

Titles of these events have included:
Take Care: Strength for the Journey (2006)
Take Care: Going from Strength to Strength (2007)
Take Care: Mid-Career Stretch (2008 and 2010)
Take Care: Safe Space for Dialogue - Self Care and the Family (2009)

Take Care always has the element of creating safe space for clergy to be real, to learn, to stretch themselves and to be renewed and refreshed.

Our 2006 through 2009 Take Care events were held at Crieff Hills Community which offers terrific facilities and meals, a prayer shelter, labyrinth and walking trails. In 2010, we partnered with St. Stephen's College, Edmonton to offer Take Care Mid-Career Stretch in St. Albert, Alberta. We look forward to offering this event on the east coast in May of 2011!

This event is generously sponsored by the Beatty Ryckman Trust.