Who We Are
Established in 2016, Embracing Ministries is a Canberra-based organisation which provides pastoral care, spiritual support and developmentally appropriate programs for children and especially families in the Canberra area who live with disability.
We offer a range of programs including school holiday programs for children with physical and intellectual disabilities; retreats where parents can hear God amid family life; activities for siblings from families who have a child with a disability; as well as support, advice and assistance to congregations seeking to care for families with disability.
Our Vision
Our vision is to enhance inclusive ministry in the Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn, and to run programs that support young people with disabilities and their families.
Our Mission
Embracing Ministries aims to support and nurture the spiritual life of all people, regardless of their abilities.
Our Team
Coming Soon
Role: Director
Brianna Hayes Evans
Role: Administrative Assistant
Brianna is Embracing Ministries new Administrative Assistant and is a mother of three beautiful children, Amelia, William and Layla. She started her career working for the ACT Education Directorate supporting children with Additional needs and Disabilities, before moving into an administrative position.
Mentors and Volunteers
Our mentors and volunteers are an enthusiastic, hard working group of people dedicated to helping deliver programs and events at Embracing Ministries. They make a big difference in participants’ lives, and the lives of their families. The participants look up to our mentors and volunteers, and will always remember how fantastic they are. If you would like to volunteer with Embracing Ministries, please contact us.
Advisory Board
Clive Rodger (Chair) has worked as an economic consultant in industry and trade policy. He has also run a large workplace consultancy addressing issues of workplace culture and better functioning. Clive has also been a theological educator having lectured in mission and leadership as St Marks. He has chaired a number of public and private company boards. He has had a long Diocesan involvement having served on Bishop in Council, The Property Trust, Synod and St Marks Council. Clive has a passionate interest in the disadvantaged in society and is delighted to be involved with Embracing Ministries.
Deborah Horscroft (Assistant Director) is an Occupational Therapist for The Rehabilitation Specialists, a disability sibling and a disability parent. When Deb previously worked as a School Chaplain with Andrea, she recognised the incredible work that Andrea was doing for children with disabilities in her “spare time” and advocated with the Stening Charitable Fund to provide financial support for the first holiday program that has grown into Embracing Ministries. Deb continues to help out with the Sibling program, making craft resources, and supporting Andrea in this valuable work.
Ven Tom Henderson-Brooks (Diocesan Rep.) is the Archdeacon for the Canberra/Goulburn Anglican, with responsibility for Mission and Chaplaincy. He has been an Anglican Minister for 30 years in Kings Cross, Bondi, South Turramurra and North Rockhampton. Immediately prior to moving to Canberra, Tom led the Diocese of Rockhampton for 15 months in the transition between Bishops, having been the Diocesan Archdeacon for Mission and Training. He has ministered in both urban inner city and rural contexts. He was until June 2021, a Board Director for Anglicare Central Queensland and is now a Board Director for Anglicare NSW South, NSW West and the ACT. He has Degrees in Science and Theology and Post Graduate qualifications in Education, Ministry and Arts. He’s a self-taught musician, enjoys cycling and is married to Caroline.
Christopher Wood (Treasurer) became aware of Embracing Ministries work following his wife presenting at a Luke 14 course and attending retreats in addition to his youngest child attending the Little Treasures holiday program. Being a double degree (accounting and law) qualified CPA Accountant, with extensive experience in NFP and Charity management (including The Salvation Army) and Governance, Christopher fulfils the role of Treasurer for Embracing Ministries. Christopher currently works for the Public Service. As well as a busy day job, Christopher is a husband to Kelly, and they have a hectic household with two neurodivergent children.
Chris has a passion for serving in ministry and using his administration gifts, especially for those marginalised by disability. When not occupied with work, family and Embracing Ministries, Christopher loves watching the Sydney Swans and Marvel movies, exercising (preferably running) and doing all the housework while his amazing wife builds a Kingdom Business. (Hebrews 12:1)
Dr David Clark (Assistant Treasurer) is a retired academic in Maths and Computing). He acts as an assistant to Chris, the treasurer of Embracing Ministries. He helps out with the day to day banking and prepares the monthly credit card transactions ready for input into Xero, our accounting package. David and his wife Merilyn are long standing friends of Andrea and her family. They have encouraged and assisted Andrea in her journey to deacon and priest and rejoiced as her ministry developed and became more focussed. In Andrea they see someone with a unique gift, that of seeing the child in the disabled body, and in the child the image of God. David feels privileged to be part of Embracing Ministries.
Mary-Ann Kal is Senior Manager (Programs and Participants) of Sharing Places, which provides opportunities and support to people with disability to reach their full potential. As a long-term leader of Friends of Jesus ministry at St Matthews Anglican Church, May-Ann was approached to become a leader on the inaugural Spring Holiday Program, an inclusive program for children with disability, where she saw the children respond to the love of Jesus through the interactions and the Bible stories which were presented in multisensory ways to reach each individual child. Later, while Andrea and Mary-Ann supported some of the Friends of Jesus group to go to the Worthy Partners Camp in the Blue Mountains, they discussed at length the vision for ministering to children and adults with disability and their families, the challenges many have faced and still face in belonging to a church community, and the support that would be needed for that vision to be realised. Eventually Embracing Ministries was ‘born’.
With over 40 years+ working with adults and children with disability, Mary-Ann has continued to serve with Embracing Ministries in various capacities, through prayer, support and encouragement; providing information, training and leadership, as well as preparing resources, and participating in events and holiday programs.
Dalanglin Dkhar (Carer Representative) has found that the work of Embracing Ministries is close to her heart as she is her son’s primary carer and is currently studying for her PhD on the lived experience of Carers. Dalang is involved with other parent groups within the disability community and sees Embracing Ministries as an important body of transformative service to this community. Her past work in the Sydney charitable organisation of Wesley Mission as Producer of Wesley Mission Television and Corporate Communication is helping her see how Andrea’s inspiring vision of Embracing Ministries can fill the gap that is sorely needed for families within this community in Canberra.
Dr. Louise Gosbell is the Principal at Mary Andrews College in Sydney and teaches a range of subjects in New Testament as well as disability. Louise’s PhD on disability in the gospels was published in 2018 and she continues to write academic works on disability in the New Testament. Louise is a passionate disability advocate and has been involved in various aspects of disability ministry for over 15 years training churches and Christian organisations in disability inclusion. Having assisted Embracing Ministries for many years as a speaker at our Luke 14 Workshops and webinars, Louise joined the Embracing Ministries Board in 2021 as she is passionate about supporting families living with disability. Louise is married to Mark who is the principal of a school for students with disability in Sydney. They have 3 teenage daughters one of whom lives with disability. You can read some of Louise’s work online on the ABC Religion and Ethics website: https://www.abc.net.au/religion/for-those-with-disability-church-must-not-go-back-to-normal/12948602
Previous important people
Andrea
Role: Previous Director
Janet McKinney
It is with deep sadness that we share the news that our dear friend and board member, Janet, has passed away. We are extremely grateful for Janet’s years of service to Embracing Ministries and to her community. Janet was instrumental in supporting the governance and management of Embracing Ministries to ensure the longevity and sustainability of outreach to the disability and church communities. Janet will be deeply, deeply missed as her contributions were selfless and she worked hard to develop and ensure the successful foundations of such a unique and important ministry were developed. We will especially miss Janet’s wonderful sense of humor and her warm hugs. We want to express our deepest and most sincere sympathy and condolences to her family and friends. Our heartfelt prayers are with you as we mourn her passing.
The Board of Embracing Ministries is seeking to hold a conference on disability and the church. Holding such a conference was a passion of Janet’s.
Our Partners
Embracing Ministries is devoted to working collaboratively with local and national organisations to provide the best possible support for disabled children and adults, and their families. We are thankful to our partners for all they do to support our work.
Testimonies
Mother
School holidays for families with children with special needs are far from anything that defines ‘relaxing’ or ‘fun’. If anything they are the opposite. The child is distraught due to the change in his daily routine and the lack of structure that a school day would usually have. The days become an endless round of stress and challenging behaviours and everyone prays for the term to begin again.
When I first heard of Little Treasures, I jumped at the chance of having our boundless bundle of energy and cheekiness, enrolled. The fact that it was a program that was conceived by Andrea and her team gave me all the confidence that I needed that it was going to be the best thing for our son. But what further blew my mind was the thought that they had put into every little detail regarding what the program could give to the child.
Since our son was a non-verbal boy with autism and a high dependency on supports for even his most basic needs like meal times and toileting, I was told that he would be looked after one-on-one by a highly trained support worker. When I was introduced to Mary-Ann, she took the trouble to visit me and to learn all that she could on how to look after our son. We were also emailed a social story about the program that helped our son a great deal as he can otherwise get very anxious about new places. As a family, we were invited to attend a meet and greet a day before the program commenced and that was a wonderful way to be introduced to the place, the people working there and to the community of parents and children at large. I’m writing about all this activity prior to the program starting because for our son preparation is half the battle won for a successful outcome. Andrea and her team understood that, and walked with us every step of that path.
And what can I say about the actual program itself! It was a resounding success because it not only gave my son a safe place to spend time in but it had a comprehensive and creative daily schedule that allowed him to observe, participate, learn and immerse himself. The facilities, with their amazing outdoor areas and several indoor spaces, created a wonderful environment for him to thrive in. The best part of it all for me, as a parent of a child whose world can be socially very isolating, was the chance for my son to be in an inclusive program where he could mingle and socialise in his happy, carefree, non-verbal manner and be accepted as just another happy, energetic kid. The value of that was priceless.
As an exhausted mum, the time I received to get my chores done and to know my son is well taken care of is priceless. What did my son himself think of Little Treasures? Well you just couldn’t wipe the smile off his face for the entire three days when he was there.
Mother
God’s timing is impeccable. I was at a seminar on resilience recently, and the topic of optimal stress came up. With the right level of “stress”, we reach peak performance. If our dial is consistently in the red, we burn out. If we burn out, we can’t just dial things back a little and fire up again. We need to throw off our load and take time to recover.
Rest. I don’t think I’ve ever met a parent who gets enough of it. When your child comes with extra sparkle juice, chronic sleep deprivation can become the norm. So too can a sense of isolation, as nights fill up with research and days fill up with therapy sessions and medical appointments.
I was recently incredibly fortunate to join Reverend Andrea, Reverend Rebecca and other mums on an Embracing Ministries Women’s Retreat in a beautiful home in Long Beach, very generously offered by a kind woman. We unwound, laughed, shared support, walked and meditated. The retreat came as I was about to take an extended period of leave from work. My dial had been in the red for too long.
After the weekend, I reflected on the gifts I had received. Love, support, encouragement, spiritual guidance, compassion, and a renewed energy and faith to walk back into my life and be the best parent I can be for my boys. In the quiet time after sunrise one morning, Reverend Rebecca led a meditation with words that struck a chord with me: the Spirit of the One who creates the universe dwells silently in our hearts and is loving to all. How often we forget that God’s love applies to us, just as much as it does to our fellow travellers. Even to this Mum, when she is stumbling along in the red.
Embracing Ministries Leader
I have had an absolutely amazing experience being a leader at this year’s program. It was incredible to have an increased role after my last two years as a mentor. Working with the kids could be a challenge at times, but the help and support provided by Andrea and her team helped me to realise what a blessing being a part of this experience really has been. Stepping up to the role of a leader instead of a mentor seemed difficult at first, but my two years’ experience as a mentor made it easy to not only connect with the kids but have fun and enjoy my time with them. It was such a great couple of days and I cannot wait to help out with it again in the future!