It is my great pleasure to introduce to you the members to the Foundation Nazareth Parish Leadership Team.
On Pentecost 2021 Archbishop Peter A. Comensoli invited priests and people to open up the question as to how the Church of Melbourne might be best organised into the future.* The invitation was set within the context of the Plenary Council called a couple of years earlier, and its purpose among many other things to discern a more authentic leadership and clearer accountability, while keeping the way of the Gospel at the heart of our mission.
For several years our Parish has been on the journey discerning how we would best organise and operate into the future. The discerning work was first carried out by the Advisory Team followed by a process of consultation.
As a way to restart the ‘engine’ of our Parish involvement after a long period of hibernation due to Covid-19 lockdown, parishioners were invited to review their involvement in a group or ministry within the Parish. Their feedback on the revised Parish vision and mission were also sought and used to form a broader context for establishing the Nazareth Parish Leadership Team Charter.
As we turn a next page of our Parish life while keeping both the Archbishop’s invitation and Plenary Council’s deliberations in view, we recognise that our Parish is gifted with the profoundly important challenge and opportunity. With this in mind and ‘amidst a new landscape of complexity and diversity, the Parish Priest and parishioners with their unique gifts, roles, and responsibility are called to work together… Together, Parish Priest and laity are to work collaboratively as a united leadership team to serve the Parish mission to which they hold themselves accountable.’ **
The following pages are the members of the Parish Leadership Team including their brief profile together with a Parish pillar they each represents on behalf of the Parish. On the back page you will find an email address which has been created specifically for you to correspond with the Leadership Team.
Please keep them in your prayers as they each strives their utmost best to serve our wonderful Parish.
Fr. Linh Tran
Parish Priest
I have lived in Torquay since 1986, and since then have been part of St. Therese Community of Nazareth Parish. My wife Chris and I have six sons, who have grown up in Torquay and attended St. Therese Primary School.
I have previously served on St. Therese School Board for seventeen years, including two terms as chairperson. At this time I also served on St. Therese Parents and Friends and St. Therese Pastoral Team.
I chaired the Revitalization of St. Therese Church Committee and have been part of Fr. Linh’s Advisory Team for the past seven years. During this time I have worked on the Steering Committee for the establishment of Lisieux Catholic Primary School and the Project Control Group for both Lisieux and St. Catherine of Siena Primary Schools.
My ultimate hope is that Nazareth Parish can continue to improve and develop and be instrumental in living out the mission of Jesus.
I am a parent of a child at St Therese Primary School Torquay, within the Nazareth Parish. We chose a Catholic education for our child to enhance his knowledge and faith of the Catholic tradition and Gospel values in daily life. I believe that it is the responsibility of the whole community to ensure and create links between the School and the Church community for our children. I am a Catholic school teacher with a Bachelor of Teaching / Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Religious Education. I am proud to represent the parents of the Parish Schools within our community, creating stronger links and bringing the ideas and thoughts of those who wish to contribute.
My name is Fran Belleville. I am 67 years old with two wonderful children, Justin a plumber, Malia a Chief Petty Officer in the Australian Navy and four beautiful grandchildren. I have been a member of Nazareth Parish, Grovedale since September 2015 and over the last 3 years have become involved in several different Parish Ministries, including Commentator and Reader at Mass, Special Minister of the Eucharist, co-ordinator of the Sunday morning teas, as well as celebrating Liturgy of the Word with Communion to 2 different nursing homes within our Parish.
After experiencing some tragic times during the last five years, it has been my Nazareth family who have taken me under their wing and given me the strength to carry on and it is for this reason that I have joined the Leadership Team to give back to our wonderful Parish. I am looking forward to the challenges ahead and hope I can contribute to maintaining the incredible sense of belonging which is evident throughout the entire Nazareth Parish.
I have been a resident of Torquay since December 2009, and a member of Nazareth Parish since then. I have been a member of Fr Linh’s Advisory Team for several years, including chairing the team meetings for a period. I have also been a member of the Nazareth Social Justice Committee, a rostered reader for Sunday Mass at St Therese Church as well as special occasions such as Easter.
I have been involved in the development of two of recently opened Parish Primary Schools as a community member of the Steering Committees and CEOM Project Control Group.
Spending my early years in a small community in north west Victoria, I understand the value of working together for the good of the community as a whole. I believe I can bring a community focus to our Parish, and I commit to work with all parishioners, especially the vulnerable and the young. The latter group is the future of our Parish and it is important we work towards ways that can ensure they are engaged and enthused by the happenings within the Parish, in all its forms.
I have been involved in the Passionist Family Group Movement for many years as a member in two Parishes. For two terms (6 years) I was a group leader of The Mannagum Family Group at St Therese, Torquay. Currently my husband and I are Nazareth Parish Coordinators for the three groups across the Parish.
The groups provide a network of friendship and support for all parishioners. New families in the Parish are invited to join. Although unable to meet in recent times, the Family Group Movement offered spiritual support via linking families to online Masses and reflections, as well as offering encouragement during the period of Covid lockdown.
I believe the group could be a link between our schools and Parish with the establishment of a group for young families.
In my working life, I was involved in education for 40 years. Initially, I taught in several state high schools, after which I lectured in the Faculty of Education at Melbourne University. I became Deputy Principal at St. Joseph’s North Melbourne, worked in the Catholic Education Office and finally, I was Principal at Catholic Regional College Melton for 13 years.
We have spent holidays in Jan Juc since the early 1980s. We became members of the Jan Juc Surf Lifesaving Club at that time and attended Mass at St Therese’s Church regularly. My wife, Kerry and I retired to Jan Juc in 2009. In the Parish, I am Chair of the Finance Committee and a Member of the Advisory Team.
I still consider myself relatively new to the Parish, having only been appointed the Parish Secretary position almost 3 years ago. My husband, Troy, and I along with our 2 children have lived in Marshall for over 15 years. Cooper and Harry, currently attend Nazareth Catholic Primary School.
My reason for being a part of the Leadership Team is to help gain a wider understanding and appreciation of what our community looks like and what I can do to help make a difference.
My husband Bernie and I moved to Torquay in the 1980s and we raised our children in the local community. I have been actively involved in the St Therese community and Nazareth Parish Pastoral Teams over many years, as well as: representing Nazareth Parish on the St Therese School Board; acting as a sponsor in the Catechumenate Program; being a Commentator at Mass; and participating in cleaning/flower rosters at St Therese Church.
My professional background has been in health, education and disability services, and I was the CEO of a local disability organisation for 16 years prior to my retirement in 2019. In 2015, I was inducted into the Victorian Women’s Honour Roll, recognising my contribution to disability services in Victoria. I would welcome the opportunity to contribute to the area of Community on the Nazareth Parish Leadership Group, because I believe in welcoming, inclusive, just and caring communities within Nazareth Parish. I recognise the importance of being welcoming and relevant to families, children and young people. I will seek to work collaboratively to promote the Nazareth Parish vision and mission, understanding that we are experiencing multiple opportunities and challenges now and in the future.
I have been a member of the friendly St Christopher’s Church community in Anglesea for 30 years. My wife Lynda and I have 2 daughters and grandchildren. I have observed the faithful service many parishioners have contributed over that period. My children enjoyed their time at the local Catholic Schools and got a good education and formation. I will attempt to be a good representative of the many branches of our Parish, and support Fr Linh in the many facets of our Parish life.
I am blessed to have been appointed to this wonderful Parish. We are a Parish of multiple churches and school communities stretching over 30km in length to encompass Anglesea, Torquay, Armstrong Creek, Grovedale and the surrounding areas.
As Parish Priest, I am continually amazed by the profound dedication many parishioners have given to our Parish. I have witnessed the rapid transformation of farmland Armstrong Creek and North Torquay into residential areas, and am thrilled at the prospect that this growth with all its realities can offer us the opportunity for mission.
Among many other hopes and dreams, the establishment of the Nazareth Leadership Team is a response to the exciting opportunity as a Parish and as Church and I am proud to be a part of the next chapter of our parish life and mission.