It was a great pleasure today to conduct a Blessing Service for Tricia Brown (on the right, with her colleague Lynn Campbell) on the occasion of her retirement. Tricia, who is a member of the Church of England, has served in the College for 30 years. People often say that Leeds Trinity has a friendly atmosphere, that you sense something upon entering; people of faith attribute this difficult-to-define impression as being an expression of our Christian ethos. The first 30 seconds are the crucial ones. Tricia has mediated Christ's welcome to countless thousands of students. Over coffee after the blessing, which was also attended by our Principal, Professor Freda Bridge, Lynn recounted how Tricia has consistently had an eye open for the students who are struggling. Not infrequently has she gone round the reception desk and given them a big hug when they have shared with her how home sick they are feeling. Job descriptions cannot cover that kind of thing. We'll miss her.
Here's the blessing with which the 10-minute service concluded:
Heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit upon Tricia as she approaches the end of her time here at Leeds Trinity. Foster in her your gift of faith so that she may always turn to you for support and praise you for your goodness in future years. May her long service here be pleasing in your sight and be a sweet-smelling offering to you, whose Son, Jesus, was a Servant to all whom he met. May the Holy Spirit give her joy as she steps down from her responsibilities at Leeds Trinity and hope for the future. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
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