We hear from Josephine & David, 2 young & energetic individuals who recently joined the CWM team.
Josephine’s reflections:
“It was a wonderful experience to see the whole family of CWM staff in the retreat at Bintan. The retreat was set up to enable new staff like me to better understand the vision and operations of the organization. I personally benefit enormously from the various sessions which have indeed enabled me to understand the organization better. I am particularly glad to be given the time to personally get to know each regional member through a face to face interaction. It added a personal touch to the working relationship. Lastly, being a member of such a global family of CWM, I believe, it will help me to see mission in a broader and more inclusive manner and I look forward to be of added value to the family.”
Josephine Too ~ Program Associate, Justice & Witness; started work in January 2013 (Global Office)
David’s reflections:
“As one of the newest members of CWM I really valued the opportunity to meet with and spend time with other members of staff from across the broad spectrum of the organisations work. It was a pleasure to learn more about their lives, their work and their context and to spend some time as a fellowship with all of them.
For me the most relevant discussions were about CWM’s vision and identity. I came to the meeting with a fairly good working knowledge of what CWM is and where it has come from, but it was enlightening to hear from others about how they perceive the organisation to be growing in different ways. One of the most fundamental things that I learnt during the week was that we as regional staff need to be conscientious of our position as ‘field-workers’, being in the privileged position where we can see the work being carried out on the ground, in the local congregations and the member churches, but also maintain the global perspective and be an active part of the Singapore office’s work. It is not the same for those in the Singapore office whose contact with the actual projects may be quite limited. The best way for us to manage this is to maintain the personal relationships that we built during this week and keep in mind that we must view our work in the region as part of a global effort to further God’s mission.
CWM has a rich heritage that it must not lose contact with. It allows us to know who we are and where we come from, and in turn to better understand where we are going. The time we spent together in Bintan allowed me to see CWM as a community of workers for God’s glory, which was an opportunity I greatly appreciate and one that has profound implications for my own work.”
David Cruchley – Programme Associate, European Region; started work in September 2012.
