Will Sudworth with Maddi Lingard at Underground
At Easter, Will Sudworth changed roles in our church, leaving his part-time work here to focus on his business and helping his parents.
It has been an absolute privilege for me to grow up in a church where he has worked. Will developed the Mettle groups: bible study groups that have helped so many secondary school students to come to know the Bible in a far more intimate way. These contributed to many of us being confirmed. Will also developed Easter Holiday Club, which gives primary school children a chance to spend time hearing about and praising Jesus. The first Easter Holiday Club had a small team of around 5 leaders and 30 children, but this year there were over 100 children and a team of over 30 volunteers supporting them. Zone2, a huge source of growth and diversity for our church community, also evolved in part through the dedication and determination of Will.
These are just a few of the ways in which Will has helped our church; he also ran the youth club Underground, helped our previous vicar Rev Roger Preece to facilitate the Message Trust in establishing Street Academy at the Parish Centre, set up the annual trip of around 30 young people to Soul Survivor and created Fusion, where members of the church who have now left school can support one another.
Will has also helped the wider community by setting up a Duke of Edinburgh scheme that has given hundreds of young people the chance to gain their DofE qualification through developing a skill, playing a sport, and volunteering. He will be continuing to lead DofE as a volunteer.
In short, Will has vastly impacted this church, and has drawn in so many people, always going above and beyond what anyone could have expected. Will, I thank you for your wisdom, your generosity, your dedication, your kindness, and your hard work. You will be missed more than words can express. May God bless you.
Grace Johnson, Durham University