On Sunday 30th June new deacons will be ordained at Coventry Cathedral by The Acting Bishop of Coventry, the Right Reverend Ruth Worsley. On Saturday 7th September we are hoping one new deacon will be ordained at St Luke’s, Holbrooks by The Bishop of Oswestry, the Right Reverend Paul Thomas. The new deacons have undertaken a course of study and training, and following their ordination they will serve as curates (assistant ministers) while their training continues. As deacons they will lead worship and carry out pastoral and teaching work.
Rolene Cort
Rolene is to be a deacon in St Margaret’s, Whitnash. She is married to Steve, an engineer and has two adult children whom they love spending time with.
Rolene has been a lecturer/teacher in English as an additional language (TEFL) since leaving university in a range of institutions from FE colleges to schools and enjoyed working amongst international people, exploring and enabling cross cultural understanding and integration.
Rolene loves walking alongside people and discovering what helps them flourish. God calls each of us by name and welcomes us home. Her heart is that people discover this for themselves, growing in their calling and identity in Christ. She has a heart for prayer and justice, as well as encouraging others to encounter God’s heart for God’s world in a variety of ways.
Although Rolene has been on this vocational journey for some time, it was whilst worshipping at St George’s in Rugby, she felt a nudge to explore ordination within the Church of England. Through seeking counsel with others and receiving words of confirmation, Rolene began the discernment journey. Studying theology at St Mellitus College on a part-time pathway has been deeply enriching and formational including discovering the ancient wells of our spiritual heritage in this nation.
Rolene and her family love being in creation, whether walking, cycling or kayaking, and watching a sunset. Also she loves travelling, BBQs (or a braai! 😊) and seeing friends.
Beks Rothnie
Beks will be a deacon at Coventry All Saints which encompasses the churches of St. Margaret and St. Anne, an area of the city she hasn’t previously lived in and is keen to get to know better having been there socially on many occasions.
Prior to ordination, Beks worked in education; including prison education, employment schemes to help offenders, and as a youth worker. Her paid employment alongside her work with Christian charities and at church has deepened her care for those often overlooked and vulnerable in society and she is passionate about seeing people reach their God given potential.
Beks came to faith as a child and has known God's sustaining love throughout her life and is passionate about making it known to others. She first considered ordained ministry in her teens but it became a much louder call in her late 30's. She studied at Queens part time for the last three years while continuing with work. While at Queens she enjoyed having her horizons stretched and her passion for mission expanded.
In her spare time Beks loves to be outside, walking, gardening, running, wild swimming and playing rugby. She has a diverse group of friends and family she enjoys pursuing these activities with and she finds she connects with God when appreciating his creation.
James Sampson-Foster
James will be a deacon at St Andrew’s Church in Rugby, having trained at the Queen’s Foundation for Ecumenical Theological Education in Birmingham.
Originally from Slough, a town whose reputation usually precedes it, the question of whether anything good can come from Nazareth (John 1:46) has long been a Bible verse close to James’ heart. As a result James has a deep sense of call to bring the hope, love and dignity which come from God to the places of hidden brokenness which mark so many communities. Coming from a town which is a melting pot of many nations, James believes in a diverse church, where God is to be encountered in the neighbour, the stranger, and the traveller from another land.
Before training for ministry, James studied at the University of Warwick, completing a PhD in Politics, and later worked in Public Health at Coventry City Council.
James lives with his wife Lydia and their baby daughter Annabel. Their hobbies include trying different foods from around the world, boardgames, music, and sci-fi and fantasy books.
Please pray for James, Lydia and Annabel as they settle into Rugby, as well as his incumbent Edmund and all the people of St Andrew’s as they prepare to welcome him.
Adrian Thacker
Adrian will be a deacon in the benefice of Clifton-upon-Dunsmore and Newton with Brownsover, near Rugby. These communities are on the borders of the Coventry Diocese, but Adrian sees ‘being on the edge’ to herald the God who reaches out in Jesus Christ to people on the margins, yet who are at the very centre of God’s saving purposes.
Following training at Queens in Birmingham, Adrian felt called to Christ Church in Brownsover, in particular helping to prepare meals as part of the Family Winter Project. He considers ‘serving at tables’ to be an integral part of his ministerial formation. Adrian remains in secular employment and is keen to ensure that workplace and church are mutually enriched and informed.
Adrian is married to Hina, a practising Hindu. This means that their family experiences a diverse perspective on life, as well as plenty of opportunities to enjoy Asian cuisine. Adrian and Hina have two children, Tulsi and Jasmine aged 16 and 11.
While worshipping as a family at St Andrew’s in Rugby, Adrian was struck when he experienced ‘godly play’. He soon got involved with café church, preaching and leading services at a local hospital. During a silent retreat (!) a parishioner suggested he consider ordination, which he’d already felt pulled towards but had filed in the archives. Responding to this ‘nudge’ from God, Adrian began a lengthy discernment and formational journey; one in which he senses the Spirit at work in the process itself as well as within his own heart and mind.
Luke Thomas
Luke will be a deacon at St Michael's Church, Warwick.
Luke is married to Lou and they have two young children together. Luke has been involved in working for the Church since he turned 18, which has included being part of a youth and schoolwork project and as a young adult worker part of the Coventry Diocese Acceler8 initiative. He has continued to grow in his leadership and has been leading and preaching for several years.
Luke felt a call to church leadership at a young age which then grew as he explored his call into ordained ministry. Luke trained at St Mellitus College, London, where he gained lots of experience and friendships. Learning he was dyslexic during the training, Luke manged to get the support he needed to complete all the work. Luke enjoys a laugh, watching Liverpool play (and win) and spending time with friends and family. Luke is passionate about serving local communities and can't wait to explore this more into his curacy.
Modupe Adeoye
Modupe will be a deacon at St Nicolas, Nuneaton, including St James, Weddington and Caldecote.
Modupe’s family history in the Diocese of Coventry and links with Coventry Cathedral date to 1949. Her father trained and worked in Coventry as an automobile engineer and her mother, a retired hospital senior matron, trained and worked as a nurse at Farnborough, Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospitals. Modupe is one of five children, (three brothers and a younger sister) and blessed with two very precious children.
Modupe trained as a workplace chaplain with CIGB (Churches and Industry Group Birmingham). She and her mother trained as hospital chaplains at George Eliot Hospital and with a mental health focus at CWPT (Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership NHS Trust) Mental Health Hospitals.
One of Modupe’s former colleagues says, “It is fitting that Modupe is returning to Nuneaton to continue her journey”. Modupe’s response is, “God is good all the time... The LORD God has continued to be gracious; marvellous are His works! God brought me to Coventry in accordance with His ultimate plans and has used all my experiences to mould me and is still doing the shaping. It is God, who has been doing the holding, cradling, shielding and healing. Indeed, 'to everything, there is a season, and a time to every purpose…' God is doing the sending... Nuneaton is in a strategic location and its history is intriguing. The river Anker meanders through it – as rivers flow into rivers and into greater waters; I pray that the Holy Spirit of the living God will move mightily and touch every heart in untold ways. Through God’s grace and wonderous works, I pray that all people will come together as one and will experience the grace and goodness of God. I am looking forward to meeting and working collectively with people in the parishes and across communities and beyond, for positive lasting outcomes”.
Modupe described her theological training at Ripon College Cuddesdon as an invaluable learning and development experience that contributed immensely to her spiritual growth. Modupe is a member of CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel Development), a culture change management specialist, has an MBA (executive programme) from Warwick Business School, was a senior lecturer at Coventry University. She is a consultant and mentor with experience of challenging projects involving judicial authorities, and a mechanical engineer who worked for many years in the automotive and manufacturing industries. She is a qualified Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) England Instructor, a contributor to UHCW (University Hospitals Coventry & Warwickshire) sarcoidosis research and will be returning to complete her PhD research in Trauma and Resilience at the University of Warwick.
Alongside her curacy training, Modupe will be working as the Advocacy Programme Officer with CUF and AMEN teams to deliver the From Lament To Action’ s commitment to racial justice in the whole Church of England.
“As I go from the old to the new, I trust that the Lord God will keep walking along with me. I will appreciate your prayers please: for me, family, all my destiny influencers and helpers, Nuneaton, Weddington and Caldecote and for peace in the world.”
Following the birth of her second child in June 2024, Liz Goodwin will be now ordained a deacon in 2025.
Liz Goodwin
Liz will be deacon at St Martins in the Fields, Finham. Liz currently lives in Atherstone and has been on placement at Holy Trinity Attleborough, near Nuneaton. She has really enjoyed her time in North Warwickshire but is looking forward to returning to Coventry for curacy and is excited to see what this time will bring.
Prior to starting training Liz worked as an Occupational Therapist for 10 years, the majority of this time was spent working with people who had had strokes and supporting their rehabilitation and return to independence. This was her vocation for a season and found it difficult to come to terms with God calling her into a new vocation of becoming a priest. Over the last two years she has found peace with laying down her previous vocation and looks forward to seeing how God will use the skills she gained from that period in her future ministry.
Liz has a three-year-old and is pregnant with their second child. She loves watching her toddler becoming more interested in Jesus and has appreciated the opportunity to experience the highlights and difficulties of being parent to a young child in church. She hopes this will help her future ministry, in particular supporting families in church.
On Saturday 7th September we are hoping Charles Cowper will be ordained at St Luke’s, Holbrooks by The Bishop of Oswestry, the Right Reverend Paul Thomas.
Charles Cowper
Charles will serve his title post at St Luke’s, Holbrooks. He was born and raised in Newport, South Wales, and was formed for ordination at Ridley Hall. Since Ridley, Charles has taught maths at a school in Exeter, and married his wife Rebecca, who is a biophysicist.
Charles has fond memories of visiting Coventry and its surroundings with his family and grandparents, and is looking forward to living and serving here. His vocation to the priesthood started with leading Bible studies at university, and teaching remains one of Charles' key motivators.