New Vicar for Taunton Minster and St John the Evangelist
We are delighted to announce that Revd Sam Healey has been appointed as the new Vicar of the Benefice of Taunton Minster and St John the Evangelist.
Life to the Max: more than just a weekend away
Young people from the dioceses of Bath and Wells and Bristol join the annual weekend gathering for teens whose parents are clergy.
29 young people from across Bath and Wells and Bristol dioceses joined the annual weekend gathering for teens whose parents are clergy. Running for more than 20 years, Life to the Max is a fun outdoor activity-based weekend for 11–17-year-olds from clergy families, supported by generous funding from the Clergy Support Trust.
The weekend began with a warm welcome to the centre and great food, followed by a ‘get to know you’ session using Lego bricks and the opportunity to find out some unusual facts about the team – Ruth, Tony and Andy from the Go Team and Emily, our new Youth Voice and Young Leader Development Adviser.
Saturday was a day full of activities which included rock climbing, rifle shooting, axe throwing, frisbee golf and the always popular, Archery Active, where two teams shoot at each other using bows and arrows with ‘marshmallows’ on the end! In the evening, the group gathered around the campfire and shared experiences of living in a vicarage and the joys and challenges of having clergy parents. And, after toasting s’mores on the fire both leaders and young people danced the night away with a silent disco.
The group had just about enough energy left on Sunday morning to toboggan down the dry slope (some many times over) and to share last-minute games over lunch before being picked up by their parents.
Daniel, whose first time at Life to the Max, shared his enthusiasm for the weekend away. He said, “It was really good. I really liked all the activities we did, and the marshmallows were great as well!”
What makes Life to the Max so special? We asked the young people who came along to name their favourite thing…
“The people!” (Connie)
“The campfire” (Nathan)
“The hash browns and the tobogganing” (Jemima)
Andy Levett from the Bath and Wells team added, “Spending time with this special group of young people is always a privilege. It’s great to see so many returning year after year as well as new faces feeling right at home. We’re especially grateful for the financial support of Clergy Support Trust enabling Life to Max to keep happening – it’s more than just a weekend away”.
Next year’s Life to the Max will take place 24 – 26 September 2027. For more information do contact the Go Team.
