Our Chaplains licensed by Bishop of Peterborough
Two Chaplains at Kettering General Hospital were officially licensed on June 19 by the Bishop of Peterborough.
The Rev Evie McNally and Church Army Diocesan Lay Minister Sharon Bulita are part of KGH’s eight-strong multi-faith Chaplaincy and work alongside its 30 dedicated team of spiritual and pastoral care volunteers.
They received their Church of England licence from the Bishop of Peterborough, The Rt Rev Debbie Sellin on 19th June.
The licence allows them to officiate at services and ceremonies in hospital including weddings, funerals, and christenings.
KGH’s Lead Chaplain, the Rev Mike Corcoran, said: “As hospital Chaplains Evie and Sharon are both employees of the NHS, and office holders in the Church of England. Part of the official process to ratify positions as hospital chaplains is for them to be licensed by the Bishop of Peterborough.
“I am delighted to see that both Evie and Sharon have now been officially licensed and I hope they will continue to enjoy serving our hospital community including both patients and staff.”
The Rev McNally said: ‘I am thrilled to be serving as part of the Spiritual and Pastoral Care Team here at Kettering General Hospital. It is a privilege to be able to offer a supportive presence to staff, patients, and their families.’
Sharon Bulita said: ‘ It is a tremendous privilege and joy to be able to serve on this special team at KGH helping to deliver support to all our patients their families/carers and all our hardworking hospital staff who care for us and our community.’
The Rev Corcoran added: “I’m honoured to lead a relatively small team that has such a big impact and I hope that our service will continue to grow and flourish providing spiritual, pastoral, and religious support to people of all backgrounds.
“If we cannot meet any specific religious or spiritual need we have many contacts in the local community who we can call on for more support.”
Chief Executive Deborah Needham said: “The chaplaincy team do a lot of good work providing spiritual and pastoral support for patients, their families, and our KGH colleagues.
“I am delighted that Evie and Sharon have received their official licences and continue to work to support us in so many ways.”
During the service Evie McNally and the Sharon Bulita were presented to the Bishop by the Lead Chaplain.
They then made their declarations of assent and took various oaths which were followed by a Bible reading, prayers, hymns and blessing.
Penny Griffin – who has worked as a hospital Chaplain for over eight years received a special thank you from the Rev Corcoran, and the Rt Rev Sellin, and the KGH Chaplaincy Team at the event, on the occasion of her retirement.
The Rev Corcoran said: ‘Over the years Penny has worked tirelessly for the Spiritual and Pastoral Care Service at KGH. She has a been a dedicated, compassionate and caring pastor to so many in our hospital. She will be greatly missed!’
Penny said: ‘Being part of the Spiritual & Pastoral Care Service at KGH for the past eight years has been an honour and a privilege, supporting patients, their families and friends as well as our brilliant staff through some very difficult times. A big thank you to my Chaplaincy colleagues, as you continue your amazing work around the hospital.”