The newsletter
I'm going to try to document our move to Sedgefield and what happens after that.
To set the scene, here is the newsletter we sent out on the 1st January 2007. If anyone is interested, I'l fill in wanted details later, on request!
1st January, 2007
Dear friends and family,
It is the first day of a new year, and a fitting time to look back at all the chapters in our lives – the places we have lived, the things we have done and been involved in, and, most importantly of all, the people we have met, got to know, and been blessed to call our friends. That means you guys, and before we go any further, we want to wish you every blessing in the year ahead.
We’re not terribly good at keeping in touch, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t remember you or are ungrateful for the unique part each one of you has played in our lives at one time or another.
As we are about to begin a whole new chapter in our lives, we want to take this opportunity to get in touch with you all again.
In February last year, Ken and I celebrated our 31st wedding anniversary. It is always a useful exercise to look back at such milestones, and so we spent the day together, hiking and reminding each other of the way we have come.
Ken has had amazing opportunities in his career, starting with humble beginnings as a personnel officer on the gold and diamond mines, and going on into management in various companies. He was given the chance to step out of the HR field for several years while he took on the role of managing the Barlow group public affairs portfolio, just at the time of the transition to democracy in this country. He was in the thick of the business initiatives to build bridges to the ANC and part of the peace process – exciting and fascinating times. Later he became HR Director in PPC and was part of a team that completely re-engineered the business taking it out of a cartel into its current position in the market place. Having built such a wide base of experience, he was able to go on his own as a consultant nine years ago and has built an interesting business lecturing at a couple of business schools, coaching top executives and consulting in business strategy.
My path has been wonderful too. I had the opportunity to be an at home mother for our three daughters – such a privilege - during which time I dabbled in all sorts of interesting stuff and survived a very long and debilitating illness. Once well and strong again, I had the fun of starting a project management and building renovation business. I did that for about eight years and then closed it down to join Ken in his venture as his side-kick/administrator. En route I have had huge fun working as a sex educator addressing the issue of AIDS in schools, and have also been involved in many years of counseling – such a blessing.
Together we have developed a ministry of leading worship which has spanned the many changes in that field from the time when only hymns and choruses were sung, past the stage when every church knew the same songs because they were all contained in one or two books, to the present where the explosion of Christian music is uncontainable and the expression of worship is free and diverse.
For the last eleven years we have had the privilege of being part of the Village Church family: for the past six years Ken has been an elder and we have been hugely blessed to head up a team that planted a small community church in Bryanston – perhaps the most difficult, and yet rewarding thing we have been involved in so far.
Along the way, God has blessed us with our three wonderful daughters, who have become, along with Ant and George, our best friends, kindest critics and a source of huge pride, joy and encouragement.
Caroline is working as a senior science teacher at St Mary’s and Ant designs and manages surveys for an international market research company. In their spare time they have a worship ministry at their church.
Gael is working at Afrox as a chemical design engineer and George is a geologist consulting to the mining industry throughout Africa. In their spare time (when not traveling) they are involved in outreach to the Muslim community. Both couples love their jobs and are happily settled in their own homes.
Kath is an interior designer and she is dating Cornel. Both of them have decided to come down with us to the coast. They both have a passion to work with children, running adventure camps. They will be joining Out of Africa Missions in George, but will have to find jobs as well to fund the mission work.
Throughout this whole journey, God has been with us. His grace and mercy are vast and we have needed His forgiveness, guidance, provision and love at every point along the way. He has never, ever failed us.
Now, back to our wedding anniversary hike! Having looked back, it struck us that it might be possible to fit in another 31 years if God so willed to give us that much time again, and that there were endless possibilities for using that size chunk of time meaningfully. Of course, at the time we didn’t foresee anything changing in our circumstances, so it was just an interesting thought.
However, at the end of April, God intervened and changed a whole lot of things and we found ourselves for the first time without any major commitments and responsibilities – a liberating, but strange place to be. It was also a period of great brokenness and vulnerability for both of us.
During a holiday down at the coast in early May, God began to speak to both of us about the future. He made it clear that we were not on the throw away pile, or allowed to glide gently into retirement! Instead, He began to talk to us about the idea of moving down to Sedgefield (a small community on the Garden Route between George and Knysna). This was completely ‘out of the blue’ for us and so we spent the next four months thinking, praying and researching every lead we got.
The culmination of all this was that in the last week of September we put our house on the market – primarily as an act of obedience, but also as a ‘fleece’, asking God to only allow the house to sell if what we were doing was His will for us. God honoured our trust in Him by expediting the sale with shocking speed and simplicity – even the estate agent was amazed!
Since then, we have been down to Sedgefield and bought a house with equal speed and ease, both of us knowing that God prepared the place for us.
To date, we have plenty of thoughts and ideas, but very little clarity as to why God should want us to move to Sedgefield. On a human level it makes very little sense to leave not only Ken’s source of work, but also our children and their husbands (wonderfully, Kath will be coming with us). However, we have a deep peace that we are walking in a path that He has prepared for us. We assume that the rest of the plan will unfold as and when we need to know about it!
So, as we are surrounded by packing boxes and unsettled pets, we want you to know our new contact details so that hopefully you might come and visit us or at least make contact in some way and let us know what is happening in your lives.
We will be living in a beautiful part of the country with beaches, rivers, lakes, lagoons, mountains and many other lovely places to share with you. Also we are only half an hour from George where there is an airport, so it would be very easy for you to get to us!!
Physical address: 25 Egret St, Meadingsride, Sedgefield, 6573 Western Cape
Postal Address: P O Box 1443, Sedgefield, 6573, South Africa
e-mail addresses: ken@kenironside.co.za
felicity@kenironside.co.za
cell phone nos: Ken +27 82 881 0665
Felicity +27 83 675 7497
We don’t have a land line yet, but will happily send it out on request once we have it.
We would really value your prayers for us, and the family, as we negotiate this move – we leave Jo’burg on the 25th January - settle into our new home, and try to hear what God’s agenda for the immediate future is.
God bless you all, and thank you for reading this far!
With much love,
Ken and Felicity
Dear friends and family,
It is the first day of a new year, and a fitting time to look back at all the chapters in our lives – the places we have lived, the things we have done and been involved in, and, most importantly of all, the people we have met, got to know, and been blessed to call our friends. That means you guys, and before we go any further, we want to wish you every blessing in the year ahead.
We’re not terribly good at keeping in touch, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t remember you or are ungrateful for the unique part each one of you has played in our lives at one time or another.
As we are about to begin a whole new chapter in our lives, we want to take this opportunity to get in touch with you all again.
In February last year, Ken and I celebrated our 31st wedding anniversary. It is always a useful exercise to look back at such milestones, and so we spent the day together, hiking and reminding each other of the way we have come.
Ken has had amazing opportunities in his career, starting with humble beginnings as a personnel officer on the gold and diamond mines, and going on into management in various companies. He was given the chance to step out of the HR field for several years while he took on the role of managing the Barlow group public affairs portfolio, just at the time of the transition to democracy in this country. He was in the thick of the business initiatives to build bridges to the ANC and part of the peace process – exciting and fascinating times. Later he became HR Director in PPC and was part of a team that completely re-engineered the business taking it out of a cartel into its current position in the market place. Having built such a wide base of experience, he was able to go on his own as a consultant nine years ago and has built an interesting business lecturing at a couple of business schools, coaching top executives and consulting in business strategy.
My path has been wonderful too. I had the opportunity to be an at home mother for our three daughters – such a privilege - during which time I dabbled in all sorts of interesting stuff and survived a very long and debilitating illness. Once well and strong again, I had the fun of starting a project management and building renovation business. I did that for about eight years and then closed it down to join Ken in his venture as his side-kick/administrator. En route I have had huge fun working as a sex educator addressing the issue of AIDS in schools, and have also been involved in many years of counseling – such a blessing.
Together we have developed a ministry of leading worship which has spanned the many changes in that field from the time when only hymns and choruses were sung, past the stage when every church knew the same songs because they were all contained in one or two books, to the present where the explosion of Christian music is uncontainable and the expression of worship is free and diverse.
For the last eleven years we have had the privilege of being part of the Village Church family: for the past six years Ken has been an elder and we have been hugely blessed to head up a team that planted a small community church in Bryanston – perhaps the most difficult, and yet rewarding thing we have been involved in so far.
Along the way, God has blessed us with our three wonderful daughters, who have become, along with Ant and George, our best friends, kindest critics and a source of huge pride, joy and encouragement.
Caroline is working as a senior science teacher at St Mary’s and Ant designs and manages surveys for an international market research company. In their spare time they have a worship ministry at their church.
Gael is working at Afrox as a chemical design engineer and George is a geologist consulting to the mining industry throughout Africa. In their spare time (when not traveling) they are involved in outreach to the Muslim community. Both couples love their jobs and are happily settled in their own homes.
Kath is an interior designer and she is dating Cornel. Both of them have decided to come down with us to the coast. They both have a passion to work with children, running adventure camps. They will be joining Out of Africa Missions in George, but will have to find jobs as well to fund the mission work.
Throughout this whole journey, God has been with us. His grace and mercy are vast and we have needed His forgiveness, guidance, provision and love at every point along the way. He has never, ever failed us.
Now, back to our wedding anniversary hike! Having looked back, it struck us that it might be possible to fit in another 31 years if God so willed to give us that much time again, and that there were endless possibilities for using that size chunk of time meaningfully. Of course, at the time we didn’t foresee anything changing in our circumstances, so it was just an interesting thought.
However, at the end of April, God intervened and changed a whole lot of things and we found ourselves for the first time without any major commitments and responsibilities – a liberating, but strange place to be. It was also a period of great brokenness and vulnerability for both of us.
During a holiday down at the coast in early May, God began to speak to both of us about the future. He made it clear that we were not on the throw away pile, or allowed to glide gently into retirement! Instead, He began to talk to us about the idea of moving down to Sedgefield (a small community on the Garden Route between George and Knysna). This was completely ‘out of the blue’ for us and so we spent the next four months thinking, praying and researching every lead we got.
The culmination of all this was that in the last week of September we put our house on the market – primarily as an act of obedience, but also as a ‘fleece’, asking God to only allow the house to sell if what we were doing was His will for us. God honoured our trust in Him by expediting the sale with shocking speed and simplicity – even the estate agent was amazed!
Since then, we have been down to Sedgefield and bought a house with equal speed and ease, both of us knowing that God prepared the place for us.
To date, we have plenty of thoughts and ideas, but very little clarity as to why God should want us to move to Sedgefield. On a human level it makes very little sense to leave not only Ken’s source of work, but also our children and their husbands (wonderfully, Kath will be coming with us). However, we have a deep peace that we are walking in a path that He has prepared for us. We assume that the rest of the plan will unfold as and when we need to know about it!So, as we are surrounded by packing boxes and unsettled pets, we want you to know our new contact details so that hopefully you might come and visit us or at least make contact in some way and let us know what is happening in your lives.
We will be living in a beautiful part of the country with beaches, rivers, lakes, lagoons, mountains and many other lovely places to share with you. Also we are only half an hour from George where there is an airport, so it would be very easy for you to get to us!!
Physical address: 25 Egret St, Meadingsride, Sedgefield, 6573 Western Cape
Postal Address: P O Box 1443, Sedgefield, 6573, South Africa
e-mail addresses: ken@kenironside.co.za
felicity@kenironside.co.za
cell phone nos: Ken +27 82 881 0665
Felicity +27 83 675 7497
We don’t have a land line yet, but will happily send it out on request once we have it.
We would really value your prayers for us, and the family, as we negotiate this move – we leave Jo’burg on the 25th January - settle into our new home, and try to hear what God’s agenda for the immediate future is.
God bless you all, and thank you for reading this far!
With much love,
Ken and Felicity
Labels: moving house, new beginnings
posted by Ken at 1/16/2007 12:00:00 AM
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