Farewell Rev Bent and welcome to our new College Chaplains

Farewell Rev Bent

After nearly eight years at the College, Rev Punam Bent has made the difficult decision to leave Pymble to take up the position of Presbytery Minister – Ministry Wellbeing for Sydney Central Coast Presbytery of the Uniting Church of Australia (UCA).  In her new role, Rev Bent will cover the north-eastern quarter of the Sydney Metropolitan area, and the New South Wales Central Coast from the Hawkesbury River to Southern Lake Macquarie.

While this is a wonderful opportunity for Punam to share her unique gifts and talents, warmth and compassion with a new community, we will dearly miss her daily presence and warm energy. Fortunately for us, Pymble falls within her new jurisdiction, which will allow her to continue to support our community from time to time and remain a presence in our lives.

Punam lodged herself firmly into the heart of our Pymble family from the day she arrived in Term 1 2016 to share the role of College Chaplain with Reverend Lorenzo Rodriguez.

In her own inimitable style, she made all students, staff and families feel seen, valued and – one of her oft used words – blessed to be a member of our Pymble family, regardless of their background, faith, identity, or beliefs. She lived and modelled the UCA ethos of unity through diversity and was a champion of our Social Intelligence pillar valuing each person for their uniqueness. With the backing of the UCA and the College, she supported students to advocate for sustainability, social justice and issues close to their hearts. And she had the best laugh, which she shared freely, along with her wicked sense of humour.

Punam has been a source of great comfort, unconditional love and unlimited compassion for all in our community. In the best of times and the most challenging of times she freely gave her wisdom, warmth and blessings to lift up and support others, especially those in need. We are eternally grateful for having had the privilege of calling her one of our own.

We extend a warm Pymble welcome to our two new College Chaplains who will commence at the College in Term 1 2024.

Welcome Reverend Catherine Blake and Reverend Mark Sweeney

Rev Catherine (Cass) Blake is an ordained minister who brings to Pymble 25 years of experience in pastoral care and theological education across a variety of denominations, most recently at Whitley Baptist Theological College in Melbourne. She also spent 14 years in a teaching role with Morling Baptist College in Sydney and is currently finishing her PhD thesis exploring the Fourth Gospel’s portrait of God’s fatherhood and its contemporary implications.

Rev Blake has taught in various contexts in Australia, America, Africa and India and led several cross-cultural tours for students. In her free time, the mother of two young sons enjoys bushwalking on local trails, watching old movies and travelling.

“I am looking forward to journeying alongside and empowering our students and staff on their exploration of faith, gifting and vocation, understanding that our community is a colourful mosaic of diverse cultures, lifestyles and faith backgrounds,” Rev Blake said.

Rev Mark Sweeney is an ordained minister with 30 years of experience, 24 of which have been in schools, where he also taught English, History, Social Justice, Ethics and Religion at Secondary level. His most recent postings were at Flinders Christian Community College and Peninsula Grammar, both co-educational schools for K-12, and he has completed his Master of Education in children’s literature.

Rev Sweeney is English by birth and spent his formative years in Adelaide where he attended school, College and university. He has been married to Sandy for 25 years, with whom he shares two daughters and one son. Outside of work, his interests include bushwalking, rucking, gardening and growing vegetables, and cricket, which he has also enjoyed coaching in schools.

“My vision for chaplaincy at Pymble is to work as a team with Rev Blake to support and encourage the spiritual and emotional wellbeing of the staff and students and to promote a keen sense of inclusion and diversity, with the Christian Gospel as the foundation,” said Rev Sweeney.

There will be many opportunities to meet our delightful new Reverends as Term 1 begins on Tuesday 30 January 2024.