The 30th anniversary of Rev Brian Harley becoming minister of Shanklin United Reformed Church was celebrated on Sunday (15th September).
Brian and his wife Janet came to the Island from Cambridge where he had spent 4 years training for ministry after a career in the City of London in commercial fire insurance.
They arrived with 3 young children, and he was ordained and inducted to the role on 17th September 1994 – 30 years ago today. In 2014, Brian also became the part-time pastor of Ryde United Reformed Church in Haylands, where he leads worship once a month.
There have been many changes at Shanklin Reformed Church over the past 30 years, with increased use of modern technology spurred on by the pandemic.
Brian says of his coming to Shanklin:
“After being asked to explore a possible church in South London we were then shown the profile of Shanklin. By God’s grace we had enjoyed a family holiday down here that very summer and this was a very unexpected and intriguing proposal.
“When I was welcomed to Shanklin and ordained and inducted as your minister on 17 September 1994, I could never have imagined still being in that role in 2024.”
