From 50 years of faithful service to the very first SRE lesson – your generosity makes it possible

A Year 3 student named Yumi once raised her hand and asked her SRE teacher a question nobody expected: “Why did Jesus choose a swear word for his name?”

She was serious. She'd only ever heard his name used as a swear word.

That moment – in a real classroom, with a real young person – is exactly why your generous support matters so much. Across NSW, young people are growing up without ever hearing the name of Jesus spoken in love. Your gifts fund the training, the curriculum, and the support that puts SRE teachers in front of those young people, week after week.

Yumi's teacher was Laurelle Simpson (pictured on right). She started teaching SRE in 1976 as it fitted in with her role as a young mum, and she has taught every primary grade except kindergarten. She still runs into former students around the community. Recently, the woman beside her at the local nail salon turned and said, “Hello, you taught me scripture at primary school!”

After 50 years, Laurelle is still choosing to show up with enthusiasm and a deep love for SRE. “Giving of yourself makes one rich inside, I believe,” she says. “And if it enables one more child to reach heaven and know Christ, I'm thrilled.”

Then there's Anne Deck (pictured on left), who retired to Jervis Bay from Perth in 2015 and is now completing her SRE training modules online. About thirty years ago, she asked a Christian couple what they planned to do in retirement. Their reply has stayed with her ever since.

“They said that as Christians we don't ever actually retire, we just move to a different stage of our life, using our skills and abilities in perhaps a different way.”

After her church’s SRE coordinator shared that there weren’t enough SRE teachers to run classes in two of the local primary schools, Anne was prompted to do the SRE teacher training. She says,

“I feel this is where I can serve at the moment and build relationships with these school communities.”

Two women. Two very different chapters of life. Both stepping into classrooms because your generosity makes it possible.

SRE needs teachers from every walk of life – retirees, professionals, young graduates, parents. Maybe YOU could be the next SRE teacher?