Duncan McDiarmid arrived to open a permanent ministry for Eurobodalla Uniting Churches - and found himself in lockdown.
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With pews out of bounds, churchgoer Kay Killick said the minister was reaching out through cyberspace.
"Duncan met his congregations on March 15 (beware the Ides of March), first at Batemans Bay and then at Moruya," Ms Killick said.
"All were delighted to meet him and happy to finally have a permanent minister.
"His first service went off with a bang, as the Moruya and District Town Band was playing for the service that day.
"Duncan used his excellent singing voice to join with the band and congregation.
"Things were looking very promising and then COVID19 struck, with all gatherings banned."
Ms Killick said the church acted swiftly in the interests of public safety as coronavirus spread.
"The Uniting Church was quick to close all churches, and Duncan was left to think creatively about how to commence his ministry," she said.
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"This is being done on-line, and will develop into quite a polished exercise.
"Various on-line resources are being explored, and the brand new sound and communication system installed in the church will be used in the process.
"Fortunately Duncan is an adaptable person and is coping wonderfully in these challenging times.
"The elders are stepping up, emailing and phoning their charges and caring for church members. Jokes, art works and words of comfort and cheer are being shared by all and morale is high.
"COVID19 will not beat the Eurobodalla Uniting Churches.
"If you have any needs at this time then please feel free to contact Duncan at ministereuc@gmail.com or mobile 0400 743 599 and he will do what he can to help."
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