A warm welcome for new minister (From Knutsford Guardian)

A warm welcome for new minister

12:20pm Saturday 22nd September 2012 in News By James Wilson

KNUTSFORD Methodist Church has given a warm welcome to its new minister.

Reverend Rob Cotton, 53, and his wife Carol, have moved from Nottingham to settle in the town, and have been given a warm welcome at the church on Princess Street.

Rev Cotton replaces Rev Paul Wilson, who said farewell in July after 14 years to take up a position with Methodist Evangelicals Together in St Helens.

Rev Cotton told the Guardian he was drawn to the town after being impressed by the team behind the scenes.

“We really feel quite at home already and everyone at the church has been really welcoming,” he said.

“We had a great induction service, which was really good, it’s a lovely town to be living in and we are very pleased to be living here.

“I don’t know a lot about the town, but there was an invitation to come here and see the church.

“It’s a large and lovely church with a good team to work with, but part of what drew me here was that there was a very capable set of people to work alongside.

“I have lots of people to meet and get to know, and it’s going to be a challenge to get to know everybody’s name but we seem to be doing okay so far.

“We are welcoming people into our home for coffee and cake, and I believe that’s the best way to do it.”

After leaving theological college in Bristol in 1989 Rev Cotton took up his first minister post in Preston in 1991 before moving on to a church in Nottingham.

For the past eight years Rev Cotton has been working for the Bible Society as its campaign manager.

This has involved starting media campaigns, with one comparing soap opera storylines with those in The Bible.

“We were able to do a competition with Nick Park from Wallace and Gromit fame and do a fashion show at the Urbis in Manchester, so it was doing some interesting things,” he added.

“But I really missed having a community of people to work with and the depth of relationship that you have in a local church family.

“When you move around the country you don’t have the same relationship with the local people and the mayors.”

The church is taking part in a national project on Sunday, September 30, called Back to Church Sunday, and Rev Cotton said it would be great to see people on that date so he can meet them.