RUSSELL'S BIOGRAPHICAL DETAILS

Russell was born in Queensland and finished his secondary education at Wynnum State High School in 1957. Early the following year he entered the Royal Military College, Duntroon, from which he graduated into the Corps of the Royal Australian Engineers in 1961. He then studied at the University of Queensland for two years to complete his degree in civil engineering, and for the following five years he was employed in that field in the army, including engineering design and construction in Australia and Borneo, and lecturing in engineering at Duntroon.

From March 1969 to August 1970 he was a full time theological student at Moore College, Sydney, after which he returned to the army as a temporary major to resume lecturing in engineering. In 1972 he completed a Licentiate in Theology with Honours.

From August 1970 to August 1985 Russell served in a number of staff positions in the ranks of major and lieutenant colonel, including four years involved in planning the development of Army properties and detailed planning of specific projects, Chief Engineer for the Army in Western Australia, Logistics staff officer and Project Engineer for the Department of Defence during part of the construction of the Australian Defence Force Academy.

He was made a Member of the Order of Australia for the quality of his work 1975-1977 following surgery and radiotherapy treatment for cancer.

During the period July 1972 to October 1981 he was Honorary Secretary of the Officers' Christian Fellowship of Australia, and was Chairman for the following two years.

In 1980 he and Helen made a two month trip to seven countries of South America on behalf of ACCTS making and following up Christian contacts within the armed forces.

After resigning from the army in August 1984, Russell took up the position of Academy Engineer, Australian Defence Force Academy, remaining there until the end of 1985, when he resumed reading theology and Spanish.

In 1988 he qualified as a Professional Translator (NAATI Level 3) in Spanish (both directions), and the following year as a Para-professional Interpreter (NAATI Level 2).

In 1988 and 1989 he completed a unit in Clinical Pastoral Education, did pastoral visiting in both English and Spanish, taught Scripture in two primary schools, and worked among Spanish-speaking people in Canberra. It was early in 1990 that he became the (permanent part-time) Staff Worker for the Military Christian Fellowship (MCF) of Australia, working in that position until August 1994. He was also a lay member of the Defence Force Board of the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Australia from 1988 to 1990.

From 1990 to the present he has worked as a contract interpreter (in Spanish) to what is now the Translating and Interpreting Service of the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. Since 2000 he has also been a contract interpreter and translator with Centrelink. Thse contracts involve him with people in many different situations, such as medical appointments, post-trauma counselling, court appearances, legal aid, housing, social security issues etc.

In December 1990 he was made a deacon in the Anglican Church of Australia, in the Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn, and was ordained priest in February 1993. He has served in two parishes as well as undertaking locum duties in several others.

Following a three week reconnaissance visit to Spain in 1990 to assist those undertaking a ministry to Protestant Christians undertaking their national service training, he and Helen travelled there from May to December 1991. The visit to Spain was under the auspices of the Spanish Reformed Episcopal Church, and involved travelling widely in Spain to draw together Protestant military Christians and to guide them in assuming control of their own organisation from a small group of civilians who had established it.

In 1993 he completed a superior diploma in Spanish as a foreign language from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science.

Russell's work in the Military Christian Fellowship involved writing a bimonthly newsletter and prayer calendar, supporting the governing Council, writing resource material and maintaining contact with some 50 Area Representatives around Australia to provide them with resources and encouragement, including some visits. In 1994 he made visits to Defence installations in the Northern Territory, Wagga Wagga and Moorebank, NSW. In addition, he maintained contact with members of similar organisations overseas, and occasionally made visits to them. In 1993, for example, he and Helen visited Christian servicemen in Tonga and New Zealand.

It was Russell and Helen's long association with overseas Military Christian Fellowships which led them to participate in and help coordinate a World Conference of the Association of Military Christian Fellowships in Virginia, USA, in 1994, following which they travelled once more in Spain, encouraging and helping them to reorganise their association. Following that visit Russell and Helen were accepted as full time staff for ACCTS, with particular responsibility for the south-west Pacific and Spain.

Since early 1995 they have undertaken ministry trips to the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Fiji and Spain. In addition, in 1997 they set up, coordinated and made presentations at a program called "Interaction", a two week training program for foreign military Christians, run in Australia for the first time. Delegates attended from the Philippines, another Asian country, Vanuatu, Fiji and New Zealand. The delegates from Vanuatu were so encouraged and learnt so much that they presented their modification of the program to their own police force in aspects of leadership, inductive Bible study, personal testimony preparation and delivery, goal setting, delegation

In 1999 and 2000 they also made trips to Cuba in an attempt to make contact with military personnel with a view to encouraging them to make a Christian commitment. It was not until the second trip that they were told that it is illegal for Cuban military personnel to have contact with foreigners. As a result, they have taken the view that the way forward is to encourage members of the Christian churches there to see the military as part of their mission field.

1999 also saw them visiting the commanding general of UNIFIL, the UN force in southern Lebanon, and some of the Fijian troops serving there. On their return journey they visited Thailand, making contact with both the MCF of Thailand and a Buddhist general whom they had hosted the previous year when he was studying in Australia. The general attended an MCF meeting in Bangkok with the Bielenbergs.

Right from the beginning of their ministry they have considered it important to go out of their way to visit just one person in need of encouragement. In 2000 they made such a visit to a bereaved family in the south of Spain. Again on their way home, they visited the MCF of Thailand, bringing encouragement to a chaplain at the Philippines Military Academy and speaking at meetings of the MCF.

In 2001 they have continued to serve on the Council of the MCF of Australia, Russell as International Coordinator and Helen as Prayer Secretary. In March they visited the MCF of New Zealand. (See separate report.) etc.