Liz McCoy said that Mary Andrews College became a major milestone in her journey of life and ministry. “In 1988 we moved from our sleepy English village directly into the lives of marginalised people in Redfern”, she shared. “On our first Sunday morning my husband, Terry, and I visited Redfern’s St Saviour’s Church. We had nowhere to live so we moved into accommodation above the Crossroads Centre and immediately became involved with the people of Redfern.”
Liz loved and cared for the locals including the indigenous people and mentally ill, but she wanted more. Highly qualified, Liz had already earned a degree from Manchester University, England, in Theology, Biblical Studies and English. But her qualifications hadn’t equipped her to go into the streets and into homes to minister at a pastoral level.
One of Liz’s early experiences was to visit a Housing Commission home where the 16-year-old girl who lived there had a baby and was also involved in prostitution.
“It was such a totally different world, different experience, and so God did really touch my heart for the people,” she said.
Liz soon realised that she needed to do a course at Mary Andrews College. “I really wanted to put time into the pastoral care (subject) because I was already involved with pastoral care in Redfern. Doing that was a huge learning curve for me.”
After completing the Advanced Diploma of Theology course, Liz ended up teaching at Mary Andrews College for over a decade, impacting the lives of women who would go on to care for multitudes in their own communities.
But now Liz’s journey is taking her in a new direction. During 2011 she and her husband have done missionary training in Victoria and are currently on deputation back in Sydney. From 2012 Liz will teach theology to indigenous students at Nungalinya College in the Northern Territory with the Church Missionary Society.