The Revd Byung Jun Kim lives in Northampton with his wife, Simona, and two sons, Emmanuel and Elijah.
Like many serving clergy, Jun struggles to find the time to balance his role as a caregiver to a community of Christians, with quality time to rest and recuperate with his family.
"As parish priests, when you do eventually find the time to take off, your phone still rings, people turn up, you go to Aldi and you meet the parishioners. It's not really a holiday at all."
Although both the Church of England and the Church in Wales have voted in favour of clergy being entitled to more time off, the reality of finding the space to use that time, either in or away from the parish, can be a challenge for many.
We were delighted to provide Jun with a Wellbeing grant towards a much-needed family holiday, for a few days away in Cornwall. And they're not alone - Last year, we provided over £2 million in grants towards holidays, allowing clergy to fully recharge and reconnect with the world and their loved ones.
Resting as a family
"Anxiety is something that we, as a family, often wrestled with. Creating space is so important for us to recharge and restore."
"To be able to get out of the parish and meet new people, and for our kids to meet other children who aren't related to my parish life, is so important. In our role as clergy, we bring our family as part of the package. Our family often, whether they like it or not, have to be involved in the life of the parish."
"So it's not just for me, but for us as a family together, and so to be refreshed and recharged outside that context is so important. Without it, there would be some tension building up in our family life, and that would have a huge impact on my role as well as the community that I serve."
We are concerned that more than 1 in 5 serving clergy rely on our help.
That’s why, as well as providing grants and services for those in need, we're working with the national Churches and others to develop longer-term solutions, so that every clergy household can thrive. This includes our advocacy work, which recently led to the uplift of the clergy stipend.
In 2024, we supported almost 2,800 households, with more than 7,300 grants. The demand for our services has quadrupled in the past five years, and continues to grow. We're only able to walk alongside clergy and their families with your help.
If you can make a donation through the link below, to help us continue to serve the people who spend their lives serving others, it would be greatly appreciated.