Two new members have joined the team at the Anglican Communion News Service (ACNS) – the official news service of the Anglican Communion – although one is actually an ACNS “veteran”. Journalist Gavin Drake has taken up the post of ACNS Editor – a role he held on an interim basis between 2015 and 2017; and he has provided holiday cover since 2012. Amelia Brown has been appointed Communications Assistant. Amelia, who is from Potsdam in New York state, is the first person to take part in a short-term internship programme which will bring young people from around the Communion to work with the communications team.
Gavin, who will also edit the quarterly magazine, Anglican World, has worked extensively as a religion correspondent, working for the Church Times, BBC Radio, and the Methodist Recorder; and has written for most of the UK’s national daily newspapers. He has also worked widely in public relations, as Senior Communications Officer for the Evangelical Alliance in the UK and as Director of Communications for the Church of England’s Diocese of Lichfield.
He said he was delighted to be joining the department as a full-time editor. “The Anglican Communion is such a vibrant, diverse family of people following Jesus by serving and loving their communities in a myriad of local contexts,” he said. “This part of the Anglican Communion’s story is rarely told and I am looking forward to helping to tell these stories.”.
Amelia graduated in politics and religion from Marlboro College, Vermont, in 2015 and then took a Master’s in Business Administration. She then worked in marketing and communications before applying to join the Young Adult Service Corps (YASC), a mission-focused programme run by the US-based Episcopal Church. It was the head of YASC who recommended her to the Anglican Communion Office (ACO).
“Working at the ACO is such an incredible privilege and opportunity,” she said. “Probably the best part is the people. They come from across the UK and the globe, and each one of them is so passionate about how God is at work across the Communion, from mission to ecumenical dialogue.
“Everyone pours their heart into what they do, and really live out the message of the Gospel. Being a part of that kind of community is enormously enriching not only for my professional career, but even more for my faith.”
One of Amelia’s first projects has been to develop ACNS’s Advent Instagram feed, which went live on Sunday (3 December). It will showcase how Advent and Christmas are marked around the Communion.
The Anglican Communion’s Director for Communications, Adrian Butcher, said he was very pleased with the appointments.
“Gavin has an extraordinary knowledge of the Communion which he has developed over more than twenty years of reporting and has a keen eye for a story. He also loves the Communion and is passionate about his faith.
“And I am delighted that Amelia was able to join us, especially as I had not expected to launch the Internship Scheme until 2018. Her remit is to help us reach new audiences, especially through social media and she has taken to the role with great enthusiasm and skill. She and Gavin are going to be huge assets for communications across the Communion.”