Elliott, Louisa and Sophie bring Ignite to full strength

The Ignite Team is excited to be welcoming three new members, who are giving a year to serve Jesus, His Church and the young people of East Anglia.

“Readers may recall reading earlier about 18-year-old Elliott Cannon,” writes Ciaran Losasso, Ignite Mission Team Leader. “He has joined us from Birmingham to help share his passion for the faith with others. He has now begun his time with us alongside two more new team members, also 18 years old. Louisa Poole is from St Edmund’s Parish in Bury St Edmunds and Sophie Shoreland-Pereira is from the Our Lady of Good Counsel and St Peter Parish in March.”

Meet Louisa

 “I have been a member of St Edmund’s parish since I was a child and I attended St Benedict’s Catholic School in Bury St Edmunds. My first experience of Ignite was in Year 9 when I attended the Ignite Festival which allowed me to meet other young Catholics. At the same time, I attended Celebrate and spent more time with the Ignite Team. I later got involved with the Chaplaincy department in school and became the leader of the Liturgy Hub which involved organising Masses and other liturgies in school. This role prompted me to search for further leadership roles within the Catholic Church which is when I decided to look into taking a gap year with Ignite. In addition, I had a strong desire to learn more about my faith and to meet other people who had the same desire as me to learn about themselves and the Church.”

Meet Sophie

 “I attended St Benedict’s Catholic School in Bury St Edmunds from Year 9 through to Sixth Form and there I first heard about Ignite through confirmation classes and attending the Ignite Festival. The festival was where I started to learn more about Catholicism and it prompted me to want to be more proactive in my faith. My school environment helped me to grow in my faith, as it was the first time I had attended a Catholic school and I felt comfortable being more open with my faith as I became friends with people who were also Catholic. I later took on more responsibility within the Chaplaincy team and became head of the Music Hub in which I helped to choreograph the music that was played at Masses. This led me to look into more opportunities for leadership within my faith and I decided to take a gap year with Ignite.”

“The team begin the year with a period of training and formation,” explains Ciaran, “allowing time to delve more deeply into the faith, grow in prayer and prepare to meet children and young people across our Diocese. We look forward to seeing what God will do in and through the Ignite Team this year.”

Pictured above are (left to right back row) is Fr Luke Goymour (Chaplain to the Diocesan Youth Service), Louisa Poole, Hamish MacQueen (Director of Diocesan Youth Service) and (left to right front row) Ciaran Losasso (Ignite Team Leader), Sophie Pereira and Elliott Cannon.