FIRST FEMALE BUDDHIST FIRE CHAPLAIN . . . IN THE WORLD!

It’s been a year of many unfortunate “firsts,” but here’s one worth celebrating. Jacquetta Gomes, who has been a Buddhist and multifaith chaplain for the East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service (ESFRS) in Sussex county, United Kingdom, since 2014, was recently named the “first female Buddhist Fire Chaplain in the world” by 100 Pioneering Women of Sussex, a list kept by the UK’s Royal Pavilion & Museums. Chaplains are a part of fire services in the UK, where they offer both secular counseling and religious support. The daughter of a firefighter, Gomes says that she relishes the opportunity to help her community: “Every time I act as a chaplain as well as helping others I learn and expand my understanding.”    (source www.tricycle.org)