John McAllister and Mervyn Foster have been two key members of staff for many years, and last Sunday, 26 January 2025, this great team, now in their 80s, both retired.
Although many people are part of the public face of Whitewell, these two servants of God and of Whitewell have been working quietly in the background for decades., providing expert knowledge, working hard, and saving Whitewell many thousands of pounds in the process.
Whitewell, as many will know, has built and occupied many buildings, and the builder who managed each of those projects right back from the early days, including the great facilities we now occupy was John McAllister, and as this building drew to completion he was to remain on staff and serve here as head of our buildings and maintence, for over 30 years.
To build the Tabernacle that we now worship in, an electrical contractor was needed, and the person who would oversee all the electrical work was Mervyn Foster. Again Mervyn chose to remain on staff here, bringing a wealth of experince and a knowledge of this building that no external contractor could easily gain.
John and Mervyn wouldn't then just complete this building - they would go to build the youth center, and then extend it - opening again the facility we now have for our youth in 2009. They would go overseas to help in various missions works, and they have managed all the maintenance and renovations work including the work on our recent foyer renovation.
As a church we owe a great debt to these men, who have served God using the talents that God has given them, and have done so faithfully, not just for a short time, but for decades. On behalf of the Oversight and all the members and friends of Whitewell, thank you John and Mervyn. You have served with faithfulness and integrity, and we wish you God's richest blessings in your retirement.