“Much of my ministry has been misunderstood,” Dr Mings said, “Only a few could perceive my heart and why I was who I was and the way I encouraged my team to minister to athletes. When I met Mark Tronson in 1999 at 'Basil Sellers Moruya', the respite facility for Australian Institute of Sport athletes, I met my soul mate in ministry.”
For 40 years Dr Sam Mings has ministered to local athletes, then to USA and International athletes, including many of the world's top track and field athletes, not least Australia's own Sydney Olympic gold medallist Cathy Freeman when she was engaged in high tech training in Texas in the late '90s.
For 26 years Mark Tronson, a Baptist minister has run something of a parallel course within an Australian context of collegiality, with the support of his Baptist denomination and under Heads of Churches.
In 1982 he established the Sports and Leisure Ministry and his vision saw chaplains serving in professional sports and that of encouraging Christian athletes. He has served Australian cricket since 1984, been chaplain to the Test team for 17 years, then moved sideways to 'Life After Cricket' in 2001.
By the year 2000, one hundred and fifty Australian professional sports (including the Australian Institute of Sport) had chaplains. At this time, Heads of Churches released Mark and Delma Tronson to establish Well-Being Australia specialising in 'athlete respite'. Due to ill health, Mark was thus able to ‘take his own counsel’ and have respite for himself, to recover through his proclivity for art.
M V Tronson has established two athlete respite facilities, 'Basil Sellers Moruya' and 'Basil Sellers Tweed' where he and Delma reside. He has also been instrumental in establishing an arts ministry, which has included the 'Basil Sellers Art Centre', the 'Basil Sellers $10,000 Art Prize' in Moruya and the 'Basil Sellers Tweed Fine Arts Studio'.
His Olympic ministry extends back to the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and in 2000 Kevan Gosper AC the IOC Vice Chairman invited Mark Tronson to Lausanne Switzerland to assist IOC staff in developing a host city Olympic Village Religious Services protocol. He updates this 'protocol' for each successive Olympic host city for their consideration.
In wasn't until 1999 when international sports ministry agencies came together in planning for the Sydney Olympics that Sam Mings’ and Mark Tronson's paths crossed. Since then, over the past nine years they have maintained close communication.
While he is in the USA in February, Dr Mings will arrange for M V Tronson to undertake several speaking engagements to address the vital area of 'athlete respite'. He will take this opportunity to demonstrate to a wider audience the benefits of including planned periods of respite within an athlete’s training program.
M V Tronson sent three Australians to be part of the 'Right Track 2008 Beijing Mission' led by Sam Mings while he stayed home to run the international prayer network which was led by his 'five elderly praying ladies' who have been his family and ministry's prayer supporters for twenty six years.
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International Award for Mark and Delma
By: M V Tronson
Christian Today Australia Columnist
Christian Today Australia Columnist
Posted: Monday, 25 August 2008, 8:31 (EST)
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