Paul Bickford
Northern News Services

Hay River (Sep 19/05) - The Hay River Baptist Church has a new pastor. Mario Giraldi began his duties on September 1.

The church has not had a pastor for about a year and a half, but continued under the guidance of church elders.

Giraldi explained he is a bi-vocational pastor, meaning he also has another job in the community and is paid a half-time salary by the church.

Such an arrangement is not unusual in communities where there are not large numbers of Baptists, he says. "It's very popular in smaller churches."

The Hay River Baptist Church attracts about 45 people to its Sunday services.

Giraldi arrived in Hay River with his wife and three children from Drumheller, Alta., where he was working as a caregiver in a group home.

His experience as a pastor includes 11 years with churches in Alberta's Peace Country and Medicine Hat and B.C.'s Okanagan Valley.

Giraldi, 46, was born in Italy and moved to Canada with his family when he was nine. "We definitely have plans to see the church grow," he says, noting a new youth group for Grade 8-12 students will start Sept. 23.