The Alresford Deanery, of which the parish of Ropley is part, is looking to partner with the newly formed Diocese of Nyaruguru in Rwanda, Africa.

Two representatives from the Alresford Deanery, Gillian Gray Knight, Lay Chair, and Alex Green, Churchwarden of St Simon and St Jude, Bramdean, were invited by the newly appointed Bishop Vincent Habimfura to visit the diocese to discover how links can be formed and relationships built.

Alex Green invited Nectar Class’ Pasanda the Panda to accompany him on the trip and chronicled his experiences and Pasanda’s on Instagram. They flew out on 20^th February 2023, and returned on 1^st March 2023. During this time, Pasanda visited a variety of schools in the Diocese and brought back messages and prayers from the children there.  Miss Richards shared the news with Nectar Class and kept them fully updated with his adventures.  We wanted to share the news with everyone!