SDFP Alumni Update | July 2025
Kia ora friends and colleagues,
I once said to Sheila Pritchard, my spiritual director for many years up until her recent death, "I cannot believe that the random assortment of things I appear to be good at, have turned out to be useful!"
I’m very conscious of the tāonga we have in the Spiritual Directors Formation Programme (SDFP) and the privilege I have of guiding it into new waters after the challenging “dancing on the moving carpet years” of Covid.
I’m excited to share some of these “new waters" with you! Read on to learn about some new opportunities we have for you as spiritual directors and alumni of the SDFP.
Fran Francis | SDFP Kaiwhakahaere/Coordinator
A Space to Connect:
🌿 SGM Alumni Facebook Group
This private Facebook group is a place for you to:
Share retreats, workshops, or PD events you’re offering
Connect with fellow alumni for mutual encouragement
Post resources and reflections that support the contemplative journey
It’s a simple way to companion and support one another in this sometimes lonely ministry of spiritual direction. The SGM team will be present in the group and post from time to time, but this is primarily your group. We invite you to co-create it to serve your purposes and needs.
🌐 Request to join here: www.facebook.com/groups/sgmalumni
Please have your name (at time of training) and graduation year ready when joining so we can verify your alumni status. If you are not sure when you graduated, please email Jenna Edgar at admin@sgm.org.nz with your best guess!
New! SGM Store: Professional Development Resources for Spiritual Directors
We have launched a digital store on the SGM website to provide professional development online workshops, starting with MaryKate Morse’s popular session.
We'll be adding to the offerings in the coming months and will keep you updated! (Are you on our alumni e-newsletter list? Email Jenna Edgar (admin@sgm.org.nz) if you are not sure and she can add you.)
🌿 Professional Development for Spiritual Directors of Leaders
With Rev Dr MaryKate Morse | $30 for online recording of seminar
sgm.org.nz/store
In this rich and empowering seminar, Rev Dr MaryKate Morse explores the unique call of spiritual directors who accompany leaders—pastors, ministers, and others in spiritual authority.
With warmth and depth, she invites us into a deeper understanding of how to offer grounded, spacious, and discerning presence to those navigating the complexities of leadership.
This 1 hour 45 minute session offers:
Insights into the interior life of leaders
Contemplative postures that foster resilience
Ways to notice and gently reflect themes around power and identity
A valuable resource for spiritual directors seeking to deepen their presence with those who lead.
🌐 View in SGM Store
🌿 New Formation Refreshment Opportunity for Alumni
Introducing the Audit Pathway
Many spiritual directors have said to me, “I wish I could do the programme again—just without the verbatim!” Now you can.
The Audit Pathway is a new offering for graduates of SGM’s Spiritual Directors Formation Programme, especially those who trained before 2017. It provides a chance to revisit the richness of the formation programme in its current form—without assignments or verbatim work.
As an audit participant, you'll have access to all readings and workshops, including the Kōhanga Ako (formerly the Residential Week).
To join, you must be:
An SGM alum
Currently practicing spiritual direction or seeking to return to it
Committed to engaging for two years (to support group cohesion)
Places will be limited to honour the needs of those in initial formation.
Fees and start dates are being finalised. In the meantime, we warmly invite you to register your interest, and we’ll keep you updated.
To register your interest, email Jenna Edgar at ✉️ admin@sgm.org.nz