Couple bring youthful energy as Salvation Army Waihi's new church leaders

Alanah and Chris Moody are the new officers at Waihi's Salvation Army. Photo / Rebecca Mauger

Fresh from officer training at Salvation Army Booth College of Mission, Alanah and Chris Moody are settling into their first appointment at Waihi.

Chris Moody thought his destiny was to be a welder since the age of 8. End of.

''I picked up my first welding wand and that was it, I was hooked. That's all I wanted to do.''

It was something of a family tradition — his father, grandfather and uncle were all capable welders and engineers. He went on to study and undertake apprenticeships towards his goal.

But there was another Moody family custom calling him in the background ... a career in the Salvation Army. Chris and wife Alanah have taken over from Murray and Wendy Sanson — who have moved to Invercargill — at Salvation Army, Waihi Corps.

It's their first appointment after graduating from Salvation Army Booth College of Mission in Upper Hutt.

Looking back, Chris is not surprised he chose the path he did. The Moodys are entrenched in the church and Chris is a fourth-generation Salvation Army officer. His parents were captains who worked at various North Island posts during their careers.

''It was the Salvation Army in our family — through and through. Born and raised,'' he says.

Alanah and Chris had been friends since age 8. They lived on the same street in Palmerston North and walked to school together.

Alanah, from Christchurch, was not brought up Christian. She discovered the church when they started dating and it resonated with her.

The two ''got the call'' from God at a church camp when they were age 20.

''I had only been going to church for a few months and I had a vision of being on stage in a Salvation Army uniform,'' Alanah says. ''When we got the call, I said yes, we were both on the same page about it.''

Alanah and Chris are expecting their first baby — a girl — in June. They're excited, and so is the congregation, Alanah says.

''There's not many children here at the moment so they're also pretty excited to be bringing a baby in,'' Alanah says.

The young couple get told ''all the time'' they don't look like church leaders. They're both 27 and have tattoos and piercings. Alanah even has a tongue piercing.

Alanah and Chris are loving Waihi — the community, the small-town atmosphere and they're adjusting to the warmer weather.

The couple plan to continue the good work done by captains Wendy and Murray as they integrate into the community. They say people can come to them for anything, that's what they are there for.