Community
27 March, 2026
Presbyterian church welcomes new minister
CAMPERDOWN Presbyterian Church has welcomed a new minister recently – a first in 50 years.
Scott Thomas started at the church last Monday, having moved to the area with wife Jess and son Nathan from the Shepparton area.
Mr Thomas said he originally did ministry part-time while working as a tradesman.
“I felt God was calling me into full time ministry, so I studied at Bible college for five years,” he said.
“Last year, which was my last year of study, I started going through the process to see which church I’d be sent to.
“I’ve always had a heart for country churches.
“I grew up in Shepparton, which isn’t the smallest country town, but doing my work in the trades meant I’d always go all around the place.
“I would always love being in the country towns when I was there, so we were hoping for a country church which would be a good fit for us.”
The couple visited Camperdown in November last year, falling in love with the area before receiving the news the next month Mr Thomas would become the minister of the Camperdown Presbyterian Church.
Mr Thomas said he has been thrilled by the reception from the congregation, who knew he and his family would be a good fit.
“It’s been nearly 50 years since the Camperdown Church has had a pastor for its own,” he said.
“Previously, the pastor’s been here in Camperdown, in Terang and in Noorat because the three churches were linked together.
“Camperdown has been separated from the other two churches, so it’s on its own.
“The church is super excited.
“They had a lunch to welcome us after church, and it’s been really great to see their excitement to have us here as well.”
Mr Thomas hosted his first service last Sunday, saying he wasn’t bringing a new message to the church but sticking close to the values of the gospel.
“I am a new person, meaning I have a fresh set of eyes to see what’s going on here,” he said.
“I hope to keep sharing a message of hope and truth.
“In our times at the moment, the world is in quite a mess so we need hope, which is reliable.
“We also need truth because it gets twisted and it’s hard to find truth these days.
“It’s a lovely town, so we’re looking forward to getting to know the locals and finding our way around the town.”
Read More: Camperdown