Pastor Ashley Smith has been appointed the new North New South Wales Conference (NNSW) Youth director. He replaces Pastor Dana Howard, who has served in the role for the past seven years. Pastor Howard announced in July that he was moving back to local church ministry at the end of this year.

Currently serving as the general manager of Mission for the NNSW Schools Company, Pastor Smith will start the new role in December. Reflecting on the appointment, he said "It's exciting to serve the young people of our conference, to lead them nearer to Jesus and to really uplift Christ in what we do."

With more than 10 years of pastoral ministry, Pastor Smith plans to focus on discipleship in his new role. "We need to take Jesus' final words to His disciples seriously, where He said, 'Go and make disciples of all nations.' A big burden of mine is for our young people to be disciples of Christ—disciples who make disciples, who in turn make disciples," he said.

A passionate advocate for Pathfinders, Pastor Smith has played a key role in leading expeditions and camporees and stepped in to lead his local Pathfinder club when it needed leadership. "Pathfinders has had a big impact on my life, which is why it's such an important ministry for me," he explained.

Pastor Smith is married to Rosie and they have three children. He enjoys hiking, camping with his family and restoring his old Land Cruiser in his spare time.

There will be a transition period before Pastor Howard steps down at the end of the year, during which Pastor Smith will work closely with him to ensure a smooth handover.