Clare Ryan

My religious background…

I was a cradle Catholic, I stopped attending Mass in my 20s but subsequently joined a prayer and reflection group that met monthly for 10 years. That was a formative part of my personal spiritual growth and some years after the group had ended I had a conversion experience when I took my mother to Mass one Sunday. I have been attending Mass regularly ever since and am fortunate to belong to wonderful small rural Church in Southland . I have been a professional gardener and landscaper for nearly 20 years in Canterbury and Southland. I occasionally run cheese making classes and I have two small dogs. I am unsentimental, pragmatic, slightly unconventional. My personal ministry has been working with socially isolated single men with challenging behaviour. I have a BA in Political Studies and BCom Hons in Management.

Supervision Training and Experience

I found I have a talent for asking the question that breaks open a narrative and allows for insight and a pathway for change. My 18 months in training occurred at the same time as a very challenging period of my life as my mother passed away, family dynamics shifted and my living and business circumstances changed. In retrospect this was the perfect context for training in Supervision. I do not have a conventional background for Supervision as I have never been in formal ministry or worked professionally or as a volunteer in any formal social support role.

My approach is to listen and discern the dynamic behind the story the Supervisee is bringing and then ask the questions that allow the Supervisee to shift their perception and discern their own pathway out of their difficulty.

I get a buzz when a Supervisee has a breakthrough insight – its the only genuine pathway to change.