Memory book Steve without cover and Sue.30.11.22.

“Near the place where Jesus was cucified there was a Garden and in the Garden
a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid.”

John 19 v 41

Dear Steve & Sue , thank you for being such faithful Guardians of the Garden
and Gospel during your time of serving at the Garden Tomb.

We hope this book, filled with images and words, will always remind you of
how much you are loved and the incredible ministry God called you to for such
a time as this....Where you built not just with stones but living stones, in the

team you grew to declare the wonders of God!

May God bless you in your contined adventure with the Lord, that many more
may receive just one touch of the King, that changes everything

Shalom
The Garden Tomb Team







This is how you probably felt at times
when everything seemed overwhelming

in the garden

WHAT A WONDERFUL BLESSING IT HAS BEEN SA’ED AND RIEKIE WORKING TO-
GETHER WITH INSPIRATION AND LEADERSHIP OF STEVE
IN THE LORD’S GARDEN

SA”ED AND RIEKIE AND THE WHOLE GARDEN-TOMB FAMILY WISH YOU STEVE
TOGETHER WITH SUE OVERFLOWING BLESSINGS AND TO BE LIKE A Well

Watered Garden...
The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-
scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a

well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.

” Isaiah 58:11

THIS LOOKS LIKE A MYSTERY
BUT I AM SO GLAD

WITH MY PROTECTIVE RED HAT



STEVE THE BUILDER

Let’s take a tour and see what has been built, improved and
changed in the Garden Tomb, during the last years.
On the next page we also take a look at the wonderful building-
team, that helped and gave support to get all these activities
done.

Thank you Steve for the lovely relationship with you in the Garden. We are so happy to be
here and work with you and are leading also in the building program. We wish you and
your family all the best for the future.

Shimon and the building team

BLEETE’NS DSEOENWEHAT HAS

THE OLD VIEWING PLATFORM
SKULL HILL

THE NEW VIEWING PLATFORM SKULL

RENOVATED PATH
TO SKULL HILL

ARBOUR

ARBOUR
FORMER LARGE CHAPEL

RENOVATED
LARGE CHAPEL

ALMOND

PRAYER GARDEN

NEW WAITING AREA
VISITORS

FORMER MEETING
PLACE CISTERN

NEW EMMAUS
CHAPEL

RENOVATED
MEETING - PLACE A

RENOVATED
MEETING - PLACE B

FORMER
EVENTS
PLATFORM

REBUILDING FORMER EVENTS PLATFORM

RENEWED
CHAPEL

RENOVATED
EVENTS PLATFOM

WITH EASTER
CELEBRATION





NOW LET’S NOT FORGET OUR SHOP,
WHERE SUE AND THE OTHERS
SO FAITHULLY SERVED

ALL THOSE YEARS

FORMER SHOP

BUILDING OF NEW SHOP IN
PROGRESS

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST
RENOVATION RECEPTION AND
A LOOK AT THOSE
HARDWORKING PEOPLE

RENOVATION
RECEPTION

WELCOME TO THE GARDEN TOMB RENOVATED RECEPTION

Our Bella made some wonderful photos
in the past and the present.
Let’s see if we remember all those amaz-
ing people, who served in the period that
Steve and Sue were in the Garden.









Sorry when we don’t remember everybody,
from all these years.

BUT NOW WE WILL HAPPILY CONTINUE TO THE PRESENT.

PAINTING MADE BY PAUL WEAVER

Hi Steve and Sue,

Jenn and I want you to know how much we have valued your leadership, vision,
and enterprise in the Garden from the days when you served Richard the 1 st , to
your years as Director.

We owe a debt of gratitude to you and Sue for your dedication in reshaping the
Garden’s ministry, both visually and spiritually. The Garden is a much-improved
place, in so many ways, because of your leadership.

Through my role as chairman, I have been able to appreciate the many hours and
diversity of work involved in the position of ‘Director of the Garden’. I want to
thank you personally for your cooperation with me through the last interesting
five years. We have faced huge challenges together and by God’s grace we have
come through and are all better people for the journey.

You can hold your head high Steve, as one of the most successful Directors we
have ever had. The Board have nothing but praise for your tenure as Director.
You leave a legacy not only for all to see visually, but for Simon to build upon in
the future. I think the words that I want to declare over you at this juncture of
your life are, ‘well done, good and faithful servant’.

I am sure you will discover, after uninterrupted nights of sleep and after a good
rest, God’s purposes for the next step of your journey. I am sure that those di-
vine plans will be successfully accomplished, because of your experience as Di-
rector at the Garden Tomb.

We love you both and want you to know that as you leave us and we say our
fond words of thanks, that we are standing up and applauding your success.

Be blessed Paul and Jenn

Dear Steve and Sue Bridge

When Rosalind and I arrived in the Garden Tomb in
2010, there was a certain degree of chaos there since
Peter White, my predecessor as Director, had died
the previous year, and in the six month interim till
we arrived, no-one in the Garden had ever conceived
a handover – a new Director’s arrival was as much
a new experience for them and for me. So it was a
great joy to find that Steve and Sue were soon back
volunteering in the Garden, both such organised peo-
ple, Steve with all his career of many forms, as a pastor, as a builder and as an
administrator par excellence; Sue was all ready to run the shop for us because of
her previous experience. What a great joy it was, well for me anyway, when they
accepted my invitation to become my Deputy Director and Shop Manager respec-
tively. How ready was I to receive them when they arrived in 2011: we had four
great years when I do not think we ever fell out, all working together developing
the Garden on from the great legacy that Peter had left behind to the next chapter
of the Garden’s history and development.
Sue took over running the shop which developed enormously in her time there in-
cluding a whole new stock management system including bar-coding all items for
sale. Steve worked tirelessly with me, beside me and under me in taking the work
of the Garden forward in a once-in-a-generation change: we introduced a com-
pletely new IT architecture to the Garden, a new Reception with a computerised
and online booking systems, we developed and refurbished most of the 10 apart-
ments; disabled ramps were rebuilt, and Skull Hill was introduced with its bomb
shelter underneath which was both a prayer area and a fully ‘nuclear biological and
chemical’ secure area. Visitors to the Garden Tomb rose from about 150,000pa
in 2010 to nearly 300,000 a year by the end of 2014 when Rosalind and I finally
left.
It was pure pleasure to work with Steve who was such an able right-and man: he
told me the truth when I needed to hear the truth (and I hope I always listened to
him); and we worked side by side so effectively for all those years: “what could
possibly go wrong?” was one of Steve’s key expressions. And I’ve often remember
him saying to me “Richard, when you meet a pastor you’ll meet a wounded man”;
that has had such a significant impact in my life since, I now being aware of the
cost for those in church leadership, far too often abused by their own people. Ste-
ve – I am so proud to have watched from afar all you have developed in the work
of the Garden in the eight years since we left. It really has advanced enormously -
as we saw when we were out in the middle of 2022.
We wish you Godspeed as you return to England to your family and all he future
heralds for you both, presumably based in Essex and in Frinton Free Church. We
know that, like us, you will never let the Garden Tomb out of your mind for very
long, and its amazing ministry will always be in your heart. We wish you the very
best for the years ahead alongside your growing family, children and grandchildren
alike, and in your church community and for whatever new Kingdom opportunities
the Lord opens up for you in the years ahead; don’t forget that there’s no retire-
ment in His Work. Thank you for all you did to support Rosalind and me in our time
in the Garden Tomb: we are indebted to you, we learnt much from you and we will

Richard and Rosalindalways be grateful to God for you.

Sue and Steve

I have known you since 2015, both as a volunteer and as a trustee. It has been my
privilege to serve with you and to see your commitment to proclaiming the death and
resurrection of our Saviour to visitors, staff and volunteers. The increase of visitor
numbers and the effects of covid must have put tremendous pressure on you, yet
your strong faith, and sense of humour have shone through in these difficult circum-
stances. You have been an inspiration to everyone in the Garden.

Sue, you will be much missed in the shop. I don’t think we will really realise how
great your contribution has been till you are in the UK. The postcard displays will
never attain your high standards !!

Steve, your vision for the Garden has never faltered. The new layout and building
work have enhanced visitor experience and made it much easier for the guides. Your
humour has defused situations which might have had you tearing your hair out, yet
you have joked about them.

I shall miss you very much as leaders, but more importantly good friends.

May the Lord bless you, and continually fill you with His peace and joy in this new
and exciting phase of your lives. I believe the Lord is saying to you- Well done, good
and faithful servants.

Blessings

Alison Laing

Dear Steve and Sue,

What a privilege it has been to serve with you in the Garden.
The two years that we served together, ‘ back in the day’, will be forever memo-
rable!
Steve, in your stewardship, the Lord has most certainly used your creativity
and artistic talent to enhance the Garden. You have carried the Garden through
good and difficult times, especially these last few years.
Sue, you will be forever remembered for all the tireless dedication you gave to
the Shop and beyond.
You have both served the Garden Tomb Association for the last twelve years
with great zeal, leaving behind a wonderful Legacy.
Our prayers go with you both as you settle back with your family and your
Church community.
Keep Shining!

Kieran and Laura

But, I can’t help but venture to make a conjecture
That dusty Jerusalem, it’s desert-like weather,
This rocky old quarry and crag of a skull
Where shipbuilding is a most futile endeavour,
Was never Rev. Stephen’s preferred port of call.

Stephen Gordon Bridge After all, we have all, often seen him vacation
Pasha of Jerusalem on many occasions at another location,
In Jaffa, that merrier maritime station
The Ship-Garden Ballad of Steve Gordon Bridge Where on her beaches he found consolation
And some respite from Zion’s tense situation.
Hark now, my colleagues, I beg your attention,
To my bitter-sweet tribute come now and listen, When Stephen had left his own native nation,
As we gather together to all bid adieu Those pleasant but frigid green northern isles,
To Director Emeritus, Mr. Bridge Stephen, Old Jaffa was surely his planned destination,
our dear friend who always stayed loyal and true. But alas, Steve had botched his planned navigation
And thus overshot it by some forty miles.
This ballad may be self-indulgent at times
With wordy orations and imperfect rhymes. How else could this fine and refined English gentleman,
Ofcourse, I have made a few minor embellishments, Stephan G. Bridge of Frinton-on-Sea,
But Stephen can surely endure this irreverence Become a sojourning expatriate denizen
Before he enjoys his retirement severance. Of this perilous country’s Wild West Bank
With no coastline nor beach, and no riverbank.
Come hear the quaint tale of a jovial pastor
From England’s lush emerald dew-studded pastures, Rather than harbours, this city has walls,
A deep-thinking teacher and calloused ship-builder And towers that helplessly stretch their necks tall,
A man of compassion, and mission, and laughter Hoping to peak over peaks to the west,
Who chose to obey his king, lord, and master. To see the sea coast where the people find rest.
Where the evenings are festive, and the troubles are small.
Though it beggars belief, Steve relinquished his fief,
And traded those fairy-tale hills of Great Britain, But of course, all this nonsense is merely a jest.
Where lush verdant grass doth sparkle and glisten God had placed our dear Stephen in ancient Jebus,
For Jerusalem’s hillocks, so dry and forlorn, And he knew that resistance would be of no use.
Of limestone and flint, thistle, bramble, and thorn. Jonah fled to old Jaffa, but Steve shouldered the test
And firmly committed himself to the quest.
You can count on confronting some quaint curiosities,
And many confounding cacophonous qualities, He faithfully chose to embrace his vocation,
In the alcoves and alleys and pilgrimage routes, Despite being challenged on certain occasions
That spread like a labyrinth through ancient al-Quds, By Jerusalem’s steadily slow strangulation,
But the strangest of these, is none other than Steve. A subtly creeping constricting sensation
of sorrowful spiritual slow suffocation
Perplexed and befuddled, I’ve pondered this puzzle: that could suddenly slither and sneak up upon him
Why would a shipbuilder cast anchor in Salem? In the hot snaky serpentine streets of old Zion.
We have neither sea, lake, nor permanent puddle!
Perhaps he fell victim to this city’s syndrome, He surely had doubts and some ponderous qualms,
And set course for Canaan convinced he was Abram. For you see, Mount Moria can charge a high fee,
It never allows you to truly feel free.
Scaling her slopes means bruised bloody palms,
And may cause you to mumble less savoury psalms.

But being assured that God’s voice he had heard, Then, without warning came shock and surprise,
He wasn’t deterred by catlike tourists to herd, Overwhelming and sudden increases in size
He prepared to repair this new ship, which like Noah’s ark, Of the number of tourists that stood in long lines
Offered peace, love, and hope, when the world seemed so dark, Till the garden was left with standing room only,
When proverbial waves crashed and thrashed in the heart. And we feared that the chaos may obscure the holy.

In this garden, they say, a king was once buried, But Steve rose to the task and he rolled up his sleeves
Then his followers sat for their weeklong sad wake, And he built, and he built, and he planted some trees,
To the ship-garden’s hold, deep below, he was carried, He built and he built and he just wouldn’t stop,
While the tempest of death made that orchard-tomb quake Apartments and chapels, a warehouse, a shop,
But half through his friends’ wake, they saw him awake! Pathways, and platforms, he built and he built.

Then they remembered their king was a seed. He built friendships and trust, and with kindness and care
Thus, on the third day he rose, rose indeed. And with hope and humility, patience and prayer,
In wake of his waking, there arose also roses And, lest we forget, a most humorous flair,
Of Sharon with lilies and aloes and myrrh. He built a great team, showed them love and respect,
Now the hearts of his subjects were fully astir. And mustered his crew to outstanding effect.

There they encountered the earnestly awesome Under his guidance and care, by God’s grace,
A numinous orchard with carpets of blossoms, there wasn’t a challenge that they could not face.
An Edenic ark, a floating ship-garden. Regardless of heat, or of bone drenching showers,
But today the true paradise garden is hidden, And the ever-expanding opening hours,
By God, locked away in the storehouse of heaven. They built and they built at a breakneck fast pace.

Surely Earthly Jerusalem’s temporal ship-garden, Then tragedy suddenly ripped through the world
Is a dark dim reflection of Eden’s perfection. As a global pandemic had fully unfurled
Still, this garden below garners love and attention Leaving limited options, all bitter and foul.
And was faithfully kept by a long chain of wardens Though Steve doubtlessly thought just to throw in the towel,
Who its purpose protected with careful intention. He stood with his friends and they fought cheek to jowl.

Now joined to their ranks is Stephen Ship-Builder, Now hope has returned and he withstood the test
Jester and Pastor and painfully pun-full church Preacher, But he’s naturally tired and longs for a rest,
and Garden Director and Warden and Keeper. So now, once again, the baton must be passed.
He braced for adventure, and embraced the endeavour, But Reverend Holland is first to attest,
To care for those seeking a taste of Forever. That S. Bridge’s legacy surely shall last.

The Honourable Richards, both First and Second, And though Steve now sails back to fair Albion,
Passed Ship-Builder Stephen the relay baton With tears in his eyes and a bitter-sweet grin,
(despite certain fumbles that occurred early on). We know this farewell is not truly forever,
Though he may have inherited more than he reckoned For Steve forged a community, new kith and kin.
He was determined to waste not a second. And since family bonds cannot easily be severed,
we know in our hearts that we’ll see him again.

By: Phillip Ben-Shmuel

Steve,

I am a better person for having met you. It’s hard for me to imagine what the details
of my life would have been if you had never chosen to make Jerusalem your home
(albeit a temporary one). You probably think I am being hyperbolic, but I am not.
Both your friendship and your guidance as an employer have had a huge positive im-
pact on me.
I am so thankful that you continued to grant me the privilege and the opportunity to
work here in so many different capacities. Throughout it all, you have been an exam-
ple of servant-minded leadership. If I ever find myself in a managerial position in my
future endeavours, I can only hope to emulate the virtuous qualities that you have
embodied.
Even though I have worked at the Garden Tomb under the directorship of four-and-
half wardens by now (I’m counting Greg as the half), in my mind the entire period
after Peter Wells’s passing should be remembered as the Stevian Era of the Garden
Tomb. My silly and overly lengthy poem (I have never been accused of pithiness)
only begins to scratch the surface of the extensive legacy that you are leaving be-
hind. The Garden has been fundamentally reshaped by your imaginative vision while
perfectly maintaining the heart of the Garden Tomb mission that you had inherited.
More than anything, I value your friendship. I will continue to cherish all of our
many conversations, some serious, some profound, some entirely inconsequential,
and some just to blow off steam because of frustrations (whether geo-political, or
Garden-Tomb-related, or otherwise). The Garden will truly never be quite the same
without your presence and I will certainly sorely miss you. Though I hate to admit it,
I’ll even miss all your rapid-fire ridiculous puns that I couldn’t even begin to keep up
with.
I know that sappiness and expressions of affection make you feel awkward and
squirmy, but I just wanted to say - I love you. I love you very much and I will miss
you dearly. But you have earned some rest and you deserve the frequent presence of
grandchildren on whom to unleash your humour. So, this farewell is bitter-sweet.
In English, the word “goodbye” is ultimately derived from the phrase “God be with
ye”, not unlike the Spanish “adios” and the French “adieu” that mean “to God”. So,
God be with you, my friend, as you go with the divine towards the divine - goodbye,
bon voyage, and see you later. I keenly look forward to my inevitable eventual visit

to Frinton-on-Sea. Phillip

Dear Sue and Steve.

As Steve has been saying this is not
goodbye….
Our family would like to let you both
know that even you will leave Jerusa-
lem, you will always have a family and
a home here to come back to.
It has been an honor to meet you and
learn form you on a professional and
personal level alike.

The Saders

Dear Steve and Sue,

It was a pleasure to work with you all these
years.
You and Sue will be missed so much.
We appreciate all the efforts you have
made.
All blessings for you and your family!

Maxim and Renata.

Dear Sue and Steve.

Thanks for tour great service!! God
bless you!!!

Yussil Beltrán Yadid

Dear Steve and Sue,

I cannot believe the privilege God has given me to serve at the Garden Tomb

alongside you all these years. It’s been 12 amazing years! You have been a

blessing to me in so many ways and I praise the Lord for your life and leader-

ship. I praise the Lord for your life of faithfulness to the Lord and to the minis-

try of the Garden Tomb. I also praise the Lord for your humility and your great

sense of humor. ‘The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord cause His face to

shine on you and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His face to you and give

you peace.’ We love you both!!! Cesar and Maria

Thanks Stephen and Sue for the amazing
people you are, for your care for people,
no matter who but you show no favourit-
ism but treat anyone with grace and mercy
showing the character of Christ.

On a personal level, I want to thank you
because you gave me the opportunity to
come back despite the big storm I had to
face in my life. I was desperate and sure
that nobody could offer me anything to
serve God. But you gave the open door to return to the Garden Tomb. Thanks
for the trust and love showed through this.

I pray for your next adventure which God will open in front of you in order to
continue to be the blessing you are to other people, organisations, and church-
es you will surely impact with your love.

Thank you from the bottom on my heart Stefano Guaglione

Dear Steve and Sue

With all the others in the “Garden-Family”, we would like to say thank you
and praise the Lord, for how He has used both of you, all these past years.
As a big and wonderful blessing in this very special place and time, for all of us.

The way you and Sue have helped and encouraged us again and again.
Your special wisdom to lead and also very special humor.

We wish you wonderful years to come refreshment a most blessed time with
your family, and we hope you will come back to visit.

And you know like Corrie ten Boom always said.

The best is still to come, for both of you also.

In Messiah’s love

Peter and Nellie

Botley Road Oxford
September 2022

Dear Steve and Sue

I wanted to write on behalf of us both to say thank you for giving us the opportunity to serve at the Garden Tomb. It
has been an enormous privilege and one which we will cherish for the rest of our lives.

Our time at the garden began in 2016 when we came for our “trial”. Back then, everything was very new to us and a
little scary. I still remember being ushered into the presence of the director. I remember that first conversation with
great fondness. You said, “we don’t believe in putting pressure on people…just take your time…”. Those words have
stuck with me over the years as they epitomise your management style of leading by example and encouraging others
to do their best in a way that works well for them. You often said that guidelines were precisely that, and not “tram-
lines”.

Knowing you has certainly changed the direction of my life…in a good way! I often said that had our roles been re-
versed, then I don’t know if I would have been willing to take the risk of inviting someone who is registered blind with
2% vision to be a guide in a garden full of steps and people, to say nothing of the numerous piles of building materials
that would pop up at random intervals. But it seems that God had other plans which you and Phillip were prepared to
listen to. And the rest as they say, “is history”.

After our first visit in 2016, I can still remember the excitement and anxiety we felt towards the end …”would we be
invited back?”. This is a common tale from many volunteers past and present. I think you put us out of our misery on
the last day when we fixed up our next visit for 2017.

Another memorable thing about our first visit to the garden was the incredible kindness of the other volunteers. Bob
and Jenny Lillyman were especially helpful to both of us and much of what they taught us about guiding, benches
(don’t forget the handrails!) and communion, we are now passing on to others. We have also made some lasting
friendships. We often visit Chris and Andrew Haines to share a meal and talk about times past and present in the
garden.

At the end of 2017, you invited us to return for a year on a volunteer visa in 2018. Yvonne was able to take a sab-
batical from the NHS but the law firm where I was working said “we don’t do sabbaticals” so I quit. I wasn’t unhappy
there, but it was time to move on. I started my own IT Consultancy, and my old boss gave me my first contract which
was a real blessing as it allowed me one day a week to start work with Phillip on the new booking system.

As the number of visitors to the garden grew, so the urgency to deliver the new booking system increased. That pro-
ject is one I am proud to have managed and delivered. Five years on and it is still in use. As the main project sponsor,
this must have been a pleasant change for you from the other building projects which usually involved stone rather
than computers.

As our time drew to a close towards the end of 2018, we didn’t feel our work had finished at the garden. In particu-
lar we saw a need for Volunteer Coordinators to welcome new and past volunteers into their apartments. You sug-
gested we apply for clergy visas to put us on a more permanent footing. As the bible says, “faith and patience inherit
the promises” and this was certainly a test of both. You may recall that it took several months for the change in status
from Volunteer to Clergy visa to be approved. At first, we all hoped this would just take a couple of weeks, but it
turned out that the normal waiting time is one year. Those were a trying few months for us, especially as Yvonne
couldn’t resign until we had a date to return to the garden. The one comfort in all that time is that our application was
never declined, only stalled.

We finally returned with our Clergy Visas in the autumn of 2019 in time to be part of what is probably the busiest
time the garden has ever seen. We welcomed record numbers of visitors day after day, only with a brief pause on
Christmas day. Even the February of 2020 was the busiest on record. But then it all stopped. On Saturday 14 March
we welcomed 1,176 visitors and by the following week there were none!

We were on site at the garden for most of the pandemic. Whilst there were some challenges, our abiding memory
is of just how blessed we were to be able to enjoy the garden when others were cooped up inside. When we were
able to open, we got to share the gospel with many Israelis from around the country who otherwise would not nor-
mally visit the garden. Their openness to hear about our faith as Christians was unexpected and we felt privileged
to be able to share the good news with many of them.

The pandemic also made it possible for the redevelopment of Skull Hill. This is without doubt the greatest change
that we have witnessed in the garden and something you should be very proud of, especially given that much of the
project was managed remotely from the UK. You always assured me that “next year there will be no more building
work…”, this was one promise that you spectacularly failed to keep! We now have Upper Mews, Upper Haven, the
Emmaus chapel, a platform on the grove and a beautiful prayer garden.

The bible says that “people perish for lack of vision”. Since 2016 until now, you have always been faithful to share
the vision that God has given you for the garden. This is something for which we are both very grateful and is a
great testimony to your style of leadership. People know why they are there and what they are doing. It provides
both purpose and focus.

We have done many and varied tasks at the garden, but the one that brings the greatest joy is always seeing lives
touched by the garden as it brings to life the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I often think back to
debates that some of us had about whether some individuals were demon possessed or just crazy. You would gen-
tly remind us that whatever the cause, the cure was the same in both cases, they needed to be “Set Free”!

Yvonne has always enjoyed the help and support from Sue in the shop and the quiet and efficient way she would
work tirelessly to ensure everything was neat and tidy for the next onslaught of visitors. We both enjoy and value
the friendship and support which the two of you have always extended to us, especially your willingness to share
your own experiences of how things function in Israel.

Over the years, we’ve enjoyed sharing meals together and even the occasional glass of Rioja. As you start another
chapter in your lives, we pray that God will bless and guide you in whatever you do. It has been a joy and a privilege
serving at the GT under your tenure and we look forward to meeting up again in the future.

With our love and blessings

Peter and Yvonne

Dear Steve and Sue,

So many years have come and gone....so many things been said and done.
You are such a treasure and will be greatly missed!!!!!

You impressed me with your steadfastness and diligence in all both of you did
in the garden ,without ever making a fuss about it. You have been so faithful
in working with your God given talents ! Never loosing sight of ‘Who’ it is all
about.

“Well done good and faithful servants “, I imagine Him saying to you .

Thanks especially to’ Herr Bruecke ‘for the moments of humor and laughter
and good acting skills (there is quit some talent hiding there )

Being with Sue in the ‘christmaschoir’ was discovering a new talent in her as
well ...an unforgettable experience!

May times of refreshing come to you from His presence after leaving this
special place. Your presence will be missed for sure ....and untill we meet
again , may God hold you in the palm of His hand .

Much Martin &Riki

Dearest Steve&Sue!

What a joy, privilege&blessing to have got-
ten to know&work along side with you here in
the garden tomb! Thank you for who you are,
always compatinate, loving, caring&full of joy!
You will be greatly missed! I pray that you will
be able to enjoy your kids&grandkids& i know
you will be an amazing blessing back home as
you have been here!
Much love to you and shalom!

Doro

Dear Sue & Steve and Sue

I have only known you for three months, but it has been a pleasure meeting you and
working together in the Garden.
I wish you God’s blessing for your future.

George Kamel

Steve and Sue

The experience of working with both of
you is a blessing to us. In your farewell,
we want to let you know that you will
always be remembered. Best of luck on
your new journey.

Elena & Raneen

Dear Sue & Steve:

We thank the Lord for knowing you and
the ability to work together... you did a
great job leading the team and the Gar-
den looks so beautiful after your lead-
ership. You will be greatly missed. All
the best.
Love

The Kort family.

Dear Sue & Steve and Sue

We thank the Lord for knowing
you and the ability to work to-
gether... You did a great job lead-
ing the team and the Garden looks
so beautiful after your leadership.
You will be greatly missed.
Wishing you and Sue all the best in
the future.

E lias

Dear Steve and Sue,

We’re so grateful for these past three years as we’ve grown in our friendship and
especially remember how you cared for us whilst on interview. Also, during our
team times in Galilee when we took time away to pray and plan together. In Frinton
during lockdown, we enjoyed the walks along a windswept beach, around Essex and
Suffolk, you’ve introduced us to some beautiful places.

You have also prepared us for this moment when we begin to take up the reins
of leadership at the Garden Tomb. What we have both experienced is the bond
we share in our love of the Lord and the desire to serve Him and his people. You
have built not just paths and walls of stone, but a mission heart that beats strongly
among the team in this place.

Although in some ways our time together has been short, we’ve learned so much
from ou; of keeping the focus of the garden on the Gospel and the importance of
prayer… beginning our time here with 24/7 prayer during the busyness of 2019,
was such an adventure!

I vividly remember a dream I had Steve, where you came into a room as I was serv-
ing as a waiter, and you said to me, “I’m a servant too!” So, we set about serving
together.

Steve, we will miss your presence, your reflections in the morning and not least
your humour and the many puns in the day! Sue, Anne will miss being able to go for
coffee with you, a time to share, knowing that you would faithfully pray. Anne has
also appreciated your patient and encouraging training in the shop.

In this complex yet beautiful city of Jerusalem, both of you have shone with the
light and truth of Christ. You have touched the lives of thousands upon thousands
of people in your ministry, we know that this will continue wherever you go and ask
God to bless the days ahead, along the path he will guide you on.

‘May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;

the rains fall soft upon your fields
and until we meet again,

may God hold you in the palm of His hand.
Amen’

Simon and Anne