In the week the Sydney Swans win their first ever flag, Sports & Leisure Ministries is backing the plan of its first National Director and AFL Melbourne Demons chaplain, Cameron Butler, to triple the number of sports chaplains by 2008.
As thousands of fans welcome the victorious Swans back to Sydney, Mr Butler is championing his vision for significantly expanding a primary ministry to a sport-mad nation.
The Sydney Swans are one of several elite clubs currently without a chaplain.
But negotiations with club management currently underway are likely to contribute to Mr Butler’s overall goal.
"I believe in three years we can grow to 300 chaplains. That means a growth of three chaplains per month," he says.
Mr Butler initially unveiled his plan at the SLM "Facing the Future' Conference in Canberra earlier this month attended by over 50 national sporting chaplains and sports ministry supporters.
The new National Director also wants to increase chaplaincy to the underrepresented area of female sports.
“Female sports have an equal weight in government funding yet we only have four females out of 110 chaplains,” he notes.
“I want to see the number of female chaplains grow to around 30 per cent of our total by 2008.”
Mr Butler believes the increase is achievable by introducing chaplains to sporting clubs at both the top and entry levels.
"I see the vision as saturating elite sports with sport chaplains, even down to every second and third tier sports code and club," he says.
"We can also do this through seeing football, netball and other sporting clubs and associations receive chaplains at the grass roots level."
Mr Butler outlined his new vision for the expanding chaplaincy ministry in key areas.
"[We want to] establish a national executive along with state coordinators and sporting code coordinators. We want to develop an accreditation and training pathway for new and existing chaplains."
"[And we're] seeking creative and diverse fundraising strategies to meet increased budget requirements."
The work of the Melbourne-based Assemblies of God minister who has been chaplain to the Melbourne Demons for the past eight years is greatly appreciated by Demons coach Neil Daniher.
The coach recently thanked Mr Butler for "bringing Christ into the Club, to continue moving throughout it, doing what you do.'
Mr Butler has also helped the team cope with personal loss.
He married Melbourne AFL player Troy Broadbridge and his wife Trisha on December 18 just prior to last years' tsunami disaster, only to perform Troy's funeral a fortnight later.
"The response to my role in and around the club from the president to the bench manger has been very positive. I have a good rapport with Neil Daniher and the players," he says.
"At the end of September the team and I will return to Thailand. We're going to refurbish a school that was destroyed in the Tsunami and dedicate it to Troy."
