Young people attending Stanborough Park Seventh-day Adventist Church in Garston should find it easy to relate to new Youth Minister, Pastor Sam Neves, who took up his post at the New Year and describes himself as having once been a "somewhat rebellious teenager".

However, he and his wife, Amy, are already familiar faces at the church where her parents, David and Caroline Swain, were life-long members until their recent move to retirement in Northern Ireland.

Amy, who grew up in neighbouring Holland Gardens, was a pupil at Stanborough Secondary School when Sam, aged 14, arrived from Brazil as a boarding pupil. They married at Stanborough Park Church in July 2004, and now have two sons, James, 4, and Joshua, 2.

Pastor Sam feels that his destiny was sealed before his birth. His mother had been told that she was unable to have children of her own but recalled the Bible story of how Hannah, finding herself in a similar situation, prayed for a child who, after her wish was granted, grew up to be the prophet Samuel.

She decided to follow her example, praying earnestly for a child of her own and promising God that if her wish was similarly granted she too would call him Samuel and dedicate him to be a minister.

In addition this work at the church he is also involved with the Centre for Secular and Post Modern Studies at the denomination’s headquarters in America which involved helping churches across Europe to become relevant to the current generation.