The dynamic duo will be taking the reins at the Kyabram, Echuca and Rochester Salvos branches, bringing in a new era of leadership to the charity organisation.
It’s a full circle moment for the married couple who first met at a youth group in Echuca before marrying in 1993 and jetting away to start a family down south.
They attended college to become officers for The Salvation Army 15 years ago and have, quite literally, rose through the ranks with every five years, from lieutenant to captains and now, majors.
The pair have gotten used to working together as a partnership, learning how to switch between the officer and spouse hats seamlessly.
“We complement each other,” Mr Turnbull said.
Both of them have their strengths which they lean towards.
For Mr Turnbull it’s IT, and keeping the electrics, sound and audio running during services.
For Mrs Turnbull it’s admin she drifts towards, keeping the place running and people accounted for.
“It’s good to have that support beside you,” Mrs Turnbull said.
“It can be helpful to, you know, have a buddy to bounce things off of.”
They said they were looking forward to getting out to each branch to get to know the teams and people in each town, but also see some familiar faces from years past.
But, as well as they know the towns, it’s the people that the Turnbulls are most worried about getting on their side.
“The role itself comes with some trust, but it takes a while to get to know the people and for them to get to know you,” Mr Turnbull said.
“It’s not about staying here on a Sunday for an hour and going, but it’s about getting out in the community.”
Mrs Turnbull said they are hoping to draw on three words to resonate with the community: faith, hope, and the greatest of them: love.
“That’s what we want to see in our communities,” Mrs Turnbull said.
Salvos’ new regional roll-out
With the arrival of Mr and Mrs Turnbull, The Salvation Army has turned a new page.
The two majors will be servicing the Campaspe region, a move away from individual officers stationed in Kyabram, Rochester and Echuca.
Major Warren Elliott, the communications spokesperson for The Victorian Salvation Army, said this change was in response to a lack of human resources in the organisation as a whole.
“It’s disappointing we can’t give specific services to the towns… we’re trying our best, but it comes down to resources ultimately,” he said.
“We’ll monitor the Turnbulls, and if they need help, we’ll be there.
“We want to be encouraging to the Turnbulls and the town, and this new system makes sure that the most marginal communities are still well accounted for, even with the limited resources.”
The Turnbulls had no problems expressing their excitement for being back in the Campaspe Shire and are looking at the brighter side of the situation.
“It will help to train local leaders up because we can’t be in every place at once,” Mr Turnbull said.
“And because (the towns) are quite close to one another, it’s kind of almost the right thing to happen.
“When Rochester flooded out, all the branches came together in that instance – so this new model will bring everyone together so we can start doing things together, and not just rely on the officer to do everything.”
One thing’s for sure, though, they have all the time in the world to chat to anyone who walks through the doors.
“We have an open door policy,” Mrs Turnbull said.
“If people want to come and chat, you know, the paperwork can wait – the people are who are most important to us.”
