Terry Gardiner

Terry has been married to Julie for 24 years and they have a son, Gareth.

What are your role(s) at HT?

I’m in charge of the Sound and Projection team, whilst also playing the drums on occasion.  I have also produced a number of drama sketches in the past, with hopefully more in the future.    
What was your childhood like?

I originally came from the Twickenham area but my Dad’s various postings with the RAF and as a Policeman meant that a number of my early years saw a great deal of moving around, including two and half years in Hong Kong.  This is evident from one sister being born in Stafford, the other in Woking and my brother in Bedford.

The family moved to Ash in 1982.  In fact the house we lived in was demolished shortly after we vacated it in 1985.  I’ve often wondered if that had anything to do with my DIY attempts.  It was when Jules and I exchanged rings that we moved to Aldershot, as house prices here suited our pocket.

What’s the first news story you remember hearing?

I have to be honest – I can’t really recall what the first news story was that I took notice of, but I do recall when the George Best Football Tactics TV series was being advertised.  The coal strikes were also in the news and my Dad explained what that would mean as far as power goes.  So there was I, hoping that the strikes didn’t happen and days before the first programme was to be aired, the strike hit.  Days after the last programme was to be aired, the strike lifted and I had missed the whole series.

What jobs have you done?

I have been in IT since November 1986, having worked my way up from a Technical Administrator to an EMEA IT Manager, before being an IT Project Manager with IBM.  I am now an IT and Certification Operations Manager with The Open Group based in Reading.  I have to admit though, that before I embarked on an IT career I was a Butcher, Window Cleaner, Door to Door Salesman, Salesperson, Woodworm exterminator, Trainee Hotel Manager, Chef, Warehouse Administrator, Trainee TV and Radio Repairman and an Electronics Engineer.  I’d understand it if someone said that I really didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do when I left school.  In fact I worked out the other month that I must be close to my 24th job at the moment.

Was there anything in your background which paved the way for you to come to Christ?

Having videoed a testimony for Mohammad recently, I recall how during my younger days (I can recall that far back) my Nan was an avid church goer. Each Sunday she would go to church and took anyone who would go with her; as we stayed with her a number of times, that included me.  I wasn’t pulled kicking and screaming down, in fact I was more than happy to go as, with my Mum being very much into campanology, I was sometimes allowed to help ring the bells.  I could never understand why us kids had to leave at one point in the service.  I always thought we were missing something.

How did you become a Christian?

In fact this was down to Jules.  At a very early stage of our going together, she mentioned that she was a Christian and she wouldn’t have a steady relationship with anyone who wasn’t.  Instead of frightening me off, this actually made me go to church with her.  My sister was already a Christian. One Sunday when the Elder asked for anyone who wanted to know Christ as their Saviour to come down, I was up and halfway down the steps before I had even realised I’d left my chair.  I handed my life to Christ that night and realised that I had in fact been close for quite a while.  In my amateur dramatics there were always parts I wouldn’t play, or plays I wouldn’t appear in or lines I wouldn’t say, amongst  a number of other examples.

Has your life as a Christian been all plain sailing?

No absolutely not.  There are times when you know God is on your side, such as when I was made redundant in 1996 and God gave me another job eight hours later.  Though last year when I was made redundant two days after my Mum’s passing, I really wondered what God was doing, but Jules said it all when she told me that God was giving me time to grieve in peace.  Jules going through her fits earlier this year – that was harrowing.  God not only made sure I was there at the time to get help quickly, He made sure I was there to be with her as she got well; then He found me a job.  Gareth moving out last year was quite a wrench, but you just have to look at what God has done through him to realise that it was part of His plan.

Would you recommend Christianity to others?

Absolutely.  There is no other way to live.  The worldly way teaches you that expensive cars, money, big houses, un-Godly love is what gives you happiness, but you can easily see around you that that is not true.  Having God in your heart, just that, nothing more, is where the happiness generates.