Joan Copeland is an Anglican lay reader who has been married to Chris, a retired vicar, for fifty years. They live in Malvern, where she is also a volunteer at the Lyttelton Well, the local Christian bookshop.

Having studied theology at Kings College, London, she shared Chris’s ministry for thirty-eight years, mainly in Worcestershire and Birmingham, including teaching theology and involvement in the ministry of healing.

Joan’s upbringing in a small village in Essex gave her a lifelong interest in the countryside, reflected in much of her poetry, which she has been writing since childhood.

She and Chris have four daughters and nine grandchildren, which, combined with their various Christian commitments, make for a busy and fulfilling ‘retirement’.