A street pastor from Angus has spoken about the challenges he faced at this year’s T in the Park festival – and how lollipops were used to avert violence.
There were between 14 and 18 pastors at each night of the music festival at Strathallan Castle to assist the 70,000 revellers.
David McColgan from Carnoustie, who volunteered on the first two nights of the event, said they were there to “listen, care and help”.
The Carnoustie High School maths teacher said: “We are not evangelistic, we don’t try to convert people, we don’t talk about God. We say hi to people, listen to them if they want to chat and give them help if they need it.
“Most of what we were doing at T in the Park was trying to direct people. It’s a big site so it’s easy for people to get lost and walk the wrong way.
“Some people were under-dressed so we handed out foil dresses. People who had a long walk in front of them, we gave lollipops to help keep them going.”
Street pastors have been attending T in the Park for the last nine years.
David, 38, who was on duty from 8pm until 4am on Thursday and Friday, said he helped several people who were in need of medical attention often due to consuming excess alcohol.
“We also spoke to people who were lost, cold and sad or drunk,” he continued.
“We just chatted to people and tried to make them feel a bit more optimistic.
“There were some girls we met who were just sobbing because they had already walked for an hour and found that they had another half an hour to go.
“One girl specifically who was incredibly drunk who we pretty much had to carry. If we hadn’t helped then who knows how long she would have sat there before somebody did something about it.
“I did hear of other pastors seeing some aggressive situations. If someone is getting a bit aggressive then sometimes offering them a lollipop can see a change in the situation and they forget they were just about to punch somebody.”
David, who also works as a pastor in Arbroath, said he was sure that the street pastors did a lot of good during the weekend and although his feet were still sore from all the walking, he plans to attend the festival again next year.
He added: “It’s hard to gauge your impact but if you help one person then you’ve done something that wouldn’t have been done if you weren’t there.
“I think a lot of people are cheered up by seeing us, getting something from us or just sharing their frustrations with us.”
