A Bermudian was installed the first woman bishop for an international church group at the weekend.

The Reverend Roxanne Haynes, 61, was appointed as the Bishop of Bermuda, Guyana and the Caribbean for the United Fellowship of Churches International on Sunday — a role last belonged to her husband, the Right Reverend Christopher Haynes, who died in 2013.

She said: “One of the things that I was telling my daughters was that their father would be so elated to know that I have picked up the mantle after his passing.

Bishop Haynes added: “When I look at everything I keep thinking ‘I wish he was here in person to see what God is doing’.

“But I believe that he would be very, very happy. Happy does not even describe it.”

Bishop Haynes was consecrated as a bishop on August 17 at the fellowship’s annual convocation in North Carolina. Her installation, which took place at the Fairmont Southampton, ratified her appointment. Bishop Haynes said at the ceremony that her appointment solidified her belief that her purpose in life was to become a bishop.

She also encouraged the congregation to be patient and persistent and to follow their dreams. Bishop Haynes said: “If you desire to attain something or God has declared a word over your life, it will always come to pass no matter how long it takes.

“For me, it took 17 years after the word of the Lord came to pass that I would become a bishop. But today we see the manifestation of his word.”

Bishop Haynes was joined by several UFCI bishops as well as pastors from other denominations. Wayne Caines, the national security minister, and Marcus Jones, a One Bermuda Alliance senator, also attended. The United Fellowship of Churches International was founded in 1994 to support struggling churches, tackle social problems and “challenge denominational traditions”.

UFCI is found in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, Ghana and South Africa.