This month: Beneath the surface - Mission workers experience Hurricane Ivan - Jabs, justice and joy - Operation Christmas Child


Beneath the surface…

In a morning service at Marshalswick recently, Graham Clarke spoke about icebergs, and how there is more ice under the surface than there is above.
It started me thinking.  What do we see when we look around us in St Albans and District?  A nice place to live; a fairly prosperous part of the country; families going about their business, with not too many worries about money, housing or employment?
We enjoy good facilities, pleasant surroundings: the schools, the shops, the countryside.  On the surface, life looks pretty good for people around here.
But what is going on for some families under that surface - the bit of people's lives that we don't normally see?
I can tell you of two mums, one in Sandridge and one in Wheathampstead, experiencing post natal depression and struggling to bring up small children.
Then there is the Bangladeshi family in St Albans coping with the death of their third child, while their extended family is back in Bangladesh.
In another family in St Albans, the mum is caring for twins - one with a disability and needing 24-hour care and frequent hospital visits.
Then there’s the family in Harpenden where the mum is trying to make a second relationship work.  She and her partner now have two young children.  When her last relationship broke down, her three children from that relationship were taken into care.
I could go on.  These are just five of the 26 families in this area who are receiving support from Home-Start.
A kind and caring volunteer visits the families every week and provides practical and emotional support - which many parents tell me is a life saver.
Fortunately, I have been able to secure some more funding and have employed another co-ordinator so that we can expand the support we give to families.  Seven new volunteers will start training next week, and I am recruiting for another course, starting in January.
If you know of someone who may be interested in volunteering, please let me know.
In the meantime, please think of what is going on below the surface in people's lives around us, and remember them in your prayers.  And, if you are looking for a charity to support - please think of Home-Start St Albans City & District!

By Sally Patterson.

Further details from 01727 833810.or www.home-start.org.uk

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Mission workers experience Hurricane Ivan

Two BMS volunteers - Alastair and Elizabeth Campbell - based in Kingston, Jamaica had first-hand experience of Hurricane Ivan, which made the news headlines last month.
Alastair lectures at the United Theological College of the West Indies (UTC) and Elizabeth is teaching maths in the local Baptist boys' school.
According to Alastair, residents of Kingston had received advanced warning of Ivan's imminent arrival and waited for what he called an ‘eerily still’ two days of perfect calm before the storm broke.
The storm uprooted trees, tore the roofs off houses and pulled power lines down in the area. This destruction resulted in both water and electricity to many houses - including the Campbells’ home - being cut off.
Describing ‘150 mile an hour gusts of wind and about ten inches of rain’, Alastair said: "Living in England, I had never seen anything like it.
“It was very noisy and quite frightening, because we never knew when the roof was going to come off."
Thankfully, the couple's house suffered only slight water damage, but some neighbours were not so lucky.
"Many people in the area were very frightened and certainly had good reason," Alastair said, "In places, not far from where we live, there have been massive mud-slides and whole houses have been washed away."
One of the couple's neighbours' had the roof their house torn off in the storm.
UTC lost about a week of term-time when they sent the students home before the storm broke, but most of the students are now back.
Alastair told of one Baptist student from Grenada, who lost his house when the hurricane hit that island.
Clean-up operations are underway at UTC and there is, apparently, no word as to when the area will have full power and water services restored to normal.

From BMS News.

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On the first Sunday in October we celebrate Harvest. As part of our worship that day, we are considering the work being done in Nicaragua by Operation Agri.

Jabs, justice and joy

It’s tough in rural Nicaragua:
* Many villages have no health care.
* One baby dies for every 20 babies born.
* The most common cause of death in children is diarrhoea.
* And 40 per cent of children do not have enough to eat.
Provadenic, with the support of Operation Agri, is working in over 30 communities throughout Nicaragua. Francisco Lopez, from the village of El Coyolar, was trained by Provadenic to become a health promoter. With help from village leaders, he then began working with his community by:
* vaccinating children,
* clearing up waste,
* building latrines,
* providing cleaner water and
* teaching mothers how to treat diarrhoea.
Since then, there have been no more babies dying, fewer cases of diarrhoea, and no more malaria in his village.
Lopez said: “We have come from a vision of blindness to a positive vision of being able to confront our problems. Through our work here, we can be at the side of those who suffer. We are instruments of Jesus Christ and, through us, he can show his great love and grace.”

From Operation Agri.

At our Harvest celebrations we can help promote good health - and thereby Christ’s ‘great love and grace’ - by:
• Bringing and donating new, unused toothbrushes.
• Bringing a donation for the work of Operation Agri through Provadenic and local health promoters like Francisco Lopez.
• Buying something from the FairTrade stall.

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Operation Christmas Child - Samaritan’s Purse

The Trailblazers will, again, be preparing filled shoeboxes for deprived children. This will be done on Sundays 24th and 31st October.
We would be grateful for donations before or on these dates of any of the following items:
J Notepad, colouring book, picture books.
J A cuddly toy. J A toothbrush, toothpaste, bar of soap, comb.
J Pencils, pens, sharpener, eraser. J Crayons or felt pens.
J Hat, cap, scarf, gloves, socks, underwear. J A puzzle (eg. small jigsaw).
J A small ball or tennis ball. J Toy car, truck, plane or similar (for boys).
J Jewellery (eg clip earrings), hair accessories, necklaces, bracelets (for girls).
J Playing cards, calculator (solar powered), purse/wallet (for teenagers).
J Sweets - well within sell-by date. J A greetings card or photo of yourself.
We are also in need of shoeboxes and Christmas wrapping paper.

The following must NOT be included and will be removed by the organisers:
L Edible items other than sweets. L Chocolate. L Liquid shampoo.
L War-related items. L Clothing other than those items listed.
L Glass of any kind. L Liquids of any kind. L Medicines.
L Aerosols. L Anything dependent on batteries.  L Books containing words.
L Marbles or sharp objects. L Anything political, racial or religious.

Any organisation or individual within the church who wishes to fill some boxes can collect leaflets/labels from Michael Dewdney.
You should bear in mind:
* Boxes should be of shoe size with detachable lid, covered in wrapping paper.
* Decide on the gender and approximate age of the child (2-4, 5-9 or 10-14).
* Do not wrap individual items or seal the box, as all boxes and contents are checked for customs purposes.
* If possible, include £2.00 in cash or as a cheque made out to ‘Samaritan's Purse’ (cheques are preferred and can cover any number of boxes).
* Boxes prepared by organisations or individuals must be ready for delivery and given to Michael or Kathryn Dewdney on or before 31st October so that they can be delivered to the local pickup point before the deadline.

The Trailblazers.