The Parish Church of St Andrew

Text Box: Outreach 2009

Our Mission at St Andrew's is to challenge injustice and deprivation and to work with other churches and outreach partners locally, nationally and internationally to enable individual and community life to flourish.

This web page gives you information about the outreach work at St Andrew’s Church, and the organisations we support. To find out more, or to talk to someone about our work, please e-mail carolwood51@hotmail.com, or contact us via the church office.
Our Outreach Partners Every year we support a number of charities with our donations and our prayers. Here you can find details of the organisations we are currently supporting, along with links to their websites. We ensure that our funding is split between national, local and international charities. We welcome more suggestions for worthy organisations from members of the Church Family – please contact Carol Wood on carolwood51@hotmail.com
The Umeed Partnership provides educational and vocational training for disadvantaged women and children in Pakistan, regardless of faith or culture. For more information, see www.umeedpartnership.org.uk		Bedford Samaritans is a branch of the well-known national charity which offers emotional support for people going through a crisis, or in distress or despair. The Bedford branch also trains prisoners in Bedford Prison to act as Listeners to offer support to other prisoners. See www.samaritans.org
BeCHar operates to support the homeless/rootless population in Bedford town, and helps them into work and accommodation. Their logo indicates that there is “light at the end of the tunnel”.		Swaziland Schools Project exists to advance the education of the children and adults of Swaziland. The charity pays for several hundred children to attend school, undertakes building projects for schools, provides equipment and supports UK volunteers who work in the schools.

The Valerie Taylor Trust operates in Bangladesh to relieve poverty and assist in the treatment, care and rehabilitation of disabled people. See www.valerietaylortrust.org		Christian Solidarity Wordwide is a human rights organisation which specialises in religious freedom, works on behalf of those persecuted for their Christian beliefs, and promotes religious liberty for all – a “voice for the voiceless”. See www.csw.org.uk or read more here: Christian Solidarity Worldwide
Wateraid enables the world’s poorest people to gain access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene education, through partner organisations. Website: www.wateraid.org		Smile Train helps children born with cleft lip and palate by providing free treatment worldwide, training and education for doctors and supporting research. Surgery is provided by local medical staff, funded and educated by Smile Train. See www.smiletrain.org.uk
		The MS Therapy Centre is situated in Bedford, and provides a complete service under one roof for MS sufferers. Our grant will enable therapists at the centre to keep their skills up to date. See website: www.bedsandnorthantsmstc.org
Monthly Prayers Each month we focus our attention on one particular Outreach Partner, to be featured in intercessions during our services, and by a specific report in the Fisherman magazine and displays in the foyer of the Church Centre. For details of these charities, see above. September 2009 – Valerie Taylor Trust October 2009 – UMEED November 2009 – BeCHaR Please pray for our Outreach Partners:
		O God, whose nature it is to be generous: We confess to you our share of the guilt for a world of hungry families and homeless peoples; Forgive us for our self-centred living and spending. Grant that we may all have listening hearts and generous spirits that both our Church and our nation may give due place to the cries of those who have nothing to eat and nowhere to live; For the sake of Jesus Christ, Amen.

OUTREACH EVENT REPORTS

Homelessness Sunday Breakfast On 1 February 2009 everyone was invited to come for a bacon roll breakfast between the 8am and 10am services. “Buskers” from the church orchestra provided musical entertainment during the meal, and Fred Shortland, Chief Executive of Casa Alianza, spoke at the 10am service. Read more about this charity, which helps street children, at: www.casa-alianza.org.uk		Andrewtide/World Aids Day A special service was held on 30 November 2008 to mark Andrewtide and World Aids Day. Despite dreadful weather, around 40 people attended to hear Fiona McLeod talk about her experiences in Ethopia, and £300 was collected for the charity “Positively Women”. This charity provides support for women in the UK living with HIV by women living with HIV. See www.positivelywomen.org.uk
Christmas Collections 2008 Two charities were supported with Christmas Collections – St John’s Hospice Moggerhanger and Motivation. £1,292 was sent to each organisation. Read more about these causes at: www.motivation.org.uk and www.suerydercare.org/care_centres.php/12/sue_ryder_care_st_johns_hospice
Outreach Sunday – Yarls Wood Thank you to Revd Adèle Rowlands and Ben Clackson for giving us an insight into life at Yarls Wood at our Outreach Service on 7 June, and thank you to everyone who contributed the gifts of Bibles and books for adults and children there, and also for the suitcases. A high percentage of the women and children are committed Christians, and it means a great deal to them to own their own Bibles.		Bishop Michael Baroi of Bangladesh Bishop Michael visited the Parish on 12 July and opened our eyes to life in Bangladesh and the dire effects of climate change there. An article was included in the August Fisherman. Please pray for solutions to the consequences of environmental change in God’s fragile world.
Bishop of St Alban’s Harvest Appeal 2009 – 4 October Look out for information in the September Fisherman and on the Outreach Board in the Church Centre about this year’s appeal to help bring safe, clean water to almost 55,000 people in the Silitie Zone in South Ethiopia. GIVE WATER FOR LIFE! Please support the appeal generously.

Christian Aid Week (10 – 16 May)

A door-to-door collection was once again held in the Parish for Christian Aid week (commencing Sunday 10 May). This raises a considerable sum for a worthwhile charity every year. In addition, this year, church groups and organisations which use our church centre got together for a very successful quiz night in aid of Christian Aid.

Proceeds go to Christian Aid (UK charity number 1105751, company number 5171525). Read more at: www.christianaid.org.uk

The Church Year in Colour

Open Days 26 -27 June 2009

At the Church's Open Day, The Church Year in Colour, Outreach Committee members helped children visiting the Church to make toys from scraps and rubbish, such as children in the two-thirds world might play with. We made cars from foil containers and tin lids, telephones from yoghurt pots and string and dolls from the inside of toilet rolls, plastic bags and scraps of material. We showed the children footballs made from plastic bags, cars made from bent wire, hoops from old bicycle tyres and dolls from wooden sticks and material scraps. 80 children came on the Friday from two schools and all went away with a toy they had made.