Church Project Fund
As Christians we are encouraged to look beyond our own needs to those of the wider world. Each year we choose two or three good causes from those suggested by members of our church family.
We have committed ourselves to donating ten per cent of the money given for church funds to outside charities. This is then added to by groups and individuals who raise extra amounts. We normally split the total into four parts, the first of which is available for emergencies during the year and the residue is distributed at the end of the financial year.
Thank you to everyone who made suggestions for this year and we intend to support them all:
Alma Makin and Jean Wales will champion the Macular Society;
Sylvia White will champion Love of Learning in the Gambia;
Gordon Russell, Eileen Simpson and Barbara Whetman will champion Dr Kershaw's Hospice.
Additionally, we propose a monthly donation to Acts 435 which supports individuals in desperate need of one-off purchases such as school uniforms, liaising with the advocate for applicants in Oldham.
Report for 2019-2020
During this year we had three principal projects: For Love of Learning in the Gambia; Cribs, which supports Syrian refugee families; Oldham Unity, which supports destitute asylum seekers. This year's unusual circumstances changed things a little. We were made even more aware of the relative financial security that most of us enjoy, and some needs changed.
The amount for distribution was made up of £4,100 from Church funds, £810 from Sunday coffee, £1,865 from the great quiz night in July, plus individual donations, giving a total of £7,383. Thank you to everyone for your generosity and support.
We gave £200 to Wellsprings El Tular in response to devastation caused by Storm Amanda.
We had a shared supper last autumn with friends from Oldham Unity which raised £290. Oldham Unity has only been able to operate in a limited way since March. Most of their clients are being supported by Oldham Food Bank and other official channels. However, the £25 we give monthly is used to give small amounts for other essentials such as topping up mobile phones and transport. Because of this they have agreed that they do not need their share of the rest of the fund at present.
Separately from the Project Fund, the Quiz in May benefitted Christian Aid and the one in June was for Christians Against Poverty. We have been told that while we were able to make even more than previously for Christian Aid, their income from Christian Aid Week was more than halved, and so we chose to use some of the unallocated part of Project Fund for them. We also allocated an additional sum to Love of Learning because of the desperate poverty they are experiencing there as a result of Covid-19. This means that the following sums were distributed:
Love of Learning: £3,297, Cribs: £2,771, and Christian Aid £525
You can find below updates from two of these charities, so you can see how grateful they are for our support.
