|
The Editor |
|
|
Managing Director,
Mrs Susan Pattrick |
|
Featured Charity
| |
Friends of the Poor in South India
A Drop in the Ocean!
In 2008 a small group of friends set up a small but vibrant new registered charity called "Friends of the Poor in South India".
Since we began we have raised nearly £30,000 for this work.
Someone said to me, "I think you are wasting your time on this work in India. After all, it is only a drop in the ocean and cannot make any real difference". If we all took that attitude, nothing would ever get done! The truth is that Friends of the Poor has been able to change people's lives for the better. Because we try to invest in micro-credit, the money given is re-paid and used to help others. Careful accounts are kept, and all decisions about the distribution of the money are made by the local community. Visiting them is an inspiration and I am looking forward to spending more time with them early in 2013.
As I said to the person who made the remark about "only a drop in the ocean", "yes that is partly true - but where is your drop?" Please support us if you can.
Christopher Brown
(secretary)
Want to know more?
Please see the article opposite, visit the website, and click here to view the first newsletter.
|
| Nominations | |
Please feel free to nominate a future charity of the month here...
|
| Social media links | |
Follow my blogs
Follow me on...
|
| Back Issues |
Want to see previous issues of the Newsletter?
|
| Join our list |
 |
|
|
Greetings!
So there we go, after seven years in the planning, the Olympics and the Paralympics have come and gone! And didn't they make such a huge and positive impact?
Much is talked about the 'legacy' and time will tell if indeed these games have made a long-term impact. But the legacy it has left in me personally is having seen a job brilliantly well done, and perhaps the first true indications that the British public have finally started to 'get it'! They now understand the extraordinary capabilities of disabled people, and more importantly how absolutely 'ordinary' they really are.
For those of us lucky enough to have been to either of the games, just how privileged were we?
Please don't forget to nominate a charity for a feature article or maybe there is an event coming up which could do with a bit of free PR. If so please email me and I'll do my best...
|
|
Paralympics - the stamps
| | |
Now whilst I can't claim to have single-handedly made the difference from my last newsletter comments, I am delighted that the Post Office have agreed to recognise the Paralympics gold medal winners with their own stamps rather than the group stamps they were considering.
And they're having gold painted post boxes too!
Equality at last!
|
|
Friends of the Poor in South India
| | |
 I thought it worth giving a bit more exposure to this charity, so as well as appearing in the Featured Charity column, here's a bit more info...
For some years Bishop Laurie Green, formerly Bishop of Bradwell in the Chelmsford diocese, together with Christopher Brown and his brother Philip, had been visiting Madurai in Tamil Nadu, South India. This is an amazing city, full of new enterprise and typical of the new prosperity coming to some parts of this vast country with a population of about 1.2 billion. But we quickly realised that in the poor rural areas, nothing much has changed. Many still live in grinding poverty, with little access to education or any sustainable income. About 600 million people live in rural areas, and of these, about 360 million have no land and work as menial labourers.
Through friends in the area, we have established close contact with four micro-credit schemes, working in different parts of Tamil Nadu. Some work in remote villages where we have provided the basic equipment for rope-making machines using coconut fibre; sewing machines to make garments for local factories; providing a cow for a family which will transform their finances. In a mountain area we have provided goats and community huts, and in fishing villages co-operatives have been set up to change the lives of people living in extreme poverty. In ten poor villages near Dindigul, a group has been set up to provide basic education for 120 children and health support.
Through regular visits we keep in close contact with each project and only invest in people we know and trust.
See Featured Charity opposite for contact details and links.
|
|
Go grab a coffee...
| | |
And finally on with the Paralympics theme, I'm sure we all have our favourite moments.
They branded the Paralympic athletes as the 'superhumans'. Not a bad accolade, and here's a brief clip that went viral on YouTube to prove it...
Here's the link... Wow! Just be careful though... there are lots of associated videos which will keep you glued to the screen for hours! |
|
|
