The road less travelledPaths out of poverty in Cambodia

Lost innocenceRestoring Syrian childhoods

Going viralHow hope is spreading in Uganda

Ireland

Autumn 2013

tear

Be part of a miracle www.tearfund.ie

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Welcome

The Bible has a way of penetrating through to my heart, mind and soul even when I least expect it, and I love it. I get a fresh glimpse of how amazing and how faithful God is.

Take a moment to read again this verse from Psalm 139: ‘Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?’

The answer, of course, is ‘nowhere’. No one on earth is beyond God’s reach.

That’s true of Sina, as you’ll see opposite. She lives right on the margins of her village and of society. Yet, even here, God is reaching out, through the local

church, to show Sina that he cares.

God’s love reaches orphans and vulnerable children hidden away in institutions in Cambodia as organisations like M’lup Russey work to find them caring families (see page 6).

And, even in their darkest despair, Syrian refugees are seeing God’s compassion at work through our partners in Syria, Jordan and Lebanon (see page 10).

Sometimes God asks us to go with him to those places that seem ‘beyond reach’ in the world’s eyes. Asks us to go where we fear to tread. Asks us to step in when the situation looks desperate. Asks us to give when we feel we can’t.

But even when we’re out of our comfort zone – and perhaps especially then – God makes his presence felt and reminds us that he’s Lord.

I know that your prayer and giving to Tearfund are acts of faith. Looking at poverty is painful: it’s easier to look away. By supporting us, you choose to hope, even when things look hopeless.

So thank you for your faithfulness and your faith. Thank you for stepping out of your comfort zone, for daring to hope. Our Walk of Hope in October (see back page) is all about that – so do join us.

Sharan KellyChief Executive

TearfundWe are bringing hope and demonstrating love to the most vulnerable and marginalised people – through the local church.

© Tearfund Ireland 2013. All rights reserved. Permission is granted for the reproduction of text from this publication for Tearfund Ireland promotional use only. For all other uses, please contact us.

Cover photo: With support from Open Arms Church in Newbridge, restavek boys and girls at Bellevue Baptist Church in Haiti, like six–year-old Juliène Saintanier, receive an education, spiritual and psychological support, and a hot meal before class.

GET IN TOUCH WITH US!Tearfund Ireland 2nd Floor, Ulysses House22–24 Foley St, Dublin 1enquiries@tearfund.ieTel: 01 878 3200www.facebook.com/tearfundireland

Sharan Kelly, Chief Executive

Tearfund Ireland. Registered Charity No. CHY 8600

Sina’s life is like a treadmill and every day she fears she may fall off the edge. But now the local church is offering a path out of poverty, writes Niamh Daly.

The road less travelled: Sina’s story

Sina’s story

The road

less travelled

Paths out of poverty

in Cambodia

Lost innocence

Restoring Syrian

childhoods

Going viral

How hope is

spreading in

Uganda

Ireland

Autumn 2013

tear

Be part of a miracle

www.tearfund.ie

S ina lives with her husband and three

sons in Tonle Batie village, Cambodia. ‘I

feel like I have nothing,’ says Sina. And

at first glance, this looks to be true. Cambodia’s

government gives the poorest people ‘poor

cards’ rated one to three – one being allocated

to the poorest of the poor. Sina’s card is a

number one. Sina’s family can’t afford to buy a ‘proper’

house or land, so they live in a one-room shack built with their own hands using scrap materials. There’s no electricity, no running water, apart from the dirty tributary outside the house, and no sanitation – Sina and her neighbours use a nearby field as a toilet.

Next to nothingThis tiny home sits precariously on the edge

of the village. Because it’s built on government-owned land, Sina wakes up each morning wondering if today is the day her family will be moved on.

Bora, Sina’s husband, is poorly educated, so his employment options are scant, low paid and unstable. At times, he must work away for weeks at a time, leaving Sina and the children alone.

Sina strives to provide healthy food for her growing boys, but she can’t afford much. On the good days, they’re able to catch some fish or snails in the dirty river.

Sina often goes without much food so there’s more for her children – and it shows. Her youngest son, Den, was born just five-and-a-half months ago, but this 28-year-old breastfeeding mother is as slight as a school girl.

Something specialDespite her material poverty, you only need

to spend a little time with Sina to realise that she has more than nothing. In fact she has something special.

Sina’s life is at a crossroads – you can choose to help families like hers overcome hunger this harvest. Photo: Ralph Hodgson/Tearfund.

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Sina has strength and determination. And for the sake of her children, she holds on to the hope that the future can be better than the present. She’s powerfully motivated by the desire to build a safe and secure life for her children, and she has some ideas for how this might be achieved.

‘If I had some land, where I could grow vegetables to sell and feed to my children, and maybe raise some chickens to sell at market, I would be so happy.’

But even these simple things are beyond Sina’s reach at the moment. Although she knows the way to improve things, she feels powerless to take this path.

A better pathDown the road, with Tearfund’s support, the

local church has started an exciting new project to help villagers to work as a group to identify some of the reasons they are poor and think of fresh ways to start tackling their poverty. Then, group members start learning new skills, as well as sharing the time and resources they already have, to turn these ideas into reality.

People are already benefiting. For example, villagers with no land have managed to borrow spare plots to start growing vegetables together – a new way of doing things in Tonle Batie. Others have started a chicken-breeding project, helping more and more people as eggs are hatched and shared with others. Like Sina, those involved used to think they had nothing, but now they are starting to see that they have more than they thought.

Sina’s story

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Order your autumn church pack and arrange to have a Tearfund speaker come to your church now.

Call the office on 01 878 3200 and speak to Emma Lynch or email her on emma.lynch@tearfund.ie

The church is piloting the project with 21 families who are already part of the congregation, so they can show the wider village and its leaders that this way of beating poverty really works. After that, in the next year, their plan is to roll out the project to the rest of the village. But, to be able to expand the project successfully, they need long-term committed support – both prayers and finances.

The choice is yoursBy pledging your support, you will enable

more churches across the world to reach out with confidence to whole communities – right to the very edges, to people like Sina.

If this happens, Sina will be given the opportunity to take part. Thanks to you, a new

world could be opened to her, in which she has the choice to take her family down a different path. Right now, Sina has no choice. Right now, the choice is yours.

Please share Sina’s story with your church by using our 2013 autumn church resource pack and help us raise vital prayer and financial support to help her and others like her.

Sina struggles to provide for her family, including her young son Den – but her local church is starting income-generating programmes in her community. Ralph Hodgson/Tearfund.

There’s no electricity, no running water, apart from the dirty tributary outside the house, and no sanitation.

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Another way

Civil war and the brutality of the Khmer Rouge cast a long shadow but Cambodia is starting now to assert a new identity as its economy grows.

Yet, Cambodia remains one of the poorest nations in the world. The plight of children institutionalised in orphanages is one of the cruellest legacies of its past.

Almost 10,000 children are cared for in the more than 250 orphanages registered in Cambodia, according to our partner, M’lup Russey; many more orphanages go unregistered. The number of orphanages has increased sharply in recent years.

This care model is decades-old and largely unquestioned.

Very few are given the life skills they need to become independent. A survey of 27 young people who had previously been in orphanages found that all 27 had been homeless at some point, 24 survived on less than US$1 a day and 19 were experiencing ‘extreme sadness and distress’(IOFA, 2011).

M’lup Russey believes there is another way. Its Country Adviser, Sarah Chhin, is passionate in her belief that children are best cared for in families – whether by relatives, friends or foster carers.

Sarah is leading the charge and showing how faith-based organisations can offer a viable alternative to the status quo.

Speaking at the recent Unicef and Tearfund joint launch of Unicef’s Partnering with Religious Communities for Children report, Sarah pointed out that most children living in orphanages are not orphans. ‘The tragedy is that most of them have become disconnected and alienated from [parents or relatives],’ she says.

‘It is not that there are orphanages because there are orphans; there are orphans because there are orphanages. And those who do not have relatives also have the right to be brought up in a family.’

M’lup Russey is the only programme in Cambodia which helps children in residential care become reintegrated into families – whether with their own parents, relatives or foster parents. It’s working with the government and Unicef to this end – and fits well with Tearfund’s focus on sustainable, cost-effective, family-based care.

They offer youths coming out of orphanages the safety net of a ‘back-up family’ as they find their feet in society. And M’lup Russey trains caregivers and has been involved in helping government ministers draft policy on standards of care and alternative care.

And its lobbying has borne fruit. In February 2012, the Ministry of Social Affairs in Cambodia announced a new policy promoting family-based care. In time, the government hope orphanages will become ‘community centres’ that strengthen and support families.

As Psalm 68:6 says, ‘God sets the lonely in families.’ M’lup Russey has grasped God’s heart for vulnerable children and is building his kingdom here on earth.

Another way – Placing the lonely in families in CambodiaCambodia is finally shaking off the spectre of its violent past. But the country’s orphanages remain a painful legacy, writes Markus Köker.

SINA LIVES ON THE EDGE.

ON THE EDGE OF THE VILLAGE, ON THE MARGINS OF LIFE. SHE’S IN DANGER OF FALLING.

But she is not forgotten. The local church is helping villagers like Sina beat poverty. They’re pulling them back from the brink and helping them build a future that’s safe and secure.

But people like Sina need your support.

Around the world, churches are reaching out to whole communities, right to the edges. Can you help them stretch further?

Please make a regular gift to Tearfund and make life secure for many more like Sina. Today, tomorrow and beyond.

A regular gift of €7 a month for one year could give 12 people like Sina the chance to learn skills such as breeding chickens to sell for extra income.

PULL SINA BACK FROM THE BRINK

GO TO WWW.TEARFUND.IE/DONATE OR RING 01 878 3200 TODAY

Sarah Chhin Country Adviser, M’lup Russey, Peter Power ED UNICEF Ireland, Joe Costello TD, Minister for Trade and Development, Right Reverend Harold C Miller, The Bishop of Down and Dromore, Sharan Kelly CEO Tearfund Ireland.

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Starting from nothing

Business entrepreneurs often say they started their businesses from nothing. But that’s not

quite true; they had something, maybe just an idea, maybe just a few pounds in their wallet

but something they could put to good use. It takes someone special to see opportunities and

potential when it seems like you have nothing. The people in Cambodia have been labelled

the poorest of the poor but with your help they’re starting their own businesses, using

what they have – just a few chickens. They’ve got the faith and determination to think big –

breeding the chickens and multiplying their numbers so they can sell them. You’re someone

special too – ask God to open your eyes so you can see the potential inside you and the

opportunities all around you.

Fill in the gaps. Read it for yourself in your Bible in 2 Kings 4

verses 1 to 7 and find the words that have gone missing from

this version of an amazing true story.

MY BIG, BOLD PRAYERFather God, thank you that you can take something small, and turn it into a huge blessing for lots of people. Thank you that you have amazing ways of providing for me, and others who live in what seem to be impossible situations. Please open my eyes so I can see the potential you’ve placed inside me and the opportunities all around me. Amen.

Draw on your imagination

You can put lots of things in a jam jar – bugs, flowers, pennies, even

jam! What are you going to draw in your jam jar? How many different

things can you get inside?

The widow’s oil

The wife of a ______________ from the company of the ______________ cried out to the prophet

Elisha, ‘Your servant my husband is ______________ and you know that he revered the Lord. But now

his creditor is coming to take my ______________ ______________ as his slaves.’

Elisha replied to her, ‘How can I ______________ you? Tell me what do you have in your house?’

‘Your servant has nothing there at all, she said, ‘except a little ______________.’

Elisha said, ‘Go around and ask all your neighbours for ______________ jars. Don’t ask just for a few.

Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars and as each is

filled, put it to one side.’

She left him and afterward shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her

and she kept ______________. When all the jars were full, she said to her son, ‘Bring me another one.’

But he replied, ‘There is not a jar left.’ Then the oil ______________ flowing.

She went and told the man of God (Elisha), and he said, ‘Go ______________ the oil and pay

your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.’

Can you smash the jam jar code?

Amazing True Story

Brain-boggling braincell challenge

Think about itThere are lots of

opportunities around you to raise money

to help others who don’t have much.

What do you have in your house that God could use to bless

other people? Old toys you could give away or sell to

raise money?

Challenge your braincells…

Can you remember this short saying Jesus

said to his disciples in Mark 10 verse 27?

‘All things are possible with God.’

It’s short but it’s pretty brain-boggling… just think, there’s nothing God can’t do…

that means anything can happen when God’s on the case. Get him involved in your

impossible situations by praying and inviting him to come in and do the impossible.

Pennies and coins down the back of the sofa that

you could collect in a jam jar? What about your

talents – can you clean cars or make cakes?

CODE A = 1C = 2D = 3E = 4F = 5H = 6I = 7K = 8M = 9

N = 10O = 11R = 12T = 13U = 14Y = 15

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Jam jar answer: You can make the difference

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Mission im possible

Write the de-coded message below:

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Syria update Interview – Priscilla Reid

Interview with Priscilla Reid

Mother and grandmother Priscilla

Reid celebrated her 60th birthday

in Ogongora, Uganda. Priscilla

and husband Paul have been released from

leadership at Christian Fellowship Church Belfast,

to serve and encourage other churches at home

and abroad. Their visit to Uganda was to see how

Pentecostal Assemblies of God is helping 81,000

people lift themselves out of poverty – and left

Priscilla utterly inspired.

What was your most memorable moment?We met Lillian, a mother who often watched her three children go hungry. She explained that she had been ‘awakened’ by a Tearfund programme in her church to do something for herself and not wait for others. ‘Thank God, he saw our struggles and brought this programme to us to deliver us from poverty,’ she declared, as she showed us her pigs and chickens, her orchard and crops. Oh, that my heart could ring with such gratitude!

As a church leader, what struck you about churches in Uganda?The spirit of generosity in the churches we visited was humbling, not only in their hospitality towards us but also in their generosity to one another. Evas, a young mother, proudly showed us her first harvest of beans and said, ‘Now I can tithe.’

What impact did you see Tearfund’s partners make?Passion is irresistible and Tearfund partners are infecting their communities with hope. I was deeply touched by the pastors we met, who were passionate about empowering women with the truth of their value to God and lifting them out of poverty.

Having visited our partners, what would you like to say to our supporters?I want to shout from the rooftops that every Euro that you give to Tearfund produces an unprecedented return. You would not make a wiser or more productive investment. We met men and women of integrity, faithful followers of Jesus whose names you will never know but who are transforming lives and communities for the glory of God.

• Want to infect your community with hope? Take part in our October mid-term Walk of Hope (see back page).

Lost innocence: update on Syria

Basimah’s story is chilling but not

uncommon among the thousands of

Syrian child refugees. She saw her home

in Homs destroyed, her brother shot. Her family

fled for their lives.She is just one of almost 473,000 Syrians who

have escaped to Jordan – and one of the many supported through our Syria Crisis appeal, which has raised more than €60,000 so far.

Home for Basimah and her family is now a camp where Tearfund is providing essentials like food packs, blankets, medicines and kitchen tools.

It’s evident from listening to Basimah that she has not fully left the conflict behind. She relives it often.

‘The army attacked us and our whole house was completely destroyed,’ says Basimah. ‘There was nothing left and we couldn’t stay. We fled for Jordan and arrived at the border at night.

‘The Syrian police started shooting at us and a bullet hit my brother’s head. We were all very afraid. We had to go to prison for a while.

‘We went through a lot of difficult circumstances. Later we tried to enter Jordan and thank God this time we were successful. We got medical treatment for my brother and he is okay now.’

The trauma that Syria’s children are living with is clear too in the artwork they are producing with Tearfund partner Vision Hope International (see image). It is providing pre-school education, as well as ongoing trauma care through play and art therapy. Many children talk of losing family members, seeing homes destroyed, fearing death.

Other Tearfund partners are providing emergency food, funding for accommodation and other essentials for refugees in Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

Thank you for your generous support. Please give further if you can at www.tearfund.ie/donate

Desperate hunger among families in the Wadi Nasara region of Syria is being addressed by Tearfund partner FMEEC.

Since May, FMEEC has been using emergency grants from Tearfund to distribute food to both Christian and Muslim families, after a survey revealed that 70% of people were unemployed, and 93% of families were without food.

‘The needs are so great that our partner has to be discreet, so as to not be overwhelmed by new requests for assistance,’ says Tearfund’s

Country Representative, Morag Gillies. ‘FMEEC team members are regularly conducting home visits to assess the vulnerability of families and the level of their need.’

Update…

Update from inside Syria…

‘The principles... we’re seeing being lived out here are principles for all of us to live by. Own this work, get behind this work, give yourself to it.’David McClay, Director of New Wine Ireland

‘Tearfund addresses the challenge of the

sustainability of our efforts to bring the kingdom of

God to the poorest corners of the world. It’s simple:

build the capacity of the local church in these areas.

It is the local church that is the hope of the world.

PJ Booth, leader of AOG Ireland

Tearfund partners are infecting

communities with hope ‘ ’Priscilla Reid in Kyanga village

Will you pray with us?

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When families are struggling

When families are broken

When families are absent

PRAY that children living in situations of war, or in refugee camps, would be kept safe and that God would provide for their needs.

PRAY for children who have been forced into work and ask God to send people to free them from this slavery and exploitation.

PRAY for those in government, local leadership and other positions of power that they would make good and wise decisions that serve children and their families well.

PRAY for the hearts and minds of children hurt by family break-up or traumatised by domestic abuse to be healed and set free.

PRAY for local organisations working to bring an end to human trafficking and child marriage. Pray for protection from further exploitation.

PRAY for family relationships in the different situations we’ve described, where there has been abuse or trafficking – pray for God’s forgiving power to be present and for families to be healed and restored.

PRAY that children living without families would know God as a heavenly Father and would feel his love, guidance and protection.

PRAY for children living on the streets, that God would keep them safe from drugs, alcohol, violence, gang culture and abuse or exploitation.

PRAY that our churches would find ways to become ‘family’ for children living without their own; perhaps encouraging fostering or adoption, starting new ministries or committing to pray regularly for children.

This excerpt from Viva’s World Weekend of Prayer 2013 booklet is reproduced here by kind permission of Viva.

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Fundraising Fundraising

Born free

The Master of Dublin’s Rotunda Hospital, Dr Sam Coulter-Smith, recently praised the maternal care work of Tearfund’s project in Malawi. In appreciation of his support, Vincent Mayo, Tearfund’s Country Representative for Malawi, presented him with a framed photo of baby Jesse born without HIV to HIV-positive parents in Kamwe village, Malawi, in September 2012.

Prayer for MalawiMalawi has one of the highest rates of HIV

in the world. In rural areas, life expectancy

is just 43 years. Tearfund’s work in Malawi

aims to reduce the transmission of HIV from

mother to child, and improve the quality

of life for people living with HIV. The local

church is training church leaders and members

to encourage HIV testing and greater

involvement in antenatal care – especially

among men. Please pray for Tearfund’s team in

Malawi who are overseeing this work.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARYSEPTEMBERAs part of Derry’s European City of Culture celebrations, the wonderful Belfast Community Choir, directed by Marie Lacey, will be performing in Lisneal College, Derry, on Saturday 28 September, in aid of Tearfund. Tickets are €14 (€12 concession). It’ll be a lively evening of hand-clapping, foot-stomping and great music – one not to be missed! We have a supply of tickets especially for our Donegal supporters or anyone else wishing to travel: please call us if you’re interested.

OCTOBERAny plans for mid term? For details of our Walk of Hope fundraiser, see the back cover. Go on a journey that will change your life. A gap year adventure… family trips… 2–4 week trips or a group trip… Please contact the office for more information. The application deadline for travelling with Tearfund in January is 5 October. Self-assessing deadline – 31 October 2013Donation receipts for 2012 can be posted or emailed to you on request from the office. Make your donation go further!NOVEMBERCould you organise a bag-packing fundraiser in your local supermarket? Packing customers’ shopping in return for a small donation to Tearfund has proved a really worthwhile and rewarding experience in the past. Contact Emma in the office for T shirts, details on how to book a slot and info on potential spot prizes that can add some excitement to your event.

In time for ChristmasCork Christmas MarketFollowing last year’s success, the Cork Christmas market will take place on Saturday November 30 at the Carrigrohane Parish Centre, Ballincollig, Cork.Fashion Fever at the Riasc, a nearly new sale of jewellery, handbags, clothes and more, on Saturday November 23, from 10am – 4pm at the Riasc Centre Swords, Dublin

DECEMBER

Looking ahead to 2014Watch this space for Tearfund’s Got Talent, coming in the new year. Start practising that musical instrument, learning the lyrics to your favourite song or putting the final touches to your magic show – this is your opportunity to shine!

When G8 leaders gathered in Fermanagh this summer,

they were met by the big IF. Tearfund campaigners joined with many other NGOs to ensure that ending world hunger was high on the agenda at the talks.

The ten-point declaration produced at the summit included many of the things the IF campaign had been calling for.

On tax dodging, we can celebrate the commitment that both rich and poor countries will start exchanging tax information automatically – so it’s not secret any more. But we need a clear timeline for when it will happen.

The G8 discussed land grabs for the first time and some useful partnerships were agreed. But far more is needed.

The G8 committed to keep its promise of $100 billion a year to help poor countries adapt to climate change, but failed to say where it’ll come from.

The G8 announced that all developing countries should have the information they need to clamp down on tax dodging.

All this is great – and more than we expected – but there’s still more work to be done.

Campaigning works!

Presidential encounter

Tearfund staff had the very special privilege of meeting with Uachtarán na hÉireann Michael D Higgins at Áras an Uachtaráin, at an event to show the president’s support and thanks for the work of Irish NGOs overseas. From left: Markus Köker, Tearfund International Programmes Manager; Niamh Daly, Tearfund Marketing Manager; President of Ireland Michael D Higgins; Sharan Kelly, Tearfund Chief Executive; and Richard Phillips, Tearfund Director.

Would your church or community group like to host a table quiz to raise funds for Tearfund’s overseas projects? The wonderful quiz master, Michael Duffy, has offered to run a quiz for anyone keen to host one. To get in touch with him, contact Emma Lynch on 01 878 3200. Our congratulations to Michael and Sandie Lennon who scooped first prize at our recent Tearfund Table Quiz in Smithfield, at which Michael was quiz master.

From left, Niamh Daly (Tearfund), Michael and Sandie Lennon, Michael Duffy (quiz master), and Emma Lynch (Tearfund).

Members of the team from Holy Trinity Church, Rathmines,

Dublin who visited Tearfund’s work in Malawi as part of the

Connected Church programme last year.

Quizzical fundraisers

‘PLAN AHEAD FOR A NEW YEARS EVE WITH A DIFFERENCE!’ Tearfund’s NEW YEARS EVE party at the Riasc centre in Kinsealy will combine ceilidh dancing, traditional music, fun and food for an evening that will be a great start to the new year for all ages. Tickets are available from the office: special rate for families.

WALK FOR TEARFUND AND SPREAD A LITTLE HOPEPoverty, hunger, disease... it would be easy for Sina to give up.

Despair spreads easily. But so too does hope.

Sina has some ideas about how to build a safe and secure life for her children. ‘If I had some land, where I could grow vegetables, and maybe raise some chickens to sell at market, I would be so happy,’ she says.

Hope is contagious. Want to spread it around?

Join us in our Walk of Hope this October mid term and raise vital funds to change lives.

Organise your own event or join one of ours. Strike out and hit back at hunger.

Call 01 878 3200

‘Tearfund partners are infecting communities with hope.’ Belfast church leader Priscilla Reid

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Meet at BRAY Dart Station FOR Walk to Bray Head on Monday Oct 28 at 12 noon