4 minute read
A Warm Welcome
Money for Madagascar (MfM), the UK-based charity that administers the money raised by the Union of
Welsh Independents (UWI)
for the Madagascar Appeal, recently managed to secure funding to supply hot meals for children in several schools in Madagascar. This scheme will include two of the projects supported by the UWI’s Madagascar Appeal.
During its Bicentenary Appeal 2018-2019, UWI had raised over £156,000 to support several projects in Madagascar, an island where two Welsh missionaries were sent by the London Missionary Society (LMS) over 200 years ago. To date, MfM has delivered over £20,000, and is seeking famine aid to continue providing nutritious meals daily to all 650 children in 2 primary schools in Amboasary Sud.
For more information and to donate, please visit
https://moneyformadagasc ar.org/famine-appeal/
MfM’s famine feeding programme is run in partnership with ALT MG (Andry Lalana Toahana), a reputable Malagasy NGO who has run food security, education and emergency feeding projects in the South for over a decade.
By Annalyn Davies
Annalyn Davies is a retired headteacher, a member of a small rural congregational church and also its secretary. She is also a lay preacher, and considers it a privilege to be appointed as Community Officer for the Tŷ Croeso project which is located at Bethlehem Newydd Chapel, Pwlltrap, St Clears.
Exciting things are happening in rural areas in Wales, aimed at strengthening small communities and raising up the most vulnerable in society. Here is the story of one such venture.
I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself and to share with you details of an exciting project that is commencing in the community of St Clears, Carmarthenshire, west Wales.
Following the restrictions imposed by lockdown in 2021, we realised that the ministry provided by our church needed to change and that it was necessary to reach out and make a concerted effort to invite people into a welcoming community within the chapel. Charitable work was already in place, but this needed to be increased by offering help locally to those in need, alongside supporting the work of charitable organisations such as Christian Aid. Also, we could see that the traditional format for worship needed adapting in order to try to meet the expectations of our modern-day society.
Following numerous discussions, an action plan was drawn up and was fully supported by the chapel members. A community officer was appointed, namely myself, in order to raise awareness of the project locally, to coordinate the work and to liaise with members of the community.
We are aware of the need to be inclusive and the installation of modern technology will allow us to do so. The new facility supports the services and allows them to be live streamed to people’s homes if they are unable to attend church. The adoption of modern equipment is also useful for when it is used as a venue for community organisations as it can now offer
broadband, a new sound system, monitors for display and a camera to record services or concerts.
When the appropriate permission is granted, the ground floor will be transformed by removing the existing pews and replacing them with comfortable chairs. There will be a kitchen intended for inviting the community into a welcoming and comfortable environment where they will be able to have a chat and refreshments. It is our plan to set up a drop-in facility that is dementia friendly, and we will ensure that it will be seen as a place that is accessible to everyone. It is hoped that organisations will make use of the building whilst ensuring that its main purpose continues to be a place of worship.
In the time leading up to Christmas, two very successful appeals were launched by Tŷ Croeso. The first was the collecting of toiletries for the local Women’s Refuge. The chapel was opened to the public for two hours on four consecutive Saturdays and the community was invited to come along and to donate. The response was overwhelming.
The second appeal was to collect food for the Local Food Bank which supports the St Clears area and the neighbouring villages. Again, the response was overwhelming. Money was also donated, and a further collection of washing powder was made when it was discovered that it was in short supply.
The weeks leading up to Christmas turned out to be extremely busy for the Food Bank providing nearly 400 meals for the local community. 35 people came to the local Town Hall in order to have Christmas lunch provided by volunteers. A representative from the Food Bank said that they would not have been able to provide this service were it not for the generosity of the local community. Certainly ,nothing would have been accomplished were it not for their compassion and commitment.
The project’s name is Tŷ Croeso (which translates as House of Welcome) and I am extremely proud to be part of this work at such an exciting time. The Union of Welsh Independents (UWI) had made grants available within their Innovation and Investment programme in order to support such work, and a successful application enabled the appointment of a community officer whilst all other work will be funded by the chapel itself.
We are most grateful for this funding as it has enabled us to begin to realise our vision so that we can look forward to the future confidently. It is our belief that we have been given an excellent opportunity to strengthen the local ministry whilst making an important contribution to the community. With everyone’s cooperation, we will succeed to make a difference, spreading the Word whilst taking action in order to create change and demonstrating our faith at work.
Hebrews 10: 24
