Gloucestershire Kidney Patients’ Association is a registered charity which was formed in 1989 to help kidney patients attending Gloucestershire Royal Hospital. This includes haemodialysis patients attending the Cotswold Dialysis Centre at the hospital and also patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis. This kind of dialysis has two types. The most commonly used type is known as Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD). In this form patients have fluid in their abdomen 24 hours a day. At the end of each period of dialysis, they have to change the dialysis fluid themselves. The other type is known as Automated Peritoneal Dialysis (APD). ‘Automated’ means that a machine changes the dialysis fluid for the person, usually at night.  Membership also includes people who are waiting for dialysis or kidney transplants as well as those who have had their transplants.

The Association has a membership of over 200, most of whom are in Gloucestershire, but some also attend GRH from Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Wiltshire.  The aim is to support patients, give them holidays, help with transport to and from hospital, and organise fund raising. Most of the committee are either patients or relatives of patients and have an insight into the needs of other kidney patients. They are at hand to lend an ear to problems, point people in the right direction for specific help and generally be a help to them. They also offer advice on help obtainable from the National Kidney Federation, including the help line and obtaining Kidney Life magazine. They also subscribe towards further specific local research projects at the hospital and of course promote the National Organ Donor Register.

Gloucestershire KPA has recently been able to buy pressure-relieving pads for the dialysis chairs in the unit as well as equipment that may be outside the NHS budget.  Some patients who are on home dialysis may not have space to store the fluids required and the association is able to help in the building of a suitable lean-to.  Two holidays a year are planned and in May five patients and their carers had a week’s holiday in Bournemouth where they had outings arranged around their dialysis sessions.

June - BackUp

BackUp was founded in 1986 by the former British and European Freestyle Ski Champion and James Bond stunt double Mike Nemesvary, whose life was devastated when he broke his neck during a training session. Despite being paralysed from the shoulders down, Mike was determined to get back to the life he enjoyed.  BackUp was initially set up to offer ski courses for those affected by spinal cord injury.
In 1988, the charity formed a partnership with The Calvert Trust and began to expand its courses to challenge and empower people to get “back up“ to a place they were at before their accident. Their support is not solely for people with spinal injuries who wish to participate in sporting activities.

“Our vision is:
A world where people with a spinal cord injury can realise their full potential.
Our mission is to:
 Inspire people affected by spinal cord injury to transform their lives.
  Challenge perceptions of disability.
  Deliver services to build confidence and independence, and offer a supportive network.

Our values:
Driven by the needs of people with spinal cord injury, we are passionate about transforming lives.
Through challenge and fun we open up possibilities to develop, achieve and get the most out of life.
We respect individuality and embrace diversity.
We strive for quality and excellence in all we do. “

Through their accredited mentoring service an individual can be linked with a trained volunteer mentor who is a similar age and injury level, or a family mentor whose relative has a similar injury.  The mentor, from any walk of life, is usually a spinal cord injured peer or relative whose life experiences are relevant.
Once matched with a mentor they will telephone to arrange how often future contact is made and whether that will be by telephone or, if possible, by meeting up. Most mentoring relationships take place over 10 contacts.

BackUp will be our chosen charity for June, and we will also give half of any profit from the Aber Valley Choir Concert to them.
Our local link, and my reason for nominating this charity, is because my son is on the waiting list to train as a mentor having suffered a spinal injury when he was 19.

May - Woodlands House of Prayer Trust

Brunel Manor is held in trust by the Woodlands House of Prayer Trust, founded by two ladies, Margaret Barbour and Vera Hawkins, 70 years ago this July, when they purchased two houses in London for ‘the establishment of a home for the purpose of affording the means of physical and spiritual help to those in need’. The trust then moved to Eastbourne before buying Watcombe Manor, Torquay (now Brunel Manor) in January 1963 for £28,500. The house and grounds were intended to be Brunel’s retirement home but he died before the house was built.

The Trust now operates from three buildings, the Manor, the Court and the Lodge, as a Christian Holiday and Conference Centre. Many church groups meet for weekends throughout the year and feedback from guests shows how much the peaceful atmosphere, the extensive facilities, as well as the good food and warm hospitality means to them. Themed breaks, often with a visiting speaker, are also popular and guests regularly express their appreciation of the ministry which is provided.

The Court, originally the stables to the Manor, has recently been refurbished to provide accommodation for schools, youth groups and university Christian Unions.

A very important aspect of the charity’s work is the support it can provide for individuals or families at difficult times in their lives. Recently, they were privileged to be able to work with another local charity to provide free accommodation for a family with a very sick family member. The charity has a hospitality fund which is used to subsidise or pay for such provision.

Friends of Brunel Manor receive regular updates on the work at the Manor and are very faithful prayer warriors! Many contribute regularly financially and some pay frequent visits. One Friend stayed at the Manor ten times in 2011!

The motto of the Trust is ‘Given to Hospitality’ and, as the tricky path of Health and Safety compliance in a Grade II listed building is negotiated, the Trustees are daily aware of their reliance on God’s strength and guidance, as they seek to continue to give Him glory through ministry and service for the next 70 years!

For more information visit http://www.brunelmanor.com

April Maggie's Cancer Care Centre

“Maggie's is about empowering people to live with, through and beyond cancer by bringing together professional help, communities of support and building design to create exceptional centres for cancer care.  Maggie’s Centres are for anyone affected by cancer. They are places where people are welcome whenever they need us - from being diagnosed, undergoing treatment, or following treatment, to recurrence, end of life or in bereavement. We also welcome family and friends, as they are often deeply affected by cancer too. We know that those who love and look after someone with cancer can feel just as frightened, vulnerable and uncertain.”

Maggie's Caring Centre in Cheltenham is a place to turn to for help with any of the problems, small or large, associated with cancer.

Under the one roof you can access help with information, benefits advice, psychological support both individually and in groups, courses such as Tai Chi and Creative Writing as well as stress reducing strategies.  You don't have to make an appointment or be referred, and everything we offer is free of charge. It is there for anybody who feels the need for help, which includes those who love and look after someone with cancer, who often feel as frightened and vulnerable as those who actually have the disease.

Due to advances in medical care, the number of people living with and beyond cancer is increasing, so the support available to them becomes ever more important. The Cheltenham Maggie's Centre is just minutes away from the oncology unit at Cheltenham General Hospital and was designed by Sir Richard McCormac. It is a beautiful building, sympathetic to the needs of individuals; plenty of light, beautiful oak and bright soft furnishings which all make for an uplifting and homely space.

The Centre serves the three counties of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire where 35,000 people live with cancer."

Many thanks for choosing to support Maggie's. If any of your congregation would like to come and see our beautiful centre in Cheltenham, please do let me know.

Lisa Robinson
Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre
The Lodge, College Baths Road
Cheltenham
GL53 7QB
( 01242 250611

March - Cheltenham Youth for Christ

At CYFC we are greatly encouraged by the prayer and support we receive from people such as yourself. On a daily basis we see the fruit of the prayer that is offered up and the change that takes place in the lives of the young people. We work with over 150 young people every week with a majority of these being unchurched young people we meet in schools - largely in All Saints Academy and Pittville, with additional work in Bournside and Pate’s. One of the young people we’ve worked with for the last four years is Lucie, and recently she wrote the following:

“Rock Solid and meeting Cheltenham Youth for Christ are one of the best things that has happened to me. The team are amazing, they are friendly, welcoming, supportive, the list goes on. People’s initial thoughts, when you say a club based around the teachings of God and Jesus, are ‘boring’ and ‘rubbish’. Rock Solid is the complete opposite: they create ways to teach through fun and games. Whether it’s an egg and spoon race or doing quizzes, there’s always that element of fun. Without CYFC I wouldn’t be where I am today, Rock Solid has taught me to be myself and do what I believe is right for me, even if people don’t agree with me or think that I’m stupid. Rock Solid has helped increase my confidence. Leading a session was an experience that helped me with my confidence.”

We have never had so much demand for our work which continues to expand. Through CYFC young people experience change in their lives as they encounter Jesus through what is often the only Christian presence in their lives.

Besides our schools work we are also developing Underground, a prayer network of young people praying for their friends to meet and be changed by Jesus.  We have about 20 young people involved in this but are looking to have 500 young people praying within the next five years. If we get this many young people involved it will, according to sociologists, be enough people to change the culture amongst young people in our town. Since starting Underground last year the young people involved have told us about the changes they have seen in the lives of their friends, with many having conversations about faith, and some young people have even gone to church.

Please pray for these points:

• Finance - we face many challenges and need to see a large rise in income in order to maintain our staffing levels.
• We have a number of trust applications in at the moment, please pray for success.
• For continued success and favour in our work.

For more information go to CYFC on the web

January Charity - St Dunstan's

Although we try to be quite specific that we support a local charity there are some whose work is so specific that it has to be centralised.  This is the case with this month’s charity, as St Dunstan’s work is to provide an independent future for blind ex-Service men and women.  The local link is that one of our members was very moved when she heard an account of how a Gloucestershire ex-serviceman had been helped by them.
Sir Arthur Pearson, a newspaper proprietor who owned the Evening Standard and founded the Daily Express, established St Dunstan’s in 1915. Pearson, who lost his own sight through glaucoma, was shocked at society’s attitude to blindness. He decided to help those who had lost their vision in the recent First World War by giving them the care and rehabilitation they needed to lead constructive, self-sufficient lives.
Nearly a century later, St Dunstan’s still cares for those blinded in action, but also supports blind and visually impaired ex-Service men and women who have lost their sight through accident, illness, or old age. They also help those who have served in the Emergency Services.

St Dunstan’s gives invaluable physical and emotional support to blind and visually impaired ex-Service men and women. With the help of their unique expertise, comprehensive range of services, and experience, they enable them to lead independent fulfilling lives. Rehabilitation is designed to help regain confidence and self-sufficiency by teaching new skills and fostering optimism.

Support from St Dunstans is available as long as it is needed, to help them and their families adjust to the loss of sight; and this support lasts a lifetime. Sometimes help is needed to resolve housing issues and assist with the difficulties of benefit claims.  Social activities and access to sporting facilities add to the sense of belonging to the St Dunstan’s family.

Christmas Collection - County Community Projects

We are fortunate in having the opportunity of showing our real commitment to love in action through our close relationship with County Community Projects. As you can see from their ‘Thank You’ letter below, our involvement is really valued. They mention the opportunities to give food and we will put some of the money we raise towards the Food Share scheme as well as aiming to make a generous donation of food.

In the past I have had some professional involvement with the CCP Education Centre and can assure you that they do valuable and challenging work. It makes sense to let them explain what they do so I have taken this from their website,

“The aim with all our learners is to involve them in positive activities which are tailored to meet their individual needs and address the issues which have led to their exclusion from school. We give each child what is often their first positive learning experience, and help to build their motivation to take part and succeed. This raises their self-esteem, which in turn raises performance and aspirations.

Using subjects such as art, sport, exercise, cooking and conservation, we help young people understand that education can be fun and rewarding. We undertake work with them on anger management, communication, group working and rights and responsibilities. We prepare them for a return to full time school education or a progression to higher education.

The Education Centre has recently move to a purpose-converted building in High Street, Cheltenham. It offers a selection of learning environments, a well equipped woodwork room, IT and Multimedia learning facilities, a full kitchen and a leisure area with a TV, video and a selection of board and video games.”

To further improve their environment we hope to collect enough money to be able to buy some garden furniture.

A big focus this Christmas is also going to be on stocking up the Food Share scheme and the Hamper Scamper with tinned and packaged food.


Dear All at Highbury Church

CCP would like to thank you for your donations to the CCP FoodShare - the emergency food distribution service for Gloucestershire people and families in times of crisis, which relies on donations from members of the public, churches, schools and businesses, and distributes over 500 emergency food parcels every year.

More information at www.ccprojects.org.uk