September: Middle East Concern

Middle East Concern supports those in the Middle East & North Africa who are persecuted for being or becoming Christians

We work with Christian churches and community leaders to monitor discrimination and persecution. Upon the request of the local church leadership, we provide support in the following ways:

Assisting victims of persecution:
 Offering encouragement and informed, trustworthy expertise
 Mobilising world-wide prayer, in open or confidential networks
 Initiating political advocacy on behalf of victims of persecution
 Providing practical and financial support, for example to those fleeing life-threatening persecution

Challenging laws, policies and attitudes:
 Undertaking research-based advocacy on legal and structural issues that underlie persecution
 Campaigning for the re-instatement of civil rights to converts from other faiths
 Addressing unhealthy responses to persecution such as hasty relocation to the West

Equipping Christians to face persecution:
 Conducting seminars to help Christians respond Biblically to suffering and persecution
 Training community leaders on constitutional rights and international law
 Providing practical training on issues such as crisis management and handling arrest and interrogation

The Suffering Church
Persecution takes many forms.
From oppression and discrimination to blatant denial of constitutional or inter-nationally recognised freedoms, religious persecution is the deliberate suppression of a person or community’s right to hold and manifest their religious beliefs.
For centuries, Christians in the Middle East and North Africa have been discriminated against, marginalised and at times violently persecuted.
Some have been imprisoned, tortured or even killed for their faith in Jesus Christ. Their pain and suffering are often silent. They are cut off from family and Christian fellowship. They are vulnerable to abuse by state security services, extremist groups, their communities and their families.
We believe that all Christians are called to stand with those who are persecuted. Christians are called not only to expect persecution but to also fight injustice.
Responding to the injustice of persecution is part of the Christian calling.

Organisation
Our vision is that Christian communities and individual Christians in the Middle East and North Africa will be able to practise their faith freely.
We are a coalition of Christian agencies and individuals advocating for the human rights of Christians.
In addition to the Bible, we take our mandate from the following documents:
 The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 (Article 18)
 The Lausanne Covenant, 1974 (Paragraph 13)
 Dignitatis Humanae (Declaration on Religious Freedom), 1965
We were founded in 1991 in response to needs expressed by Christian leaders in the region. Our individual and corporate membership includes Christians living and working in all countries of the Middle East and North Africa.

On the web:  Middle East Concern

August - Myasthenia Gravis Association

A while ago now there were posters that invited you to smile. You may remember being puzzled by the fact that the faces on the poster seemed to show no emotion. It’s impossible to smile if your facial muscles have become weak. This is only one of the symptoms that can make Myasthenia Gravis an embarrassing condition to endure.

Myasthenia Gravis is an auto-immune disease which is characterised by fluctuating, sometimes fatal, muscle weakness. The body’s immune system attacks and damages the nerve signal reception areas on the muscles so that the nerve is not able to cause muscle contraction and the result is apparent weakness.
As any muscles can be affected the symptoms can vary greatly and can be triggered by the onset of infection or stress of any kind, physical or emotional. It can be difficult for family and friends to understand that someone can seem perfectly normal one moment but droopy and listless only a few hours or even minutes later.

Simple things that we take for granted like eating, seeing, talking and laughing can become difficult or even impossible. Although it is rare under the age of 10, Myasthenia Gravis can affect anyone of any age, sex or race.

Approximately one person in every ten thousand may be suffering from this disease in the UK at any one time.

The Myasthenia Gravis Association works through regional organisers and local branches to offer support to people suffering from Myasthenia and their families. The Gloucestershire branch meets every four months when they will aim to address any problems that have arisen, share news of national events and go out for a meal together. The aim of meeting as a group is to create links with other people who understand what the sufferer is going through. It is also a valuable opportunity to share experience of available treatment. A safe support network can offer that priceless service – someone at the end of a ’phone who really knows what you are trying to cope with.

Fundraising is important to raise money for research. Recent research has resulted in better understanding and management of the disease but there is not yet a cure. The Institute of Molecular Medicine in Oxford is hopeful of a breakthrough if the momentum can be maintained.

Money is also spent on producing and distributing leaflets in order to share information and raise public awareness of this disease.

The web site is worth a visit and has a short video which is very helpful in understanding this condition.

www.mga-charity.org

Helpline: 0800 919922

July - Multiple Sclerosis Society

Multiple Sclerosis is a progressive disease of the central nervous system.
The severity of the disease varies markedly among sufferers and is characterised by a multiple, patchy pattern of disabilities, hence its UK name.  The symptoms may vary in site and time with unpredictable episodes of disease activity and remission.
It often starts in early adult life and the type of long-term damage it causes will depend on which part of the nervous system has been primarily affected.
As well as obvious disabilities, sufferers experience invisible symptoms such as numbness and unpleasant tingling - a reminder that we can’t tell how well someone is just by looking.
A friend of mine has been treated with disapproval when a stagger has obviously led someone to believe that she has been imbibing alcohol early in the day!
The Cheltenham & North Cotswold Branch of the MS Society has been in existence since January 1984 and aims to be self-supporting although allied to the national society, and they are very appreciative of our help.
Any money raised locally is always used locally.
There is a very strong emphasis on welfare and support for the whole family.
The current financial pressures mean that funds are short and the group is anxious to be able to continue to help with respite care which gives such a valuable rest to the carer.
With the awareness that suffers of MS may have young families there is concern for the needs of these young carers and there is a specific young carers fund.
Young carers are being helped towards the cost of driving lessons as this is such a valuable skill for them to acquire.
Money is also made available for people with MS who want to access further education.
The Society wishes to be accessible for anyone affected by MS and can be easily contacted.
A monthly newsletter is produced and regular meetings are held.  Carers are invited to coffee mornings at accessible local venues such as garden centres or supermarkets.
The social group for younger or newly diagnosed people also has regular meetings and the new community choir is proving popular.
Hydrotherapy classes are held at the Leonard Cheshire Home.  Exercise groups include a conductive education class and a physiotherapy class, these are run by professionals and are therefore expensive for the support group to provide.  
If anyone would like to offer voluntary help please ring the Branch Contact on 01452 862822.

June - The Oxfordshire Vasculitis Group

Vasculitis is inflammation of the blood vessels. Any of the body’s organs may be involved and symptoms are often non-specific. As Vasculitis is a rare disease it can be difficult to diagnose. Early diagnosis is important to get treatment started, and to reduce permanent damage. There is no cure for many of the vasculitis diseases so the aim of treatment is to keep the disease process in remission. The severity of the illness can vary greatly from very mild, where no specific therapy is required, to severe life threatening multi-system diseases which need specialist hospital care.

The national charity does not give financial aid to local groups so as Gloucestershire is part of the Oxfordshire group this is where our money will go.

This is what Sue Ashdown tells us:

“I set up the Oxfordshire Vasculitis Support Group in 2005, after having had Granulomatosis Polyangitis since 1995. I felt there was a lack of support locally for people with Vasculitis. As Vasculitis is a rare set of diseases people can feel isolated when diagnosed, so to speak to someone with the same condition can feel very reassuring.

The aim of OVSG is to offer support to people in Oxfordshire and surrounding counties. We are an independent group who offer an e-mail link for information and for signposting people to other sources of support and information.

We link in with the Vasculitis UK group and so have access to literature and other resources.
We hold informal lunches 2-3 times a year, which give people, their families and carers a chance to meet us and pick our brains. These events are also an opportunity for them to meet people in a similar situation, taking similar medications and having been along the same path.

Our lunches are cheerful occasions and we aim to show people that you can have a Vasculitis and survive, and life can get back to normal.

Once a year we organise a more formal meeting: one or two doctors who have specialist knowledge of Vasculitis give a presentation, and it is a chance for people to ask questions and learn about their illness. There is also time to meet with others over lunch.

We are volunteers, and any money we raise at present is used for mailing and stationary needs.
We have to charge people for attending the seminar for the lunch. Even though the hotel is generous and doesn't charge us for use of the room, we have to pay for use of projector and screen. We do subsidise this if we have any spare money in our account as people may have financial restraints and we don't want this to bar them from coming.”

Mary Michael

May - The DEC Syria Appeal

To link in with Christian Aid week we will be supporting the DEC Syria Appeal via Christian Aid.  As with all long term tragedies the situation of the Syrian refugees becomes less newsworthy though the traumas continue and the death toll mounts. The terrible suffering of children that is almost unbearable to watch on our televisions is the daily reality.

The Disasters Emergency Committee brings 14 leading UK aid charities together in times of crisis all collectively raising money to quickly reach those in need. The DEC draws on many years of experience to plan and deliver each appeal, striving to ensure that the relevant support reaches the people who need it as quickly as possible.

This is an extract from the report of an aid worker’s assessment of the makeshift refugee camps, “As an aid worker, I’ve visited many camps of this kind, but what struck me the most about Syria was the lack of any international presence and limited camp management. We were confronted with total chaos and immense human suffering.

There were makeshift tents that were housing large numbers of people in overcrowded conditions. I met one family that was sharing a tent with fifteen other people. Food was in very short supply and there was a lack of medical care and inadequate sanitation. Most of the people I met in the camp had not eaten that day. The freezing conditions meant that most of the children had racking coughs as they tried to withstand the coldest winter Syria has seen in ten years - with damp blankets and hardly any heating.

Families told me they had fled to the borders because of frequent bomb attacks and because their hometowns no longer had even basic supplies of food or water. It was awful to see the stress these families were under – and sickening to see how little help was reaching them. I’ve seen for myself how vital it is for aid agencies to deliver more aid inside Syria. A breakthrough is desperately needed for aid agencies to establish a more significant presence inside Syria and help the hundreds of thousands of Syrians who desperately need humanitarian assistance.”

For more information on Christian Aid's Syria appeal click here

March - Cruse Bereavement Care

Cruse was founded in Richmond on Thames in 1959 by Margaret Torrie, a social worker, and the wife of a consultant psychiatrist. She realised that there was no service that provided help to grieving widows, and she advertised in the local newspaper to test out the possibility of setting up a group. Nearly thirty widows turned up at the first meeting and the service grew from there, altering its outreach in 1987 to include all those going through a period of grief.

Cruse Bereavement Care is now the largest charity of its kind in the world. There are branches in all regions of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and there is a similar but autonomous organisation in Scotland.
The name of the charity comes from an archaic word for an earthenware jar.  The ‘cruse’ refers to the story in 1 Kings chapter 17 which tells of the widow who used her last oil and flour to feed Elijah, and from then on found that her jar (cruse) was always full. Cruse has no political or religious affiliations and provides practical advice and counselling through trained volunteers.

Services and support are available for anyone trying to come to terms with bereavement, with special emphasis on children, Service families, suicide and victims of crime. They also help following major incidents.
As well as training their own volunteers Cruse gives training to external organisations and individuals who may encounter bereavement in the normal course of their work.

Apart from a small central staff in Richmond the service relies entirely on volunteers and generates no funds of its own. Nobody who needs help is turned away for financial reasons, and clients make a contribution that they can afford. Support sessions can take place in an individual’s home, a Cruse office or by telephone or via email.

Local support groups meet on Tuesday mornings in Cheltenham, and Friday mornings in Gloucester.
Friendship groups meet on those same days.

Cruse websites are very ‘user friendly’ for both a grieving person and someone wanting to help them.
For young people between 12 and 18 (approximately) there is a specific website and freephone helpline:

www.rd4u.org.uk
( 0808 808 1677

National contacts:
www.cruse.org.uk
( 0208 939 9530

Local contacts:
gloucestershire@cruse.org.uk
( 01242 252518

February: Severn Freewheelers

From 4x4 wheels used in last month’s charity we are now moving to 2 as we support one of our Mayor’s charities.

Severn Freewheelers are a group of advanced motorcyclists providing a free out-of-hours courier service for hospitals in Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, North Wiltshire and Herefordshire. Carrying anything from blood to X-rays and patient notes between hospitals in the area, they are available from 7.00pm in the evening to 7.00am the following day, and all day at weekends.  All riders are volunteers and must have an advanced riding qualification (ROSPA or IAM) with a yearly check-ride.  All receive extra training in emergency response riding, and go through a First Aid course. In short, a professional team delivering a professional service, FREE to the NHS at the point of use.

Each "shift" consists of two people, a rider and a dispatcher. The dispatcher fields calls from the hospitals and plans the route for the evening based on the calls received. Emergency calls are obviously dealt with first, and for these they can use their blue lights.

For those of you who are interested in the technicalities of the machines used, this is what the website has to say about the bikes themselves:

“We run a fleet of five motorcycles. Each bike is specially modified to carry the packages given to us by the NHS, and liveried in emergency response reflective battenburg colours.

The three original R1150RT BMWs are being replaced after nearly three years of service by the next generation R1200RT BMWs. These are the bikes commonly used by police forces throughout the UK and have a reputation for robustness.

These emergency service bikes are specially built by BMW. We have four of these bikes, having replaced one after completing over 60,000 miles.

Our most recent purchase was a Honda Pan European (ST1300) from Honda UK. This bike is similarly liveried and equipped to the BMWs.”

If you would like to see the team in action they will be at the Prescott Bike Festival, Prescott Speed Hill Climb on Sunday 7th April.

For more information click here and visit the Severn Freewheelers web site at http://www.severnfreewheelers.co.uk