All Saints working in the wider community

The Ordinands Appeal in Kenya and Gutjwa appeal are just two of the ways that we reach out to the wider community from All Saints.

OAK (Ordinands Appeal in Kenya)

The OAK project is an exciting way that we can contribute to the building of God’s kingdom in Africa. We give money to pay for the training of Ordinands in Kenya. When new priests are ordained, Bishop Samson is able to set up new parishes in his diocese. This means better provision of services, pastoral care and evangelism in the villages and towns of Kenya.

We first supported Margaret and Eunice and they are now Priests in the villages of Kenya, because we paid for their training. Then we funded Patrick through his training for Ordination, in Bishop Samson’s Diocese of Taita Taveta in Kenya. Patrick completed the third year of his training in August 2010. He graduated in November 2010 and was Ordained Deacon on December 5th 2010. They are all very grateful for the financial and prayer support from All Saints’ Church.

We are now supporting Jemima Mkiwa Mgalu. She has been an Evangelist in the Diocese of Taita Taveta for three years. She is now at the Bishop Hanninton Institute where she is studying theology and training for Ordination. She is very grateful for our financial and prayer support.

Gutjwa Appeal

The past year has seen the integration of the Gutjwa Appeal UK into All Saints Parish, thanks to the enthusiastic uptake of the cause there, first encouraged through Boyne Hill School’s support for the Appeal in providing eating and drinking vessels for the pupils of Gutjwa School in late 2008.

Since then, there has been a widespread interest shown in expanding the links between Gutjwa and the All Saints parish schools into a full schools-twinning project, as well as general Parish support.

All Saints Schools and Parish were also active in fund-raising for the next phase of project work at Gutjwa School, with some 3200 added in the past year to the residual 900 remaining from 2008/9 fund-raising activities, including from Father Jeremy’s titanic efforts in the Reading Half Marathon recently.

This money is ear-marked for a kitchen-extension at Gutjwa school, to house hygienic and economical oil-jacket cookers (also provided by the Gutjwa Appeal UK) that will in future cook the daily mealie-mealie porridge lunch providing the sole source of daily sustenance for all-too-many of Gutjwa’s pupils.
In addition, a programme was instigated of scarf knitting to provide winter-weather clothing for the children of Gutjwa School, some 50% of whom are orphans, many due to the AIDS epidemic that so ravishes that part of southern Africa.

The knitting programme was enthusiastically adopted by parents, relatives and friends of All Saints schools’ pupils, and augmented by members of All Saints parish, as well as some ‘outsiders’ who helped contribute to the total of around 187 hand made plus 25 commercially-made scarves that were blessed during the Education Sunday service on March 7th.

With the departure back to their home in Australasia of Lorraine and Wayne Hird (the Two Kiwi Bikers, friends of Peter Scatchard, the UK appeal founder, than took Gutjwa School under their wing whilst working in the area on contract) there is a need to establish a new project-management team local to Gutjwa School.

Peter and his wife Val are visiting the school, its adjacent township of Kabokweni and town of White River over Easter 2010. Besides meeting with the school-staff, the involvement of the local White River Rotary Club and Round Table has emerged, so Peter will be meeting with various individuals prepared to help manage the South African end of the school improvement programme.

Accompanying them will be Val’s sister, Jenny Stephen, Head Teacher at Boyne Hill School, charged with the task of developing the schools-twinning programme on behalf of Altwood School, All Saints Primary School and Boyne Hill School.

In order to save the not inconsiderable shipping costs, with the aid of some cheap but cunning packaging, they will be taking all 200 scarves as hold-luggage, to present to Gutjwa School at assembly on the first day back from the Easter holidays, in time for the start of the southern hemisphere winter term.

They also expect to witness the commencement of the kitchen extension building project. Whilst in the White River / Kabokweni township area, they are planning to visit the Two Sisters Orphanage, taking a large number of cuddly toys accumulated from visits to UK charity shops and donations from Boyne Hill pupils over the past few months to present to the young residents.

All of us involved with the Gutjwa Appeal UK would like to offer a huge vote of thanks to all of YOU at All Saints Parish for your support, enthusiasm, encouragement and hard-work in helping us help Gutjwa School.