What a great joy it was on Sunday to count up the takings from the fun morning and to realise that my fundraising targets had been achieved! It was a delightful end to a very happy day. My brilliant community were particularly brilliant in helping with the setting up, the overseeing, and the clearing of the event, while those who attended showed tremendous generosity. Some figures might help as an illustration:
Refreshments: £154.10
Tombola: £141.50
"How long will it take?" game: £42.00
Auction: £187.00
Donations: £570.00
Grand total: £1094.60
It was an amazing experience to stand in the middle of the room watching it all happen. Those who were looking after the different activities were busily occupied, with queues of people keen to have a go at the games. Many were sampling the coffee and cakes (oh, and don't forget the biscuits). Others were looking at the displays about the charities, or seeking me out to hand over a cheque. Everybody was smiling and having fun. We could even spill over into the garden, God having provided a last dose of sunny, settled weather. And what a great outcome: something that people really did seem to experience as a "fun morning", and a huge boost to my fundraising. Lots and lots and LOTS of thanks to everybody who contributed, in whatever way!
Now all I have to worry about is the actual marathons, which are approaching rapidly. Things are definitely going in the right direction with my training at last, but of course I can't possibly catch up to where I had hoped to be. Although I should make some more progress before the big days, by dint of continued physio exercises and very careful increases in the length of my runs, there's no doubt that I'll be slow and that it will be a struggle to cover the distance. It's interesting to think back six months to all the ideas I had about this project and what it would entail. Hardly any of it has turned out how I expected! But, or maybe so, it's been hugely enriching. I hope I'm ready now for whatever unforeseen happenings the final few weeks throw at me!
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
Friday, 20 March 2009
What does RTU do? - 6. Water Programme
Think of overseas aid and it probably won't be too long before you think of the provision of clean water through well-drilling programmes. The rains can be unreliable in the area of India covered by RTU, and in times of drought there can be very serious water shortages. Even when the rains don't fail, many people have to go long distances for water. Because it is often children who are given this task, school attendance is inevitably affected. It's no wonder, then, that RTU has an on-going commitment to improving access to clean water. Up to 70 wells are sunk annually, with a current total of over 2000 wells serving 400,000 people.
Two aspects of this work interest me. Firstly, Brother James is a skilled water dowser! Now, I am a highly sceptical person regarding such matters, but it's hard to argue with a 92% success rate in finding water where expected. No doubt this contributes to the remarkably low cost of installing a well of as little as £350. Aware that he won't be able to continue with this indefinitely, Brother James has trained a number of local people to dowse, so the programme won't become dependent on the skills of outsiders.
With a similar focus on empowerment and reducing dependence, the second area of interest for me is that a simple hand pump is usually installed on each well, with villagers given training to maintain it. This seems a perfect example to me of what RTU is so good at - long-distance thinking, rather than the creation of problems for the future through short-term crisis management.
Two aspects of this work interest me. Firstly, Brother James is a skilled water dowser! Now, I am a highly sceptical person regarding such matters, but it's hard to argue with a 92% success rate in finding water where expected. No doubt this contributes to the remarkably low cost of installing a well of as little as £350. Aware that he won't be able to continue with this indefinitely, Brother James has trained a number of local people to dowse, so the programme won't become dependent on the skills of outsiders.
With a similar focus on empowerment and reducing dependence, the second area of interest for me is that a simple hand pump is usually installed on each well, with villagers given training to maintain it. This seems a perfect example to me of what RTU is so good at - long-distance thinking, rather than the creation of problems for the future through short-term crisis management.
Friday, 13 March 2009
In the offing: twomarathons fun morning!
I'm a little later in the week than I had intended with this post, but for once I'm not saying "where did the time go?", since I know the answer! Many of you (friends on facebook, for example), could also have a good guess: I've been preparing for the fun morning next Sunday (22nd March). A glance at the clever justgiving widgets on the sidebar will probably show my charity totals still hovering somewhere around the two-thirds mark. Some of this is due to caution on my part; if I included pledges and promises, I'd probably be nearer three-quarters of the way, maybe even more. All the same, there's a gap to be filled. So I came up with the idea of a fun morning!
The event is planned to run from 11am to 12.30, fitting neatly between the end of our Sunday Mass and lunchtime. We have a big community room in the Convent, so there should be space for all the activities. I guess the first port of call for many will be the refreshments table - coffee, tea, pizza bianca, croissants and flapjack should be on the menu, as well as squash and biscuits (following the advice of my friends, these will include both jammie dodgers AND chocolate varieties!). Hopefully that should provide enough energy to have a go on the giant tombola. Last time I counted there were around 100 prizes, and with different coloured tickets for children's and adults' prizes, you will have slightly more chance of winning what you were aiming for! There's another game, too, though for that one you'll have to wait until the end of April to know whether you've won! It's called "How long will it take?", and you have to guess just that - how long it will take me to run the two marathons. Skill, or luck? I'll leave that to you to decide. As well as the games, there'll be a display, leaflets, and a visual presentation about the charities I'm supporting, for those who have somehow missed out on learning about them. And to round off the morning, we'll have a little auction - just a handful of lots - and a mixed bunch they look like being, too!
As far as I'm concerned, the best thing about the fun morning is that every penny and pound put in the collecting pots will go straight to the charities. I've persuaded local businesses to donate prizes for the games as well as food and drink for the refreshments, so there will be no costs to cover. That means those stubborn widgets should show rather higher percentages after the event! At least, they will do if anybody turns up! If you're able to pop in, please do. I would really love to see you. If you can't be there, at least now you'll be able to imagine what you're missing...
The event is planned to run from 11am to 12.30, fitting neatly between the end of our Sunday Mass and lunchtime. We have a big community room in the Convent, so there should be space for all the activities. I guess the first port of call for many will be the refreshments table - coffee, tea, pizza bianca, croissants and flapjack should be on the menu, as well as squash and biscuits (following the advice of my friends, these will include both jammie dodgers AND chocolate varieties!). Hopefully that should provide enough energy to have a go on the giant tombola. Last time I counted there were around 100 prizes, and with different coloured tickets for children's and adults' prizes, you will have slightly more chance of winning what you were aiming for! There's another game, too, though for that one you'll have to wait until the end of April to know whether you've won! It's called "How long will it take?", and you have to guess just that - how long it will take me to run the two marathons. Skill, or luck? I'll leave that to you to decide. As well as the games, there'll be a display, leaflets, and a visual presentation about the charities I'm supporting, for those who have somehow missed out on learning about them. And to round off the morning, we'll have a little auction - just a handful of lots - and a mixed bunch they look like being, too!
As far as I'm concerned, the best thing about the fun morning is that every penny and pound put in the collecting pots will go straight to the charities. I've persuaded local businesses to donate prizes for the games as well as food and drink for the refreshments, so there will be no costs to cover. That means those stubborn widgets should show rather higher percentages after the event! At least, they will do if anybody turns up! If you're able to pop in, please do. I would really love to see you. If you can't be there, at least now you'll be able to imagine what you're missing...
Thursday, 5 March 2009
WPF Therapy's Grand Opening
I realise I haven't written anything about the official opening of WPF Therapy's new premises near London Bridge, which took place three weeks ago now, on 11th February. Firstly, I must say that they didn't do a good job of ordering the weather. It was a filthy afternoon/evening, with driving rain and wind. Nevertheless, plenty of people must have thought it was worth the effort of getting there, as the room was quite full. Please, don't ask me to locate that room again! I think the new building is really brilliant. Despite quite limited opportunities to provide natural light, the designers have somehow managed to give the impression of a great luminosity (enough to lift the spirits even before couselling!) as well as spaciousness. However, the general consensus at the opening was that a little time would be needed to work out where things were located. As far as I can gather, there are parallel corridors and two staircases. For me this had the effect that I was constantly finding myself somewhere I didn't expect to be!
The new building certainly has a plethora of treatment rooms, all very clean, tasteful, and welcoming, without being cluttered. As I wandered around, I began to realise just how many people benefit from the services of WPF Therapy, something I hadn't managed to visualise from the bare statistic of over 500 appointments each week. Given that there are also nearly 500 students enrolled on the introductory and professional courses run by WPF Therapy, it must be a busy place at times! Even during the opening, an early-evening event, there were plenty of treatment sessions underway, which we were careful not to disturb as we looked around. Well away from these, however, the opening was accompanied by a fair volume of conversation as staff, trustees, friends, trainees, and people with all sorts of links to WPF Therapy took the opportunity to meet each other. Unusually for such events (at least in my experience), rather than being an enforced break from chatting, the speeches proved quite inspirational in their descriptions of the evolution of WPF Therapy so far, and their energy and excitement about what the future holds. It was particularly touching to hear Benita Kyle, wife of the founder, speak about the very small beginnings of what was then Westminster Pastoral Foundation, and how that original vision has been maintained through all the growth and changes of the last 40 years.
I was sad when WPF Therapy moved out of Kensington Square; for me it brought interest and diversity to the campus. I'm pretty sure they were sad to leave, too, after 30 years in such a beautiful setting. However, in characteristic fashion, what could have been viewed as an unwanted trial has instead been seized as an opportunity. I wish them many more decades of success in their crucial work!
The new building certainly has a plethora of treatment rooms, all very clean, tasteful, and welcoming, without being cluttered. As I wandered around, I began to realise just how many people benefit from the services of WPF Therapy, something I hadn't managed to visualise from the bare statistic of over 500 appointments each week. Given that there are also nearly 500 students enrolled on the introductory and professional courses run by WPF Therapy, it must be a busy place at times! Even during the opening, an early-evening event, there were plenty of treatment sessions underway, which we were careful not to disturb as we looked around. Well away from these, however, the opening was accompanied by a fair volume of conversation as staff, trustees, friends, trainees, and people with all sorts of links to WPF Therapy took the opportunity to meet each other. Unusually for such events (at least in my experience), rather than being an enforced break from chatting, the speeches proved quite inspirational in their descriptions of the evolution of WPF Therapy so far, and their energy and excitement about what the future holds. It was particularly touching to hear Benita Kyle, wife of the founder, speak about the very small beginnings of what was then Westminster Pastoral Foundation, and how that original vision has been maintained through all the growth and changes of the last 40 years.
I was sad when WPF Therapy moved out of Kensington Square; for me it brought interest and diversity to the campus. I'm pretty sure they were sad to leave, too, after 30 years in such a beautiful setting. However, in characteristic fashion, what could have been viewed as an unwanted trial has instead been seized as an opportunity. I wish them many more decades of success in their crucial work!
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