 |
 |
|
At a Commissioning
Service in Hillsborough Presbyterian Church on
Sunday 1st July are a team from the church who are
going to Malawi on Friday 13th July. L to R: (front
row) Derek McClelland, Jenny Bell (Home Support),
Christopher Scott, Lisa McClelland, Rev John Davey,
Pamela Gourley, Jennifer Hicks and Richard Jess.
(back row) Louise Lemon, David McMullan, Andrey
Gardner, Kathryn McCrossan, Jane McKibben, Andrew
Fitzpatrick, Claire Warnock and Jill Dornan. |
Lisa McClelland
(Team Leader) shows a model of an African house with
computer label bricks bought and signed by members
of the congregation in order to raise funds for the
Young Adults Group's trip to Malawi on Friday 13th
July. |
A Commissioning Service, led by the Rev John Davey, was held in
Hillsborough Presbyterian Church on Sunday 1st July for fourteen
members of the Young Adults Group (plus one long-suffering
parent - Derek McClelland) who are heading to Malawi on Friday
13th July to build houses alongside the families who will live
in them with Habitat for Humanity. Habitat for Humanity is a
non-profit, non-denominational Christian housing charity. Their
goal is to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the
world, and to make adequate, affordable shelter a matter of
conscience and action. They invite people of all backgrounds,
races and religions to build houses together in partnership with
families in need. To date more than 230,000 houses have been
built in 100 countries around the world through the
international volunteering programme 'Global Village'.
On Saturday 30th June the team got together to showcase their
musical and dramatic talents as they presented a 'thank you'
variety show and supper for parents and helpers. They have been
planning their trip for a year and a half, but their fundraising
started in earnest last October, when they started weekly
Saturday morning car washes in the church car park. By the time
they head off to Malawi they will have held 38 car washes and 9
main fundraising events - a Table quiz, Craft fair and Bazaar,
Christmas Candlelight Supper, Beetle Drive, Tractor Rally,
Social Evening, Easter Breakfast, Car Boot Sale and Auction and
Saxophone Concert. Other fundraising efforts involved the
production of a calendar entitled 'Images of Hillsborough' (450
copies were successfully sold around the village) and a model
African house, which had computer label bricks bought and signed
by members of the congregation. Added to this were the various
individual fundraising efforts of some of the members and their
parents and sponsorship from various local companies. The team
have been amazed by the generosity of their friends, families
and church members and have found the fundraising events to be a
positive experience - unifying young (and not so young) under
the common goal of raising '20,000 to fund the trip.
Leaders - Lisa McClelland, Christopher Scott, Pamela Gourley and
Jennifer Hicks have undergone accounts, first aid and basic
building training at the Habitat for Humanity building project
in Downpatrick's Model Farm estate. They have also been involved
in training other team members and preparing them for what to
expect when they arrive in Malawi. In April the whole team
attended a residential weekend at Newcastle when various members
shared their previous Habitat experiences. Using conflict
management and role-playing potential scenarios they built up
the existing trust and friendships between team members and
enhanced their team working skills as they went bouldering and
canoeing. In May they returned to the site in Downpatrick to
sharpen their building skills and enjoyed the experience of
sanding, painting and varnishing windows and doors in
preparation for the completion on the project in mid-June. Their
building experience in Malawi will be slightly different however
and is more likely to involve making and laying mud bricks and
breaking rocks to be used in the foundations.
The team's mission statement is 'We aim make a difference to the
people we meet - to change lives and allow our own to be
changed. Our faith is very important to us and we hope to make
Jesus 'the chief cornerstone' (Ephesians 2 v.20) of both our
team and our trip'. To find out more about the work of Habitat
for Humanity contact Elisabeth Kines 028 9024 3686
02/07/2007
 |
