Bishops' Appeal for Haiti









An Appeal from Bishop Geoffrey and Bishop David for the People of Haiti

The devastation suffered by the people of Haiti by the earthquake which struck on 12 January has caught the attention of us all. Already the poorest country in the Americas, with 80% of the people living on less than £1.50 per day, the struggle of the country’s poor in the face of this disaster is unimaginable.

We invite the congregations and people of our diocese to support the needs of the Haitian people by donating generously to the Christian Aid Appeal for Haiti. The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have endorsed this particular channel for relief aid.

Christian Aid is working with partners on the ground and with the UN for the effective delivery of aid. Local partner organisations are focusing on areas that appear to be getting little help from other agencies, including some towns outside Port-au-Prince, but close to the epicentre of the earthquake. The provision of food, tents, hygiene kits, blankets, jerry cans for water and water purifiers, and emergency medical support are the priorities being addressed.

Whether you have special collections at the time of Church services, or hold special fund-raising events, we hope that you will respond generously to this immediate humanitarian crisis.

Chaplaincies and congregations can make transfers to the Christian Aid appeal from their current account at the Diocesan Office, or send cheques (in Sterling or another currency) made out to the "Diocese in Europe", or make transfers into the usual diocesan Sterling bank account (details available from Nick Wraight: nick.wraight@c-of-e.org.uk

Details of the Christian Aid appeal can be found on their website: http://www.christianaid.org.uk/

Advance notice of Lent and Advent Appeals 2010

For your longer term planning, please note that we will be sending information about the 2010 Lent Appeal within the next couple of weeks. It will be in support of a USPG project in Burma.

The 2010 Advent Appeal will respond to the needs of the Anglican Diocese of Haiti. Where the present Christian Aid appeal addresses the immediate humanitarian crisis, in Advent we will address the longer-term needs of our Anglican partner church, which has over 100,000 people, 37 priests, 250 schools from primary to university level, a hospital, as well as the only nursing school and the only school for disabled children in the country. Much of this work has been destroyed or badly damaged; over 100 of the 170 church buildings have been flattened. Although 10 months away, by Advent 2010 we will have a clear indication from Bishop Zaché Duracin of a priority area for support as he rebuilds the mission infrastructure of his diocese.


But for now, please continue to pray for the people of Haiti in this their time of need, and for those who are involved in the relief efforts, and please respond generously to the Christian Aid appeal to help bring humanitarian assistance to our Haitian brothers and sisters.

+Geoffrey                     +David


Comments

  1. Chaplain.cz22 January 2010 at 08:12

    Do you mean advance notice of Advent 2010 appeal, bearing in mind that Advent is nearly 11 months away, or do you mean advance notice of Lent 2010 appeal which makes far more sense?

    ReplyDelete
  2. David Hamid22 January 2010 at 09:54

    I have clarified this. I do, in fact, mean the Advent 2010 for church infrastructure in Haiti. The Lent 2010 appeal was already decided and will be for a project of USPG in Burma. The 10 months will give time for a specific church project to be identified in Haiti, once the humanitarian crisis is passed.

    ReplyDelete

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