Come to a CAFOD Update Meeting in February

Parish volunteers and supporters at the Harvest meeting at St Bede’s Basingstoke

Come and join other supporters and volunteers at our meetings in February . At these meetings we will hear from speakers who have visited our projects overseas and explore the Lent fast day resources . We have 5 around the diocese so there should be one near you.

Saturday 1^st February at St Luke’s Church Theale RG7 5AS  from 2:30pm to 4:30pm at this meeting Gisele Henriques CAFOD’s Sustainability and Technical lead will speak about our work with small enterprises. 

 Saturday 8^th February St Anne’s Church Brockenhurst SO42 7SR  from 10:30am to 12:30pm at this meeting Sarah Burrows Emergency Programme Officer will be talking about her recent visit to CAFOD projects in Lebanon and Jordan.

Monday 10th February Sacred Heart & St Peter the Apostle Waterlooville PO7 7SR from 7:15pm to 9pm at this meeting Sally Kitchener CAFOD’s Content Manager will speak about our work in Zimbabwe.

 Saturday 15^th February St Bede’s Church Basingstoke RG24 9DX from 10:15am to 12:15 pm at this meeting Lizzie Funnell Programme Officer  for the Middle East will speak about our work there. 

 Saturday 22^nd February St Thomas of Canterbury Cowes PO31 7TJ   11am to 1pm followed by a soup lunch. At this meeting Maria Gonzalez CAFOD’s head of International Development will be talking about her recent visit to Zimbabwe to visit CAFOD’s projects.

Please book so that I have an idea of numbers by emailing portsmouth@cafod.org.uk or call 01252 329385

Our Fantastic School Volunteers ….. would you like to join our team?

Portsmouth diocese school volunteers

We had great meeting yesterday with schools volunteers in the Portsmouth diocese to explore the school resources for this term especially Lent 2020 which will focus on The Amazon. Our school volunteers are a fantastic group of people who visit catholic schools around the diocese to deliver assemblies and workshops which inspire young people to care for our world and for those living in poverty overseas.

Exploring the Lent resources

If you have time during the week and a passion for helping young people make a difference then why not consider becoming a CAFOD school volunteer. We need volunteers in Winchester, Chandler’s Ford, Portsmouth and Guernsey. Full training and support is provided so please contact me at portsmouth@cafod.org.uk   or call 01252 329385 for more information.

 

Step into the Gap Volunteer Hugh prepares for his overseas trip to see CAFOD’s work in action!

Hugh Cafferky

Hugh our Step into the Gap volunteer based at St Cassians Kintbury is preparing for his trip to visit CAFOD projects in Cambodia .He writes..

“As I begin a new year with CAFOD I am filled with anticipation, excitement, nerves and fear as I prepare to visit Cambodia at the end of January. I feel so excited to experience CAFOD’s incredible work, to see how communities flourish through this and how people’s livelihoods are being changed for the better.

What I am going to be witnessing is going to be something completely new and beyond my imagination and will change me forever. I don’t think I can fully understand this fantastic opportunity I have been given by CAFOD to go and see how their work is developing and making an impact. I feel so excited and privileged to be able to experience the work that CAFOD does in Cambodia. One thing I am most looking forward to is meeting and working with local communities and young people that belong to them. To see CAFOD’S work in action, to put my faith into action further and to experience another culture is going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity.

I have learned that there is an amount of preparation you need to do before visiting another country. Preparing yourself with facts, figures, information, knowledge, literature and different geographical places within the country is just as crucial as preparing yourself mentally for travel and what you are going to be witnessing. I feel like I have learnt so much already in preparation about Cambodia, its culture, its steeped history and I am so excited to expand my knowledge further when I arrive. The amount of knowledge, skills, encounters and meeting of hearts I am going to experience from the communities and the people I meet in them is going to be invaluable. These experiences and skills I will gain will enable me to bring lots back to the UK to inspire other young people to get involved, to know they have a voice for the voiceless and to join CAFOD’s work in many ways by giving, acting and praying.

Having people around you to share this experience who are also passionate about their faith and action gives me encouragement and desire to make the most of our time in Cambodia with CAFOD partners. I think this is and will be an amazing aspect to our work encountering communities as one with love and solidarity. Thank you for your prayers, please keep myself and other gappers in your thoughts and prayers as we journey to Cambodia.”

We look forward to hearing about his trip when he returns.