December 2010

Wishing you a very happy Christmas  and all the best for 2011.
Christian World Service thanks you for your kind and generous support during 2010.  It has been a year where Christchurch staff experienced the earthquake and the loss of some government funding for the partner groups with whom we work.  It has been a hard year for us but also for those people who have suffered in Haiti and Indonesia from earthquakes, Pakistan and the Philippines from flooding, and Gaza, Zimbabwe and Sudan from on-going in conflict.

 

65th Christmas Appeal
This year we invite you to ‘Share the Care’ with those who want to build a better future for themselves and their families despite the sometimes difficult circumstances in which they live.  Our many partners are stretching the grants that we make with the money you give to help meet their needs and much more.  This year’s Christmas Appeal will help the Church of Uganda provide healthcare to poverty stricken HIV infected patients, the Tonga Community Development Trust improve the diets of families, partners provide desperately needed supplies and assistance in Haiti and maternal healthcare in blockaded Gaza.  To read more of the partners featured in this year’s appeal see: www.christmasappeal.org.nz

 

CWS statement on Government funding
17 December 2010
At 65 years Christian World Service is at the crossroads.  On Thursday December 16, CWS received notice that only one of its six applications for government funding was successful.  Ama Takiloa in Tonga is an effective organisation that is a broad ranging programme to improve the livelihoods of local people.  So are the other partner groups but for reasons unclear to CWS they did not receive funding.  CWS has a strong track record of effective partnership relationships and has always received very positive reviews for its work from independent and government development experts.  With other agencies that have been similarly affected, we are writing to the government to express our concern about what has happened and asking for fair process based on good development practice.

In the short term this means that we need to raise much more money in an effort to meet the commitments we have made to all our long term partners.  They are doing vital work helping poor communities and their future is now in jeopardy.  This is not the message we want to give them at Christmas so we are asking for your help.  You may like to contact the government expressing your concern, but more than anything we ask you if you are able, to give generously to this year’s Christmas Appeal and encourage your friends and neighbours to do the same.  With your help, we can Share the Care with those who need it the most.

Christmas Closure
The CWS national office will be close at 12 noon Friday 24 December and re open at 9am on Wednesday 5 January. For urgent matters during that time, please email cws@cws.org.nz or leave a message on 03 366 9274. This email and phone line will be checked daily. In the event of a humanitarian emergency, CWS will provide information on our website.