hope notes - fall 2012

Stories of hope from around the world

Partneringfor changea PeruVian CoMMunitY and a VanCouVer ChurCh CeleBrate fiVe Years of WalKinG toGether • PaGe 6

Helping without hurting

uPCoMinG ConferenCe ChallenGes hoW the ChurCh does CharitY • PaGe 10

Back to school! eduCation uPdates froM

around the World • PaGe 14

Stories of hope from around the world

fall

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in this issue fall 2012

FOOD FOR THE HUNGRY (FH) CANADA’S QUARTERLY PUBLICATION

FH CANADA is a registered non-profi t

organization dedicated to providing

long-term relief to those bound by

poverty through sustainable community

development. As part of the global Food

for the Hungry (FH) network, we currently

work in ten countries around the world.

Through project development, child

sponsorship, emergency relief and medical

equipment distribution, FH Canada strives

to meet the physical, spiritual, social and

educational needs of each man, woman

and child living in poverty.

POVERTY REVOLUTION is a movement

of engaged Canadians who are partnering

with FH Canada to end poverty one

community at a time.

As a Certifi ed Member of the Canadian

Council for Christian Charities, FH

Canada meets the stringent standards

set by the CCCC for accountability and

organizational integrity.

CHARITABLE REGISTRATION NUMBER:

132152893RR0001

FH CANADA

1 - 31741 Peardonville Road,

Abbotsford, BC V2T 1L2

T 604.853.4262

TF 1.800.667.0605

F 604.853.4332

[email protected]

www.fhcanada.org

facebook.com/poverty.revolution

7.9% ADMINISTRATION AND

RUNNING COSTS

8.7% INVESTED TO

GENERATE FUTURE INCOME

83.4% BuildinG

sustainaBle CoMMunities

Relationship refl ections

Little girl,big goal

Helpingwithout hurting

Back to schoolprogress report

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3HOPE NOTES FALL 2012

The power of partnershipPartnership is a word I use a lot — both at the FH Canada office and personally. Whether in a marriage (my wife and I just celebrated 42 years), a friendship, or a business relationship, a strong partnership makes all the difference. By definition, a partnership goes two ways. It’s give and take and requires commitment, even through the ups and downs (just ask my wife!). With true partnership, both parties will be forever changed.

This is partly why we refer to the developing communities we work with as “partner communities.” As we walk together on a seven to ten-year journey to self- sustainability, we rely on local leadership and their vision to direct the process. We work together, using shared knowledge of what has and hasn’t worked in the past, and deciding what new practices will be well received. And back home in Canada, when we help churches, businesses or social groups partner with a developing community (see an example on page 6) we emphasize a concept of mutual transformation, where both parties enter the relationship willing to learn and be changed by each other’s stories and by God’s work among them. In this issue we highlight how anyone — from a small-town seven-year-old to the reigning Miss World Guatemala — can partner with FH by using their voice and influence to make a very real difference. We’re also excited to announce a major conference — “Helping Without Hurting” — in partnership with the Chalmers Center that explores how to work with vulnerable people without undermining their dignity. It’s sure to inspire and challenge all participants. Finally, we’ve included a special sponsorship and education update that shows the impact of the long-term partnership of sponsors, teachers, parents and students. As a sponsor, it can sometimes be hard to see the impact of your monthly donations, but these stories are made possible though your support and encouragement.

Be blessed,

Ben HoogendoornPresident/CEO

President’s letter

“A strong partnership

makes all the difference.”

4 www.povertyrevolution.org FH CANADA

Women helping womenSamosas, saris and savingsOn June 14 about thirty women donned sari scarves and enjoyed curry and chai tea for FH Canada’s first “Taste of Bangladesh” night. Guests learned about the Savings and Learning Groups that are teaching Bangladeshi women to read, stand up for their legal rights, and start businesses with their own money. We are excited that many women present at the Abbotsford, BC event decided to support the Savings and Learning Groups, and several will be hosting dinner parties themselves as advocates for FH’s work in Bangladesh.

FH on the world stage

vimeo.com/fhcanada/missworld

Miss World Guatemala, Monique Aparicio, is a passionate advocate for FH. During this year’s Miss World competition in Ordos, China, Monique used her platform to share how she is partnering with FH and Guatemalan mothers to fight early-childhood malnutrition in her country.

Would you like to support a Savings and Learning Group for women in Bangladesh or host a dinner party? Visit fhcanada.org/women or email [email protected]

5HOPE NOTES FALL 2012

“We had a severe shortage

of clean water. Our kids were fetching water

from dirty sources.”

“Our community’s health was under the regular threat

of water-borne diseases, especially our children who

were going to the clinic twice a week. Praise the Lord that after

we started using water from this developed spring, our health

has improved. We are now taking great care of this spring,

for it is our health and life.”

Dereje GuDeta of SaSiGa, ethiopia.

Women helping women

Water everywhere!Thanks to your amazing generosity, we had a very successful water campaign over the summer.

In total, $82,900 was raised for wells and clean water projects in Ethiopia, Burundi and Uganda. The impact of these projects is life-changing.

FH on the world stage


Peter Mogan

It has now been over a week since the goodbye ceremony for our team in Rinconada del Sol and I pause to reflect on what we saw and experienced. We have been sending teams to the community for five years so we have a basis for comparison. Overall, there is much to celebrate as this community has seen great progress and movement in a positive direction.

There’s a good chance you’ve never heard of Rinconada del Sol, Greater Lima, Peru. That was probably the case for most members of University Chapel, a church on the Vancouver campus of the University of British Columbia. But five years ago they committed to enter a long-term partnership with a developing community, facilitated through FH Canada. Now when University Chapel talks about Rinconada del Sol—and vice versa—they’re talking about old friends.

Reflecting on five years of partnershipAnnual visits to Peru build friendships and testify to monumental change.

For the past five years, a team from University Chapel has gone to visit and work alongside their partners in Peru. In 2012 the team had eight members, some returning a second, third or fifth time, and others leaving North America for the first time.

Peter Mogan has made the trip all five years, and has seen the steady progress of the community. This is his latest post-trip reflection, and it speaks volumes about the partnership and the amazing accomplishments of the community as they progress towards total self-sustainability.

For more of Peter’s blog posts and photography from the trip, see www.facebook.com/fh.peru or www.fhcanada.org/peru. If your church, social group or business is interested in a partnership with a developing community, please contact [email protected].

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PETER MOGAN

On the physical side there has been the building of signifi cant infrastructure: roads, sewers, a clean water supply, street lights, a pre-school and an educational play centre. The construction of homes has also changed signifi cantly – from simple shacks to some well-constructed brick homes. They are still small and modest, but a massive improvement. Also, the addition of decorative elements to homes and community spaces refl ects care and hope.

PETER MOGAN

Socially and emotionally, we have witnessed an incredible transformation. The children are a great barometer of this change as they have moved from being disorganized and hard to manage to being willing to accept structure, having an optimistic view of their futures, and being committed to setting goals and pursuing them. Among the youth, leaders have developed who are respected and who promote positive values. There is a sense that the family violence prevention program is off to a good start as there is good responsiveness to the FH workshops and we see more male engagement with families.

PETER MOGAN

At a teen workshop where participants had shared about things in their community that needed to improve, I asked who had the greatest potential to bring about this needed change. What I had in mind was that the youth would have this potential as the emerging leaders. What I got back was a chorus of, “God has the potential.” It was humbling.

PETER MOGAN

Based on my fi ve visits since 2007, I believe this community is well on its way to successfully “graduate” from FH programming in 2014 as planned. These visits have affi rmed the great value and effi cacy of FH’s work. It is amazing how sustainable growth can be achieved with conservative fi nancial resources when pursuing a biblically-informed model of development!

HOPE NOTES FALL 2012

www.fhcanada.org/gifts

Little girl, big goalA seven-year-old gets courageous for a cause.

When Alissa Schaly saw last year’s “Gifts for Change” FH catalogue, she picked out 22 gifts to purchase — everything from rabbits to desks to organic fertilizer training courses. When she presented her selection to her parents, it was a whopping $1,170 worth of items.

Parents Albert and Bonita Schaly of Bowen Island, BC explained to Alissa that her list was a little too expensive for them to fund, but encouraged her to raise the money herself.

She proceeded to collect all her own money, and asked her parents to put the money they would have spent on her Christmas gifts towards her goal. Then the seven year old asked her parents if they could announce the fundraising goal at their church.

The caretaker at the church remembered that there was a jar of coins that had been in the closet for a few years, and thought it may as well go to Alissa. That started the coin drive, but it was only the beginning.

Alissa shocked her parents by asking to share her ideas with her Sunday school class. Although quiet and soft-spoken, her passion for the gifts was starting to catch people’s attention.

Soon the elders at her church had decided to put the quarterly offering toward Alissa’s goal. The pastor asked if she would give a short talk in front of the congregation to explain her goal. She agreed, and her parents helped her prepare what she wanted to say.

To the surprise of the whole congregation, shy little Alissa took the stage that Sunday and gave a short but articulate speech. Inspired by her drive to fund the 22 gifts, the church responded in a big way, giving more than twice the amount of a normal benevolent offering.

Combined with the coin jars she had at her school and at several businesses around town, she realized she had raised $2,152.82 — enough to add the thousand-dollar Stock-a-Stable item for a total of 23 gifts — the second-highest amount of gifts given from the catalogue in 2011!


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Tree SeedlingsNew tree seedlings fi ll

nurseries in Cachiman, Haiti and represent a

new future for farmers and their children.

Medical Supplies The wheelchairs, beds and crutches have been shipped to hospitals in Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda.

Fruit & Veggie SeedsSeeds and starters purchased include beans, corn, peas, plantain, peanuts and yucca.

HOPE NOTES FALL 2012 9

vimeo.com/fhcanada/alissa

Last December, Alissa and her family came to Abbotsford, BC to personally deliver her cheque to FH Canada president Ben Hoogendoorn. This year, Alissa and her younger sister Michaela held a joint birthday party and collected donations for FH Canada, and they have plans in the works to fund more gift catalogue items this Christmas.

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Have you ever made a donation based on guilt? Or given because you “should”? Or have you ever felt powerless to ease the world’s problems, and done nothing at all?

It’s uncomfortable to evaluate the motivations behind our charitable actions, but it’s vitally important. FH Canada Training Manager Melissa Giles has travelled

Helping without hurtingConference challenges participants to get smart in their giving and involvement, both locally and abroad.

across the country, facilitating Poverty Revolution Boot Camps to help supporters grow in their understanding of poverty and its solution. Now she’s bringing one of the most respected experts on the topic to Edmonton, Alberta for a one-day seminar called “Helping Without Hurting” on December 1.

Based on the seminal book, When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor…and Yourself by Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett, the conference will spend the morning going through the key concepts of the book—everything from asset-based development to “doing short-term missions without doing long-term harm.”


The afternoon will shift from theory to action with a breakout session on practical ways to respond, both locally and globally.

Authors Brian and Steve are both with the Chalmers Center for Economic Development, a research and training organization that helps local churches transform the lives of low-income people without creating dependency. Brian will be the main speaker at the Edmonton event.

Brian has headlined the “Helping Without Hurting” conference several times before, but this is his first time sharing with a Western Canadian

audience. FH staff member Cheryl Hanks attended the conference in Washington State and says that she would recommend it for anyone wanting to dig deeper into poverty, missions, and international development issues.

“Brian had a lot of personal experience from his life which made it very interesting to follow,” she says.

“He was also extremely funny.”

The partnership between FH and Chalmers Center is a natural fit, explains Melissa. Both organizations share the philosophy of “walking with” instead of “doing for” when working with vulnerable communities. Both are committed to education at home to help more people become part of the solution to issues of poverty. The Chalmers Centre book When Helping Hurts is required reading for FH Canada staff, and internationally they share

training curriculum for the rapidly-growing Savings and Learning Groups. Steve Corbett worked with FH for 12 years prior to co-authoring the book, and so both the conference and the book include examples from FH’s work.

Melissa believes the conference will be extremely relevant to church members, pastors, mission leaders, short-term team members, university students, staff at other non-profits, local groups that work with the poor, community organizers and anyone concerned with social justice and living out the biblical mandate to care for the poor.

Based on her Boot Camp experiences, she says that most people she meets are generous and have a desire to help. She’s encouraged that people have a willingness to learn how they can be more effective in their helping, and she notices a movement to view poverty more holistically—recognizing that the physical can’t be divorced from the spiritual.

Yet despite this promise, she still sees a huge need to train the church especially in effective local and international work.

“To date, our help has been more harmful than good.”

Her sentiments echo Brian’s. He too is optimistic about the church’s desire to care for the poor and suffering, but wants to help people develop a healthier, more thought-out response to the complexities of poverty and injustice.

“One could argue that the interest in the North American church in serving the poor is at the highest level it’s been in the entire post-World-War-II era,” he says. “But good intentions are not enough.”

By breaking down the principles of relief and development, Brian and Steve equip people to respond in appropriate, life-giving ways that empower the poor instead of undermining their dignity. They are first to admit they’ve done a lot wrong over the years, so they speak from a place of grace as they

Helping Without Hurting

“Good intentions are not enough”

DR. BRIAN FIKKERT


With Dr. Brian Fikkert

When: December 1, 2012 8am-4pm

Where: Sherwood Park Alliance Church, Edmonton, Alberta

Cost: $45 (includes lunch and all training materials)

reGister todaY!www.fhcanada.org/HWH

caution against handouts, donor-driven aid and the temptation to treat poverty as merely material.

But it’s not a conference about guilt or shame about mistakes of the past. It’s meant to inspire, educate and enable individuals, churches, volunteers, and non-profits to make smart choices as they engage with issues of poverty—not only for their own good, but for the good of those they aim to help.

“It’s a must-read for people supporting or engaging in international relief and development work.”


MELISSA GILES, FH TRAINING MANAGER

Can’t make it to the conference in Edmonton? Find out if there’s a Poverty Revolution Boot Camp coming to a town near you. www.fhcanada.org/bootcamp

ALI AT HIS OFFICE

Atlantic Community Church (ACC) from Sussex, NB partnered with the village of Villa Hortencia II in Nebaj, Guatemala in 2008. Since then, their enthusiasm has only grown as their relationship deepens.

This past June, 27 people in two teams visited Nebaj, for a total of five team trips in four years of partnership. They have partnered together to build new school blocks, a sports court, a stocked and equipped health clinic, and have supported agricultural training and health training for mothers and their children.

“The relationship between Villa Hortencia and ACC has changed us both,” says Ray Butler of ACC. “I believe we have all become better people because of our family across the globe!”

Forever changed

in just a few years

Partnerships with FH communities are multi-faceted: poverty awareness “boot camps,” child sponsorship, projects and skills training, fundraisers, and even trips to the partnered community.

In 1995, Ali Sora was dealing with the death of his father. This left Ali’s mother to singlehandedly support him and his eight siblings, despite a drought that had just decimated their livestock.

Although Ali was one of the most promising elementary students, there was no money to send him on to high school when the term began. It just so happened that this was right at the time that FH Canada was starting to work with Ali’s community of Mado Adi,

Kenya. They were just beginning sponsorships and scholarships as part of the development partnership.

The community unanimously implored FH to award Ali a scholarship for his secondary studies. Once the details were worked out, Ali jumped right into the second term of the school year, quickly coming up to speed.

More than ten years after graduation, Ali still lives relatively

close to Mado Adi. He works as a clerical officer with the government’s Ministry of Internal Security and Provincial Administration, and he has two sons and a daughter.

“It’s because of FH’s support that I am who I am today,” he says. It was that extra support during a really rough time that marked a turnaround for Ali and his family.

One of Ali’s brothers is also working for the government, and together they are supporting their sister who is completing an advanced diploma program.

Ali says he knows many former sponsored kids and scholarship recipients from Mado Adi who are now employed as teachers, police officers, health professionals and government workers. Like him, they’re also investing in their families — both the ones they grew up with and the ones they’re proudly beginning.

1995Mado Adi, Kenya partners with FH

2005Community “graduates” as fully self-sustainable

Pastoralist

livelihood improvements

Healthcare access

and hygiene training

Important

dam de-silted

Classrooms, offi ces, and

teachers’ quarters built

Reforestation and

environmental protection

Job creation and

family stability

HOPE NOTES FALL 2012 13

ALI AT HIS OFFICE

Leadership

development

Where are they now?We return to a graduated community to hear how the FH partnership changed a student’s future and an entire village.

The Attendance Award

KAMONYI, RWANDA

At the beginning of the partnership only a quarter of the

kids regularly attended school. There were many reasons

for such low enrolment: kids would often be sick, parents

couldn’t afford the school fees, there weren’t enough

teachers or classrooms, and parents regularly needed the

kids to work for extra money. One by one, these issues are

being addressed. At first, progress was hard to see, but

we’re excited to report that 90 per cent of children now

have a 100 per cent attendance record!

Parents Who Pave the Way ANLONG VENG, CAMBODIA

Vuthy would often miss school because she was sick or because she needed to work to help the family’s income. When Vuthy got sponsored, her mom learned new health and sanitation practices, and Vuthy stopped falling constantly ill. Then her mom joined a Savings and Learning Group and was able to start a business to provide for their family. Today, Vuthy’s mom is an FH volunteer, helping other families make the same changes she did. Thanks to her hard work, Vuthy—and other children—are back in school!

Access to education is not always a given in the developing world, but part of

the long-term goal in each

FH partner community is

accessible education. Child

sponsors, parents, teachers

and the children themselves

all play a part in making these promising changes.

Back to schoolProGress rePort

Vuthy—and other children—are back in school! Big Drop in Drop-OutsMETRO MANILA, PHILIPPINES

In a major turnaround, the drop-out rate has decreased by 50 per cent for primary and secondary schools. This is thanks to FH’s emphasis on the value of education when speaking with parents, and through the tutoring program set up with university students from the city. With the extra academic help and encouragement, students are improving their reading comprehension and are inspired to continue their studies!

Big Drop in Drop-OutsBig Drop in Drop-OutsBig Drop in Drop-Outs


Excellence in InfrastructureMBALE, UGANDA

At a recent PTA meeting, parents decided to help with the construction of three new classrooms at one primary school and a block of latrines at another. They agreed to provide semi-skilled labour, fetch water, and make or buy bricks for the entire school building project. In another village, parents petitioned the government to send more teachers for their schools, and then they went to work constructing teachers’ houses for the three new out-of-town teachers.

Back to school


Extraordinary ExtracurricularsKAYANZA, BURUNDI

It says a lot about the progress of an education system when extracurriculars get introduced. That’s the case in some villages in Kayanza, where several clubs are now thriving. Students are enjoying Youth Parliament, Quiz and Puzzle Club, Choir, Soccer, and Drumming.

Another group that is discriminated against are the Horijon, part of the “untouchables” in the Hindu caste system. Teachers didn’t realize that Horijon children were just as capable of learning as the other students, and so never encouraged them or invested in them. FH began encouraging these children and families to reach their God-given potential, and they began to excel. Teachers were both thrilled and shocked to see them do so well at their exams — placing in the top-ten percentile of their classes!

Improving Access for AllMYMENSINGH, BANGLADESH

Gender inequality is a major issue in this area, and women and their children are not given an equal opportunity at education. FH is teaching mothers about their value as women and is helping them earn an income, and now many families send both their sons and daughters to school!

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IT’S COMING! IT’S COMING!

1 - 31741 Peardonville RoadAbbotsford, BC V2T 1L21.800.667.0605

[email protected]

facebook.com/Poverty.Revolution

Poverty Revolution

GUINEA FOWL $35/PAIRThey may not be the most attractive feathered friends,

but these robust pheasant-like birds provide eggs, meat, and offspring that generate food and income for families, and they can endure harsher conditions than

many other birds. Guinea Fowl may not be easy on the eyes, but they are a great fit for a family’s needs.

Here’s a sneak beak at this holiday season’s Gift Guide.

Watch for me and other new items this

Christmas!


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hope notes - fall 2012

Documents

fh canada office

world page

hungry fh network

developing community

poverty revolution

charity page

strong partnership

stories of hope