eg magazine spring/summer 2014

FREE!

Ipswich estate residents, churches & businesses team up to clean up; p18

Festival line-up features more than mud; p14

New project provides pathway from debt; p16

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Ipswich estate clean-up“Why can’t the world be like this every day!”Volunteer & local resident

Town Pastors“One of the best quality projects around the country”Archbishop of Canterbury

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the magazine that’s brimming with examples of especially good news!

Produced for you by Heart for Ipswich. Find out more about us on the back cover.

COMMUNITYpp 4-5 Ipswich Winter Night Shelter

When a shift of fire service crew got involved

pp 6-7 Talitha KoumAspiring journalist nominated for national award

pp 8-9 The SanctuaryIt’s surprising what you can find at a boot fair

pp 10-11 Ipswich estate Clean-UpSkips filled to the brim as a community unites

SAFETY & WELFAREpp 12-13 Town Pastors

Well-deserved recognition from the palace

pp 14-15 Festival PastorsStudents getting involved on the team

FINANCEpp 16-17 Christians against Poverty

A helping hand for people trapped in debt

EDUCATIONpp 18-19 Open the Book

Dedicated storytellers just keep on giving

FAITHpp 20-21 Meeting a student Chaplain

What motivates a spirit of generosity?

A successful second year

cleaning up an Ipswich estate;

pp 10-11

2 spring/summer 2014

10

Phil StolleryHeart for Ipswich

Main story

Welcome to the first edition of the E.G. magazine!

When things need a bit of a spring clean do we sit back and leave it? Not in Queensway... in May, local residents and churches teamed up to clean-up!

“Ipswich is one of the best places to live in the UK”, claimed a report at the start of this year*, and yet the comments of many local residents showed that there is still injustice, disadvantage and life poverty. Whatever your view or experience, there are ‘Especially Good News’ stories all around us.

Debut editionThis is the first edition of a magazine from Heart for Ipswich that highlights these ‘Especially Good News’ sto-ries to encourage and inspire!

Making a differenceAre you troubled by injustice or suffering? Concerned for the disadvantaged and those dealt a poor hand in life? Do you want to make a positive contribution to your community? In differ-ent areas in the town there are people making a real difference. You can help too!

With each initiative there are details given about how to get involved. Or you could e-mail [email protected] and be put in touch.

So what are you waiting for? Turn the page and hear more...

networkipswich.org.ukYou can find more stories on our website orfind us on facebook & twitter. All the videos can be found on our youtube channel by searching ‘heart4ipswich’ or http://bit.ly/h4ivid

Local resident and volunteer wishes every

day could be like the Clean Up; pp 10-11

* Cities Outlook report by the Centre for Cities think tank

3

Tackling big issues takes passion, determination and commitment. Ipswich Fire Service Green Watch joined with hundreds of volunteers to make it happen!

During the coldest nights of the year, homeless

men and women in Ipswich are offered a warm meal and a friendly place to stay at the Ipswich Winter Night Shelter.

According to IWNS chair, Reverend Paul Daltry, the shelter’s 12 beds were consistently full during its three-month run, with 47 guests hosted in total. The shelter is a collaboration of seven Ipswich churches, with each hosting a different

night of the week. Around 480 volunteers lent a hand in cooking and serving meals, preparing beds and making the guests feel at home.

Firefighters on call!This year firefighters from the Ipswich branch of the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service also helped out. They put together gift bags with the help of local supermarkets and took them down to the shelter on Christmas Day, where they joined in serving the guests.

“After listening to some of the guests, it could have been any of us in their situation”

Paul Dye,Green Watch Commander

Winter Hope for the Homeless© Jan Armitage


“We sort of looked about to see where we could muck in,” says Watch Commander Paul Dye. “Some of us did some washing up, some of us helped serve the food. The rest of us, we all sat and talked to the guests that were there. It was quite a good evening.”

“After listening to some of these people – as to how they got there, how they’ve ended up that way – it could easily happen to any of us really.”

The firefighters helped with all kinds of tasks, says Sarah Pemberton of Pre-vention, from cooking and cleaning, to chatting with guests or simply sitting with them in silence. “It’s about acknowledging that the person is there and it’s OK just to sit and be quiet.”

Running the shelter and talking with the guests has helped reveal more about the situations of homeless people in Ipswich, Rev. Daltry says. “We have learnt more about who most needs the shelter and become aware of the ‘hidden homeless’ or ‘sofa surfers’ – people who may sleep in cars some nights, or have friends who will put them up from time to time.”

A permanent solutionIWNS is about more than temporary solutions. According to Wendy Clay-don, Guest Coordinator, the shelter found accomodation for 18 guests. Many others found private housing, and several returned to their fam-ilies or moved in with friends.

The IWNS team is now work-ing to build partnerships with transitional housing provid-ers. “This way there will be a safe place that is a next step from being a guest at the shelter. It is somewhere to live where individuals can regain their independence,” says Rev. Paul Daltry.

Life has changed dramati-cally for many guests, says Wendy; including a young man with a drug addiction. “He had left his partner and their little girl because he felt his life was spiralling out of control.” Since coming to the night shelter, he has stopped using drugs and gone back to his family. “When I spoke to him last, he said life is just so different.”

Each winter IWNS provides an overnight shelter with hospitality, hosted each night by an Ipswich town centre church & a team of volunteers, taking in 12 people who would otherwise have to sleep rough.

[email protected]

“The welcome was really great, and as for the food, it was so good I actually put on weight!”IWNS guest

This QR code links to the latest H4I videos:http://bit.ly/h4ivid

Winter Hope for the Homeless

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NightShelter

hospitality & hope

Development of the original

hospitality & hope hospitality & hope

Shelter

IpswichWinter

Night

IpswichWinter

NightShelter

IpswichWinter

If you were given a chance to highlight something going on in Ipswich what would it be? Sophie Pratt chose a centre that aims to give women support and a second chance.

Eighteen-year-old Sophie Pratt from Ipswich was

given the opportunity to tell a news story in a short video by ITV Anglia. She chose to highlight the work of the Talitha Koum Community.

Each year ITV partner with the Media Trust to pass on skills and mentor young people to make news stories. The initiative, now in its third year, offers 18-25 year olds the chance to be mentored by experienced

broadcast journalists from ITV News in writing, report-ing and production skills.

Sophie’s Story isGood NewsSophie was one of nine final-ists from across the country. She first heard about Talitha Koum at a youth group at Rushmere Christian Fellow-ship, so when she heard about the ITV competition she entered a proposal to bring news of something good happening in her town.

“I wanted to highlight something good happening in Ipswich, an uplifting story of people working together on something positive.”

Sophie PrattStudent at Suffolk New College

Breaking into news


Why Talitha Koum?Talitha Koum is a charity aiming to build commu-nity to support women recovering from drug and alcohol addiction.

Sophie said: “I wanted to highlight something good happening in Ipswich, an uplifting story of peo-ple working together on something positive.”

Ken Donaldson, Project Director at Talitha Koum

said: “I am hugely encour-aged to see young people involved in this project.”

“We will be known both with-in the East Anglian region, and also nationally, as a cen-tre to which women can be referred to a very profession-al service that will see them through, back into society.”

Peter Matthews, Chair of the trustees, on the first accommodation block now with cladding completed:

“This block will accommodate the women who will live on site during their recovery. It will cater for 12 people at any one time, enabling them to learn new skills to help them re-integrate back into the community.

“There are few such centres in the country and it will give women caught up in cycles of addiction a second chance.”

This QR code links to Sophie’s videohttp://bit.ly/sophietk

This QR code links to the latest H4I videos:http://bit.ly/h4ivid

The Talitha Koum Christian Therapeutic Community will provide a purpose built residential therapeutic community for women recovering from drug and alcohol addiction. [email protected] 857432

Accomodation & Structure

The residential accommodation for the Talitha Koum Community is under construction on land leased from a working farm just north of Ipswich. It will be managed by a team of health professionals and trained volunteers.

The Therapeutic Community will offer a safe environment with a clear structure of boundaries and expectations where members have the opportunity to come to terms with their past within a community setting involving other students and staff. Some group therapy is integral to the programme and will be compulsory. In a therapeutic community the group relations and the community itself, rather than any single element, form the primary therapeutic agent. Membership is clearly defined, and staff will have a facilitative role.

Breaking into news

7

Representatives from St. Matthew’s church (in Portman Road) and other local churches are setting up a stall the Lions Club of Ipswich Car Boot Sale on the car park outside Ipswich Town Football Club. Their aim is to be place of blessing, healing and peace.

It’s a crisp, sunny morning at the Portman Road car boot

sale and by 8:30 business is already starting to quiet down for the stall holders. At the Sanctuary stall, volun-teers from local churches have handed out nearly all of their Palm Sunday crosses.

Fundraising and building relationshipsThe Sanctuary is a collabora-tion between St. Matthew’s and other local churches, whose aim is to bring the

love of Jesus to the Sunday morning boot sale. Their stall, manned by volunteers, sells a range of items donated by church members. It is currently raising money for churches in the diocese of Kagera, Tanzania, twinned with the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich.

But the fundraising is secondary to The Sanctu-ary’s main purpose. “It’s not about selling,” says volunteer Hannah Deaves. “We’re here

“It’s not just about selling and fundraising. We’re here to meet people too.”

Hannah Deaves, a volunteer at the Sanctuary

Seek to find at the bootfair


to build relationships.”

Freda Smith, 95, is The Sanctuary’s oldest volun-teer and had never been to a boot sale until her first Sunday helping with the stall. Now she walks the car park, handing out crosses and chatting to the shoppers. Sometimes she’ll strike up a conversation with some-one – and if she gets the chance, she’ll tell them about the significance of these crosses. But to start with she just says, ‘good morning’. “If they have a child, I say ‘how old are they?’ I talk about other things first.”

“I don’t push it,” she adds. “I’ve never found push-ing religion works.”

Boot fair churchRegular visitors are certainly starting to notice the church-es’ presence. “People will come back and say ‘Oh, I re-

member you, you’re from the church’,” said volunteer Dawn Gillet. And when shoppers learn that the money is going to charity, they’ll often pay more than the asking price.

Sometimes it’s too busy for anything more than selling, but during quieter moments, the volunteers try to strike up conversations with people who are browsing their wares. They offer prayer, as well as a range of Christian literature in different lan-guages. They get quite a few prayer requests as well – and thankfully there’s a prayer team from St. Matthew’s church at the ready. “I text them every hour or half hour to tell them prayer requests,” says Hannah. She also keeps the team updated on things that have gone well.

Part of the communityVolunteer Jon Shaw says he likes “getting out and being part of the community. Jesus got out and about… It’s about living it, rather than just singing about it.”

“Traders and customers are now aware of the local

churches and are starting to see they are loved and cared for,” says Rev. Tim Yau, who is part of The Sanctuary’s core team.

“Eventually, our hope is to have a presence at the car boot sale every week, to be a symbol of the Kingdom of God in that place and to see people transformed by discovering Jesus.”

They hope to set up shop at other boot sales later in the year and start raising money for local projects as well as the churches in Kagera.

Since February 2014 Representatives from St. Matthew’s church and other local churches have been setting up a stall at Car Boot Sale on the car park outside Ipswich Town Football Club. Their aim is to be a place of blessing, healing and peace.

“We are getting out and being part of the community”Jon Shaw, volunteer

Seek to find at the bootfair

9

Despite a few heavy May showers, over 60 volunteers, from local residents, businesses and churches lent a hand collecting large houshold waste from homes on the Queensway estate in Ipswich and filled the equivalent of 16 skips!

The residents of the Queensway Estate in Ip-

swich are enjoying a cleaner neighbourhood following a massive clean-up run by the Noisy Group. Sixty volun-teers, including residents from the estate, worked to collect and dispose of all kinds of rubbish, from settees and mattress to large electrical equipment.

Over 16 skips full!The Friday before the event, volunteers went door to door

delivering flyers; around 40 residents then made appointments to have their unwanted goods collected. Others brought their items to Nansen Road Baptist Church, where volunteers waited to unload and sort rubbish into different skips. By the end of the day, about 16 skips of rubbish had been removed from more than 90 houses.

This is the second year a clean-up has been held on the Queensway Estate –

“We cleaned up so many unwanted items, so it must have made a big difference to many residents.”

Bex Collings, a Clean Up volunteer

Team-up to clean-up


last year’s volunteers filled the equivalent of 20 skips. The Noisy Group, which has been working on the estate for over 14 years, hopes to turn the clean-up into an annual event.

Residents, church-es and businesses

Mick Earrey, of the Noisy Group, says: “It is really great to see the local churches, businesses and community all working so well together. More and more churches are working for the good of the communities they serve. This is God’s love in action. It’s simply being Jesus!”

“We cleaned up so many unwanted items, so it must have made a big difference to many residents,” says

volunteer Bex Collings. “The time I was there we were constantly busy.”

Residents of the estate pro-vided two vans to help with the clean-up efforts. Local businesses also took part, with Speed-Style Auto Centre of Ashbocking donating a van and a team of volunteers, and skips provided for a reduced cost by Sackers Recycling.

Gets all involved“When we were asked to supply the equipment and a vehicle we didn’t hesi-tate,” said a spokesman for Speed-Style Auto Centre. “We think this is a simple but effective idea that gets everybody involved.”

Bex Collings said she hoped that residents of the estate “will not only be pleased to get rid of unwanted items, but touched by the kindness of people reaching out into the local community to help.”

Several residents said they were very willing to help out in future events and one man commented, “Why can’t the world be like this every day?”

Founded in the year 2000, The Noisy Group are people united from different churches in the Queensway area.

For two years running they have had the support of Sackers, local businesses & retailers, BBC Radio Suffolk, Ipswich Borough Council and Suffolk District Council to collect large unwanted household waste from the gardens and homes of Queensway residents.

Mick [email protected]

“Why can’t the world be like this every day?”Queensway resident and Clean Up volunteer

This QR code links to the Noisy Group’s youtube channel:http://bit.ly/noisygrp

Team-up to clean-up

11

What happens when you put a Christian and some Freddos in the middle of a drunken brawl? Neil Boast, former Suffolk Police Sergeant, has the MBE to testify that it’s not quite what you’d expect.

Neil Boast, 51, a former Police Sergeant, has been

applauded for his services to Suffolk Police and the community with an MBE. Neil played a key part in spear-heading the Town Pastors.

Neil said: “It’s fantastic and I’m overwhelmed. It makes you reflect on your whole life and who has invested in you, cared for you, loved you and even criticised you because they drive you on to keep on doing things.”

“I take the recognition for this on behalf of all the Town Pastors. OK yes, I received it but every Town Pastor in Suffolk is welcome to wear it and say: ‘I got an MBE!’”

A complete turn aroundNB: “In 2005 there was a real problem with alcohol- related crime and disorder. One figure that haunted us was that every Christmas for three years running there was a drink-related

“One of the best quality projects around the country. It’s exciting to see so many involved in practical action.”Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury

Neil Boast, former Suffolk Police Sergeant

A changing night scene


murder. There was often not enough police and we were searching for solutions to get a hold of the problem.”

“Liz Beaton, from Ipswich in Prayer, spoke to me about an idea that prayer could reduce crime in Ipswich. As I called myself an atheist at the time, I was initially very sceptical. So I gave Liz a polite but dismissive response. Later I challenged her that there must be Christians who want to go out and give chocolate and water, mainly because that’s what I would like to be given on a night out!”

“So we embarked on the journey as an experiment to test the waters.”

The journey begins“I was incredibly nervous whether it would work, because it was my neck on the line if all went wrong. But I thought, ‘What have we

got to lose?’ At first I made sure I was out every Friday and Saturday from Novem-ber through to February because I was so fearful that a Town Pastor would be hurt. I am pleased to say that, to this day, none of them have ever been hurt.”

“I saw some really interesting stuff! One night there were two groups of men in the centre of town and I could tell by their body language that there was going to be a fight. A female Town Pastor entered and just diffused the situation better than any group of police would, I don’t really know why! I was quite angry she had put herself at risk, but when I challenged her she said: “I prayed and God told me I was going to be safe.” What could I say!?

“I witnessed much more like this, with Town Pastors caring for people high at risk of becoming a victim of crime, by sending people safely home, administering first aid and getting stuck in.”

“Christians were making a difference with their soft

skills. They don’t need to preach to people, their ac-tions are doing that for them.”

Statistics came through and when I presented them to the Home Office they were astounded. From the previous 5 years, assaults on police were down 50%, sexual assaults on females down 70%, ABH down 48%, GBH down over 40%. Any senior police officer would bite your hand off for a 15% reduction on any of those!”

Could you be part of a team walking around the streets of Ipswich, caring for people on a Friday and Saturday night? Or perhaps in the Prayer Team supporting the action of the Town Pastors and the people of the town?

www.townpastors.org.uk [email protected]

“They don’t need to preach to people, their actions are doing that for them.”

A changing night sceneThis QR code links to the latest H4I videos:http://bit.ly/h4ivid

Heart4Ipswich - YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMrGR4buu_MuQT...

http://kaywa.me/S7fRB

Download the Kaywa QR Code Reader (App Store &Android Market) and scan your code!

13

Everybody loves a festival atmosphere! In Southwold people are fighting for the right to party by providing care and a coffee. It’s working – crime and major incidents are at an all-time low!

Many people in Ipswich have heard of Town Pas-

tors – Christians who give up their time to look after people out clubbing on a Friday and Saturday night. This sum-mer, over 50 Town Pastors from 9 towns in Suffolk will be braving the mud at Latitude, a 4-day music and arts festival in Southwold.

As well as having a refresh-ment tent and prayer tent, giving away mugs, key-rings, sweets and wristbands with

messages of personal safety, the Pastors patrol night and day, looking after the vulner-able, those in distress with alcohol/drug or other prob-lems, offering help and wel-fare to over 35,000 people!

At Latitude 2010 there were over a dozen alleged serious offences, but last year there was not one serious crime reported – contrasting with other major UK festivals that have had far higher crime figures and sadly even

“It is going to be great fun! I am a people-person so I am mainly looking forward to meeting new people and providing a safe place.”

Loushaé Pratt, a social-work student at UCS

Caring in the festival mud


deaths resulting from the use of ‘legal-high’ drugs.

Steve Jay, Festival Pastors co-ordinator adds, “A girl arrived at the prayer tent in tears and bare feet, her money and wellies stolen and fallen out with her friends. She wanted to leave early but didn’t know how. We prayed for her and miraculously obtained a free pair of pink wellies from a kind stall-hold-er and we escorted her through the mud to get the shuttle bus to the train sta-tion. Her comment was that she will look for Christians like us in her home city!”

Students supporting the Festival PastorsThis summer a party of students from UCS are joining in to soak up the festival atmosphere and lend a helping hand. When Loushaé Pratt, a social-work

student, heard about the opportunity to serve on the team, she jumped at it.

EG: What will you be doing at Latitude this Summer?

LP: Getting to see great art-ists and comedians! But really it’s about providing a safe place where people can chill out and get great coffee – I can make really good coffee! And we’ll be making sure that people who are there to have a great time can do that in a safe way, keeping the atmosphere happy.

EG: Why do you want to help?

LP: Obviously I think it will be great fun! I am a peo-ple person so I am mainly looking forward to meeting new people, and giving a homely space at the festival, spreading the joy. When Steve Jay, Festival Pastor coordinator, invited us at the UCS Christian Union I immediately knew I wanted to do it. It’s definitely not just to fill my time! I am doing loads this summer; as soon as Latitude ends I am working as a Community Facilitator

throughout the Summer, and as an Events Steward when I get the chance, making sure I shake off the overdraft!

EG: How do you cope with tents and mud?

LP: Oh I love tents, as long there is no mud involved! There is a very limited time that I can tolerate mud… we’ll have to let you know how long I can deal with it.

EG: What artists are you most looking for-ward to seeing?

Mostly the comedians. If I get a chance I would love to see Josh Widdicombe or Seann Walsh. As for music I think Two Door Cinema Club will be brilliant.

Festival Pastors have been at Latitude since 2011 and last year at Leeds & Reading Festivals and Aldeburgh Carnival [email protected]

“Patrolling a venue the size of a small town is challenging enough but when you add in thick mud it adds a whole new dimension!”

This QR code to links to the latest H4I videos:http://bit.ly/h4ivid

Caring in the festival mud

15

Debt is an unseen problem that many people find themselves trapped in. A new CAP centre in Ipswich offers people the way out of seemingly hopeless scenarios.

Members from Rushmere Christian Fellowship

were keen to empower people to manage their overbearing debt and took up the initiative to open a CAP centre in Ipswich. CAP (Chris-tians Against Poverty) is a charity that aims at providing free, long term support to anyone trapped in a situation of debt. Since the centre in Ipswich opened in November 2013, it has been helping people across the town.

Christians Against Poverty has been helping people out of debt for the past 17 years. There are currently 252 CAP Centres around the UK, all connected to a local church. In 2013 CAP saw 5,893 new families start the journey out of debt and con-tinued to help 6,103 existing families. In this time 2,122 families became debt free.

How it worksThe centre is run by Jayne Green, the Ipswich CAP Cen-

“It’s been a privilege to go and visit people and to bring hope into hopeless situations.”

Jayne Green, the Ipswich CAP centre manager

Offering a route out of debt


tre Manager. Jayne visits peo-ple in their own homes and CAP then produces a budget for the client and negotiates with their creditors. CAP will advise and support the client until they are debt free.

“CAP work out fair budgets, negotiate with creditors and can take people through insolvency procedures, so there is always an answer.”

A client says, “CAP changed our life for the good. We’re getting debt free now, made a lot of new friends and we are happy to answer the front door. My wife is like a differ-ent person now, she goes out of the house! Carry on doing what you are doing CAP!”

Bringing hopeJayne says, “It’s been a privilege to go and visit people and to bring hope into hopeless situations. No matter how dire their

financial situation might seem, there is someone who can help. I have been overwhelmed at how quickly we have got people coming through since we’ve only been opened a few months. My hope for this year is that the people who need it will know about CAP and that we will start to see lives transformed as people start their journeys out of debt.”

Look out for more in future editions of EG for what CAP is doing to help people step out of debt in Ipswich.

A real life saverCAP centres across the UK are making a real difference to people’s lives and communities.

36 of CAP clients considered sui-cide before asking CAP for help.

70%missed meals because of their previous situation.

%

76%of clients said debt damaged their relationship.

“CAP changed our life for the good. We’re getting dept free, we can answer the front door now!”

How to contact the Ipswich CAP centre:

0800 328 0006www.capuk.org

This QR code links to the official CAP video channel:http://bit.ly/CAPvideos

Offering a route out of debt

17

D

Storytelling is woven in to who we are, whatever our community or background. Primary schools across Ipswich are bulging with stories of Biblical proportions because of the Open the Book teams.

Early in the morning a group of people gather

in a living room. In just 30 minutes they are going to pull on different shawls, crowns and outfits to transform themselves into the storytell-ing world. Over a cup of tea they run through a simple narrative and decide when to bring in any audience par-ticipation: “When the storm comes… they’ll love this bit!”

Stage props are piled into a car ready to arrive at

the local primary school. Today Murrayfield Primary School, on Nacton Road, are waiting in anticipation of what story will be brought to their main hall this time.

As soon as each volunteer arrives in the school hall they dress up in character. There is time for a final run-through of the script before children file in to the room class by class. It is difficult to see a hand in the room that is not stretching

“It has been great to see how big a part OTB plays into the lives of the children, how much they look forward to them coming.”

Catherine Adams, Senior Children’s Work Coordinator at CYM

Bringing epic stories to life


high when the headmaster says, “Today the team want two sensible children to act out the stormy seas!”

Everyone takes partThis week’s story is ‘the fish-ermen and the storm’. When silence fills the room, the narrator leads into the story. At the peak of the storm the whole hall are waving their arms around to imitate treacherous waters. At the end of the story children are given the option to reflect on when they may

have been worried or fearful of a storm, or something that someone might say.

On the way out, a teacher catches one of the team to say: “Thank you so much for all you do; I always look forward to your visits, keep it up!”

Lively storytellingEvery week, Christians around the country bring the Bible to life in primary schools through lively storytelling such as this. Shift workers, part-time teachers, retired folk and mums are amongst those taking part. Portable versions of a giant Goliath and Jonah’s whale, Noah’s animals, and Joseph’s coat of many colours have all played a part in bring-ing Bible stories to life and making them memorable to children in local schools!

Trevor Ford, a volunteer sto-ryteller, says, “Thousands of children in towns and cities up and down the country are hearing all the well-known Bible stories before they reach the age of 11!”

What a fantastic and fun initiative that brings a lively story and a life lesson to reflect upon.

Open the Book began in 1999 with a small group of volunteers in Bedford. It has now blossomed into an8500-volunteer, nationwide initiative. The aim is to help schools meet the curriculum requirement which states, ‘All schools must provide opportunities to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development’.

Open the Book in Ipswich

15 primary schools are visited by Open the Book teams and presented with a dramatised Bible story each fortnight.

Two more schools were added to the list this year.

Catherine AdamsChristian Youth Ministries01473 216 [email protected]

“Thousands of children in towns and cities up and down the country are hearing all the well-known Bible stories”

Trevor Ford, Train conductor and OTB volunteer

Bringing epic stories to life

19

in

What motivates a generous spirit?

To uncover the motivation behind

many people serving in projects

across Ipswich, Ben Reay interviews UCS and Suffolk

New College chaplain Tracy Allen.

BR: How long have you been working in the Chaplaincy?

TA: I started the job in January 2013 after applying for the post at very short notice and have not regret-ted it one bit; I love it.

BR: Describe a typical day for you.

TA: No two days are the same! We don’t spend hours shouting about faith. It’s more about reaching people’s practical needs, regard-less of their background.

The student life can throw

up all kinds of instability and people often find themselves in a place of vulnerability.

We provide a high level of care for students, working with local charities and churches. Recent exam-ples include referring two students to a foodbank so they could have food, and standing alongside a single mother who was overwhelmed at the idea of opening a new bank account.

BR: How does your faith affect your work?

TA: My job is not about


What motivates a generous spirit?

Tracy Allen is Chaplaincy Coordinator and Lay Chaplain serving University Campus Suffolk and Suffolk New College. She is married with two young girls, aged 7 & 3 and lives in Manningtree, Essex. She is part of St. Mary’s church, in Lawford.

TheSecond ChanceSpecialistIn the Bible you can find a story that Jesus told to illustrate the character of God when it feels like everything has gone wrong.

Find it in Luke chap-ter 15 verses 11-32.

throwing faith into people’s faces, but to provide practical care and serve people just as Jesus did. It has been really interesting to work with other faiths on this cause. Our differences are really important, but there are so many surprising similari-ties in the care we give.

BR: What do you think motivates people to care?

“It is very rewarding being able to help people who find themselves in all kinds of instability and vulnerability.”

TA: I think it’s very rewarding being able to help people.

Securing funding to pay rent for the final term for someone who has been unwise with their money might seem to not make sense. Personally I aim to serve Jesus and be his hands and feet on Earth. My experience of God is that he specialises in second chances (and many more). Because of Jesus we are all accepted as we are, with our faults and failures and given true freedom.

I think practical help is a great way to demonstrate the love God has for all people.

21

Engaging with community transformation

"Transforming Our Community"A Church-based response

Be inspired & Resourced The opportunities for the Church to serve people in our communities today are amazing!This evening will help you:

• Hear about local and national success stories • Choose from a menu of tried & tested church-based community projects • Explore projects that fit your community & church • Hear how to start - ReadySteadyGo • Access start-up grants of £1,500-£2,000 easily

12th June 7:00pmAt St Augustine's Church, Ipswich, IP3 8TH

Working with: &

Register for your free place at www.cinnamonnetwork.co.uk

For more infomation visit www.cinnamonnetwork.co.uk or ring 07532 106811

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Heart for Ipswich has no membership; it is a network of Christian leaders, local churches, associated ministries and organisations across denominations and traditions. Rooted in prayer, its aim is to serve and extend communication and cooperation in bringing personal and community transformation across the town.

For more stories, visit Network Ipswich www.networkipswich.org.uk

To submit stories contact: [email protected]

Editor & Designer Ben Reay Contributors Phil Stollery, Jade McFarlandPhotographer Sam MulderHeart for Ipswich coodinator Steve Jay Creative Direction Copywrighting & Creative Communications Ltd

© 2014

Ben Reay Phil Stollery Jade McFarland Sam Mulder Steve Jay

eg magazine spring/summer 2014

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