Your gifts of mosquito nets save lives in Mozambique

Since August last year, we have distributed over 8 000 nets in the Nhacuste Kamissava, Boquisso, Bem Aventurada da Virgem Maria de Trevo and Funhlouro communities – bringing the total number of nets distributed in 2007 to 28 000.

None of this would have been possible without support from our overseas friends – grateful thanks to you all.

In the words of Marinela, a fieldworker who helped deliver your gifts to distant places: 'We travelled to the Funhalouro community in October to distribute 4 000 nets. It was very difficult to get there. The roads are very, very bad and it took us six hours to travel 190 miles.

'But is was so worthwhile when we arrived and saw the people waiting for us.'

The fieldworkers teach villagers about malaria and how to avoid the killer disease, before handing out the insecticide treated mosquito nets.

Mothers with young children receive their nets first - as babies are most at risk of dying of malaria.

Please continue to help keep them safe, by supporting our anti-malaria campaign again this year. Your donation – made online right now – really can safe a life!

New Archbishop of Cape Town elected

Bishop Thabo Makgoba of the Diocese of Grahamstown has been elected as Archbishop of Cape Town and Metropolitan of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa (ACSA).

The bishop was 'collated' (inducted) as our Archbishop on 1 January 2008, and will be enthroned in March. He succeeds Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane who retired on December 31 after serving as ACSA's Primate since 1996.

Bishop Makgoba has served as the thirteenth bishop of the Grahamstown Diocese since February 2004, and following in the footsteps of his two predecessors – Archbishop Ndungane and Archbishop Desmond Tutu – said he has ‘very big shoes and miters’ to fill.

As Archbishop, he will oversee 26 dioceses which extend beyond South Africa and include the Islands of Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha, Mozambique, Namibia, Lesotho, Swaziland and Angola.

A place of love, healing and hope

Hawston Hospice is a place where the sick and dying come to live out their final days in peace and dignity.

It’s a loving space which friends like you have made possible. Which why we’re glad to tell youthat work has started on the new ‘wing’.

When Reverend Pam identified the need for a home for children who have been infected and affected by HIV and AIDS, she contacted us for help.

Along with our supporters, Cameron Sanders from All Saints Church Pasadena has been raising money to fund the new building.

We’re one step closer to realising our dream of having a place where sick children can live with dignity too. And it’s all because people like you care!

Daily meals are a life-saver

In places like Mpaka, Swaziland, conditions are heartbreaking. Once a busy coal mining town, people now barely survive by farming – because of the drought which has devastated crops since 2002.

Some 40% of the country’s population faces acute food and water shortages, while over 50% of adults are having to eat less. This year’s
harvest is the worst in living memory.

But thanks to you, we’re able to feed 137 people – mainly children – every day – in areas which have been hardest hit, like Mpaka. And
we’re pleased to report that the food friends like you help to provide is a life-saver. Thank you!

With love from St Stephen’s

We were delighted to meet Gerry and June Tickner, who came to visit us at the HOPE Africa offices on 26 September.

The purpose of the Tickner’s visit was to deliver a £650 cheque
from their parish, St Stephen's, Congleton. The parish raised the funds
through various fundraising events – including a coffee morning, a pie and pea supper, a cheese and wine, quiz nights, a lay on breakfast and a concert featuring a band.

Pictured above are the generous parishioners of St Stephens, who joined in to raise the money.

Thank you from all of us – and from all the people who will benefit from your kindness!

Giving from the heart for children in need

HOPE Africa is so grateful for the loving donation made by Dawn Rhodes, who donated the gift she received from her colleagues when she retired recently.

Ms Rhodes worked in South Africa as a nurse for many years from 1963 to 1971, in the paediatric ward at Groote Schuur Hospital right here in Cape Town. Ms Rhodes’ donation of £300 has been used to improve the lives – and futures – of children infected and affected by HIV and Aids.

(Right) Dawn Rhodes generously sent her retirement gift to HOPE Africa.

Your kindness bears fruit

Vegetable gardens tended by local woman are a
sustainable source of nutritious, fresh vegetables.

The three Dioceses in the Eastern Cape that are supported by HOPE Africa are the Diocese of Mthatha, Diocese of Grahamstown and Diocese of Umzimvubu.

We’re sure you’ll be glad to hear that our farming initiatives are bearing wonderful fruits – healthy vegetables – for improved nutrition
and health.

Our three sewing projects are also growing from strength to strength – with a total of 14 members. The wonderful news is that some 115
children and adults benefit from the money which these projects earn, by sewing and selling clothing and scarves, and vestments and banners for local churches.

Their success is also your success – because you care enough to
help! Thank you.

Marimba Connexion performs at the Sisonke Cultural Village
during the Hermanus Whale Festival

Marimba Connexion - making sweet music

Their vision was to use music, the universal language in a country with more than 11 commonly spoken languages, to bring people – especially underprivileged youth – together and help rebuild the nation.

But over the past few years, Marimba Connexion have achieved far more than that! With three CD recordings under their belt, a loyal fan following, and a calendar full of gig dates – the most recent of which was opening for the Gladys Knight Show in Cape Town – this group of talented musicians is really going places!

The clear notes and enchanting harmonies of the marimba are an ancient and integral part of African heritage. Learning to play the instrument takes concentration, commitment and the ability to work together with others – all of which are qualities we encourage in our youth.

From the school children who practice at St Mary's Church in Strand, to the adults who take to the concert stage, Marimba Connexion is one big happy family that is proving it is possible to rise above circumstances and find hope and meaning in life.

HOPE in Africa Award

A prize of R50 000 is offered to the parish which submits the best story about it's community outreach project to HOPE Africa.

HOPE Africa acknowledges and recognises that parishes within the Anglican Church of Southern Africa have been and are currently implementing projects that contribute to the social development of their communities. By recognising and awarding a parish, we hope to encourage them, as well as highlighting the leadership role that the Church plays in the development of communities.

The objectives of the award are to:

• Give recognition to parishes that are involved in outreach programmes that build bridges within their local communities.
• Motivate parishes to enhance their social outreach programmes
• Highlight and  promote the sharing of lessons learned and challenges  amongst and between parishes
• Improve the profile and publicize good practices within the Anglican Church of Southern Africa
• Promote commitment in seeking to transform and build the capacity of the Anglican church.

Any parish within the Anglican Church of Southern Africa can enter by sending the typewritten story of its community projects to Hope Africa.The deadline for all stories is the 31st of January 2008.

Please click here to download the RULES of the competition.

Anglican Peace and Justice Network meets in Rwanda and Burundi

Under the inspired leadership of the Right Reverend Pie Ntukamazina, Bishop of Bujumbura, Burundi, members of the Anglican Peace and Justice Network from 17 dioceses met from 27 September to 3 October to discuss conflict transformation and the role of violence in societies throughout the world.

The members, who included HOPE Africa CEO Delene Mark,were deeply sobered by a visit to the Rwandan genocide museum and visibly shaken by a visit to a site where 5,000 people were slaughtered after taking refuge in a church. The site now serves as a memorial to the victims of the genocide.  Sudan representative Bishop Micah Dawidi prayed for the victims and their families, and in fact the entire meeting was enveloped in a spirit of prayer and reverence for the sanctity of life.

The Church is participating in the hard work of repentance, forgiveness and reconciliation and APJN members were encouraged to see signs of rebirth among the people in the country, especially in the areas of education and reconciliation.

After the Rwanda visit, members of the Network spent six nights in Bujumbura, Burundi – a country racked by years of civil strife and conflict.  Bishop Pie Ntukamazina led the group to a memorial site on the grounds of a Roman Catholic seminary in the city of Buta, where 40 seminarians and workers were slaughtered by rebels.

The rebels had demanded that the seminarians separate themselves along ethnic lines so that one group would be killed and the other spared.  The young men refused, making a courageous decision to die together rather than be separated. 

Two widows shared their pain and suffering with members of the Network. While their near death experiences may be over, they and thousands of other women continue to live in difficult situations of poverty, lack of housing, lack of means to support their children and, for many, the reality of having to live with HIV and AIDS as a result of infection from sexual abusers.

APJN supports healing through processes of truth telling, repentance and restorative justice.  The Anglican Church has a huge and important role to play in these processes.

In many situations, the Church has the difficult and sometimes dangerous task of speaking out against unjust political conditions and violence.

For more information please click here. or on the following links:
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_90553_ENG_HTM.htm
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_90539_ENG_HTM.htm

Hope rises from the ashes

Living in shacks made from wood, iron and plastic sheeting, the residents of Luiskamp eke out a living in the worst conditions. And when a runaway fire reduced their humble homes – and all their possessions – to rubble and ash, they were left with nothing.

But fortunately, thanks to the partnership that HOPE Africa has with the Church of Ascension together with the assistance of caring folks overseas and locally, we were able to help the community of Luiskamp.

We provided cement, poles, nails and metal sheeting to rebuild their homes, as well as school uniforms donated by local schools for the children. For people like Marianne Gallant and her three children, it was a Godsend. Thank you to everyone who rallied round to help.

TEAM conference a great success

From the exuberant opening Eucharist on 7 March, to the moving closing ceremony, the TEAM 2007 (Towards effective Anglican Mission) Conference held outside Johannesburg has been hailed as
a resounding success.

In his opening address, Archbishop Ndungane [pictured left, with the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. and Right Honourable Dr Rowan Williams] said ‘This conference provides us with an opportunity to rally around issues of poverty. It offers us an opportunity to harness the energy, commitment and potential of faith communities to make a constructive contribution towards the realization of sustainable livelihoods for everyone.’

HOPE Africa began planning the conference – which brought together 412 delegates from 33 Provinces – in 2005. We’d like to say a very big ‘thank you’ for the very special role you play in helping us to achieve the goals which were set at the conference – there’s much work to be done – and your support makes it all possible! Visit www.team2007.org for more information.