Tag: Christian Aid

Coming up! CHRISTIAN AID WEEK, 11–17 May 2025

Posted on by Jan Rutherford

It’s time to think Fundraising for Christian Aid – 7 Days to Make A Difference

Every year we find new ways to fundraise and to raise awareness during Christian Aid Week. This year, we kick start the week with a fundriasing Coffee Morning on Sat 10 May at Craigsbank Halls. Come along from 10.30am and enjoy some of the best baking in the area (ticket by donation on the door). You won’t be disappointed. A bustling book sale and a tombola will be part of the fun.

You can read more about the activities of Christian Aid by clicking here. We encourage everyone to consider whether they can support the work of this remarkable organisation.

What your donation will do:

  • £5 could buy a savings book for a member of a VSLA, setting them up to start their own small business and become finically independent.
  • £30 would help a family buy two Jerrycans to collect water from the river to carry back to their farm. Jerrycans provide irrigation to crops, especially during the dry season, maintaining food production for the family.
  • £50 would mean a vulnerable family can purchase a water storage tank. Water can then be stored for a few days rather than travelling to the communal water point, allowing instant access to water for washing, cleaning and cooking.
  • £100 could help a woman set up her own small business with a starter kit; including money to purchase her first few items to sell. This means she could supply local grocery shops or restaurants with vegetables, set up a roadside shop, or buy maize to sell in bigger markets like Bujumbura.
  • £100 could also help buy a family a bicycle meaning easier transport to school, quicker access to medical treatment in emergencies or support carrying produce from farm to market.

There are envelopes at the doors at church services. Or give safely and securely online. Click here to go to the Christian Aid donate page.

And the main Edinburgh Christian Aid booksale is back too! You can find it at the New Town Church on George Street. More details here.

Christian Aid COFFEE MORNING

Saturday 10 May, 10:30-12 noon, Craigsbank Halls – MAKE A NOTE

Join us for a coffee morning in aid of Christian Aid. Tickets are available from the Church office or after Sunday Services, or on the door. A voluntary donation of £5 is suggested.

Our coffee mornings are always popular – with the very tastiest home baking! PLUS, there will be a book sale and tombola to enjoy too.

Pop the date in your diary now and we’ll get busy in the kitchen…

Christian Aid COFFEE MORNING

Posted on by Jan Rutherford

Saturday 10 May, 10:30-12 noon, Craigsbank Halls – MAKE A NOTE

Join us for a coffee morning in aid of Christian Aid. Tickets are available from the Church office or after Sunday Services, or on the door. A voluntary donation of £5 is suggested.

Our coffee mornings are always popular – with the very tastiest home baking! PLUS, there will be a book sale and tombola to enjoy too.

Pop the date in your diary now and we’ll get busy in the kitchen…

Christian Aid Hunger Lunch

This much cherished date for our diaries is rushing towards us. Make sure it is in your diary.

Sunday 15 December in the hall after the service at Craigsbank (roughly 12 noon). A simple lunch of soup, bread and cheese is offered in exchange for a donation (no matter how big or small) to Christian Aid.

All are welcome and you are encouraged to bring a friend along.

Seven days, so many ways to make a difference

Posted on by Jan Rutherford

Edinburgh’s fundraisers are on day two of their major annual campaign to support vulnerable communities around the world.

Craigsbank and East Craigs held a coffee morning as part of Christian Aid Week 2024. The baking was outstanding and our thanks go to the organisers and all who attended. A full report on money raised will follow.

Money raised during Christian Aid Week will help the organisation’s partners empower vulnerable communities to find practical and sustainable ways out of poverty.

This year’s appeal – from 12-18 May – is focussing on work in Burundi, one of the most densely populated and poorest countries in Africa. Heavily reliant on agriculture, it’s also one of the least prepared to combat the effects of climate change, including droughts, floods and landslides. The global cost of living crisis has intensified the challenges: more than 70 per cent of the population live in poverty and more than half of children are chronically malnourished.

Christian Aid has been working in Burundi since 1995 when it first offered humanitarian assistance to people surviving the civil conflict. Now, alongside local partners, the organisation helps establish Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs). These community-led groups mean people can save and borrow money, making small businesses possible, offering reliable and diverse incomes so families can eat regularly, get medicine when they need it, and build safer homes.

Thirty-five-year-old Aline Nibogora is the chairperson of a VSLA which supports some 25 families in a remote village, in Makamba Province. Aline escaped an abusive marriage only to find herself on the streets begging for a place to stay.

Her life changed when she went to a three-day, Christian Aid-funded community workshop. With a small start-up loan, Aline began trading avocados and peanuts locally. She’s now a grocery wholesaler and living on her own plot of land where she’s building a home for her family. In the next five years she hopes to expand, so one day she can buy a mill. This will provide a source of income without the need to transport heavy goods over long distances.

Christian Aid Week offers seven days and so many ways to make a difference – to find out more, visit https://www.christianaid.org.uk/.

Remember, Christian Aid envelopes will be available at the door before and after the service on Sunday. but click here for a new and easier way to donate to Christian Aid

Giving generously during Christian Aid Week

Posted on by Jan Rutherford

Today marks the start of Christian Aid Week and we encourage everyone to consider whether they can support the work of this remarkable organisation.

What your donation will do:

  • £5 could buy a savings book for a member of a VSLA, setting them up to start their own small business and become finically independent.
  • £30 would help a family buy two Jerrycans to collect water from the river to carry back to their farm. Jerrycans provide irrigation to crops, especially during the dry season, maintaining food production for the family.
  • £50 would mean a vulnerable family can purchase a water storage tank. Water can then be stored for a few days rather than travelling to the communal water point, allowing instant access to water for washing, cleaning and cooking.
  • £100 could help a woman set up her own small business with a starter kit; including money to purchase her first few items to sell. This means she could supply local grocery shops or restaurants with vegetables, set up a roadside shop, or buy maize to sell in bigger markets like Bujumbura.
  • £100 could also help buy a family a bicycle meaning easier transport to school, quicker access to medical treatment in emergencies or support carrying produce from farm to market.

There are envelopes at the doors at church services but do remember that we have made it even easier this year. You can now give safely and securely online. Click here for a new and easier way to donate to Christian Aid

Today and tomorrow in Edinburgh, you can attend the Christian Aid Book Sale at Bruntsfield. The George Street sale is not happening this year (it will be back in October in New Town Church, (formerly St Andrew’s and St George’s) but the Christian Aid Book Sale at Holy Corner at Bruntsfield is definitely on. This sale has taken place every year for 30 years. They welcome support from across the city and beyond.