GROUP HELPS LIFT BURDEN OF DEBT
Christians Against Poverty called ‘truly amazing’
In 1996, Christians Against Poverty (CAP) was established in the U.K. to help people in financial hardship become debt-free. The charity branched into Canada in 2013, and in 2015, a CAP debt counselling centre was opened in Saskatoon with Lisa Hrycan as manager. The centre operates in partnership with Cornerstone Church and has helped dozens of individuals and families in the local community.
“This service is literally saving lives,” Hrycan says. “A third of our clients are feeling suicidal when they first call for debt help. It’s a great privilege to help them see a way forward. We often start with people when they’re at their very lowest. But when they discover there is a way out, no matter how bad their situation looks to them, it’s a great joy to see their hope restored.”
Hrycan describes CAP as a charity dedicated to reducing financial hardship in Canada with the help of local churches. It works with clients through debt counselling centres and the CAP Money Course programs, all of which are free and backed by financial experts at the organization’s head office.
CAP works face-to-face with the client, assesses their situation, and sets up a plan where CAP negotiates with creditors on the client’s behalf. The client agrees to put their money into a personalized budget plan and lets CAP distribute it, including putting a portion in savings. CAP walks alongside until the client is debt-free.
“The savings part is huge,” Hrycan says. “We had a situation where six months into the program, a mom crashed her car. She was in a panic because she had to pay the insurance deductible and had no money to do that. I looked at her CAP plan and said, ‘You have the money. It’s in your savings account.’ She was so relieved. She could see the CAP plan was working and it spurred her to keep going with it.”
Hrycan generally meets several times with a client in the initial stages, visiting the person’s home and helping come up with a plan to become debt-free and in charge of their finances. Once a clear picture emerges of the person’s financial situation, Hrycan passes them on to a head office team that works with the client to plan a budget.
The only prerequisite is that the client has some regular income stream, whether it’s a wage, EI benefits, or social assistance. “Even if it’s minimal,” Hrycan says, “we can make it work. That’s why CAP exists, to help really lowincome people.”
Participating churches help CAP in practical ways.
“For instance, one of our clients has MS and was paying a cleaning person to clean her house. I asked around the church, and two ladies offered to help with this person’s housecleaning, eliminating a significant cost from her budget. Volunteers provide other services, as well, like giving rides, helping people with moving, taking them grocery shopping and to appointments, etc.”
CAP offers money management courses that are available to everyone, not just people with limited finances. “These are for anyone who wants to get (a) better handle on where their money is going,” Hrycan stresses. The courses generally run several times a year, one night a week for three weeks. Anyone interested should contact Cornerstone Church (306-931-4949) for upcoming course dates.
CAP’s local client base comes from across the city — young, old, single, married, with kids, with no kids.
CAP services come at no cost, with no strings attached. Clients do not have to connected with Cornerstone Church or with any church. They may be people with no faith at all.
“People in poverty are often very isolated. Many come from generational poverty with no family supports and no one who can help them. We don’t judge people for what has happened in the past, instead we show them how they can move on in a positive way. Knowing they have someone who can and will help them makes all the difference in the world,” Hrycan notes.
Success in the CAP system requires a certain level of client commitment. Once CAP starts negotiating with creditors on the client’s behalf, a tacit commitment is in place. Hrycan says CAP is viewed very positively in the financial community, and creditors are extremely receptive to CAP negotiations.
The organization recently went through a rigorous accreditation process with the Canadian Association of Credit Counselling Services and was awarded full accreditation.
CACCS CEO Henrietta Ross referred to CAP as “a truly amazing organization that genuinely cares about the most vulnerable among us by helping them in a dignified way and with the utmost of love and respect ... The extent of CAP’s dedicated support for a family’s well-being is unparalleled in Canada today.”
For more information on Christians Against Poverty, visit: www.capcanada.org.
We don’t judge people for what has happened in the past, instead we show them how they can move on in a positive way.