Amazing effort sees international benefits

Poverty-stricken countries are being helped thanks to the kindness of Rutherglen locals.

The combined efforts of churches in the Rutherglen area has pulled in an impressive £7,940.66 for Christian Aid over the past few months.

Events from coffee mornings to quiz nights and door-to-door collections have been held to earn the cash, as well as individuals donating.

The amount raised would be enough to help 100 energy-saving stoves in Bangladesh.

These use half the firewood of ordinary stoves, so they not only save trees, but also give children more time to play and do their homework, instead of spending hours collecting firewood.

An example of the fund-raising would be Stonelaw Parish Church’s door-todoor collection , which earned £2,451.34, enough to help 10 Bangladeshi families raise their homes above dangerous floodwaters.

Val Brown, church and community manager for Christian Aid Scotland, was delighted at the amount raised by locals and believes it will be a help to many people.

She said: “It is thanks to our fantastic supporters in Rutherglen and others like them in churches across Scotland that Christian Aid is able to work with partners in more than 40 countries to enable people in some of the world’s poorest communities to lift themselves out of poverty”.

Christian Aid aims to bring an end to poverty around the world, by tackling its root causes as well as its effects.

That means they are fundraising in over 60 countries, helping deal with emergencies such as the recent flooding in South East Asia and the mudslides in Sierra Leone as well as ongoing problems like HIV and malaria.

The charity is also trying to deal with the causes of poverty, such as climate change, tax dodging and gender inequality.

The next fund-raising event for Christian Aid will take place on Saturday, October 21.

It will be a Rutherglen Christian Aid coffee morning held in the West and Wardlawhill Church hall on Hamilton Road and will last from 10am until noon.

Visit www.christianaid.org.uk for more information on Christian Aid’s work.

Thanks to our fantastic supporters in Rutherglen and others like them in churches across Scotland

Seeing the light Students at Chanukha Primary School demonstrate how solar lights can be used to help children study after dark in Michenga village, southern Malawi, a country helped by Christian Aid.