Swapping Solar StorieS - Anglican Overseas Aid

A letter from the CEO“This year we are celebratingour 25th year of service. I think thishistorical perspective is especiallyhumbling. When we stop and thinkabout the number of people and placesthat Anglican Overseas Aid has touched,we realise just how much we have tothank God for.”Changing of the guard at Anglican Overseas AidWhat an amazing 6 months it’s been! It’s a real privilege to be appointedCEO of Anglican Overseas Aid. Since starting, it has been wonderfully gratifyingto learn about some extraordinary people and projects making a hugedifference around the world. You will find some of these highlighted in thisnewsletter edition.This year we are celebrating our 25th year of service. I think this historicalperspective is especially humbling. When we stop and think about the numberof people and places that Anglican Overseas Aid has touched, we realisejust how much we have to thank God for. Working mainly through Anglicannetworks has the added benefit of bringing different parts of the church closertogether. There is so much we can achieve and learn by working together.It is likely that you will be reading this edition of our newsletter around Easter.The final journey towards the Cross is an overwhelming experience. I have beenreflecting lately that so many parts of the world face a bleak and uncertainfuture. Perhaps the poor and the broken-hearted empathise more easily withthe journey of our Lord. In thinking about Anglican Overseas Aid’s work it is myfirm conviction that faith and development go together. When we look towardsEaster Sunday we see a rising to new life and a hope that triumphs againstevery indication. This is a constant inspiration in our work.I want to take the opportunity to thank Alison Taylor for 10 years ofoutstanding service as Chair of the Board. Alison’s ministry is taking a newdirection with her appointment as a Bishop within the Archdiocese ofBrisbane. We heartily congratulate Alison, and know that her passion to serveGod’s poor will go with her. At the same time we warmly welcome A/ProfJulian Rait as the new Board Chair.I also take this opportunity to thank so many people for their prayers for myown ordination as a Deacon last month. This marks an exciting new chapterin my ministry within the Anglican Church. Please pray with me that God’skingdom would come on earth, and that our shared ministry at AnglicanOverseas Aid may give expression to this hope.contentsSWAPPING SOLARSTORIESPacific program manager Kate Higgins sitsdown with Fiona Oates, Coordinator of oursolar program in Tanzania to discuss theirrespective programsFACES OF CHANGE 4-5Implementing programs with our partnersmeans celebrating successes but alsostanding in solidarity through hardshipLeave behind a smile 6What you can do to leave behind a lastinglegacy that will have a positive impact onthe world for years to comeWHERE THE MONEY WENT 6AT HOME WITH ANGLICANOVERSEAS AIDFind out about what the Anglican OverseasAid team has been doing and how you canget involvedto donateT (03) 9495 6100F 1800 249 880PO Box 389, Abbotsford, VIC 3067www.anglicanoverseasaid.org.auAll donations over $2 are tax deductible.Keep up to date with our monthly eNews, emailed straight toyour inbox. Email aoa@anglicanoverseasaid.org.au with theword “subscribe” in the subject line to get your updates.All photos are supplied by Anglican Overseas Aid unlessotherwise stated.37Rev. Bob Mitchell CEOPresident Dr Philip Freier, Archbishop of MelbourneChief Executive Officer Bob MitchellEditor Amanda SchofieldAnglican Overseas Aid is a member of the ACT Alliance and asignatory to the ACFID code of conduct www.acfid.asn.au2 ANGLICAN OVERSEAS AID Anglicord NewsPrinted on recycled paper.

Kate Higgins, Anglican Overseas Aid’s Pacific Program Manager,shared solar program highlights with Fiona from the Diocese of Ruahain Tanzania. Kate tells how their very different contexts actually havemany parallels.SWAPPINGSOLAR STORIESIrecently had the opportunity tocompare notes with Fiona on AnglicanOverseas Aid’s Pacific and Tanzaniansolar projects. As it turns out we havequite a lot in common.Fiona has spent the past 15 years workingin Tanzania with the Diocese of Ruaha,our program partner in Tanzania. Thanksto your generous response to ‘Gifts ofLight,’ the Diocese has been able to successfullyimplement its Solar 4 Schoolsproject. To date, we have installed 45solar light systems into secondary schools– your ‘gifts of light’ contributed to 15of these. We have also distributed 2,000desk lights to primary school studentshelping them to pass their competitivesecondary school entrance exam.As the Pacific Program Manager based inthe Solomon Islands, I have also witnessedthe relationship between providinglight – of which solar is often the mostviable option – and improving education.Fiona realised the great need for Solar4 Schools when 12 girls studying bycandlelight died because their dormitorycaught fire. She was also concernedabout the high-risk of sexual assault thatFiona Oates from theDiocese of Ruaha inTanzania shows a studenthow to use a solar lamp.young Tanzaniangirls face andwas certain thatmore light meantgreater security.This rings truein my contextas well. In theSolomon Islands,64% of womenover 15 have experiencedsexualor physical violence, with young womenbeing particularly vulnerable. We haven’tmoved into schools yet in the SolomonIslands but women have told me that theyfeel safer when their homes are well lit.I was happy to find that Fiona was interestedin discussing the technical side ofsolar. In the Pacific, providing vocationaltraining around solar maintenance isessential. One community leader in aremote part of Vanuatu remarked, “Ifwe have a spiritual problem, we have a‘doctor’ to fix it – our priest. If we have amedical problem we have a ‘doctor’ to fixit – our community nurse. But if we havea problem with some foreign technology,we have no ‘doctor’ to fix it”.Fiona has witnessed other organisations’solar systems lying dormant becausenobody has been trained to use them.This is something I have also noticedin the Pacific. To deliver a sustainableproject, it is essential we providethe training and tools so that solartechnology isn’t discarded.Our personal challenges were notdissimilar. Fiona recounted the difficultiesin reaching remote schools, of fulldays travelling in a rusty old Landrover,bumping along a dusty road. I know howexhausting travelling can be. I have spenthours – sometimes days at a time – rollingwith the waves on a rickety ship, goingto one of the nine hundred and ninetySolomon islands spread out across thevast Pacific Ocean.And we both love the same thing - gettingthe chance to work with communities.On a recent project evaluationa man told me he had been able tocheaply purchase a solar lamp anderadicate kerosene but had since goneback to using it. Concerned, I asked himwhy. “Because my daughter has won aplace at a secondary school on the otherside of the island, so I sent it with her todo her best study”, he replied. Workingin communities lets you celebrate thesuccesses and then work on the nextchallenge. In this case it was helping thisman budget for another solar light.Fiona’s proudest moments are hearingstories of children, previously unable tostudy because they have no light at home,walking back to school every night tostudy. The Solar 4 Schools systems havea central switch so they can be turned offat midnight. Fiona says this is necessarybecause children would study all night ifthey could. Working to overcome povertyisn’t about handouts, it’s about findinginnovative programs that help transformcommunities for the long-term. Usingsolar lights to greatly improve educationand safety is one such program.Our solar programs are funded bydonations from the Australian publicthrough initiatives like Gifts of Light,combined with AusAid grants. To findout more about Gifts of Light, go toanglicanoverseasaid.org.au/giftswww.anglicanoverseasaid.org.au 3

FACES OF CHANGEBreast Cancer claims community leader in GazaAlison Preston, Middle EastProgram Manager, sharesa moving account fromour partner hospital in theGaza strip.Nazah Razab, the community leaderwho first challenged Al Ahli ArabHospital to reduce the sufferingcaused by breast cancer in Gaza,tragically died of the disease in January.Nazah’s breast cancer was diagnosedin the clinic she helped establish, butshe was denied permission by Israeliauthorities to leave Gaza for furthermedical treatment until the disease hadalready spread beyond hope.Anglican Overseas Aid funds a freebreast screen clinic for women over 40at Al Ahli Hospital and runs communitybasededucation programs about theimportance of early detection. More than500 women have been screened forbreast cancer over the past six months,with over 20% referred on for furtherinvestigation. Breast cancer is the highestcause of cancer-related death in Gaza,with a five-year survival rate of just 40%compared to 90% in Australia.“Nazah was a grass-roots leader whohelped Al Ahli Hospital reach poorcommunities with medical missions formany years,” says Suhaila Tarazi, HospitalDirector. “It was Nazah, after seeing somany women affected by breast cancer,who first requested the Hospital providea breast screening clinic. She waspassionate about improving the survivalrates for women with breast cancer inGaza. It’s a sad time for us, “says Suhalia.Nazah’s legacy is an excellent breastscreening service and a much broadercommunity knowledge about the disease.Her untimely death is a painful reminderof the work still required to change anunjust system where a sick woman isdenied access to medical care.Anglican Overseas Aid is committedto challenging this system, includingbriefing the Australian Minister forForeign Affairs, Senator Bob Carr. Wewill also work with Al Ahli Hospital tostrengthen ties with advocacy groupsin Israel who are actively seeking toimprove the medical permit system.Hospital Director, Suhaila Tarazi, is nostranger to challenge. While very proudof the breast screening clinic and themany other medical services offered to atleast 4,000 patients each month, Suhailaand the Hospital Board must find a modelthat builds a sustainable and serviceorientedfuture for the Hospital.“Despite the challenges, we continueto provide medical care and torun important programs for poorcommunities – like the nutritionprogram for malnourished children, arehabilitation unit for burns victims, anda play-based trauma recovery programfor children affected by the recentconflict,” Suhaila says.GET INVOLVED:You can host a Women Die Waitingevent at your church, workplaceor friendship group. Download ourevent resource pack atwww.womendiewaiting.org.auOur work in Mozambique focuseson delivering a community ledresponse to HIV and AIDS.Alegria Samuel became an Equipa deVida five years ago after her frienddied from the disease and whenshe learnt more about HIV and AIDS atschool. After this she thought, “Why notbecome part of this group, or at least helpspread the message of HIV. My friend diedbecause of lack of knowledge so I needto learn and teach others not just outside,but also in my family.” She joined the Equipateam in order to spread the messageof HIV prevention and to save lives.A wonderful part of the program is thatit started as an HIV awareness campaignbut the work has expanded to help thewhole community. Alegria explains, “Westarted to see that older people hadlost their strength to do activities andsince there are many equipa de vidas wecan do something significant for thesepeople. If we visited the house of anold person and saw that it was dirty wewould clean it. If their toilet or bathroomwas falling down, we would build a newAlegria and adepto colleague Raphael, lead a training sessionfor an equipa de vida community near Nampula, Mozambique.one. Sometimes we would carry water ifthis was a long way from their home.”Recently Alegria was chosen to takepart in an internship that would leadto her becoming an adepto (a healthextension worker at the Diocese).Adeptos train equipa de vidas in HIVprevention but also in improvingnutrition and agriculture. This is a recentaddition to the program because thereare food shortages and poor nutritionis very common. “I try to get Equipas tounderstand what is good for people toeat,” Alegria says. “We talk about theimportance of healthy eating to sustainand maintain your body.”“A wonderful part of the Equipasde Vida program is that it started asan HIV awareness campaign but theirwork has expanded to help the wholecommunity.Alegria says she has seen big changes inpeoples’ attitudes about getting testedfor HIV and how you can catch it. “In thefamily itself, when someone became HIVpositive, even if they had always eatentogether before, they would start eatingseparately. Now, after education, we alleat together, we talk together, we livetogether and we sleep in the same bedwithout that old idea we had. There hasbeen a big change.”All of this is very encouraging but thereare many more communities who needsupport. “The program works so wellbecause we live in the community itself.Many times the chief of the communityis a member of the equipa team. Thatstrengthens the team and gives a lot ofincentive to the community,” says Alegria.www.anglicanoverseasaid.org.au 5

Where themoney wentFrom July 2012to December 2012AfricaKenya – HIV & AIDS – Mothers Union(MU) Mt Kenya West$33,744Lesotho - HIV & AIDS – St James Hospital $17,499South Africa – HIV & AIDS – Diocese ofGrahamstownMozambique – HIV & AIDS – Dioceseof NiassaEthiopia/Kenya – AACES Maternal &Child Health – APDA/MU Mt Kenya West$48,170$40,354$287,247Ethiopia - Afar Maternity Unit – APDA $70,157Tanzania – Solar Lights – Diocese ofRuaha$11,679Ethiopia – Malnourished children $2,421Asia PacificSolomon Islands – Solar Lights –Anglican Church of MelanesiaThailand: Karen Refugee Education,Capacity Building and LivelihoodProjectIndia – Women's Empowerment –Cathedral Relief ServicesVanuatu – Solar Lights – AnglicanChurch of Melanesia$39,635$10,000$6,025$11,514India – Asha Society $2,970Middle EastPalestine – Breast Cancer Screening –Ahli Arab Hospital$69,804Mission Middle East $7,500Jerusalem – Spafford Speech TherapyCentreEmergency relief and rehabilitationSudan Emergency Preparedness – ACTAlliance$6,750$1,710Sudanese Refugees $1,800Horn of Africa drought $22,734Ethiopia/Kenya Drought Relief – APDA $504Total $692,217Please note: A copy of our full financial report forFY 2011-2012 is available on request.6 ANGLICAN OVERSEAS AID Anglicord NewsLeavebehinda smileWhat can you do to leave behind a lastinglegacy that will lift some of the poorestcommunities in the world out of poverty?We are all aware of the challengesof budgeting with food, housing,gas and electricity pricesseemingly increasing without an endin sight. Many of us struggle to makeends meet and we often have to watchour pennies more wisely. Perhaps wecan’t always give as generously to ourfavourite charities as we would like to.Because you are a concerned andcompassionate person, I’m sure youunderstand that the impact of meetingbasic needs is much more perilousfor those in developing countries whosurvive without a safety net. Familiesare struggling to survive on very littleincome, many of their lives have beendevastated by natural disaster or conflictand they are in desperate need of ourhelp. Now more than ever it is crucialwe stand in solidarity with the poorestof the poor, helping them work out localsolutions that are fully owned by thecommunity.There are lots of stories about thedifference that Anglican Overseas Aidmakes in communities around the world.In South Africa, improving relationshipsbetween men and women is helping tocombat the spread of HIV and Aids orsaving lives in Gaza by promoting theearly detection of breast cancer. You canread about many more in this newsletterand on our website.In these financially challenging times youcan still make a difference in the longterm. By joining Anglican Overseas Aid’sbequests program you can leave a gift inyour Will to ensure your generous spiritlives on for those who need it most.Leaving a bequest costs you not onecent today, but allows your compassionand concern to provide life-changingprograms for generations to come.Recently one of our supporters spoketo us about why she has left a bequest.“I decided to update my Will becausemy family circumstances had changedand I wanted my new Will to reflectthat. I recently retired, sold my houseto downsize into an apartment and Iam living off my super. My family areall quite well set up so they don’t needmuch assistance from me now. I’ve beenan Anglican Overseas Aid supporterfor a long time and I’ve always beenimpressed with the good work youdo to help people who need care andassistance. You also don’t spend lots ofmoney on administration so I know thatmost of what I donate goes to benefitthose that need it. I feel happy thatthe bequest I have left in my Will goesexactly where I want it to go.”To find out more about leaving a bequestcontact us on 1800 249 880 or emailaoa@anglicanoverseasaid.org.au for aconfidential and no obligation discussionabout planning your bequest giving.

AT HOME WITH ANGLICAN OVERSEAS AIDBecome an Anglican OverseasAid representativeAre you passionate about social justice? Would you like to helpAnglican Overseas Aid work towards a peaceful, just and sustainableworld for all? We are looking for volunteer representatives to link ourwork around the world with your local parish or community group.As a volunteer representative you will receive training, support andregular updates on our work. Your role would be to inform your parishor community group about our current projects, events and appeals,inspiring and encouraging people to get involved.To discuss this volunteer opportunity further, please contact Kathrynon 1800 249 880 or email kbarres@anglicanoverseasaid.org.au25th anniversary celebrationThe Archbishop of Myanmar met with Anglican Overseas Aid’s CEOBob Mitchell, Board Chair Julian Rait and Board Member DeniseNichols to discuss how we can work together to strengthen the sixAnglican Diocese in Myanmar.This year marks Anglican Overseas Aid’s 25th year of operation – what a milestone!We will be celebrating this year with a series of events. We will advertise these dateson our website throughout the year as well as sending out personal invites. So keep youreyes peeled.Engaging with schoolsThis year we’d really like to talk to more schools about our work. If you can help us withcontacts at your local school then please call us on 1800 249 880 or emailaoa@anglicanoverseasaid.org.auStudents at a Perth school learn about our solar program2013 Anglican Calendar Sale - now half price!EP62246_Calendar_Cov.indd 7/08/12 3:37 PM - 1 - (Cyan) (Magenta) (Yellow) (BlacK)TheAustralian AnglicanChurch Calendar 2013If you are still after a beautiful calendarto hang on your wall, the 2013Australian Anglican Church Calendarcan now be bought at half price – just$6 each (+postage).Visit www.anglicanoverseasaid.org.auor call 1800 249 880 to order onetoday.St George’s CathedralPerth, WA.Situated in the heart of the city of Perth, St George’s is the principal cathedral of the Anglican Province of Western Australia and the metropolitical Diocese of Perth. Consecrated in 1888, St George’sCathedral stands as an architectural gem designed by Edmund Blacket and is one of only a few cathedrals constructed of handmade bricks. Ascalon, the sculpture by Marcus Canning and Christian deVietri on the Cathedral parvis, was selected after a year-long international competition to find an abstract interpretation of the story of St George and the Dragon depicting the triumph of good over evil.www.anglicanoverseasaid.org.au 7

I WANT TO HELP POOR AND MARGINALISEDYes PEOPLE IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD.Donation FormYes, I want to support Anglican Overseas Aid’s work. I will make my donation by....Credit card Direct Debit Cheque or money order enclosedPlease debit from my / our financial institution account or transfer from my / ourCredit Card account below, the sum of$500 $250 $100 $50 $30Credit card, direct debit and onlinedonations help us reduce our costsso we can send more funds overseas.Visit www.anglicanoverseasaid.org.auto donate online.Regular donations make your givingeasier and help us to plan. Pleaseconsider making a regular donation.Please keep in touchPlease send me AnglicanOverseas Aid’s monthlyeNews emailI have included AnglicanOverseas Aid in my WillI want to hear aboutIncluding Anglican OverseasAid in my WillPromoting Anglican OverseasAid at my churchVolunteering with AnglicanOverseas AidI/We authorise Anglican Overseas Aid (Debit User Anglican Diocese of Melbourne User ID 187736) toarrange for funds to be debited from my / our nominated account via the Bulk Electronic ClearingSystem at the financial institution shown above according to the schedule above.In terms of the Direct Debitarrangement made between AnglicanOverseas Aid (Anglican Diocese ofMelbourne ABN 79 866 591, User ID187736) and signed by you, weundertake to periodically debit yournominated account with the agreedamount. For a copy of the full DirectDebit Request Service Agreement, orto dicuss any changes to the drawingarrangements, please contact AnglicanOverseas Aid on 1880 249 880. WeRecommend that you familiariseyourself with the Service Agreement,which contains the Terms andConditions of this Direct Debitarrangement.Anglican Overseas Aid is a member of the ACTAlliance, an alliance of 125 churches and relatedorganisations that work together in humanitarianassistance, advocacy and development.Funds raised in excess of appeal targets will beused by Anglican Overseas Aid for similar projects.Anglican Overseas AidPO Box 389 Abbotsford Vic 3067Freecall: 1800 249 880Fax: 03 9495 6891www.anglicanoverseasaid.org.auPost your completed form to:Anglican Overseas AidPO Box 389 Abbotsford Vic 3067or Fax: 03 9495 6891Freecall: 1800 249 880Donate online: www.anglicanoverseasaid.org.auPrinted on recycled paper.Anglicord: ABN 39 116 072 050Anglican Overseas Aid operates a fund which has Deductible Gift Receiptent (DGR)status with the Australian Tax Office. All donations over $2 are tax deductible.Anglican Overseas Aid is a signatory to the ACFID Code of Conduct.