Fundraisers mark half a century of events with a new challenge

Wirksworth & District Christian Aid Group is marking its golden anniversary this year with various celebrations including a new fundraising challenge.

Group chairperson Bob Rhodes explained: “During this Jubilee Year we are asking our supporters to respond to The Fifty x 50pence Challenge, bysaving 50p pieces in a jar during the year and donating them to Christian Aid. Some may go on to collect 100, which would be £50, which has a pleasing symmetry to it.”

The group, made up of Christians from many of the churches in the town, has raised more than £330,000 over its lifetime.

“Over the years the group has developed an annual programme of events,” Bob said. “We start with a Shrove Tuesday Soup and Pancake lunch; then Christian Aid Week; joining in the town’s Well Dressing weekend; a Summer Party in August; a Charities Fair in November; and, in December, the town’s Christmas Market provides us with the opportunity to warm people up with mulled-wine and mince-pies.

“It’s also been 50 years of awareness raising – helping us understand better some of the injustices that cause the growing inequalities that have a negative impact on vulnerable communities.”

As well as the 50p challenge, the group will be taking part in Christian Aid Week 2024, with an afternoon tea celebration followed by a Churches Together service.

Bob said: “Every year, during this appeal, people across Britain and Ireland have seven days and so many ways to raise funds to support their global neighbours, in a celebration of hope for a fairer world.

“It’s a major moment in our calendar. This year, we are marking the start of Christian Aid Week on Sunday, May 12 at 4.30pm in The Maltings, with Afternoon Tea. This will be followed at 6pm by a special Christian Aid Service. Our guest speaker will be Pete Moorey, who is Christian Aid’s Head of Community and Church Fundraising and Engagement.”

This year’s appeal - from May 12–18 - 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.

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