26 June 2006
Small miracles, big celebrations
Today, the Methodist Relief and Development Fund (MRDF) is
celebrating 21 years of 'small miracles', made possible by its
partner organisations overseas and the generosity of Methodist
people in the UK. MRDF campaigns for justice and supports small,
locally-based projects in more than 20 of the world's poorest
countries.
New President of the Methodist Conference, the Revd. Graham Carter,
marked the event by blowing out the candles on a 'virtual' birthday
cake. Hundreds of Conference representatives then shared in a giant
chocolate cake, made with Fairtrade ingredients.
Graham said: 'Over the last 21 years MRDF has shown that small
organisations can make a huge difference. We're here to celebrate
that even small changes to the lives of the poorest of poor have an
impact which can be nothing short of miraculous.'
MRDF also launched its new Small Miracles Harvest Pack, which
includes a Fairtrade birthday cake recipe, devised by celebrity
chef Jane Asher. It is hoped that hundreds of churches and groups
across the UK will hold special services and fundraising activities
to mark MRDF's birthday at Harvest time. The free pack provides
everything you need to celebrate Harvest with MRDF, including
activities, posters, worship materials and stories of 'small
miracles' in Nepal, Ethiopia and Cameroon.
Conference representatives each received an identity card on
arrival, encouraging them to find out more about an individual
whose life has been turned around by MRDF partners. A successful
harvest for someone like Radika, who features on one of the
'identity cards', has been life-changing. In a country like Nepal,
where 30% of people live in poverty, it means that she now has
enough to eat, an improved income and an increased chance of being
able to send her children to school. Agriculture training from MRDF
partners has made all of this possible.
MRDF also has a newly designed website for its 21st birthday. All
Small Miracles Harvest resources are fully downloadable from the
new site and it provides an up-to-date, comprehensive and uplifting
overview of MRDF's work.
MRDF's Director, Kirsty Smith said: 'This celebration is not so
much about the charity itself, but about the lives and futures that
have been transformed through the work of our partner
organisations. This is an opportunity to see how much has been
achieved in just 21 years, but it isn't the end of the story. With
the help of our UK supporters, we need to continue bringing hope to
people in desperate situations.'