The following thank you letter received from one CAP’s clients perfectly expresses the need for ‘CAP’ and the impact the charity makes:
“Dear Christians Against Poverty,
How can I begin to explain the difference you have made in our lives? Perhaps if I say I spent every month juggling credit cards. I felt physically sick thinking how I would cope. I felt so ashamed that someone who could hold a responsible job as I do, had allowed our finances to get into such a mess. I knew our bad luck hadn't helped, I had faced three redundancies in the space of a few years and each new job meant a drastic reduction in salary. Added to this my husband took early retirement due to ill health so our income dropped even more. Still I felt an absolute failure, useless and unworthy of help. I even reached a point when I thought if I could commit suicide and make it look like an accident then at least my family would be free of the debts.
Since we have come into contact with Christians Against Poverty we can now see a light at the end of the tunnel. We have a budget plan to follow and we know without a doubt that we will come through and that we will be totally debt free. For me personally the shame, embarrassment and guilt I felt has slowly faded because the wonderful people who work for CAP and all the volunteer visitors have shown so much love, support and understanding without a hint of reproach or condemnation. My husband and I have been drawn together because I was hiding so much from him before.
The truly wonderful gift we have both received is the reawakening of our faith. We believe we were guided to Christians Against Poverty, not just to find a way to resolve our debt problem but to find the loving God who really does love us as we are, debtors and all.
Thank you Christians Against Poverty for making it possible for us to enjoy the present and enabling us to look forward to the future.”
The Work of CAP
Christians Against Poverty helps anyone, regardless of race, gender, ethnicity or belief and offers anyone in the community who is in debt and financial crisis a solution. CAP visit clients in their own homes, work out a budget that prioritises food and essential bills and negotiates with creditors to agree to a budget, stopping interest and charges. This stops the downward spiral of debt, allows the family to buy food and means people still have a roof over their heads. CAP offers a CAP Account which acts as a simple bank account to pay the clients bills and debts and a range of alternatives to those in severe debt who would otherwise face a life sentence of debt repayments. The work of CAP is in depth and can last for months or years until the client is debt free; this approach gives our clients a financial education which ensures the work is sustainable and can be passed onto future generations.
The work of CAP changes lives – 25% of CAP’s clients completing a questionnaire said that CAP’s services had been ‘Life Transforming’ and another 57% said they had been a ‘Great Help. This is because debt affects nearly every area of people’s lives. It can cause stress and anxiety as people feel there is no way out, hunger and eviction as secondary creditors are paid before buying food or paying the mortgage, relationship breakdown (Relate cites money worries as the primary cause) and even suicide.