We, as the youth of St Francis, having been learning about the calling set on our lives through Jesus and the devastation in our world. In order to take some action, we are fundraising for Tearfund. They are doing some amazing work helping people who are in desperate poverty as a result of COVID-19. 

One of those people affected by Tearfund's work is Ana who is one of thousands of refugees who fled the political and economic crisis in Venezuela and is now facing weeks with very little food after a national lockdown in Colombia. “I don't know what I'm going to do without being able to feed my daughter,” says 24-year-old Ana who has a four-year-old daughter. “If the government does not let us go out on the streets, I do not know what we are going to do to eat.” Across the city of Barranquilla, there are more than 15,000 Venezuelan families like Anas. Most of them depend on being able to work in order to put food on the table, but now they can no longer leave their houses. To try and stop the spread of coronavirus, the Colombian government has ordered that everyone should stay home for the next three weeks. However, relief agencies such as Tearfund and local churches have been given special permission to carry on supporting people. Before the lockdown, Tearfund local partners distributed food parcels to 600 Venezuelan refugee families in Barranquilla. But there are many more people still in need of food. As part of this, we as the youth of St Francis are hoping to raise £1000 together for people like Ana in many different countries. 

The money we can provide Tearfund with will be supporting three different vital tasks. Tearfund is working hard to provide those in desperate need with emergency food and hygiene supplies. Tearfund is also providing education to church leaders, helping them lead people to make good choices in response to COVID-19. This is essential in countries such as Tanzania where the governments are telling people that the pandemic is not a problem. Lastly, Tearfund is providing training in farming techniques for those in poverty. For every person trained, that makes one less family in poverty. To help spread awareness of the work Tearfund is doing and enable you to become a part of the work, we are going to be spending the afternoon on Sunday the 11th of July gardening in the paddock and litter picking around Nostell place. 

Please give all you can. Every penny counts.