Emmaus Bristol Summer Newsletter 2009

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Honoured for Charitable Services

We are proud and delighted to report that on April 7th our Director, Richard Pendlebury, was made an MBE in recognition of his charitable services to the community of Bristol.  Richard has been working for Emmaus Bristol for 10 years and played a key role
in setting up the Community in Bristol.

For the last 6 years he has been a trustee of Emmaus UK which supports the work of Emmaus Communities and fledgling groups throughout the UK.  He also founded the charity Changing Tunes which uses music to rehabilitate offenders, and brought his fundraising skills to Network Counselling and to the development of Filwood Hope in Knowle. Beyond Bristol, Richard was instrumental in raising the finance for the Beacon Centre in a disadvantaged community in Cardiff.

Richard is a generous and inspirational communicator and, in the Emmaus tradition of Solidarity, he is always willing to help other organisations by sharing his skills and experience.

Zip-wire Chris

I wanted to do something different – and I wanted to have a thrill! I also wanted to help the Deaf Blind Association. The deal was “flying” across the Bristol City Stadium, starting at the top of the stadium and landing in the middle of the pitch.

I’ve done a lot of abseiling and rock climbing in the past and I wanted it to be really high.  It wasn’t as scary as I thought it might be, but it was great fun.

We were launched one by one in groups of ten and I found myself flapping my arms like a bird as I slid down.  Richard Pendlebury and his wife were there to support me as well as several of the Companions.  I loved it.  And the good thing is that I raised over £350 for the Deaf Blind Association while having fun.  Now I’m looking out for another adventure!

 

From the Director, Richard Pendlebury

Thank you very much once again for your ongoing support for Emmaus Bristol and I hope you are encouraged by what you read in this newsletter.

I was delighted to receive the honour in the New Year but also conscious that so many people have contributed to supporting the work I have been engaged in over these past 20 years.  I am particularly grateful to those who I have worked with and those who have given up time and money to achieving the vision of Emmaus and other projects I have been involved in.   

 

For me it has been a privilege to serve and the reward of seeing people’s lives transformed unquantifiable.    I have also realised just how rich I am, not necessarily in monetary terms but in the wealth of relationships I enjoy.  This is something most of those who come to us as Companions are really deprived of when they first arrive.  Our great joy is to see our Community embrace them and provide a platform of care and support they may not have known for many years.   You are making this happen and we thank you for being part of this outreach through your support.  

With very best wishes

Richard Pendlebury MBE

Building Community

Dave Perry, Community Manager, reports on life at Emmaus Bristol

What is “Community”?  It seems to be a bit of buzz word in Government circles these days but looking about us, it seems that there is very little in the way of “community” in our society today.  How many of us know more than a handful of our neighbours?  

Emmaus is a different way of life; it’s counter-cultural. We work through developing “Communities”. If we define Community as “a group of people with a common characteristic or interest living together within a larger society”, our “common characteristic” is a history of homelessness and our “common interest” is making a positive difference to ourselves and those around us.  

At Emmaus Bristol we live together for the benefit of each other and the wider community. At our best we bring a very diverse group of people together with many differing skills and gain the benefits of working together towards a common goal when working alone would be difficult if not impossible. We provide the means for people to gain in strength and confidence through learning new skills and sharing the work of serving those most in need in our society.  

We are also part of the UK wide Emmaus Community, a movement which is working hard to alleviate poverty and oppression in the UK, and of the Emmaus International movement which is working in 4 continents to help the most impoverished to regain their self-respect by working together for the benefit of themselves and others. We must continue to think of the “wider picture”, particularly through these challenging economic times. Our first aim is to support the needs of Companions, followed closely by “Solidarity” - serving those worse off than ourselves in whatever ways we can.  You can read on this page and page four about Companions’ involvement in this.  

We continue to grow our business in order to earn a living and make a real difference to those most in need. Please continue to support us in this work by donating your unwanted items and visiting our shops to buy good quality low priced furniture, electrical goods, bicycles and much more.  

Please also think about where the things you buy come from. Much of the “cheapest” food, clothing etc is paid for at a very high price through the abuse and oppression of poor farmers, factory workers and those least able to stand up for themselves.  

Let’s all be part of a world-wide and world-changing caring Community that makes a real difference to our world. I have seen within our own Community and Companions that huge, apparently impossible, problems can be overcome by dealing with things one small step at a time; the individual does have the power to make a real difference.  It is our responsibility to look after this world; there is no back-up plan.

Finally, and with great sadness, I have to report the sudden and unexpected death of Companion Max. He was found at peace in his bed on 9th February. Max had been a Companion for about a year and was truly “part of the furniture” here. We will miss his company and his cheeky smile, and our thoughts are also with his close friend Trish with whom we share the sadness of his loss.

Emmaus gives you a chance

Mark has been a Companion at Emmaus Bristol for 6 months.

I work in the warehouse. When I first came, I did a bit of all sorts – housework, deliveries, collections, this and that.  Now I’m in the warehouse making sure that everything’s working properly.

I used to work in warehousing in Yorkshire in the textile mills; I’ve got a lot of experience. Then all the mills closed down, I had two jobs, but I was made redundant from both of them at the same time. Everything was shutting down.  I fell out with my family around the same time and I thought “I need a change”, so I got on a bus.  I went down to London looking for work but got involved in the wrong crowd and ended up in a hostel.

I was on and off the streets for 20 years, in hostels and night shelters around the country. Some are alright but some are a bit dodgy.  There’s a lot of drugs about.  The worst was in London; I booked in and walked out the same day.  I went to make my bed and it was full of syringes. Not clean or anything. So I was in and out. I’d rather be on the streets.

I’ve calmed down a lot now.  I’m not getting any younger and I wanted to sort myself out a bit. As I got older I wanted a job but couldn’t find one. I was hanging out in parks and boozing.

Then Emmaus came along. I was living in Bristol in the Salvation Army hostel and they put me in touch. I didn’t even know it existed before that.  It’s given me something to do, something I enjoy. I still drink but not like I used to.  I’ve cut down a lot, I don’t drink during the week, just Saturday and Sunday, and I might have the odd pint if it’s been a stressful day.

Sometimes it does get stressful in the warehouse – customers need deliveries, the van gets back and needs unloading – where does this go, where does that go. It’s an important job as we haven’t got a lot of storage.

I’ve always liked doing something. But when you’ve been unemployed, when you’re in hostels no-one wants to take you on. Emmaus gives you a chance - it’s changed the way I look at life.

Friendship and dusters!

Shirley has been a volunteer at Emmaus Bristol for about 3½ years

I love the friendship you get from Emmaus.  I love the Companions.  They’re such a grand bunch of lads.  Sometimes they have ups and downs, it can be hard working, eating and living 24/7 together, but I love them all to bits.  Some of them work so hard – nothing is too much trouble.

When I first started here I answered the phone.  Then I found I preferred being out on the shop floor, talking to customers, selling things, talking to Companions.  When people get used to you they talk to you.  Companions know that whatever they say to me will never go any further.  If they want to tell me something it’s fine but I wouldn’t ask anything personal.  I get the tears, sometimes, and I might give them a hug.  Some people say I’m like a second Mum!

The other thing that I love to do is deal with the Management corner; I make it like a living room or a bedroom.  I try to bring in a customer’s point of view.  For example, I encourage the Companions to move things around.  If something’s been in one place and isn’t selling, you can move it somewhere else and it sells.  I’ve proved it again and again!

I try to bring in the softer side.  Most of them here are men – they don’t know what a duster is!  But they never object to me asking them to help me clean things up.  They work with me not against me.

Everyone here, though I don’t know all their stories, has had some trauma in their lives that has led them to where they are today.  It’s getting that across to other people.  I think that’s what we need to get across from Emmaus – do not judge.  Because at the end of the day, none of us know if we’re going to end up in that position.

Shirley on Mark

He works so hard. Last week, Mark put up a bunk bed then, straight away, someone came and bought it. He had to take it down again. He said, “Great it’s sold”.  Then someone else came in and wanted to buy it.  We had another one but we can’t sell it until it’s all been put together, to make sure all the bits are there. So Mark said “I’ll put it up, if you can come back later.”  They came back at lunchtime and bought it and he had to take it down again! Two in a morning! But he does it, without complaining. He never stops.  And he comes out and has a look around, says “There’s a space there, a space there, what can I bring out?” Nothing is too much trouble.

Spreading the word                     

Once again Emmaus Bristol attended the annual fair held on Redland Green in North Bristol on Bank Holiday Monday. With our two new gazebos and information stands we definitely present a more professional organisation. This year saw more Companions volunteering to help and this was greatly appreciated; setting up and closing down was a smooth operation. As well as our usual eclectic mix of furniture and bric-a-brac, we had an art gallery wall selling a mixture of paintings and prints, which attracted a great deal of attention As always we distributed hundreds of leaflets and talked to the public about Emmaus and its work in Bristol and the world.

Paris here we come

Once again Emmaus Bristol’s trusty minibus is off to Paris, to provide troop transport for the “Angleterre” stand at the annual Salon Sale. The sale, in an exhibition centre to the South of the city, features stands from Communities the length and breadth of Europe, and in one day raises some 500,000 euros for Emmaus International solidarity projects in Europe and the Third World.

Above: Ready for business at the Paris Salon Sale

Our stall focuses on bric-a-brac, which will be gathered and transported in two Emmaus vans from other Communities in the UK. Teapots are always strong sellers, and donations are welcome!

Driving duties will be shared between Business manager Malcolm Thorne and Operations Manager Chris Heaton, and the party will include three Bristol Companions. The Sale takes place on Sunday, 14th June.

To download a copy of this Emmaus Bristol newsletter please click here.
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