Seeds of Hope – A Time of Thanksgiving
A Time of Thanksgiving – A Time of Remembrance
On Wednesday, 13 May 2015, members, trustees, donors and friends of The Waterloo Partnership gathered in the church of St Edmund of Canterbury, Waterloo, for a service of thanksgiving and remembrance, to mark 10 years since the charity, the Waterloo Partnership , was founded.
Through word and image, readings and hymns, the service, entitled ‘Seeds of Hope’, recalled the work of the charity from 2005-2015. The story of the charity has become a story of faith, hope and love.
In 2005, when four local people, Claire Curtis-Thomas, Teresa McLaughlin, David Moorhead and Kathleen Zimak, journeyed to Waterloo, Sierra Leone, they had one purpose in mind: to discover what help the people needed. They had no idea what they would find, or what they might do. The people of this West African township who were working so hard to recover from the effects of the recent civil war, greeted them with huge smiles and warm hearts. Despite living in abject poverty, they were full of hope, determined to rebuild their lives. ‘There and then’ said David Moorhead, one of the four, ‘we decided to become partners with these people in their noble venture.’ And so began the work of the Waterloo Partnership.
Now, 10 years on, and through the generosity of so many people, particularly from local churches, schools and businesses, who support the work of the charity, funds have been sent to the west African community to bring water, education, employment and health care to these resilient people.
Towards the middle of 2014, the Ebola outbreak devastated the lives of the people in three west African countries, namely Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Once again the people of Waterloo, Sierra Leone, had their resilience tested, as they faced the suffering-illness, death, hunger and isolation brought about by the Ebola crisis. However, members of the Waterloo Partnership, here and in Sierra Leone, worked together to combat this crisis and, whenever possible ward off the effects of Ebola.
The service ‘Seeds of Hope’ gave thanks for the work of the Waterloo Partnership 2005-2015, remembered the many casualties of the Ebola crisis and expressed the hope that the members of the Waterloo Partnership would continue to work together with confidence and trust, whatever challenges the future may hold.
For more information: www.waterloopartnership.co.uk
This report was kindly written by Teresa McLaughlin.