18
...remember to say you saw it in the SOL TIMES
SOLTIMES APRIL 2014
Local church helps Reach Out
Members of La Siesta Evangelical Church presented a sum of €300 to the humanitarian charity, Reach Out this week. The money was raised over the last year through the church’s activities. President of Reach Out, Karolina Leonard, said, “I would like to thank La Siesta Evangelical Church for this donation and for their continued support of the work we do. Without such help, we would not be able to continue to do the vital work in the community. At the moment, we help some of the most needy and vulnerable people in the area and I am incredibly grateful to have the support of the expat community for this work Lynn Young, Chairperson of the Fellowship Committee, La Siesta Evangelical Church, said, “We brought some of our members to see Reach Out’s drop in centre and show where the donation will go. They found the tour very interesting and it certainly highlighted the need for Reach Out and the work that is carried out in the community.” Reach Out currently helps around 80 local homeless men and women and 35 families in poverty. The homeless people are offered a breakfast and lunch at the charity’s drop in centre from a charity kitchen run in collaboration with another
local charity, El Refugio. The homeless people are also offered the opportunity to have a shower, have their clothes washed and dried and are given food and basic provisions. Often, their own clothing is in bad condition or unsuitable for living and sleeping rough so Reach Out also provides good second hand clothing for the homeless. Karolina said, “We try to restore some of the dignity they may have lost through becoming homeless. Something as simple as a hot meal and a shower, a change of underwear and clean clothes can make such a difference to a person who has nothing and nobody to turn to.”
school supplies for the children, with clothing, books, bags and pencils. Each of our families has an allowance for our second hand shops so they can come and get clothing or shoes. We also run a solidarity supermarket and our families come in two groups, once per week and can choose essential items with vouchers we issue to them. We give away in excess of €400 every week in food and other essentials alone. By giving them a choice, we can better meet their needs – some will need food for their children, others might need toilet paper – we allow them to choose for themselves and give them back some dignity.”
In winter, and on cold spring nights, this also includes vital supplies of warm clothing and blankets. Some of those with drug or alcohol issues are offered help and in the past, some have even been placed in rehabilitation by the charity.
Reach Out is always grateful of donations of food, clean clothing and furniture. The charity also needs donations of money
and is keen to hear from any club, association, individual or business who would be willing to hold a fundraiser on the charity’s behalf. For more information on the charity, see the website www.reachouttorrevieja. com, or call Karolina 688348189. You can also find Reach Out on Facebook www. facebook.com/reachouttorrevieja Photo: Pictured are (L-R) Esther Henssler (Reach Out Secretary), Moira Doonan, Jack Doonan, Lynn Young (also a volunteer with Reach Out) from La Siesta Evangelical Church Fellowship committee, together with John Thompson (Treasurer of Reach Out).
For the families, Reach Out carefully assesses each family group’s needs and carries out a home visit to learn more about each family’s situation. Karolina explained, “We only have capacity to help around 35 families as we want to do more than simply give them a food hamper and say goodbye. We try to help them get back on their feet again. We help with
TREASURE HUNT WITH A TWIST OR TWO! On Monday 21st of April YES that is Easter Monday Bar Sofia at El Raso are having a TREASURE HUNT to have some fun and raise some funds for The Children’s Home in Elche.
Starting out at 11.00a.m. the twist is two fold because as well as having the usual 20 items to find there will also be 10 special “finds” and not to give too much away these will be just one off’s and there will be a knife and fork to find - which will mean the finder gets a free meal, there will be a golf ball and the finder will get a round of golf, there will be a paint brush and yes you guessed the winner will get a can of paint!! or if they prefer they can choose to have a painting lesson with a well known local art teacher!! There will be 10 special finds and to enter this Treasure Hunt is just one euro each if you register before the 21st April - you can of course just turn up on the day but registration will be double €2!! but it’s all for a good cause! Ibex Insurance are kindly sponsoring this event and everyone will get a free shopping bag and a free metallic sun shade for your car! Also acting as “Treasure Hunt Advisers” and trail setters are Mike Thornton and Jeanette Simpson from Essential life style services. The second twist is that this TREASURE HUNT is for everyone 500m on the absolute flat this event is for absolutely everyone........and has
been put together with children and folk with mobility difficulties in mind all “treasure” will be easily accessible from the road and will be laid out with the advice of a person who is either in a wheelchair or on a mobility scooter. Free drinks will be provided at the half way point by Dee the owner of Bar Sofia and “food tasting” and the knife and fork prize will be provided by Vicky and Happy, owners of the new Indian Restaurant Chillies which is right next to Bar Sofia. If you would like to take part you can call into Bar Sofia on El Raso with your €1 or you can register and pledge your €1 entry fee by sending an email or text to sueinthesun@hotmail.co.uk / 629 869 959 As you can see from the photo TEDDY is waiting to take part and he will be one of the prizes! If you can not take part but would like to support the children you can pledge your €1 to THE TREASURE HUNT all pledges will be entered into a FREE DRAW to win 2 menu del dias at Bar Sofia.