Together for a Change
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Together for a Change The Story Together for a Change; the story so far “At the heart of Together for a Change lies two very simple messages. The first is that the rich and famous cannot save the world on their own. If we really want things to change we need to turn the world upside down and listen first to those whose lives are blighted by poverty. The second is that together we can change the world; it is possible that we can be remembered as the generation who chose to deal with global poverty but it will take passion commitment and sacrifice.” These were the words at the start of the project that is „Together for a Change‟ and the testimony to its success is in the stories of the two communities in Scotland (and the two in Africa) who chose to risk doing it a different way. Listening to their stories I wondered if they appreciated beforehand what might the con- sequences of their exchange visits to The Gambia and Malawi might be, but on their return they knew that their lives and their communities had been transformed. The two stories are unique but with common features - the fears overcome, the growing confidence and self esteem as they faced difficult situations and the sheer joy of lives changed. They all now see the world and their role in it in a different way. It is impossible to measure but the value is priceless. Provanmill, Glasgow and Bakau, The Gambia The Background The story begins with the minister of St Paul‟s Provanmill, Russell McLarty, suggesting to his congregation that he felt that Together for a Change might help to bring a unity to the defined areas of Royston and Provanmill which were linked in name but not in reality. The church already had a link with the Gambia with its President‟s International Awards (PIA) Scheme, which is similar to our Duke of Edinburgh, and the first exchange was done with five recipients of this award. The minister used study leave to visit The Gambia and begin face - to - face discussions with the Gambian partners to agree how they might prepare for the visit in similar ways so that the experience was shared from the very beginning; this was to be a hallmark of the link that each had an equal responsibility. They agreed to look at modern „proverbs‟ as a way of understanding how people sustain themselves despite the daily grind of poverty. The Preparation Back in Glasgow, Russell organised preparatory meetings where people from within the community got to know each other through creative activities. With encouragement from an artist, they painted pictures of the area and thought about the sayings that kept them going such as “a warm heart in an old coat” or “just hang on in there”. One group made paper and embedded these sayings, another made ceramic plates. Being asked to reflect on „your life in Provanmill‟ opened up a lot of thoughts about living in a poor area and as they shared their stories and their proverbs for survival, the journey towards the Gambia began. Liz McCoy, who subsequently took over the running of the link, recalls that her only involvement was having one of the Gambians for a meal; this led to her going away for the weekend with the Gambian group and with other members of the community; “it changed my life.” That first weekend was hosted by the Guild at Cove, near Kilcreggan and two artists helped facilitate the sessions. Liz recalled that it was a very well organised weekend and that there was a lot of true sharing of feelings. “It was so relaxed and we just got on with everyone; they were so keen to know all about our life and we were interested in the Gambia though looking back we didn‟t really have a clue.” The local church not only hosted them but the brownies provided lunch and some members took them round the highlights including a trip to Inveraray Jail. This weekend away was a treat not only for the folks from Gambia but also for the folks from Royston Provanmill. The workshop at this weekend on the feelings and dreams of the group was developed into a song by the musician Ben King and recorded by the group. The words of the opening verse (sung to the tune „Stand by Me‟) say it all: “As we live and we grow with wisdom and faith and be happy with all we can learn to share and exchange belief in our minds we can all live together as one” Before this Liz wasn‟t heavily involved in the community or the church; she attended but didn‟t do more than that. She also felt that although she was on speaking terms with all her neighbours, she didn‟t know them well and she admitted that she was quite a private person. This was all to change as the minister left the area and handed over the running of the project to her. Much of the success of the subsequent visits must be attributed to Liz and to her organisational skills. By now, the Provanmill community was linked to a rural community in The Gambia called Bakau, which had been suggested by one of the members of PIA but, more importantly, also had a connection to the Church of Scotland. Liz began the organisation of the second and subsequent exchange visits. In her methodical way, she developed an application form which not only had practical information about age, dietary requirements, how they got involved in the project locally but also what they hoped to achieve and what they brought to the project. The same form was sent to Bakau and the applications exchanged so that folks would have „met‟ the visitors before they arrived. People came from the different churches and also from community groups, and the organising group chose for the overseas trips, people who were already contributing to the community. The hope was that the community would be strengthened by their involvement. On each visit they also tried to find a balance - two men, two women and two young folk. The Programme The next chapter in the story was to involve as many people as possible in the programme; some offered hospitality, others agreed to cook an evening meal at the church for the group, yet others joined in the activities. The amazing thing was that people who were not very committed to church or community group quickly became committed to the project. E-mail correspondence had highlighted common issues around HIV but also a desire to know about issues here such as homelessness. As it was a rural community in Bakau, there was also an interest in learning more about agriculture. All of this was taken into account and the programme developed around it. At first people were very hesitant; there were some African asylum seekers in the community but little connection with them. As one woman said: “it‟s not that I‟m racist, just ignorant about them; it had never occurred to me to ask where thy came from or whether they had come by choice or been forced.” Others worried about what to feed them or whether their house was good enough to have them stay. These real fears and concerns gradually disappeared as they came to know the visitors as people and not just as a „label‟. The visitors arrived in September and it was quickly evident that they were very cold. A request went out to the church to provide warm clothing and thermal underwear was purchased for them all. The organising team was overwhelmed by the generosity of the locals and even young teenagers when they saw the young boys playing football in their bare feet, offered their best football boots as a gift. It gave credence to the saying: „were it not for the poor, the poorest would starve‟ There was a mixture of fun, serious exploration of the issues and tourist outings. It was a learning experience for everyone as they visited and heard about the work of the Sandyford Clinic and The Lodging House Mission. The excitement too was shared as they met with the Lord Provost, who hosted them for lunch and as they did the tour of Glasgow on an open topped bus. Built in to the programme was a two day work placement so that visitors could follow an interest, such as learning about the nursery and local primary school or visiting an agricultural college to learn about farming methods. There were many opportunities to share and to talk about the issues facing them both. These included: HIV: a workshop from Christian Aid, talking about the stigma of being HIV+ and how that has led to slow progress in campaigning against the disease in Africa. Gender equality in the Gambia: Adama mentors women at the PIA Skills Centre in Bakau. She talked about how being the only woman in a managerial position means that she faces difficulties because she has to prove all the time that she can do the job better than a man. She helps young girls in her project to understand and combat gender inequality. Disabled issues: Kumba was amazed when she saw the difference of how disability is dealt with in UK, saying that the disabled are considered in many ways; with access to buildings and almost all walks of life. In The Gambia they are excluded from many areas and there is much for Gambians to learn.