Category Archives: Business against Poverty News
Sad farewell
At the start of this month our Charity Manager Jenny left to start an exciting new career as a gardener. After six years with the charity, we look back over her time with us…
New Trustees
We are delighted to announce and welcome our 2 new Trustees Imogen Woodford and Niall Robertson who were nominated and accepted as Director Trustees on the 19th January 2015.
We’ve got £10,000 up for grabs for a local community project!
We’re delighted to announce that we are launching a brand new UK-based project and are looking for the right project and project leader in which to invest £10,000 and get it off the ground!
It’s been widely reported that in the current economic and social climate poverty is a major issue for the UK as well as overseas. As such, PaP has ring-fenced £10,000 to fund a brand new project which will benefit a community initiative based within the BA postcode.
Following our highly successful model to date of enabling communities themselves to identify the areas of greatest need, the project will be selected through a tender process. Individuals or groups are invited to submit their idea or project initially by completing an application form. The project may be pre-existing or new, but must meet the aims and objectives of the charity to tackle poverty.
PaP Chief Executive Officer, Val Huxley, commented: “Poverty has many guises; it’s not just about money, and the new project could tackle lack of social support, education, housing, childcare or something that we haven’t even considered! In addition to the funding, our vibrant business brand, Business against Poverty (BaP), will work to support the new project leader in his or her objectives. I’m very excited about this new development.”
Safety and Education for Girls; an international battle against slavery, trafficking and abuse!
Over the past couple of years the world has been first shocked and subsequently inspired by the lives of brave young women who have demonstrated outstanding triumphs over unbelievable adversity. Stories such as that of Malala Yousafzai who survived an attempted assassination by the Taliban, and more recently the young Afghan, Spozhnai, who told checkpoint officials about the suicide vest she was forced to wear by her family, demonstrate remarkable fortitude and courage.
One such story has just been published as an autobiography by one of the children with whom we have been working for the past 9 years. Entitled “Coming out of the Shadows”, it tells the story of “Roxana”(name changed to protect identity), a young girl at our Romanian project who escaped horrific abuse and turned her life around with the help of our local team.
Roxana started life in a Romanian orphanage where she was left at just one year of age. The abuse started there and when her parents came to take her back aged five, she was only too delighted to go with them. The family fell on hard times, her parents divorced and she was left with a family that beat and abused her for over eight years, and planned to send her to Italy for prostitution. Eventually, Roxana was noticed by People against Poverty’s Romanian project. The project leader promised to help and support her through her ordeal when the family she was living with, Roxana herself and prostitutes with them were rounded up by the police. The project assisted with finding her a loving family, getting her back into school, and finding a lawyer who supported the trial of the family that had kept her captive.
Roxana starts her book with the words: “We all have a history. We all have a story behind us, more or less spectacular, a life of events lived with intensity. But few dare to open their hearts to tell of those things that were carefully hidden from the world.”
Her book is a harrowing read, but one of many stories that must be told as they offer a glimpse into some of the unpalatable truths of our world alongside a story of hope and inspiration when constructive intervention is put in place.
Roxana is now completing her studies at high school, recently trained as a cook and has a steady job to provide herself with a secure income. You can help by buying Roxana’s book which is available for just £6.99 (inc. postage) directly from us with all profits going directly to her. Call us to pay by debit/credit card on 01225 718920 or email to place your order.
Awareness Trip
May 8 returning May 13 – In a world witnessing an ever growing divide between those who take material comforts for granted and the millions who go hungry, we are the lucky ones! When you join us on these trips, you help give these people hope. Why not demonstrate your support for our projects by visiting their country and being part of the story. Five days could totally transform you life.
The Awareness Trips provide you an opportunity to connect with the people we help and work with. Life changing experiences occur when you step out into the unknown. Dare to try something different?
New website!
Business against Poverty has a new website, www.businessagainstpoverty.com