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Hillsborough Presbyterian Church young adults group
to build houses in Malawi

At a Commissioning Service in Hillsborough Presbyterian Church on Sunday 1st July are a team from the church who are going to Malawi on Friday 13th July. L to R: (front row) Derek McClelland, Jenny Bell (Home Support), Christopher Scott, Lisa McClelland, Rev John Davey, Pamela Gourley, Jennifer Hicks and Richard Jess. (back row) Louise Lemon, David McMullan, Andrey Gardner, Kathryn McCrossan, Jane McKibben, Andrew Fitzpatrick, Claire Warnock and Jill Dornan. Lisa McClelland (Team Leader) shows a model of an African house with computer label bricks bought and signed by members of the congregation in order to raise funds for the Young Adults Group?s trip to Malawi on Friday 13th July.

At a Commissioning Service in Hillsborough Presbyterian Church on Sunday 1st July are a team from the church who are going to Malawi on Friday 13th July. L to R: (front row) Derek McClelland, Jenny Bell (Home Support), Christopher Scott, Lisa McClelland, Rev John Davey, Pamela Gourley, Jennifer Hicks and Richard Jess. (back row) Louise Lemon, David McMullan, Andrey Gardner, Kathryn McCrossan, Jane McKibben, Andrew Fitzpatrick, Claire Warnock and Jill Dornan.

Lisa McClelland (Team Leader) shows a model of an African house with computer label bricks bought and signed by members of the congregation in order to raise funds for the Young Adults Group's trip to Malawi on Friday 13th July.

A Commissioning Service, led by the Rev John Davey, was held in Hillsborough Presbyterian Church on Sunday 1st July for fourteen members of the Young Adults Group (plus one long-suffering parent - Derek McClelland) who are heading to Malawi on Friday 13th July to build houses alongside the families who will live in them with Habitat for Humanity. Habitat for Humanity is a non-profit, non-denominational Christian housing charity. Their goal is to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world, and to make adequate, affordable shelter a matter of conscience and action. They invite people of all backgrounds, races and religions to build houses together in partnership with families in need. To date more than 230,000 houses have been built in 100 countries around the world through the international volunteering programme 'Global Village'.

On Saturday 30th June the team got together to showcase their musical and dramatic talents as they presented a 'thank you' variety show and supper for parents and helpers. They have been planning their trip for a year and a half, but their fundraising started in earnest last October, when they started weekly Saturday morning car washes in the church car park. By the time they head off to Malawi they will have held 38 car washes and 9 main fundraising events - a Table quiz, Craft fair and Bazaar, Christmas Candlelight Supper, Beetle Drive, Tractor Rally, Social Evening, Easter Breakfast, Car Boot Sale and Auction and Saxophone Concert. Other fundraising efforts involved the production of a calendar entitled 'Images of Hillsborough' (450 copies were successfully sold around the village) and a model African house, which had computer label bricks bought and signed by members of the congregation. Added to this were the various individual fundraising efforts of some of the members and their parents and sponsorship from various local companies. The team have been amazed by the generosity of their friends, families and church members and have found the fundraising events to be a positive experience - unifying young (and not so young) under the common goal of raising '20,000 to fund the trip.

Leaders - Lisa McClelland, Christopher Scott, Pamela Gourley and Jennifer Hicks have undergone accounts, first aid and basic building training at the Habitat for Humanity building project in Downpatrick's Model Farm estate. They have also been involved in training other team members and preparing them for what to expect when they arrive in Malawi. In April the whole team attended a residential weekend at Newcastle when various members shared their previous Habitat experiences. Using conflict management and role-playing potential scenarios they built up the existing trust and friendships between team members and enhanced their team working skills as they went bouldering and canoeing. In May they returned to the site in Downpatrick to sharpen their building skills and enjoyed the experience of sanding, painting and varnishing windows and doors in preparation for the completion on the project in mid-June. Their building experience in Malawi will be slightly different however and is more likely to involve making and laying mud bricks and breaking rocks to be used in the foundations.

The team's mission statement is 'We aim make a difference to the people we meet - to change lives and allow our own to be changed. Our faith is very important to us and we hope to make Jesus 'the chief cornerstone' (Ephesians 2 v.20) of both our team and our trip'. To find out more about the work of Habitat for Humanity contact Elisabeth Kines 028 9024 3686

02/07/2007