News from this year's spring appeal

“I am so grateful for you,” writes Genesis. “Thank you for giving to help some of the world’s most marginalised people. Your gift is supporting families like Simon’s, who I’ve been working with here in northern Uganda.” Genesis is responding to an email we sent, asking what difference the donations to the BMS Feeding Families spring appeal have made to his work. His reply, as ever, is filled with joy at the progress of the crops lovingly cultivated by farmers he’s been supporting, and excitement for the next batch of seedlings to arrive. In the email, he tells us the story of Simon, one of the youth leaders of Pajja Baptist Church in Gulu, Uganda – and we’re hooked.

Simon had long dreamt of building a house with a tin roof for his family. In his neighbourhood, it would be one of a kind. Houses in Gulu typically have grass-thatched roofs which, though beautiful and practical, are very vulnerable to wildfires. A tin roof would keep Simon, his wife Ketty and their daughter, Lakareber Faith, safe throughout the year, and especially during the dry season.

Through your incredible support of the BMS Feeding Families appeal, you raised over £39,079.97 (at the time of writing!) to help intrepid women and men like Simon to provide for their loved ones in the harshest of circumstances. In fact, more than 500 UK Christians responded to the letter we sent out, describing how raising a healthy harvest has become more and more challenging for daily wage farmers worldwide due to erratic weather patterns and the changing climate. And through BMS agricultural training that you helped fund in Uganda, Simon learnt how to grow a wide range of crops to provide for his family, protect the environment, and make his dream a reality.

“Equipped with new farming knowledge and through a lot of hard work, Simon grew and sold cabbage, soybeans and corn, and over time he raised enough money to buy iron sheets for his dream roof,” says Genesis. Simon, Ketty and Lakareber Faith have now moved into their new home. They are now better protected from erratic weather and wildfires, and they’ve inspired the rest of the village as to what is possible with the right support and skills.

“First and foremost, I want to thank the churches in UK for their support to us here in form of seeds, trainings and encouragement,” says Simon. “The trainings and support have changed me and the way I farm now… We trust God and believe that our lives will keep on improving. We will keep praying for you and pray for us too so that we can work hard and change our lives.”

But food shortages caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the climate crisis extended beyond Uganda – and so does the help that you’ve so generously given. The £39,000 total has also gone towards providing training for 40 river pastors in Peru on creation stewardship and living well. Knowledge dissemination is the key to large-scale change in the region that has been described as ‘the lungs of the Earth’.  So, radio shows that your support has funded will also reach communities for an 80-mile stretch along the Amazon River. “Thank you so much for your support,” says Laura-Lee Lovering, BMS environmental scientist in Peru. “You are helping us continue working with local pastors and leaders, encouraging and equipping them to recognise the natural resources God has provided to them through the rainforest (such as food, water and medicine), and their important role as stewards of God’s good creation.”

Likewise, your giving has made a difference in the rural mountains of Afghanistan, where the winter snow melt can mean the difference between having enough to eat in the spring, or utter despair. Needless to say, there’s no supermarket to pop to for supplies when times are hard. “Thank you so much for giving so generously to the Feeding Families appeal,” says BMS mission worker and agricultural expert Ruby. Ruby is creating a ‘food forest’, with apple, pear, plum and walnut trees, and it’s already attracted the attention of families in the surrounding villages, coming to ask about how to look after fruit trees, feed and prune them. “Very little, if any, fruit is grown in this area,” explains Ruby. “So with the food forest we hope to teach people about healthy eating, as well as helping the environment by planting much-needed trees.”

Thank you for supporting BMS’ Feeding Families appeal, helping precious people to adapt and thrive in a hugely difficult year. Genesis says it all, writing: “Sometimes when you give a gift to support the work of BMS, you may not know the whole community impact. It might look small and you may not know who you are supporting. But I want to tell you that your support is actually very big. You may think your gift is only enough to help a few people – but those people will go on to help others. And so, person by person, your support is causing magnificent transformation around the world. May God bless you abundantly for your gift and your prayers.”