December 2024
Congratulations to Charlotte and James on their wedding on 1 November. Not just any wedding venue, but held at Edinburgh Zoo. (Not in an empty cage, but in the lovely old Mansion House in the middle of the grounds.) There was an opportunity while photographs were being taken in various locations for the guests to wander round the zoo. As it was a dry and quite warm day, the arrangement worked very well.
The tables were decorated in a suitable theme for a zoo, though none of the zoo’s residents seemed to have been invited.
You may remember Charlotte’s brother Jordan, who had a course in computing at Edinburgh University a few years ago. It must have been worthwhile, as he’s still in the same job he obtained after the course.
The tables were decorated in a suitable theme for a zoo, though none of the zoo’s residents seemed to have been invited.
You may remember Charlotte’s brother Jordan, who had a course in computing at Edinburgh University a few years ago. It must have been worthwhile, as he’s still in the same job he obtained after the course.
Continuing the news of weddings, Reza’s brother, still in Iran, married recently. Sadly, Reza was unable to be present, but he did receive some beautiful photos of the day. But it does make you realise the big sacrifice that some people make because of their faith.
Naghmeh is another example: when her mother had a stroke. We’re pleased to say that her mum is continuing to improve.
Naghmeh is another example: when her mother had a stroke. We’re pleased to say that her mum is continuing to improve.
Winter has taken its time arriving, though it's safe to say it's here now. Our propensity to prolong Fall has continued, with more falls. The most serious one involved an hour's wait in the garden before being discovered, then a trip to hospital to have two broken bones in the wrist plastered, and subsequently reset. Plus the usual return visits for further atention. Not pleasant, but as bodies have a habit of doing, recovery is slow but steady.
Other troubles, spread over a number of our members, include a corneal implant, a stent removal, a diagnosis of diabetes, a hernia repair and general old age creeping on.
As one old person is reputed to have said to another, “Remember the days when we talked about our right knee and our left knee? Now it’s our good knee and our bad knee.”
Such is life. We still have more to be grateful for than to complain about, though we may sometimes forget that.
We were sorry to hear that one of Pete Lawton's sisters, Kath, had died after being unwell for a long time.
Jan McHaffie has lost two of her relatives in the past few weeks. Her uncle Philip Adams (brother of Milner, a member here for many years) fell asleep in Garswood, Southport in September. Then her brother-in-law, David Wren, passed away in Fairhaven in November. He had been a resident in Bethesda in Torquay, but when it closed he moved to Fairhaven in Bournemouth, where he had spent many years of his life.
Ali Matloobkari, but introducing himself to us as Kevin, was with us for a short time, before moving back to England. Sad to say, he had a fall from a height, resulting in multiple damage to his body and brain. Tim Day in Middlesborough and others there continue to support Afsaneh, Ali’s sister, who sits at his bedside day by day. However, the desperately sad situation is that his body is slowly, very slowly, dying. His brain is irreparably damaged. There is no medical hope.
We are reminded that God is a God of love, and death need not be the end. As Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.”
Other troubles, spread over a number of our members, include a corneal implant, a stent removal, a diagnosis of diabetes, a hernia repair and general old age creeping on.
As one old person is reputed to have said to another, “Remember the days when we talked about our right knee and our left knee? Now it’s our good knee and our bad knee.”
Such is life. We still have more to be grateful for than to complain about, though we may sometimes forget that.
We were sorry to hear that one of Pete Lawton's sisters, Kath, had died after being unwell for a long time.
Jan McHaffie has lost two of her relatives in the past few weeks. Her uncle Philip Adams (brother of Milner, a member here for many years) fell asleep in Garswood, Southport in September. Then her brother-in-law, David Wren, passed away in Fairhaven in November. He had been a resident in Bethesda in Torquay, but when it closed he moved to Fairhaven in Bournemouth, where he had spent many years of his life.
Ali Matloobkari, but introducing himself to us as Kevin, was with us for a short time, before moving back to England. Sad to say, he had a fall from a height, resulting in multiple damage to his body and brain. Tim Day in Middlesborough and others there continue to support Afsaneh, Ali’s sister, who sits at his bedside day by day. However, the desperately sad situation is that his body is slowly, very slowly, dying. His brain is irreparably damaged. There is no medical hope.
We are reminded that God is a God of love, and death need not be the end. As Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.”
But if the older generation has done their bit to ensure the NHS is not standing round wondering what to do, the younger generation is doing what they can to keep Further Education thriving. Ebi, Hezha, Haleh and Naghmeh find themselves at the same college at the same time (but on different courses). Sara and Salar are hoping to join them at college in the New Year. And Reza is both a full-time student on a sports coaching course and running his own business as a skilled craftsman.
Crown City School in Kenya has been the focus of our Micah Project for the past year. We were very pleased to have Annie and Chris Abson come to speak to us recently about the school. Annie had just returned from a much-postponed trip to the school, and we shared in a typical Kenyan meal kindly provided by Annie.
As usual, it is impressive how much can be achieved with not very much money. But that’s not to say that more is not needed.
Meal a Day will be happy to receive any donations, or they can be paid into the ecclesial bank account (details in the weekly email), and remember to let our treasurer Charlotte know what the money paid in is for. Where appropriate she will add Gift Aid before forwarding it to Meal a Day.
As usual, it is impressive how much can be achieved with not very much money. But that’s not to say that more is not needed.
Meal a Day will be happy to receive any donations, or they can be paid into the ecclesial bank account (details in the weekly email), and remember to let our treasurer Charlotte know what the money paid in is for. Where appropriate she will add Gift Aid before forwarding it to Meal a Day.
Hezha had just had his Home Office interview at the time of our report in September. At the beginning of October, he had another interview. The good news is that he was granted Leave to Remain, and equally good news is that though he is able to move somewhere else, he has chosen to stay with us in Edinburgh. He had to move out of the Home Office provided accommodation. The first hostel was completely unsatisfactory (quite surprising that it wasn’t closed down), but he was able to move to other accommodation, which is fine.
Haleh and Eli are still waiting for their interview. Ebi was moved down to England on his own without any notice, but after a few days down there he was able to return to Edinburgh, where they have now moved to a different flat in another part of Edinburgh. We give them our very best wishes for a speedy and successful resolution of their asylum cases, to allow them to get back to some semblance of normal life.
Peiman, Reza’s friend from Iran, is still staying with Reza. All being well, he will be starting to train in January as a bus driver with Lothian Buses, so once his training is completed, you may meet him on a bus. Have your bus pass to hand. (That applies only to those fortunate enough to have one.)
Amin’s family have now settled into suitable but only temporary accommodation, and are finding their feet in a strange country and city.
Haleh and Eli are still waiting for their interview. Ebi was moved down to England on his own without any notice, but after a few days down there he was able to return to Edinburgh, where they have now moved to a different flat in another part of Edinburgh. We give them our very best wishes for a speedy and successful resolution of their asylum cases, to allow them to get back to some semblance of normal life.
Peiman, Reza’s friend from Iran, is still staying with Reza. All being well, he will be starting to train in January as a bus driver with Lothian Buses, so once his training is completed, you may meet him on a bus. Have your bus pass to hand. (That applies only to those fortunate enough to have one.)
Amin’s family have now settled into suitable but only temporary accommodation, and are finding their feet in a strange country and city.
Our hall is usually pretty full on Sundays, but not quite as full as it was on 21 November, when both Edinburgh Direct Aid International (as it is called now) and the Christine Witcutt Memorial Fund held their AGMs. EDAI continues to do amazing work in a wide variety of locations, none of them very safe for those who go there personally, especially Maggie Tookey, who deserves a special mention for her bravery. Some examples:
◆ Scottish Training Centre in Arsal in Lebanon, working with Syrian refugees
◆ Balsam Centre, also in Arsal
◆ Gaza: funds for medical relief and delivery of food
◆ Ukraine: delivery of food, fuel, building materials, tablets, and the creation of underground schooling
◆ Idlib, in Syria: aid was delivered after the devastating earthquake
To find out more about EDAI, click here.
Should you wish to support EDAI’s work, there are different ways you can do so:
• Donations of cash are very important, and can be made here. Or you can speak to Jean Horsburgh, who has been the EDA, now EDAI, treasurer for many years.
• For a long time, donations of good quality clothing have been accepted at the warehouse in Granton.
• A more recent but very profitable way of helping is to collect any spare metal, for selling to the Scrap Metal dealer very close to the warehouse. The metal can be as simple as used food cans; or as valuable as copper or brass. If you have any broken appliances, hand them to Ian McHaffie, who will see that they are stripped of their valuable metal – that includes larger items like old boilers, which are a profitable source; any spare metal plumbing bits (old taps, pipe, fittings etc) are another resource. In the last financial year, £7,294 was raised by this means, and £3,541 between just July and October.
◆ Scottish Training Centre in Arsal in Lebanon, working with Syrian refugees
◆ Balsam Centre, also in Arsal
◆ Gaza: funds for medical relief and delivery of food
◆ Ukraine: delivery of food, fuel, building materials, tablets, and the creation of underground schooling
◆ Idlib, in Syria: aid was delivered after the devastating earthquake
To find out more about EDAI, click here.
Should you wish to support EDAI’s work, there are different ways you can do so:
• Donations of cash are very important, and can be made here. Or you can speak to Jean Horsburgh, who has been the EDA, now EDAI, treasurer for many years.
• For a long time, donations of good quality clothing have been accepted at the warehouse in Granton.
• A more recent but very profitable way of helping is to collect any spare metal, for selling to the Scrap Metal dealer very close to the warehouse. The metal can be as simple as used food cans; or as valuable as copper or brass. If you have any broken appliances, hand them to Ian McHaffie, who will see that they are stripped of their valuable metal – that includes larger items like old boilers, which are a profitable source; any spare metal plumbing bits (old taps, pipe, fittings etc) are another resource. In the last financial year, £7,294 was raised by this means, and £3,541 between just July and October.
It’s hard to believe that it is now over 31 years since our member Christine Witcutt was killed by a sniper in Sarajevo while delivering aid through Edinburgh Direct Aid. The Christine Witcutt Memorial Fund continues to provide a Home Visiting Service in Sarajevo, as it has done for over twenty years. A booklet has been produced to explain to parents what the service offers. Without the Home Visiting Service, the children would receive no education.
Meal a Day is very generous in helping the Service. If you would like to contribute to the work, click here for full details.
Meal a Day is very generous in helping the Service. If you would like to contribute to the work, click here for full details.
Cecelia is making the most of her time in Edinburgh. She had the bright idea of hiring a campervan and going off to see the Isle of Skye. She managed that, but what she hadn’t bargained for was her first sight of snow – lots of! But she came back safely, and is now preparing for her part in a Christmas concert presented by one of the musical groups she has joined. We are invited to go along and enjoy some good music. She tells us they are all good musicians – some former professionals. No need to book. Just turn up.
New Year Walk
Many of you will remember the walk we did last New Year, through the former railway tunnel at Colinton. Our next walk is planned for Thursday 2 January, starting at 1.00pm in Musselburgh. Meet at the south end of the Old Roman Bridge (EH21 7BL). There is free parking in a car park at the bridge, or in the streets around the bridge. After a leisurely walk on the level towards the estuary, we will end up at S Luca Café (which we know will be open that day, though there might be a queue – there almost certainly will be once we are all inside). Other cafés are available.
If you hope to come, let Ian McHaffie know mchaffie1@icloud.com so that he can expect you. All welcome!
Many of you will remember the walk we did last New Year, through the former railway tunnel at Colinton. Our next walk is planned for Thursday 2 January, starting at 1.00pm in Musselburgh. Meet at the south end of the Old Roman Bridge (EH21 7BL). There is free parking in a car park at the bridge, or in the streets around the bridge. After a leisurely walk on the level towards the estuary, we will end up at S Luca Café (which we know will be open that day, though there might be a queue – there almost certainly will be once we are all inside). Other cafés are available.
If you hope to come, let Ian McHaffie know mchaffie1@icloud.com so that he can expect you. All welcome!
We ended September’s report on a lighter note, with a picture of a scarecrow from Wigtown. Other places too have scarecrow festivals. Here’s one of Fintry’s exhibits, photographed by Keren and Ronnie. A warning perhaps to be careful about drink-driving over the festive season.
And so we send Christmas greetings to all who are reading this. We hope you have an enjoyable Christmas and a fulfilling 2025, but let’s not forget those for whom the time will be miserable beyond anything we experience. Our hope is indeed expressed well by the USA motto “In God We Trust”. Or as the apostle Paul wrote to the early Christians in Corinth, as rendered by the Message Bible:
We don’t want you in the dark, friends, about how hard it was when all this came down on us in Asia province. It was so bad we didn’t think we were going to make it. We felt like we’d been sent to death row, that it was all over for us. As it turned out, it was the best thing that could have happened. Instead of trusting in our own strength or wits to get out of it, we were forced to trust God totally—not a bad idea since he’s the God who raises the dead! And he did it, rescued us from certain doom. And he’ll do it again, rescuing us as many times as we need rescuing. You and your prayers are part of the rescue operation—I don’t want you in the dark about that either. I can see your faces even now, lifted in praise for God’s deliverance of us, a rescue in which your prayers played such a crucial part.
2 Corinthians 1:8-11