## **Moldovan Mission** ## **Trustees’ Annual Report for 2020** Name of Charity - Moldovan Mission Charity No. 1166263 Charity address: 142 Harrowby Road, Grantham, Lincolnshire NG31 9DU ## Trustees During 2020 the Charity had twelve trustees – David Lynn (Chair – temp., Secretary and Treasurer), Neil Robinson, Dermot Parsons, Ian McKnight, Kyle Craig, Lesley Lynn, Peter and Gae Ellis, Alan and Grace Barnsdale. The aim is for succession, to lower the age of Trustees and to allow the older trustees to retire if they so wish. Since the passing of John after he returned quite ill from the 2018 Autumn Mission in Moldova, David has continued as Chair until one of the new trustees steps up to be appointed as Chair. ## Purpose The principal purpose of Moldovan Mission is the advancement of the Christian Faith in Moldova according to Biblical principles through encouraging and facilitating religious practice by existing followers or adherents and attracting new followers or adherents. The mission may also advance education and carry out other charitable purposes in Moldova and/or other parts of the world. ## Activities and projects in 2020 In fulfilling its Purpose Moldovan Mission engaged in a range of activities either on its own or with others. The Mission continues to be encouraged in this last year that doors for the ministry of Moldovan Mission continue to remain open in the South of Moldova, while new doors are opening for the mission to work in the West, Centre and North of Moldova. Mark McCormick is the principal pastor fronting the work of the Mission in Moldova. Mark’s work in 2020 was focused in the following areas. Since Mark and Mari returned to his home in Bangor, Northern Ireland, about 8 years ago for his youngest daughter to have life-saving surgery, they have continued to live in Northern Ireland whilst the girls are being schooled. 2020 has been a very different year with severe restrictions on travel due the impact of the Corona virus COVID-19 worldwide pandemic. Over 100 churches have been involved previously in the project FRANK, with around 40 having taken part in the missions during the autumn of 2018 and 2019. However, the autumn mission had to be cancelled as evangelists could not travel. The activities above during 2020 have been curtailed and Mark has not been able to travel out to Moldova during the year as he would normally have done about every 2 months to meet and mentor pastors, do teaching of FRANK seminars and preach in the autumn missions and various other events. Mark’s usual activities in Moldova have been stopped by the restrictions imposed to limit the spread of the virus. In addition to coping with restrictions to social mixing and travel people in Moldova have suffered from the effects of a severe drought in the summer and autumn of 2019 causing widespread needs. Moldovan Mission, spearheaded by Mark, responded to unfolding crisis by starting a Winter Appeal to raise funds for local pastors the Mission works with to buy and deliver essential food parcels and fuel. The mission continued to provide financial and spiritual support to eight pastors of churches mostly in the South of Moldova. We are supporting six of these pastors financially directly through Moldovan Mission. In addition Mark has mentoring relationships with all and some others, in one measure or another. The partnership with pastor Vasile Surdu in both mentoring and financial support continues to prosper. He is pastor of a large church in Soldanesti, capital of the county with the same name, where there are 35 villages, with only Soldanesti and one other village having a church. There are many other villages that he has been working in where we have been assisting with project FRANK missions and have seen individuals saved. With our support his plan is to seek to see plant churches in these villages. We had planned in 2020 to start an in-house part time Bible school based at his church to equip new pastors to oversee new church plants, but Covid-19 pandemic has delayed this and many other projects. In March we also met with pastor Tudor, who is responsible to the Baptist Union of Moldova for overseeing pastors in four counties in central Moldova. Mark, who has known Tudor for many years, his tried and proven character, has wanted to partner with him for at least 5 years, but financial circumstances had not permitted this until now. From August 2020 Moldovan Mission has entered into partnership with Tudor, which opens doors for the Mission to work with another 25 churches in project FRANK. Moldova remains Europe’s poorest country and following a failed harvest in 2019 and the Covid pandemic, it was clear that even more people than usual would fall into serious financial difficulties by wintertime. The Mission therefore had the vision of making an appeal to its supporters to raise enough money to help feed 1000 needy families with a food aid pack. We were greatly encouraged that enough was given to be able to help 2000 families. By the end of December 2020 we were already seeing the beginnings of a major expansion in the ministry of the Mission. As additional funds came in response to the appeal to feed the poor, Mark contacted another pastor in the North of Moldova to see if there were church planters that he is working with that could use aid packs to help them in their ministry in these new villages. Immediately new doors opened and by the end of Dec 2020 we found ourselves working with a further five new pastors with the potential for working out our five primary goals of our mission in a further 30 villages the Mission has not previously worked in. ## Looking forward to year 2021: Right at the start of 2021 we were seeing people, grateful to God for the provision of aid packs, started to come to church and give their lives to God, thus seeing the beginning of new churches. By the end of April 2021 D.V. we could see Moldovan Mission working with as many as 20 new Church Plant Vision Pastors in 30 new villages. All of these pastors need financial support. We thank God that in the latter part of 2020 two new major supporters joined us giving us the potential to partner with and fully or part support between three and six new pastor. We are as a mission heavily engaged in seeking to find many new partners, both as individuals and as churches, so that our finances might rise to meet the need being seen by these men, whose vision is so akin to that of Moldovan Mission. We expect that working with all these new churches will also provide the opportunity to increase the number of FRANK missions following the end of the pandemic and are working on plans in the early part of 2021 for these missions to take place in the autumn of the year. The Trustees have not received any emoluments other than authorised expenses. Virtual AGM held online on Monday 22 March 2021 David Lynn, Chair of Trustees, 12 March 2021 **Moldovan Mission Annual Statement of Accounts for year ending 2020** ## **INDEPENDENT EXAMINER’S REPORT** ## **Report to the Trustees of Moldovan Mission** ## **Charity Number 1166263** ## **On the accounts for the year ended 31st December 2020** **Respective Responsibilities of trustees and examiner:** The charity’s trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity’s trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year under section 144 of the Charities Act 2011 (The Charities Act) and that an independent examination is needed. It is my responsibility to: - examine the accounts under section 145 of the Charities Act - to follow the procedures laid down in the general Directions given by the Charity Commission (under section 145(5)(b) of the Charities Act, and - to state whether particular matters have come to my attention. **Basis of independent examiner’s statement:** My examination was carried out in accordance with general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit, and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a ‘true and fair’ view and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below. **Independent examiner’s statement:** In connection with my examination, no matter has come to my attention **1.** which gives me reasonable cause to believe that in, any material respect, the requirements: - to keep accounting records in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; and - to prepare accounts which accord with the accounting records and comply with the accounting requirements of the Charities Act have not been met; or **2.** to which, in my opinion, attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached ## **Signed:** ## **Date: 27 February 2021** ## Louise Lamb **Name: Louise Lamb 21 Sidney Street Grantham Lincs NG318AZ**