Chairman’s Report for the Association of Evangelists 1[st] April 2020 – 31[st] March 2021
Like so many other charities, this year has been affected greatly by the Covid-19 pandemic. Many of the usual activities carried out have not been able to take place, however new on-line ventures have arisen which have been a steep learning curve but have created good opportunities.
Each of the evangelists has transferred much of their activities on-line and have continued to work with churches and groups around the country taking the opportunities to share the Good News about Jesus Christ to people of all generations around the UK and also overseas.
Joe Kirby, who joined as an Associate Evangelist in the previous year has continued to make good use of social media and particularly You Tube while he has not be able to be on the streets in our city centres. Gus Eyre has not been able to visit prisons due to the restrictions so has been more limited. The other evangelists Tony Brown, Roger Carswell, Michael Ots, Martin Povey, and Andy Peace have been busy with new on-line activities, some of which are mentioned below.
Each of the evangelists ‘live by faith’ which means that they are not employed by any other church or organisation and depend on gifts from individuals to cover their living and ministry costs. Many of these gifts come via the Association of Evangelists.
The three ‘Affiliate Evangelists’ Peter Barker, Vinny Commons have also had to adjust do much of their work on-line during this last year.
In the previous year we had started running an 8-week ‘Go Training’ programme in Bedford on Tuesday evenings. This ended abruptly when the first lockdown was announced in March 2020. However, a few weeks later a new Evangelism Training programme was launched online with up to nearly 200 people joining live using online conference facilities. Others have viewed the recorded events. Throughout the year three 8-week training blocks have been run on-line for people in the UK and overseas. These events have been a great encouragement to many.
In May 2020 we began a Saturday Night ‘Real Lives’ event on-line and created a You Tube channel to enable people to watch live on Saturday nights or afterwards. During the evenings we have interviewed people from all walks of life sharing how they became Christians, and the difference Jesus makes. Interviewees include a former Lord Chancellor, an ex-MP, a film director, some from the world of sport and many others too. These have continued through the year and we have now run over 40 evenings and had over 30,000 views.
The evangelists have continued to meet up with each other (and others) for training and mutual encouragement through the year. This year it has all been on-line. The annual ‘Conference of Evangelists’ was not held, but we are planning one for January 2022. We were not able to run our annual Prayer Partners Conference during 2020 but one is planned for 2021
Writing and the distribution of Christian literature continues to be an important part of the work. This has continued through the year and new resources have been developed which can be used for gospel work more widely. These include new books, short Christian ‘tracts’ and other materials for teaching children.
The Association continues to support and encourage its partner mission, the Metropolitan Mission in Andhra Pradesh, South India. See the separate report on next page.
David Donegani Chairman Association of Evangelists
Metropolitan Mission Report
April 1[st] 2020 to March 31[st] 2021
The Metropolitan Mission continues to work in the state of Andhra Pradesh, South India, in and around the city of Vijayawada. Under normal circumstances it is involved in gospel preaching and outreach, the planting of new churches and the support of existing congregations. It is also working to assist the needy mainly through supporting the education of children and young people where this might be unsustainable by their families alone. Obviously, the work of the mission was greatly disrupted by the global pandemic and they were forced to adjust their activities.
Churches were closed down by the government on April 5[th] 2020 and, where possible. activities were switched on-line. This worked in some areas particularly in the city where the congregation members had more resources and opportunities, but not for the smaller more rural and un-developed villages. In these places the pastors were forced to support their congregations as best they could. Some did this by telephone contact and some by more household visits, but it was a difficult time and there was great hardship for many. A village pastor relies mainly on the regular collections at church for income to feed their families. Without the regular Sunday services and prayer meetings this source of income
disappeared overnight in lockdown and while the mission, through the sponsorship scheme, does give a small amount of cash each month, which was sustained during the year and including the lockdown, it was not sufficient to support every pastor fully and some families began to struggle for basic supplies. The Mission was able to organise food parcels to support all their pastors during the crisis, where such support was needed, particularly through the months of April, May, and June. In July the government allowed limited re-opening of places of worship and so many of the village churches were able to resume services. They tended to meet in the very early hours of the morning so that people could attend before work and inconspicuously.
As well as food aid to the pastors the mission was also involved in similar help to poor families in the city of Vijayawada and the villages around. They also reached out to a local leper colony near Gannavaram and to people with physical disability. Many such needy cases were referred to them for assistance though their local connections.
The mission was also involved in the emergency response to the lockdown in April 2020. They were able to provide food supplies for poor families of migrant workers struggling to get home to northern states, especially Orissa, Bihar, and Jharkhand. These families were stranded far from home when the government closed transport links and locked down the country during the first wave. Many poor people come to the state of AP from other parts of India looking for work either in agriculture, construction, or industry. They tend to live from hand to mouth on low wages paid daily and when lockdown was declared most of them found themselves unemployed and without any income. Home, for many of them, was hundreds of miles away and public transport was unavailable, so thousands of people had to walk back to their native villages and were in great hardship. Vijayawada is on a main route to the north, so they were especially affected by this crisis.
With regards to the children’s home and the MM schools (English Medium and Telegu Medium) these were all closed in March 2020 and only reopened in February 2021. The mission continued in contact with most of the sponsored children in their villages and gave food parcels to their families regularly during this time. When the situation appeared to have eased the government allowed homes, and schools to reopen. Chrildren were beginning to return to the home and to the school when the second wave hit and they were closed again. Before this happened 68 children had enrolled between the Telegu and English medium schools.
Colleges closed in April 2020 and students were offered on-line support in some instances only. Even where this was offered by the courses, not all students were able to avail themselves of it, because they did not have access to the internet. In September, some courses were able to begin again on site, but most remained shut and on-line until the 10[th] of November 2020. Exams and assessments have been
disrupted. The MM has supported students during the pandemic with food and money and with encouragement. Many of the young people were managing their courses well when they had the stimulation of contact with other young people on campus, but once that was withdrawn they got very discouraged. In addition, the MM is supporting students from poor and vulnerable families, and these have been disproportionately impacted by covid with rising prices of basic foods and with unemployment in many sectors. Some of the students have had to take on low paid work to support their families in hard times and while it is hoped that this will be temporary, it is by no means certain. During the period between April 2020 and March 2021 there has been limited work on infrastructure projects within the mission. Work has continued on three church building projects, at the HQ in Gunadala, at Brandragudem (where the building is structurally complete but plastering work and finishing touches are still outstanding) and at BB Gudem (where the walls have been completed). There has also been extensive renovation at the children’s home site, where the boys dormitories have been improved.
Assoclatlon of Evange115ts Charfty Number 26EIX15 Incorne & Expenditure Ststement 1st "12020- 31st IA¥th 2011 ,Aprtl 2020- March 2021 42697.24 April 2019- March 2020 27583.25 Openlng Balance Income Donation for work in India Christmas Catslo8ue appeal Grft Aid Ilndial Donations for Evan8ellstslAffi16ates Donations for Associat• Grft Aid lEvaA$S & Genl Gifts for Mlnistry Fund Gifts for oth•r ehariti•s PPC Houseparty Receipts FEW H/Party GO Course Bank Int•rtst Iindlal Bank Interest IGerl 125703.12, 64788. 5415.cil 6861.50 180579.81 4038. 221920.67 9750.461 71625.60 15044.13 3567.47 14191.29 11567.88 2093.68 22.58 46.30 334761.79 10.81 475774. ExPendIrn Glfts to Indi Bank Chary•s for For•lin Paym•nts Paym•nts to Evan4•llstsjAff jinc GIAidl Payments to A5SOCiat• Ilne GIAldl Gffts to oth•r Charfties Gffts to nominat•d bodl•s FEW H/P•rtv PPC Hous•partv GO Cours• M•etin¢ Exp•ns•slC•teri Webslte/Lic•n Travel costs Speakers exp•ns•s Publicity Books 151951.03 67566.11 150. 252882.18, 81.00 195238.57 275.IKI 310.CX) 12393.89 10647.16 427.12 605.13 26.00 410.00 1410.C#) 285.57 125.00 10).¢)O 20150.00 436309.21 39465.47 292064.55 42697.24 aosln8 B•n B•l•nce Current account 13415743 Gen R•serve èccount 13520350 Gen Current account 13469428 Indl Reserve aetount 13S20369 Indla 36633.37 17509.01 2832.10 2S188.23 outstanding cheque Cash Bal•nce e 31 Marth made up of..- To be sent to India To be sent to EVaell$tsIAs$OC Conference FEW Conference Reserve Fund Minlstry Fund GO Course 39465A7 42697.24 2832.10 11270.49 -350.CQ. 25188.23 1505.CQ -350.00 -194.74 s¢Jo.00 14622.19 1426.56 42697.24 SCiI.001 25712.881 39465.47 13108JLI
ASSOCIATION OF EVANGELISTS INDEPENDETr4T EXAMINER'S REPORT Year End¢d 31° M*r¢b 2021 Based utx)n my examination of the accounts for the Association of Evangelists. no matter has come to my attention which gives me reasonable cause to believe thaL in any material respecL the accounts do not comply with the requirements of the Charity Commissioners. No matter has come to my attention in connection with my examination where fiuther inforn)ation is required to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to IK reached. or Retired Accountant 8 Titchwell Road. London SW18 3LW Dat¢d..
ASSOCIATION OF EVANGELISTS INDEPENDEIYT EXAMINER'S REPORT Yur Ended 31" Mar¢b 2021 Based upon my examination of the accounts for th¢ Association of Evangelists. no matter has come to my attention which gives me reasonable cause to believe thaL in any rnaterial respecL the accounts do not comply with the requirements of th¢ ChaTity Commissioners. No matter has come to my attention in com)ection with my examinatson where furt1 inforn)ation is required to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. or Retired Accounlant 8 Titchwell Road. London SW18 3LW Dated: >t "_S4 sf Zo41