Alphabet Soup Anyone?

“Recently, as I was out and about on the estates, I bumped into Malcolm, a member of the local community, who has been out of work for a couple of years,” reports Graham, Eden Dalgarno team leader.

“But rather than looking down, he was chirpy and full of life.  He wanted to tell me all about the steady stream of poems that he had written and the two hymns he was working on.”

“Things have been looking up for Malcolm since he’s been coming along to a creative writing group nearby, called Alphabet Soup, which Cat and Azariah started at our local church.  He told me that by getting involved in this group, he had found expression for his gifts and talents,” said Graham.   “He’s now coming along to church on Sundays too and has begun to explore faith there.’

“The most striking thing about our conversation was that he seemed so full of life.  That is the Gospel at work for us with Eden. The church in action, bringing life to its community.’

The statistics show that around a quarter of those of working age who live on the Dalgarno estates are claiming key working benefits.  Of course, being out of a job is not just hard materially but can make life a struggle emotionally and psychologically.  Eden Dalgarno with St Francis wants to bring hope to our estates by engaging local people in activities that boost confidence, express talents and ignite passions (as well as the practical support to find work).

If you want to see the group in action, take a look at this Alphabet Soup session on YouTube  or for more information on the Eden Dalgarno team, take a look at their team page and email team leader Graham Stevenson, dalgarno@eden-network.org