A RUDIMENTARY shack that is home for a family that has had to leave its own due to violence and armed conflict will be on the forecourt of the Old Hospital in Minehead on Saturday morning.
With just the minimum for keeping alive, it serves as a reminder, during Christian Aid Week, that this is the situation faced by millions of displaced people in many parts of the world – and why the work by Christian Aid matters.
Visitors will be asked: ‘Could you manage if you had to spend months in this kind of shelter?’.
Samuel Williams, Christian Sid regional co-ordinator who has been working with the local supporters, said: “The focus of Christian Aid Week this year is internally displaced people – still in their own country but not in their own home districts.
“There are around 40 million such people around the globe. The message centres around the separation from ‘home’ of all that is held dear and is known.”
Inside the Old Hospital will be the annual Rainbow Fair, raising funds for Christian Aid. Different churches will have stalls with items matching the colours of the rainbow, and big boxes in churches are already filling up with donations for the stalls.
Handmade craftwork, homemade cookery, ornaments, toys, household items, books and plants will be on sale.
The Rainbow Fair is from 10am to noon and admission is free.
Bill Griffiths, local organiser for Christian Aid, said: “You never know what you will find in the sale and the experience of visiting the shack on the forecourt will help us all realise how useful the money raised will be.”
Tea and coffee will be available. It will be one of the first events to use two of the main areas inside the Old Hospital which are undergoing refurbishment at present.
Next Saturday, May 19, a quiz evening will be held at St Andrew’s Church to raise funds for Christian Aid. Teams of six are welcome, as are individuals wishing to help make up a team. It starts at 7pm. Entry is £5 on the door. Refreshments and a raffle will be included.