Bears and daisy chains

In the second part of a short series looking at the new partners of the Church of Scotland Guild, Jackie Macadam learns more about the work of two projects in Bulgaria and Glasgow.

“ I went to Bulgaria with the team who delivered the millionth shoebox. It was a really touching experience but also upsetting.

THE final two Church of Scotland Guild projects for the new partnership cycle are from Scotland and Bulgaria.

‘Bear Necessities’ is a church-planting project based in Sliven in Bulgaria.

Christina Ross, Cathey Reece and Louise Harrison have been working to support a small village in Bulgaria, called Orizari since 2011 and are all trustees in the charity.

“We began as a bit of a personal project to support children to attend school and this has grown quite naturally into the project as it stands today,” says Christina.

“I was working for Blythswood Care as shoebox co-ordinator,” she explained. “I went to Bulgaria with the team who delivered the millionth shoebox. It was a really touching experience but also upsetting. At that point I knew she wanted to do more, so talked with my pal Cathey at home and the following year we went with Cathey’s video production business and made a documentary for the Go North festival. Cathey agreed she also wanted to do more, so we talked with friends and family, who soon got infected with our enthusiasm! Louise joined our team, and our initial plan of bringing school supplies and winter boots grew arms and legs!

“For us it has always been about supporting the youngsters in the village to attend school, as we are all mums from working class homes, and we know that education is what opens doors for people. But, to make that possible, folks need to know they have food, and clothing, and access to healthcare. So, with God’s mighty provision, that has been the aim of Bear Necessities from the start. And over the last fourteen years we have made long lasting relationships with people, and watched their children grow up just as we’ve watched our own grow up.

“One of the core elements is that the children each get a teddy bear to have in their beds at night – hence the name, Bear Necessities.”

“The project has now encompassed a social kitchen building located at the heart of the village welcoming folks three or four nights per week every winter for soup, a monthly medical outreach clinic, an after school club and various other social projects. We fundraise for these projects in Scotland, but it is the team in Bulgaria who deliver these services faithfully who are really at the heart of things,” Cathey said.

The project is led locally by husband and wife team, Rumen and Srebrina Ganushev. Rumen is a pastor as well as project manager.

“Rumen has been a part of our team since our very first visit, and we have all been very much changed by being a part of this experience,” says Christina. “For our part, we were not actively Christians when we began the work of Bear Necessities, and it was very much through seeing how miraculously the project thrived and grew that we were encouraged to return to the faith of our childhoods, because it became impossible not to acknowledge God’s hand at work. Rumen has worked as the assistant minister in the city church for many years, and he had seen many foreign projects come to visit and offer some aid over the years, but he was also very touched in the way he saw God working through Bear Necessities. He saw the consistency and dedication that we felt we must have to this one wee villagewe have always been convinced that we should serve one community with faithfulness, because we are a very small charity, and so to make a difference we must stay focussed. This has had a really positive affect on the village over the years. Rumen was both impressed and challenged by our insistence that the project must benefit everyone, regardless of their faith, or their church attendance, and that we must look to serve those with most need as a priority.

“Bulgaria is a former communist country, and their recognised religion is Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Protestant churches still have a kind of cult status by many, so it is by showing practical love, service and care to the people that Rumen hopes to show a different aspect of faith and open the door for more of his neighbours to find their way to God.

“We nearly did not apply for the scheme, as we are all volunteers for Bear and have full time jobs, working on Bear Necessities in our spare time.

“We knew that Bear Necessities has many needs (we are currently in the process of fundraising to put a new roof on the social kitchen building) but we really felt God prompting us to ask the Guild to adopt Rumen’s church plant vision. God definitely wants this church to be planted and we are so grateful to Him for blessing us to be a part of what He is doing in Bulgaria,” says Cathey. “These are people who are just like us: we have watched their children grow up as we have watched our own children grow up, and we have celebrated and grieved alongside them for the last 14 years,” says Louise.

“They have become our neighbours, but find themselves living with significantly more challenges, like racism, especially for the Gypsy community, and poverty. These people have come out of communism and into capitalism and it has not been kind to them. “God has inspired and enabled Bear Necessities to model a church which serves these people in their most basic needs so that their burdens can be lifted enough that they can see Him, and know their prayers are heard

“We know that the people of the Guild are like ourselves: ordinary folks, who, but for His Grace, could be in a very different situation. We believe that the Guild will play a huge part in establishing a church in Sliven which models the teachings of our God in a practical and surprising way, and we look forward to sharing that blessing with the Guild, so that we may all become neighbours, as their church grows alongside our church here in Scotland.”

The final project selected by the Guild is run by CrossReach, and includes initiatives in both Edinburgh and Glasgow.

“Due to the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost-ofliving crisis, our expert services are seeing families presenting with more trauma and distress than at any other time,” says Craig Wills, Head of Fundraising and Engagement with CrossReach.

“A child’s early years can have an impact that lasts a lifetime. Early experiences ‘get under the skin’ and shape the brain, affecting lifelong health, behaviour and learning. Studies show that traumatic or abusive events in childhood are associated with depression, cardiovascular disease, cancer, alcoholism and drug abuse in adult life, as well as encounters with the justice/ legal system.

“Knowing this, we aim to give children and families the best possible start in life at our Daisy Chain service and Perinatal counselling services with Creche.

“Daisy Chain, based in Glasgow, is a community, inclusive, early intervention project for children and their families. These families face really challenging and vulnerable situations – poverty, gender inequality, suffer with poor mental health, violence and unemployment, all impacting on their whole family wellbeing.

“There was also a lack of support for families and children under five with an impairment or disability. A key part of what Daisy Chain is able to offer is our ‘Little Marvels’ group, giving them fantastic opportunities and empowerment to grow and develop. It is clear that engagement in early learning and childcare is a key step in preventing or reducing poverty and trauma and we know that our model of stay and play and family support enables children and families to access this provision.

“The Perinatal Creche Support is so that parents get help to attend to their own emotional and psychological needs and are in a better position to respond to their infants’ cues and engage with them in positive ways.

“Our expert counselling services located in Glasgow and Edinburgh deliver Parent and Infant Relationship therapy where Parents can access their counselling sessions while leaving their baby in trusted hands. Creche has a key role to play in developing confident parents and secure babies in the first thousand days of a child’s life; this is a crucial time for the infant and parent to develop a healthy bond and for the infant’s lifelong wellbeing and attainment as future members of our communities,” says Craig.

“Daisy Chain and our Perinatal Creche services are run by amazing teams of people and provide exactly the type of support families need to ensure foundations are as strong as possible. This exciting partnership with the Guild has the power to give hope and change a child’s future. Together, Daisy Chain and Perinatal counselling support give 1,000 families hope each year.

“Although CrossReach is a Church of Scotland charity and one of the largest social care organisations in Scotland, we are relatively unknown. Our ongoing, proven partnership with the Guild will not only help fund these incredible lifelines to children and families, but also spread the word of care, love and belonging.

“Daisy Chain and our Perinatal Creche Support provide exactly the type of support needed to ensure foundations are built at this critical time. Our staff are trained and knowledgeable in trauma, neurodevelopment, and the importance of play, they work together with parents to improve the relationship between child and parent using play as the gateway, through listening and positive reinforcement they improve confidence in the parent leading to positive outcomes.

“The last few years in particular have been challenging, faced with increased demand as well as the cost-of-living crisis and funding cuts. Because of that, our large amount of risk falls on us to ensure we are able to be there for families who need us.

“Money raised with the help of the Guild, will make an incredible, lasting impact on these families.” ¤