signpost international - changing lives (spring/summer 2010)

ChangingLives

Empowering People Transforming Communities

The magazine of Signpost International Spring/Summer 2010

2 www.signpost-international.org 3


www.signpost-international.org

8 health watch How a group of mothers are tackling the problem

of ill health in their Filipino shanty town

10 “money is not the only answer!” Stories of an empowered community

12 a remarkable woman: the Bamusuuta orphanage A new home for some of Uganda’s tragic orphans

14 India: the struggle for civil rights The desecration of a burial site sparks a village’s struggle against caste discrimination

16 “I’d go with the devil if he had a drink in his hand!” One woman’s story of how her family was affected by her drinking

18 discovery projects: theatre transformation How art is being used to tackle youth crime in inner city Dundee

20 the in-depth interview Talking to the ‘eyes and ears’ of Signpost India

22 news What’s going on?

Signpost InternationalThe Mark Henderson CentreAnn Street, Dundee DD3 7TH

Tel: 01382 660072

enquiries@�signpost-international.org www.signpost-international.org

Registered Charity No. 1057437 OSCR No. SCO38850

Signpost International is a member of the Fundraising Standards Board.

For more discussion on issues of faith and development visit Kerry’s blog: http://kerrydixon.wordpress.com/

Patron: Dr Tony Campolo

President of the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education (EAPE)

Changing Lives is the bi-annual magazine of Signpost International.

Design and artwork by: The Malting House Graphic Design Studio, Dundee. www.themaltinghouse.co.uk

Produced by: Fairprint www.fairprint.co.uk

This magazine is printed on paper from sustainable forests.

Packaged in environmentally friendly biodegradable polywrap.

© April 2010, Signpost International

4 starfish club A response to the earthquake that devastated Haiti

6 restaveks: a modern form of slavery Taking a look at the lives of some of Haiti’s unfortunate slave children

contents


As I sit here writing, I can hear bulldozers just outside my window: all around Signpost’s offices the buildings are literally being torn down.

This is part of the regeneration of the Hilltown, the area of inner city Dundee where Signpost works, and it is painful to watch the destruction of familiar buildings that have been homes, shops and community centres.

Occasionally, as the outer wall of a house is torn down, I can see the wallpaper someone once chose and I am reminded that this is all about people. Reconstruction will certainly improve the area, but it is people who give it life and create a community.

The controversial demolition of the buildings on our street has caused many to ask, “Who is responsible for our community?”

But this is not a new question.

When Cain kills Abel, God asks him a simple question, “Where is your brother?” And Cain’s angry response - “Am I my brother’s keeper?” - is the question we must all answer:

“�Is�it�my�responsibility�to�care��for�the�needs�of�others?”

For those of us who try to follow the example seen in the life of Jesus, the answer must surely be “Yes!”

By declaring and revealing the kingdom of God in all he did, Jesus demonstrates a new way of living, and being, community.

In this revolutionary community the weakest become the strongest, the powerful are humbled, the poor are blessed, the peacemakers are called God’s children, and sacrifice and surrender are praised above power, wealth and fame.

When Jesus announces that this kingdom has come to grant freedom to the captives, justice for the oppressed and dignity for the outcast, his walk towards resurrection begins.

Running through the story of the Bible we can see the cords of grace that bind us together: a deep-rooted commitment to social justice and social responsibility.

At Signpost International it is this way of being that we are trying to model. It is this resurrection and regeneration that we long to see in our community and in other communities around the world.

Like�Jesus�before�us,�we�are��simply�trying�to�love�our�neighbour�as�ourselves.

Thank you for walking with us!

Kerry Dixon Signpost International

“ Is it my responsibility to care for the needs of others?”




The January earthquake that devastated Port-au-Prince was the most severe earthquake to affect Haiti in over 200 years. It smashed the country’s already impoverished infrastructure and left many tens of thousands of people dead or missing. In its immediate aftermath a Starfish grant was given to help the people of Haiti, most of whom were already living in abject poverty before the earthquake struck. The grant was given to the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education (EAPE), working in Haiti for over 30 years through partner organisations Beyond Borders and Haiti Partners.

Survivors of the disaster, who had lost everything, were given emergency assistance of food, water, tents, generators, medical personnel and supplies.

Your donations have also helped provide two ‘safe havens’ for the hundreds of children found wandering, dazed and lost, on the streets of Port-au-Prince.

Haiti earthquake responseThese children are being cared for until their families can be found, or a safe placement can be made where they will be clothed, fed and housed.

Soon after the quake Haiti’s Minister of Education Joel Jean-Pierre announced that the country’s education system had “totally collapsed”. One of the most immediate and important tasks in the aftermath of a disaster is to re-establish education – particularly for children – and our sister organisations in Haiti have been providing teachers, and educational resources for the hard-hit communities where they work.

Now, several months on, work is taking place to resettle refugees in outlying areas away from the devastation in Port-au-Prince, integrating them into their new communities. Reconstruction has begun, particularly focusing on the rebuilding of schools and economic centres to improve the situations of displaced people until they can rebuild their communities.

Haiti’s earthquake - what the UN has

called the worst disaster it has ever

experienced – will continue to affect

the people of Haiti for years to come.

Thank you for your kind donations that

are going some way towards rebuilding

Haiti’s future.

the starfish club

“A boy was walking along a beach after a great storm. The storm had washed thousands upon thousands of starfish onto the beach.

The boy began to pick up the starfish and, one by one, he would throw them back into the sea and save their lives.

An old man watched the boy as he came towards him. When the boy was close enough the old man asked, ‘What are you doing?’ ‘Putting

the starfish back’ he replied. ‘Why bother?’ asked the old man, ‘After all, there are so many you can’t possibly make a difference.’

The boy looked quizzically at the old man. He stooped down, picked up a large starfish and threw it back into the sea.

‘Well it sure made a difference to that one!’ he said.”

HAITI FACT FILE:

• Haiti is the poorest country in the

Americas, with foreign aid making up

over one-third of the national budget.

• The UN has called Cité Soleil, Haiti’s

largest slum, ‘the most dangerous

place on earth’.

• The richest 1% of Haiti’s population

owns nearly half of the country’s wealth.

• Half of Haiti’s children are unvaccinated,

with just 40% of the population having

access to basic healthcare.

• Most Haitians live on less than $2 a day.

When we use the term

‘dollars per day’, this does

not define what one US

dollar can purchase in a

poor country – which might

be quite a lot. The phrase

is actually a creation of the

World Bank to measure

purchasing power parity

(PPP).

PPP measures what things

cost around the world,

allowing for exchange rates.

That is, a woman in Haiti

living on two dollars a day

can buy in her world what

you could buy for two

dollars in yours.

Crowds queue for scarce water supplies

Supporters of Signpost’s Starfish Club commit to giving small monthly amounts of money, or can alternatively give larger one-off gifts. Together these individual amounts make large sums of money that can help change many hundreds of lives.

To join the Starfish Club on a regular or one-off basis please contact our offices, fill in the form on the back of this magazine or visit the Starfish page at www.signpost-international.org.

4 5www.signpost-international.org www.signpost-international.org

WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

One month on Haiti’s government confirmed that the death toll equalled that of the 2004 Asian Tsunami, with as many as one million Haitians left homeless by the disaster.

Shortly after the quake Tony Campolo, President of EAPE,

announced “We have set up short term, middle range

and long term programmes to alleviate the immediate

suffering caused by the earthquake, as well as dealing

with the ongoing need for the social, economic and

spiritual development of the Haitian people.”

7



In spite of government regulations that surround the practice of child labour, restaveks are brutally treated. Working up to 18 hours a day, often unable to attend school, they can be abused, beaten, thrown out onto the streets or even killed.

Parents are often unaware of how their children are being treated, and believe that their children will have a better life as a restavek. Any news they do hear tends to be from their child’s new family, telling

them that ‘all is fine’. For many parents, struggling to feed, clothe and school all their children, one less child to care for is a welcome relief.

Unicef estimates that there could be as many as 300,000 restaveks in Haiti – almost 4% of the population – with numbers continuing to grow as poverty and political turmoil increase. Now, in the wake of Haiti’s recent earthquake, the fate of the restaveks is even more uncertain.

Restaveks: a modern form of slavery

Desperate poverty in rural Haiti fuels a particular form of child slavery.

Meeting Jesus in the Poor In Luke 16:19-31, we read the story that Jesus told about a certain rich man and a poor man named Lazarus who lay suffering with hunger and a diseased body just outside the rich man’s house. Jesus tells us that the rich man ate ‘sumptuously’ while the poor man would have loved to have ‘the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table.’ Eventually, the rich man died and ended up in Hell.

But why? Does Jesus say that he committed some great sin; that he murdered someone; that he committed adultery; or that he broke some other of the Ten Commandments?

In telling this story Jesus lets it be known that the sin of this rich man was living in luxury, while ignoring the needs of the suffering poor man who lay on his front doorstep.

Is this not a warning to us that living out an affluent, consumerist lifestyle, while being indifferent to those who suffer the pain of poverty, is to stand under God’s judgment?

The only description that Jesus gives of Judgment Day is found in Matthew 25:31-46. There he declares that not to feed the hungry; clothe the naked; care for the sick; heal the brokenhearted; and reach out to those in prison translates into a rejection of Him as Lord and Saviour. This is because Jesus chooses to present Himself to us through the poor and the oppressed, so that to reject them is to reject Him.

Under the restavek system very young children are given to another family by their poverty-stricken

parents. These children cook, clean and collect water without any payment and, although they are meant

to receive food, shelter and a place at school in return, for many children the reality is very different.

Dr Tony Campolo

For many parents, struggling to feed,

clothe and school all their children, one

less child to care for is a welcome relief.

6 www.signpost-international.org

In Haiti there are 250,000 restaveks. Restaveks are children who have come from families that are so poor that these children are given away to become domestic servants. In reality, they become the closest thing imaginable to slaves.

The scriptures clearly teach that if anyone says that he or she loves God, but does not love their neighbour, such a person is a liar (1 John 4:20). This affirms that God wants to be loved through one’s neighbour — and especially through the neighbour who is in need. In 1 John 3:17-18, we are asked how anyone who has ‘this world’s goods’, knows of a brother or sister who is suffering in poverty and keeps what he or she has, can say, I have the love of God in my heart’.

Signpost International workers take these scriptures seriously and, both in Scotland and in foreign countries, are responding with love and service to people in need. They have learned what they hope all of us will learn, that giving to those who suffer is not simply a responsibility, but a privilege.

The Apostle Paul taught that to give is to be exercising what he called ‘a gift of the Holy Spirit.’ That is why they never hesitate when they call on fellow Christians to give sacrificially, because they know that in doing so Christians are exercising a calling from God that carries with it its own blessings and facilitates the spiritual actualization of those who do the giving.

In Haiti there are 250,000 restaveks. Restaveks are children who have come from families that are so poor that these children are given away to become domestic servants. In reality, they become the closest thing imaginable to slaves.

When the recent earthquake destroyed Port-au-Prince, panicked families who had restaveks in their households did everything they could to take care of their own children, but turned the restaveks out onto the streets. These poorest of the poor children had to fend for themselves.

Beyond Borders, a sister organisation to Signpost International, has been gathering these children into “safe houses” to protect them from human trafficking and to care for them until good homes can be found for them. These children are those whom Jesus called “the least of these,” and it is such as these that Signpost International is committed to serve and to love into God’s Kingdom.

Dr Tony Campolo

President of the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education (EAPE) & Patron of Signpost International





health watchFor two days the seminar, run by Dr Demie

Tidon the president of Signpost Philippines,

taught participants first aid skills and basic

community health practice. Monalisa and

other local mothers learned how to take

blood pressure, use a nebuliser, weigh

babies, take a temperature and sell over

the counter medicines at very low cost.

“ Before Health Watch I could never

have imagined myself working to

provide medical services in the

community!” says Monalisa.

Now, armed with their new skills, these

community mothers are working as

volunteers, augmenting the barangay

[community] health service, since the

community doctors and nurses only visit

the North Baluarte area once a week.

Although they are volunteers, the women

charge a nominal fee of 5 Pesos (around

7 pence) to take blood pressure readings.

This helps them save enough money to

repair or replace their medical equipment,

ensuring this valuable medical service can

continue long into the future.

Improved health care services are really

changing the quality of life for the local

community.

“ I love being able to serve my fellow

residents,” says Monalisa, “And share

my new-found knowledge with them.”

Like most mothers, Monalisa Malabago worries about her

child’s health. But for the Malabago family, living in North

Baluarte on the outskirts of the Philippines’ Iloilo City, their risk

of ill-health is high. The area is a shantytown, poor and densely

crowded, with little access to clean water and sanitation

limited to the filthy tidal waters that run under the houses.

Last year Signpost started to build stable concrete bridges over the dangerous tidal waters of the Philippines’ North Baluarte community. Here is how that project has impacted the life of one woman...

news updateJesusana Garnica suffers from polio which has weakened her legs. Because of her disability she finds it difficult to walk on the rickety bamboo walkways that bridge the tidal waters surrounding her home. Jesusana needs to be accompanied if she wants to go out of the house but, because her husband is at work and her children at school, she spends most of her time alone.

A year ago Signpost started to build concrete walkways next to the block of houses where the Garnica family live. Sitting with Jesusana on the newly constructed bridge, Signpost staff member Jairus Broce asked how she felt about the new concrete walkways.

“My long time wish has come true,” said a delighted Jesusana.

“I thank God, who is close to the heart of the needy!”

One of Jesusana’s sons is sponsored through Signpost International and, when his UK sponsors heard about her disability, they wanted to help.

School boys William (7) and Thomas (5) gave up a visit to the cinema, donating the money to Signpost instead. With the boys’ gift, local Signpost staff were able to buy a special walking stick, to increase Jesusana’s mobility, and enough money was left over to buy the whole family food and medicines.

The concrete walkway and quad cane have given Jesusana Garnica a much-longed for independence, and freed her from having to stay at home.

She says proudly, “Now I can walk freely by myself. My life is different now!”

When Signpost announced that a Health

Watch seminar was to be run at their offices

in the North Baluarte community, Monalisa

was one of the first to sign up. She says,

“At the time there was a real risk of

pandemic [swine] flu. I was scared and

wanted to do what I could to be prepared.”

8 9www.signpost-international.org www.signpost-international.org

POVERTY LEADS TO POOR HEALTHThe major cause of ill health for people in developing countries is poverty, a lack of resources and the unequal conditions in which people live and work:

• Poverty often means that people do not have access to even basic medical services.

• When healthcare is available people are unable to afford it, or prices are prohibitively high.

• The lack of access to clean water and sanitation can lead to illness, infection and disease.

• Worldwide, over one billion people lack the basic education needed to understand the causes of ill health and take appropriate preventive action.

• Educated women are more likely to use health services and health-related information, particularly impacting child and maternal mortality rates.



When Signpost sponsored one of Dolores Guieb’s children, she didn’t realise the positive impact it would

have on her own life, too.

She remembers being “very shy, with few friends”, and not at

all interested in community activities. However all that changed

when Dolores joined the Signpost Parents Association (SPA).

“I developed good relationships with the other mothers,”

she recalls “And I was soon acting as volunteer neighbourhood

co-ordinator for the sponsorship scheme.”

Dolores found herself following up the sponsored children’s

school records, paying school fees from the sponsorship accounts,

occasionally representing Signpost at school meetings and feeding

back any concerns of the scheme’s parents and children to the

Signpost offices.

“My self-confidence has increased,” says Dolores,

“ Especially when learning how to deal with problems!

I like working with people and getting them involved, too.”

Through the SPA, Dolores has also learned new skills to help

earn a living; making ginger tea, frozen food and puto [rice cakes].

“My husband used to be the only earner in our household” says

Dolores. “Now I can make my contribution too!”

Now elected President of the Signpost Parents Association,

Dolores is very grateful for the new opportunities she, and the

other parents, have been given.

“My passion is to help people, but I wasn’t putting that into

practice. We can express our love through giving people our

skills and our time. I have learned that money is not the only

answer to our problems.”

“money is not the only answer!”

Signpost International works to empower people and transform communities. This is about development: giving people the skills and confidence to tackle for themselves the poverty and social issues that they face each day.

From the Philippines, here are some of their stories...

For the past seven years Mera Princes Casabuena has been sponsored by Signpost International. Although she shows a lot of promise as a student and always works hard, Mera is also very shy and reserved.

Each month Mera attends the monthly gathering of Signpost’s sponsored children and, with her confidence growing, she gradually began joining in the different games and activities.

Last November Mera hosted a Theatre Dance Workshop held in one of Iloilo City’s largest shopping malls. After standing in front of a huge crowd with confidence, Mera said,

“ I thank God for Signpost giving me the chance to discover my talents. I will never forget this day’s great experience!”

Mera will be 18 later this year, and hopes to continue her studies at University.

When Rey talks about that difficult time it is clear to see that

he is left with painful memories. Increased local competition,

deliberately targeted at his store, led Rey to nearly lose his capital.

With a wife and two children to provide for, Rey was desperate

and struggling to continue.

Rey credits Signpost International with inspiring him to keep

going, after attending one of their entrepreneurship seminars.

He says, “I learned many new things and was able to make

improvements to my business with confidence, despite my

many competitors around the corner.”

Rey has put his new business knowledge to good use. He has

diversified his products and is now proud of being the foremost

seller of frozen food in the area.

Rey is clearly excited by the up-turn in his business and is very

grateful to Signpost for the help and support that he has received.

“Signpost helped me through a very difficult period when I thought

I might not survive. Now I am confident that I can provide a good

future for my family.”

From the activity around his small store it is

easy to see that Rey Jayme’s business is thriving.

But it wasn’t always like that – a few months ago

Rey nearly lost everything when his livelihood

was on the brink of collapse.

growing potential


11www.signpost-international.org10 www.signpost-international.org

tough times for sponsor familyWhen Mr Dingcong, who suffers from mental illness, wrecked his family home, the situation was bleak for this Filipino family. The attack so badly damaged their small bamboo hut that it was not fit to live in and, with no income to repair it, the family became increasingly desperate.

Hearing of her situation, Mrs Dingcong’s Self Help Group (SHG) rallied round the family, using the group’s savings to pay a skilled carpenter to make repairs to the house.

The women carried donated materials of wood and bamboo to the house themselves, and several of their husbands made up a free labour force to help repair the Dingcong’s home.

Catherine Bulacan, one of the women involved in the rebuilding effort, said, “ This is Bayanihan [communal help] at its best. We are just so pleased that we had money available to help the Dingcongs when they needed it, and for all the people who gave their time and skills to repair their home.”

Mrs Dingcong has now joined Signpost’s livelihood skills training programme, learning to make sweets, so she can begin to earn an income that will bring stability and support to her family.


Ester lives in Kiboga, a rural district of Uganda that suffered from a devastating

guerrilla war that raged in the area between 1980 and 1986. The local people were

either internally displaced, living in makeshift camps for six years, or had to move

to other parts of the country. Large numbers of people (estimated at 300,000) died

in the crossfire, and their houses and livestock were either looted or destroyed.

Twenty six years later the war in Kiboga is long over, but the need remains. Today Ester

cares for 20 children in her home, a small crumbling mud hut. She tells the heart-breaking

story of how each child came to be with her: found in a pit latrine; a victim of child abuse;

left in some bushes; parents dead of AIDS.

Beyond Ester’s home the scope of the project now extends to a further 500 children living

nearby with a single parent or guardian. A loose support network operates from the site,

and they grow enough food on the land to feed the children.

Ester’s story is remarkable because, despite living in abject poverty, she has given a home

and a future to all the children she has cared for. Today two of the teachers in the local

school are from that first group of orphans to arrive on Ester’s doorstep. But for all these

children, coming to Ester as orphans, being made part of a family is perhaps the greatest

achievement of all.

The Bamusuuta orphanage is supported

through the Uganda Change Agents

Association (UCAA), an indigenous

organisation that transforms communities

by developing people, training them and

empowering them to be ‘change agents’

within their communities.

Their motto is ‘self reliance’, teaching

people the tools and skills they need to

tackle the social and poverty issues they

face for themselves.

a remarkable woman: the Bamusuuta orphanageOne day in 1984 a neighbour appeared on Ester Nanvubya’s doorstep bringing 40 war orphans with her. Ester took them in and cared for them, and has been taking children into her home ever since.

We are delighted that UCAA is currently

working in partnership with Signpost

International and the sponsor families

of Gaba village.

At the families’ request, the scheme is

moving away from sponsorship to small

income generating businesses that will

bring the families increasing financial

independence. UCAA is working with

the sponsor families to teach them the

skills needed to create and sustain these

businesses in the years to come.

Ester tells the

heart-breaking story

of how each child

came to be with her:

found in a pit latrine;

a victim of child abuse;

left in some bushes;

parents dead of AIDS.




On the outskirts of the village is a piece of

land that has been used as a burial ground

by Thandalam’s Dalit families for the past

century. Earlier this year the higher caste

landlord falsely claimed legal ownership of

the cemetery and demolished all the tombs,

digging up the ground to make the land

ready for cultivation.

Seeing the desecration of the site, and the

remains of their relatives treated with such

contempt, the outraged leaders of the local

Dalit community went to the home of the

landlord to ask for justice. His response

just humiliated them further and some of

the young men, angry and frustrated by

the situation, retaliated by damaging a car

outside his house.

Immediately the landlord went to the local

police. He bribed them to arrest the men

who were ‘causing trouble’, and they were

taken into custody.

The caste system has been

embedded in Indian culture for the

past 1,500 years and has one basic

precept: all men are created unequal.

Outside the caste system are the

untouchables or Dalits; those

considered too impure and polluted

to rank as worthy beings. Prejudice

defines their lives, particularly in

rural areas where nearly three-

quarters of India’s people live.

Discrimination against India’s lowest Hindu castes is illegal. But try telling that to the 160 million Untouchables, facing violent reprisals if they forget their place...

The sins of Girdharilal Maurya are many, his attackers insist. He has bad karma.

Why else would he be born an Untouchable, if not to pay for his past lives? See, he is

a leatherworker and Hindu law says that working with animal skins makes him unclean,

someone to avoid and despise. And his improper riches are a sin. Who does this

Untouchable think he is, buying a small plot of land outside the village? Then he actually

dared to speak up, to the police and other local authorities, demanding a right to use the

new village well. He got what he deserved!

One night, while Maurya was away, several men from the higher Rajput caste came

to his property. They broke his fences, stole the tractor, beat his wife and daughter

and burned down their home. The message was clear: stay at the bottom, where

you belong.

India: the struggle for civil rights

Although most of the one hundred families that live in the Indian village of Thandalam are from the ‘untouchable’ Dalit community, its economy lies firmly in the hands of the minority upper caste. Recently Signpost was alerted to a disturbing incident of caste-related violence in Thandalam, where many of our sponsored children live...

Despite their low status, the Dalit people

are actually a majority population in this

region of India. CRDS is therefore mobilising

the various Dalit networks so that their

potentially powerful voice can be heard,

lobbying regional politicians and holding a

series of peaceful protests in the area.

Now, with the help of CRDS, the smaller

Dalit community of Thandalam is making

a legal challenge through the court system

against the actions of their village landlord

and corrupt police. Under the Prevention

of Civil Rights Act the landlord can be

arrested and the police suspended.

By bringing their case to court, the villagers

are asking for wider powers of protection

from discrimination: protection for Dalit

communities, the granting of their legal land

ownership rights to Dalit families and the

restitution of their Dalit cemetery.

We will keep you updated on the

progress of this civil rights action in

future issues of Changing Lives.India’s Constitution actually outlaws caste

discrimination of the sort seen in Thandalam, but in practice these laws are rarely implemented.

To demand justice for this lower caste community, one of Signpost’s Indian partner organisations, the Chengalpattu Rural Development Society (CRDS),

is now working to challenge the situation.


People Power: Dalit communities protest against human rights abuses

Untouchables are shunned, insulted,

banned from temples and higher

caste homes, made to drink and

eat from separate utensils and in

extreme, but not uncommon cases,

are raped, burned, lynched and

gunned down.

“There is apartheid in India”, says

the Rev. Basaiawmoit, vice president

of the National Council of Churches

in India. “The caste issue is a racist

issue, when Dalits are not seen as

human beings.”

THE CASTE SYSTEM

“ There is

apartheid

in India...

The caste issue

is a racist issue,

when Dalits

are not seen as

human beings.”


discarded gravestones




Pat started drinking at 15 and continued for another 18 years. She says, “Drink wasn’t

a problem for all those years, but there’s a thin line between social drinking and compulsive

drinking and for me it was a progression.”

“ Eventually I reached the point where I would shoplift food so I could keep the housekeeping money for alcohol. I was waking up in strange places with no idea of where I had been, or what I had done.”

“By the time I had kids I was doing to them what my dad had done to me. I would drop my

son at nursery and be incapable of picking him up because of the drink. Someone else had

to do it for me. When my children got older they couldn’t bring friends home from school,

because they didn’t know what sort of state I’d be in.”

Eventually Pat says she was ‘kidnapped’ by a work colleague and taken to Alcoholics

Anonymous. At the time she was working as a domestic in a mental hospital and would

turn up to work with a few drinks inside her.

“I thought I was okay” says Pat, “that the drink made me invisible. But even the patients

would ask me if I had been drinking!”

Patricia didn’t stay at Alcoholics Anonymous and didn’t get sober. “I thought I was

listening”, she says “but I wasn’t taking it in.” For Pat’s children, aged 13 & 15, it was a

difficult time. “Their expectations had been raised by me going to AA, so it was very

difficult when I continued to drink.”

“I’d go with the devil if he had a drink in his hand!”

Sadly Pat’s marriage of 20 years didn’t

survive, although it was after she was sober

that her marriage broke down. She married

young, like all her sisters. “I did it for all

the wrong reasons. I was desperate to get

away from my father’s drinking.”

Thinking about why her marriage failed after

surviving years of drink Pat says, “Maybe it

was because I was less dependent on him

and could take charge of my own life.”

“It’s about learning how to live without

alcohol one day at a time, and saying no to

that first drink.”

“If there’s no first drink then there can’t be

a tenth one!”

When Pat finally returned to Alcoholics

Anonymous and used the programme

to really look at her life, things began to

change.

“It’s hard to explain” says Pat, “ but I had a spiritual awakening. Something happened that was beyond me, like a light being switched on. I didn’t even realise it myself for a while.”

For the past 16 years Patricia has

been attending meetings of Alcoholics

Anonymous and remains grateful for the

opportunity of a new beginning in life.

Regular attendance at Alcoholics

Anonymous meetings has been an essential

part of recovery for Pat. One such group

is New Beginnings, an open meeting of

Alcoholics Anonymous that meets twice

weekly at Signpost’s Mark Henderson

Centre.

Alcoholics Anonymous open meetings give

family and friends the chance to share a

path back to recovery with an alcoholic,

and to learn how other people meet the

challenge of living with a problem drinker -

even when they no longer drink.

Patricia (not her real name) says that she was an alcoholic before she ever picked up a drink. “As a child my life was affected by my alcoholic father. I was shy, a square peg in a round hole. Drink did for me what I couldn’t do for myself.”

Regular attendance at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings has been an essential part of recovery for Pat. One such group is New Beginnings, an open meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous that meets twice weekly at Signpost’s Mark Henderson Centre.

“I didn’t realise

that Alcoholics

Anonymous has

the solution,

but you’ve got

to work at it.

You don’t get

something

for nothing.”

“ I’d been emotionally dependent on someone for my whole life and I’d never lived on my own before. It wasn’t easy, but I was determined to keep going and not go back to drinking. I didn’t want him to be able to say, ‘See, you’re still not well!’”

17www.signpost-international.org




Dundee’s Dramatic Society knows about

graffiti only too well: the constant unsightly

damage to their theatre’s walls is not only

an expensive eyesore but a real point of

frustration for the Society and local residents.

Now Signpost staff have been combating

this vandalism by engaging the young

people who frequent the park around the

Little Theatre, trying to turn their energies

to more acceptable forms of art.

Working with a local primary school, Signpost staff asked a class of 8 year olds:

“What makes community?”“Co-operation.”

“What does that mean?”“Everybody working together!!”

This was the challenge that faced Signpost International last year when trying to

engage local people in the process of the major physical regeneration of Dundee’s

Coldside area. Residents had already filled out countless questionnaires for

countless organisations but seen very little positive change. It was not surprising

they were now reluctant to get involved.

Signpost decided to tackle this problem by inviting people from

different local agencies and organisations to form a partnership that

would undertake a collective consultation, making the most of the

community’s skills and knowledge.

Rolling up their sleeves, the partnership decided to experiment with a completely

different and highly creative approach to consultation. With not a clipboard or suit

in sight, the aim was to make the process as unobtrusive and fun as possible,

taking place on the day of the area’s Christmas celebration to make the most of

the large amount of local people expected to attend the Festival.

Trying to fit in with the ‘fun’ ethos of the Festival, after a great deal of brain-storming

and hair-pulling, the partnership decided on a theme of “the Land of Oz”. The event

was a great success, with local residents able to nominate what made the ‘heart of

their community’ and the buildings they liked and wanted to keep, and the buildings

that needed to be a part of the regeneration process.

Currently the partnership is focusing on feeding back the consultation results to

the community and building on their suggestions. Timon Scheven, a Signpost

community worker said,

“ We want to encourage a sense of meaningful dialogue and action at

a grassroots level across the community. It is the only way that we can

start to tackle some of the many inner city issues that need resolving.”

Captured on FilmThe four month-long planning process and the actual consultation has been documented by students of Film

Making at Abertay University.Now complete,

the film is a record

of a remarkable local initiative. The Partnership

plan to make the

film available to other groups so that other communities,

thinking about starting a similar process, can gain

momentum from the DVD.

discovery projects: theatre transformation

Graffiti is one of the most widespread problems in our urban areas. It tends to be an expression of

boredom or frustration but, for those people whose buildings are defaced, it is purely an act of vandalism.

‘Art in the Park’ is a joint project with the

local community regeneration team and

community artists. For the young people

involved in the local graffiti issues, many

of them budding or gifted artists, it gives

them the chance to try alternative forms

of creative expression; making mosaics,

doodle art and creating large communal

art pieces using spray paint and stencils.

Contributing to the buzz of activity around

the Little Theatre, Signpost has also helped

organise two workdays to remove the

graffiti painted on the walls of the theatre.

It was a project that brought together a

diverse group of volunteers that included

local residents, a youth project and

members of Dundee’s Community Church.

Katie Allan was involved in organising the

workdays and painting the building. She

says, “People who had never met before

were soon talking and laughing together.

By the end of the day everyone was asking

when the next project would be!”

“It is really rewarding seeing people local

people giving back to their community -

and really enjoying themselves!”

Signpost International’s Discovery

Projects help to bring much needed

physical regeneration to people’s

homes and community spaces,

through individual acts of service.

“It is really rewarding

seeing local people

giving back to their

community - and

really enjoying

themselves!”


Q: How do you actively involve local residents in having a say about important issues in their community when they are suffering from severe consultation fatigue?




It’s a good job title, but what do you actually do for Signpost?

My job is basically to be Signpost’s eyes and ears on the ground in India!

I work with our four Indian partner organisations to design and implement

development programmes, also helping to build their capacity when needed.

I help to strengthen partnerships and develop Signpost’s networks across

southern India, while also making sure that the Dundee headquarters are

kept up to date with all the necessary project information.

Tell us a bit about your background

I come from a Christian family and, although we were poor, our family

was based strongly on the values of faith, love and sharing.

How did this impact your life?

It is important to practice what you believe! And for the past ten years

I have been trying to do so, working with youth and student movements

and community based organisations in rural southern India. Eventually, after

finishing my Masters in Social Work six years ago, I became a professional

development worker and began working for Caritas India, the official social

work organisation of India’s Catholic Church.

How did you hear about Signpost?

Being with Caritas taught me a lot about the Church’s social teachings that

I had never known before. Their emphasis on human dignity, solidarity and the

demonstration of God’s love in action gave a new inspiration to my professional

social work.

When I met Kelly McAulay [previously head of Signpost’s overseas projects] on

a visit to India, I recognised a similar ethos that was not paternalistic but valued

the individual, desiring to grow them and see them succeed.

What are India’s ‘difficult issues’?

India has complex social issues. These lead to discrimination of caste, class,

race and gender as well as religious disharmony. Signpost works with the

people most affected by all of these issues, the vulnerable Dalit and tribal

communities who have very low social status and very poor living conditions.

What do you see as Signpost’s role

in India?

Our main role is to work with communities

to help bring about social change, because

the disparities between the upper and

lower castes, the rich and poor, male and

female will vanish only when people are

empowered.

But what does ‘empowered’ mean,

in practical terms?

The people that we work with – the Dalits,

tribal communities and women’s groups

- need to have a clear understanding of

their situation if they are to be able to

tackle it. That means an understanding of

the oppressive climate around them, their

rights, duties and responsibilities.

As Signpost works with these different

groups, we teach them the knowledge,

strategies and skills that they need

to address their particular situation

for themselves. And it is the words

‘for themselves’ that demonstrate

empowerment!

What physical help do we offer?

Signpost supports many of our Indian

communities with skills training,

resources and seed money for economic

development. This economic development,

financially being able to ‘stand on their own

two feet’, is a very important part in the

holistic development of a community.

How do you see the future of

Signpost’s work in India?

Signpost’s role, to facilitate and

help impoverished communities in

the empowerment process, is a big

responsibility and a huge task.

Anthony Sagaya Raj, or Sagay as he is better known, has been employed as Signpost’s

India Field Support Officer since 2008.

Although most readers of Changing Lives magazine will not recognize his name, Sagay’s role in Signpost

India is pivotal and we interviewed him to find out more.

in-depth interview

Working with such huge populations of poor and oppressed people, of course we need more resources in terms of staff, volunteers, money, time and commitment! However all the time I have been working with Signpost International, I am constantly affirming one value:

Whether our intervention is big or small, when we work with an individual or a small group, we not only transform them, but we transform their families, their society and their future generations to come.

It is good for us to remember that!

My job is basically to be Signpost’s eyes and ears on the ground in India!

Community consultation and training


Signpost India: sponsored children



23www.signpost-international.org

do you want to join us?Signpost International’s internship programme is a great way to gain hands on

experience of working with an international development agency.

Practical, relevant and project based, this structured programme lasts from 6 to 12 months

and will provide you with a range of valuable experiences that include overseas development,

fundraising, public relations and community development.

Applicants should have a relevant degree and a desire to wrestle with issues of poverty,

justice and community. Successful candidates will start their placements in August 2010.

For more details about Signpost’s internship programme please contact our offices or email

[email protected].

Signpost reps wantedDo you want to get more involved in the

work of Signpost International and feel you

could be our voice in your church or local

area? Why not consider becoming an Area

or Church Representative that can promote

the work of Signpost International in a more

local context.

Please contact us, or fill in and send off the

form on the back of this magazine for more

details.

Pupils and teachers from a Scottish secondary school will be visiting Signpost

projects in India for three weeks this summer.

While in India the team from Monifieth High School are linking up with two schools –

one private and one a poor rural school – to experience the different standards of

education available to India’s children.

“ The trip promises to be a challenging one,” says Signpost’s Jamie Morrison,

also accompanying the team to India. “It is certainly a land of extremes of wealth

and poverty, and seeing the issues firsthand will be a shock for the team.”

“However the visit should stimulate the team to start to think through some of the poverty

and justice issues that we see around us today. This is not about seeing something and

then forgetting about it, this is about development education that leads to positive change!”

facebook fansIf you enjoy social networking then why not join Signpost International on Facebook?

It’s a great way to keep up to date with Signpost’s stories, news and events. Just visit www.facebook.com/signpost international and become a fan!

staff changesWe are sorry to say goodbye to Davy Bain who has moved on after almost three years working in Signpost’s accounts department and as the administrator of Signpost’s child sponsorship scheme. We wish Davy all the best with his accountancy studies and for his future plans.

Gemma Williams has taken over Davy’s role as child sponsorship administrator, on a temporary basis, and it will be her friendly voice you hear if telephoning Signpost’s

offices with a query!

hadrian’s wall walk

news - what’s going on?

take the 50:50 challenge!This April Signpost International launched its first

annual fundraising event. Called the 50:50 Challenge,

this is your chance to get involved and raise money

to help redress the world’s poverty imbalance.

Taking place from the 18th to the 26th of September

you can choose from a list of fifty varied challenges

with the aim of raising money for charity and having

fun! For more details of how you can get involved

please contact our offices or log on to our challenge

website: www.5050challenge.co.uk

volunteers tackle centreA group of young people have recently

helped to spruce up some of Signpost’s

office and community space.

The Prince’s Trust works with disadvantaged

young people, many of whom are long-term

unemployed, have been in trouble with the

law, or are in difficulty at school. Over the

winter months a group of around twenty

volunteers from the Trust’s employment and

skills training programme descended on the

Mark Henderson Centre to give parts of the

building a fresh coat of paint.

“ It’s a great scheme”, said Signpost

director Kerry Dixon. “As a charity

we benefit from some helping hands,

while the young people

have the chance to learn some

valuable job skills and be a part

of a community effort.”

Scottish school to visit India projects

As part of September’s 50:50 Challenge,

Signpost director Kerry Dixon and other

of Signpost’s staff will be challenging

themselves to walk the length of Hadrian’s

Wall in just three days!

Stretching from England’s east to west

coast, walking Hadrian’s Wall is something

that Kerry has always wanted to do.

“ I wanted to do something memorable

to mark turning 50 earlier this year”

he says, “and this will fulfil a long

held ambition.”

If you want to join Kerry and the Signpost

team on their trek, or even sponsor their

efforts, then please contact our offices.


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signpost international - changing lives (spring/summer 2010)

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