A MEMBER of Abingdon Baptist Church is channelling her flooding nightmare into raising funds for people affected by the
Burma cyclone.
Exactly one year ago on Tuesday Samantha Bowring's home was badly affected when the River Ock burst its banks - one of the many destructive floods that hit southern England, Yorkshire and Wales during unusually high rainfall throughout June and July.
Delays have dogged the repair work, so although Samantha, husband Neil and their three children returned home at the end of May (after her insurance company stopped paying for temporary accommodation) the house is still nowhere near complete.
The family cannot use the downstairs area of its home, and with no kitchen facilities Samantha has been forced to set up camp stoves under a gazebo in her back garden.
But the difficult situation in which they are living has put into context the plight of those affected by natural disasters in poorer countries, Samantha told The Baptist Times.
In recent days she has therefore set up a scheme whereby people can sponsor her family for using its makeshift kitchen. All funds raised will go to development charity Christian Aid's Burma appeal. Samantha said, 'The work has been going very slowly, partly because of the high demand for builders after the floods, and the house is still far from being right.
'For instance there is no water downstairs - if we want to put the kettle on, we have to fill it from upstairs. We have been asked not to use downstairs at all. Everything is in boxes and it's very chaotic. 'I kept feeling really hard done by, but one day I thought I had to get a grip.
'While it's inconvenient, we still have our home, which is going to get fixed. We had insurance people to put us in temporary accommodation.
'In other parts of the world, when something like this happens they just lose everything, even their lives. 'They are living without basic sanitation, housing and health care. There is no insurance.
'In Abingdon terms, our conditions are not very good but the conditions in places like Burma and China make our present hardship seem like a luxury. 'That was why we came up with the idea of people sponsoring us to use our camp kitchen.'
Christian Aid, the international development charity, has thanked Samantha for keeping its Burma appeal in the public eye. Around 2.5 million people in the Irrawaddy delta region continue to be affected by the disaster. Many are believed to be at risk of hunger and disease.
Christian Aid launched an appeal immediately after the cyclone, which killed an estimated 130,000 people after striking on May 2, with a target of £2 million to meet the enormous demands faced in the region. So far the appeal has raised £1.7 million.
'Mrs Bowring's concern for the plight of others when she and her family are themselves are facing hardship, is laudable in the extreme,' Christian Aid's international editor Judith Melby told The Baptist Times.
'We are very grateful that she has chosen to support our Burma appeal.
'Much that we take for granted in this country such as clean water and gas or electricity for cooking remain utter luxuries in poor countries. 'Our work is devoted to alleviating poverty in such places. By drawing attention to that, Mrs Bowring has done us a real service, so many thanks.'
The Revd David Fleming, minister at Abingdon Baptist Church, added, 'I'm just pleased Samantha has been able to do something positive in this situation. 'There have been issues with so many people wanting the same builders at the same time, but I think Sam's situation in Abingdon is relatively unusual.'
Samantha does not envisage her home being completely restored until the end of August, at the earliest. The phone line has only just been reconnected, but there have been further delays to the installation of the new kitchen. 'It looks like we'll be using the camp in the back garden for a few more weeks,' she said. 'It's fun when the weather is good, but not so nice when it's raining.'
To sponsor Samantha, visit http://www.justgiving.com/bowring-fawcett or send a cheque payable to Christian Aid to Christian Aid, Wesley Memorial Church, New Inn Hall Street, Oxford, OX1 2DH, with a note saying it is for this sponsored appeal.
By courtesy of the Baptist News
