Tadworth & Walton Overseas Aid Trust
Registered Charity No 286076
Annual Social Meeting (ASM)
TWOAT’s ASM was held on the evening of Saturday 11th October in St John’s Hall, which had been provided for the charity at no charge by the church. Just over 50 friends and supporters of TWOAT enjoyed a fine meal of Lancashire Hotpot together with an excellent presentation by Peter Trenier from Westcott talking about the charitable project, Papua Partners, run by his daughter and her husband in a remote and very impoverished area of Indonesia. With very few resources the couple had built up an organisation in Papua that was now helping to improve the lives of around 200,000 people. Peter’s presentation was supported by Anna Kemkers. She described how TWOAT’s financial support had been used for the last few years to fund the costs of Yepina. She is a native Papuan whom the project originally found working as a village midwife. She is now one of their most significant health workers and has developed from being rather a shy person to someone who was recently flown to Australia to address a gathering of development professionals about the problems faced by Papuans which include AIDs, TB and malaria.
Sam Stevenson, a Walton resident, described her work in Africa with another project supported by TWOAT, “Cricket without Boundaries”. This combines cricket coaching with AIDS awareness for young people in Botswana and other countries.
Those present were so moved by the presentations that over £1,000 was donated to help TWOAT support Papua Partners and other projects. Earlier when the TWOAT Treasurer, John Tedder, reported the 2012/13 financial results, he noted that the charity had benefitted from a significant increase in Gift Aid income. This was because the Government now allows small charities such as TWOAT to claim Gift Aid on donations from things such as bucket collections where the individual donor has not had to be specifically identified as a UK tax payer. Thus TWOAT will be able to claim 25% additional funds from the Government for the cash left in collecting baskets at the ASM.
In a report on TWOAT’s activities through the year Chairman Mike Fox noted in particular the successful new Fashion Show which had taken place in March. This had raised over £1400 as well as introducing many new potential supporters to TWOAT. Next year’s Fashion Show will be held on Monday Oct 5th 2015 and will be aimed at Autumn and Winter Fashions.
Mike Fox noted that the next event will be Sing Carols in Christchurch Hall, Walton with a choir from Walton Primary School which will take place in December. The date for this has now been confirmed as Tuesday, 2nd December starting at 6.30 pm.
We will also be singing Carols in the streets and pubs of Walton on Thursday, 18th December starting at 7.00 pm from St Peter’s Church gate.
Dates in 2015 are:
Quiz Evening Tuesday 17th February in Christchurch Hall doors open 7.15pm.
We will be selling Tea & Cake in the garden at 41 Shelvers Way when Keith & Elizabeth Lewis have their Open Garden as part of the National Garden Scheme on Sundays April 19th and July 19th.