Hi friends,
Thanks for your love and prayers. We have some big news!
Anji Barker will finish her role leading Newbigin Community Trust in Winson Green at the end of August 2024. She has led the local community organisation from a small group of resident-volunteers based from Newbigin House in 2016, to a team of 29 local staff running four sites in Winson Green, and releasing the potential of thousands of local people each week.
Anji said, “It’s been a real joy to see the growth of so many neighbours over the years in NCT and I feel it is my time to let go, get out of the way, and support the next generation in their leadership. NCT is in good hands. I am ready for a new challenge.”
Anji will discern the next chapter in her call over the month of June. While committed to continue living in Winson Green, Anji is also looking at how she can support the Burmese community that we have been journeying with since 1995. The current war in Burma/Myanmar – also known as the Forgotten War – is really in its last throws, with victory to the resistance movement looking possible for the first time. As the Military Junta loses power and support, their scorched earth policy means death and devastation, and the burning down of villages sending thousands more refugees fleeing across the Thai Burma border in the last couple of weeks.
In the short term urgent help is required to support local partners trying to help their people on both the Thai side and Burmese side of the border. Anji is hoping to be able to go and assist for a few months. She speaks Thai and has freedom of movement, which the newly arrived refugees do not have, and she can help with application forms, registrations and permits, sustainable income projects and medical support (in the IDP camps) etc.
Seedbeds currently has over 100 incubator participants trying to create sustainable projects and generate income while in Thailand, and this is something Anji is particularly gifted at. Freeing Anji up to spend some time in Mae Sot (border town) in Thailand will take pressure off me and reduce my need to travel, and will hopefully see the projects self-sustaining in the long term.
Funds are the only barrier for Anji to pursue this call. We need to raise £10,000 for this to become a reality; £5,000 towards Anji’s living expenses for 4 months and £5,000 for project money assisting up to 500 Burmese refugees.
We hope this time will give the traction needed to set up Seedbeds Marketplace in conjunction with the National Unity Government, the Civil Disobedience Movement and participants from the Seedbeds Myanmar programmes. It would also help preposition Seedbeds for the long term rebuilding of Myanmar/Burma with national leaders when the war ends and democracy returns.
A special Burmese dinner will be held at
5:30pm on Wednesday 5th June 2024
at Lodge Road Community Church, Birmingham B18 5BU
Tickets: £5 on the door
This will include Anji sharing her new hopes as well as opportunities to buy Burmese handicrafts from our current participants.
Followed at 7pm by the Newbigin Annual Public Lecture
with Revd Dr Deirdre Brower Latz,
Principal and Senior Lecturer in Pastoral and Social Theology at Nazarene Theological College.
Responses from Dr Sally Mann, Rev Simon Jay and other contributors from Red Letter Christians’ Jesus & Justice: Stories of Radical Christian Living book.
This is a chance to meet some local authors, hear stimulating discussion and get inspired!
Shalom,
Ash Barker
seedbeds.org
PS. If you would like to support Anji in her next adventure please give here.
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