While the world of charitable activity frequently seeks endorsements from ‘big names’, what concerns us the most is what our ‘beneficiaries’ think. We want them to feel respected as individuals and cared for in personal ways. Our teams take time to investigate local circumstances to understand their needs in context. While distributing resources, the teams take time to talk to ‘victims’, listen to their fears, pray with those who are injured or confused. Every situation is different, and things are not always as they seem. When responding to a flood scenario once, our team visited a camp of displaced families. Around them was a high fence and secured gateway. The team found out the families were being held in this area by a wealthy landlord. They were his peasant workers, they were serfs, tied to the land, living in tenant dwellings, barely surviving their meagre livelihoods. They were people who, under his ownership, had no hope of improving their lives. Needless to say, we wisely diverted the precious food supplies we had to those who had no access to deliveries from a wealthy landlord!
What matters to us is the response of those we serve. Their feedback and insights are incorporated into the team strategies. An ill-informed response can actually damage a community rather than enhance lives.
‘Can you replace the aluminium roof of our small dwelling?’ asked one man. ‘ It is really hot during the summer and cold in winter, there is better roofing available in the market’. The request appeared reasonable and the cost was not high. However, the team works by the principle that all who are affected by a proposed course of action have the right to be consulted. They told him to consult with his wife to see what she thought about the proposition. ‘Oh no,’ she replied, ‘ I don’t want to have a house that is better than my neighbours, they will never speak to me again. Unless you can do this for the whole neighbourhood, do not do it for us!’ The proposal was stopped in its tracks!
Although we are happy to be endorsed by well-known figures, what really matters to our teams is what people like this tell us. They are the ones who live with whatever our team can do, and they are not forgotten. The teams often visit beneficiaries years later. They pray for them and remember them – one face at a time!
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