Essex churches take on London A-Z challenge for charity 

Baptist church members in Essex will soon be in a race against time to complete a London landmark challenge using just an A-Z atlas to raise funds for an orphanage in India.

On 6 June, teams from two Baptist Churches, Earls Hall and Hadleigh, will be dashing around London for this sponsored event in a bid to provide food and education for children at an orphanage in Suryapet, India.

The aim of the challenge is to visit one landmark in London for every letter of the alphabet travelling on public transport or by foot using the A-Z map. At the end of the five-hour challenge the teams must prove they visited the landmarks with photo evidence.

 A member of Earls Hall Baptist Church who is taking part commented: “This will be great fun for everyone involved. We’ll spend a whole day out around London, in teams, with banter and chatting to people. We'll be raising money and awareness for a great cause. I’m really pleased to have organised this event to further support the building and running costs of the orphanage.”

This is the latest in a number of fundraisers held by the two churches as part of their long-standing commitment to support the orphanage of The Living God Baptist Church, Suryapet, India. The orphanage opened in 2003 with 35 children.

Today, the orphanage is home to 100 children with the youngest just three years old. Many more children could be accommodated if there was room. The relationship between the Essex churches and the Indian Orphanage dates back to 2006, when a Minister from Earls Hall Baptist Church went to preach in the area and saw first-hand the work of the orphanage.

In 2007, the orphanage suffered a flood and was relocated. In 2008 the Minister for Hadleigh Baptist Church visited the orphanage with a member of Earls Hall to see for themselves the needs of the children.

Thanks to the involvement of the churches and UK-based charity Mission Care, the children now live in a purpose-built orphanage. And UK fundraising continues to impact the lives of the children.  


Picture: London Lead Image / Wikimedia Commons