To view our current newsletter - April 2008, please click here
Next newsletter publication due date - August 2008
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David Shafik, CEO writes ...
Sunday Express 6th April 2008
'In a speech to lawyers yesterday Sir Paul, a High Court judge, warned that in some parts of the UK, "family life, in the old sense, no longer exists".'
Interview with Etta Colville (former manager of Keychange, Wayside hostel) April 2002
In answer to the question "What are the most common causes for women to be in this hostel?" Etta replied, "There's only one main reason - breakdown of family life".... So we are agreed then, Sir Paul and many others too. How will Keychange and its supporters answer this need in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ? ... (find out more from the April 2008 newsletter)
From the Financial Controller ...
"Thank you Darling! Not a common reaction perhaps, but the Chancellor surprised us all by being generous to charities in his first Budget ... The financial year ahead looks like it will be tough for most of us, so your continued support for God's work through Keychange is vital, both by prayer and finance. If you have not yet signed a gift aid declaration, and are in a position to do so, please help us to take advantage of Mr Darling's generosity."...
The Door of Hope welcomes Debbie...
"I've been working as the new Project Manager at Door of Hope since September 2007 and am really excited about my new role here. Door of Hope is a fantastic project and it's great to be part of something which is really living up to its name and offering hope and opportunity to some of the most marginalized women in the East End."....
Long serving staff...
"Christine Newman, Manager of Fair Havens says 'thank you' ... to Margaret Hawton who retired from Fair Havens on March 29th after 13 years service ... to Ela Robson who retires at the end of April after working at Fair Havens since it began in 1990 ... ."
"Margaret Barrett, Manager of The Mount says ''thank you' ... to Jan Dunstan who worked there since 1978 ..."
Esther Community gives thanks ...
"A resident who was resettled last month had arrived here a year ago from a background of extreme sexual, physical and psychological abuse as a child and subsequently as an adult.... The staff team at Esther praise God for those times when He uses us to help a woman back onto her feet, helping her deal with those thorns from her past and set her up in a new home."
Keychange Conference 2009, 22nd to 24th April 2009- please note change of dates. Venue: High Leigh Conference Centre, Herts
You will be welcome to join us (NB: No conference in 2008)
Rosset Holt - "Praise for Care Home"
Letter sent to Kent & Sussex Courier on 2nd May 2008
"I wish to re-iterate the praise of a former Courier letter-writer for Rosset Holt Residential Care Home. My mother spent nearly three years there at the end of her life and my feelings for our choice of home are expressed in the final paragraph of my eulogy at my mother's funeral: "We come now to the final and quite beautiful chapter in Kath's long life. Her last three years, spent at Rosset Holt residential home, must have been divinely inspired. She was among the most loving and caring people, both staff and residents, that we could ever have wished for. She loved them all deeply and demonstrably in return. As she lay dying in the last two weeks, I felt she was being cared for by angels and cushioned in love. Thank you Marilyn, Lydia and all of you from the bottom of our hearts."
Valerie Boyd, Tunbridge Wells
Rosset Holt - "thank you" email from son of a resident (deceased) on 28th April 2008
"...on behalf of my family, I should like to thank Keychange for all their help to my mother. . The staff at Rosset Holt were extremely kind to my mother for a period of over five years, and she was very well looked after there."
Rose Lawn - Letter of thanks received from Canada, 23rd January 2008 ...
"I felt that I should drop you a line as I would like to thank you for the wonderful way in which you all provided for Mother.
She frequently told me that she valued each one of your staff, from the Chef discussing the menu; the welcoming daily smiles of George and his brother whenever they arrived with tea/coffee, to the loving care she received from her 'helpers' (Linda and Lilly come to mind, but I know there were others) who she said never complained whether it was daytime or the middle of the night. She appreciated everything and loved them all and was grateful not to be treated as a number.
...without hesitation I would recommend Rose Lawn as I will always have fond memories of it. Having said that, I would love you to come out this way and operate one here, so that I can reserve a spot!"
Letter of appreciation sent to Kent & Sussex Courier , 31st August 2007
"Some care homes are wonderfully run
So much bad publicity has recently been given to the poor conditions that a lot of our elderly people have to suffer in care homes. I am pleased to say this is definitely not the case in our experience.
My father-in-law who died this weekend aged 93, lived in Rosset Holt care home (in Tunbridge Wells) which is part of the Keychange Charity, for four years.
During that time he was not only looked after in a spotlessly clean, comfortable environment, but was treated with the utmost courtesy, respect and affection by the ladies who run the home.
Nothing was ever too much trouble, the food was always freshly cooked and delicious, his clothes were always immaculate and we couldn't fault anything.
It is a tribute to those people who genuinely care about the needs and have a love for the elderly people that this home exists andd it should be a benchmark for the standards that should be set for every care and nursing home throughout the country."
Karen McEwen, Forest Road, Tunbridge Wells
Share the compliments: This is an extract from a very moving letter received by the manager, Margaret Haxton at Rose Lawn. What we do and the way we do it affects more people than we could sometimes know:
“….to tell you and all the staff at Rose Lawn how grateful I have been for all the love and care you have always shown Mum. Knowing she was so well looked after helped me overcome the guilt I felt that she was not cared for at home. As a family we always felt welcome when we visited and over the past few months this became very important when there was little communication with Mum”