News from the Sextons and Oasis


Our mission partners, Andy and Rosie Sexton, are working for Oasis but living in the UK, in Norwich. Andy i s Associate International Director for Oasis International (Global?), working with children at risk. His role involves a mix of working from home and travelling to visit the projects he overseas in various countries.


Planning


The last few months have been very busy. Andy has been putting a lot of support into the Country Leaders in Africa. Irene in Uganda is getting to grips with her new role as Country Director. He has also been spending time in London doing training, coordinating fundraising and communications globally, as well as organising the establish- ment of the first Oasis Academy School (outside the UK) in Uganda. He has also met with Norwich City Football Club to discuss funding the development of the Oasis Uganda Football Academy.


Training


The training he was involved in, in London, was to a group of University students who are part of a UK MPs mentoring programme, to strengthen relationships between young people of different faiths and beliefs. The small Oasis global team looks for t h e s e t y p e s o f opportunities in order to bring in income in order to support the work of


Refugee work


A little girl being reunited with her grand- mother after running away from domestic slavery having been sold by her father


Oasis bases across the world.


F r o m 2 1 s t - 2 3 r d September, all of the Oasis Country Leaders and the Global Team met up in the UK. As Andy says


‘It was really


encouraging to hear all that is going on and to be able to propose targets and a strategy for our work until 2020. We are planning to work towards transformation in 100 communities (we currently work in 32 communities), and to see 2,500 exploited people rescued and restored back into supportive community. The only hiccup was that Irene from Uganda got lost in London for a few hours.’


Oasis in Belgium


By the time you read this, Andy will have also visited Belgium (30th September - 3rd October) where Oasis works with Thai women in brothels and to protect Belgian youth f rom being trafficked. He is there for an Oasis Belgium Board retreat, for a meeting with someone from the European Union, and for speaking engagements at


two Churches. Then he has a longer trip planned for November 1st to 13th to South Africa, Zim and Mozambique. November 24th - Dec 2nd he is off to Uganda.


Funding


Alongside all this, Andy and Rosie have to raise not only their own personal support but also try to generate support for some of the Oasis projects. At the moment the Oasis Zimbabwe team are fundraising to buy a building that will be a drop- in- cent re and transitional care facility for street girls in Harare; the plight of whom is, n o t


s u r p r i s i n g l y ,


desperate. A further £20,000 is needed, having raised the first £16,000.


Life in Norwich


While Andy travels the world, Rosie, Sienna and Mattie are now well settled into life in Norwich. The kids have started their second year of school in the UK. Sienna turned 13 on the 25th September. Mattie’s epilepsy is back under control. Praise God!


www.stgeorgeschurch.net


Rosie’s work with refugees in Norwich is now full steam ahead and she has at last been able to get some funding for it. Her English Plus course started in early September. Seven ladies, mostly from the Congo, are attending so far, all of whom have real practical needs and sad stories to tell. She has some excel lent volunteers working with her, but could do with a bigger pool of people to draw on.


Excitingly, a few weeks ago, one of the Congolese ladies Rosie has been supporting was finally reunited with her 6 year old daughter! Some Norwich friends were able to donate necessary items and toys including a lovely doll house, which has made the welcome even better. However, the ladies' 12 year old sister is still stuck in Uganda.


Prayer


Some points to pray for: 1. Committed volunteers for Rosie for her English Plus program with refugees, and that the work would grow steadily.


2. Andy’s trips to


Belgium and Southern Africa


3. Provision of personnel and finances to meet Oasis’ global targets to transform communities and the lives of exploited individuals.


4. For the funds to buy the facility for street girls in Zimbabwe.


By Philippa Taylor bGh_3


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