St Martin-in-the-Fields Church in London and the campaigning network, Housing Justice, will hold an Annual Service of Commemoration today for those homeless people who have died in the capital in the past year.
The theme of this year’s service is “I am the vine and you are the branches”.
Every year, agencies working with homeless people from across London give the names of those they have known who died during the year. Their names are then read out alongside prayer, music and poetry.
The service is open to all who wish to commemorate the life of any homeless person who has died in the last year and has taken place for almost 20 years.
The Connection at St Martin’s helps homeless people by providing specialist services - including a day and night centre, outreach for rough sleepers, skills training and career advice, activity programmes and specialist support for complex needs – to 200 people in central London every day.
The charity’s mission is to provide an effective and relevant range of services to homeless people of all ages and those who are at risk of homelessness and exclusion in central London, services which promote engagement and change: services which meet physical, personal and emotional needs and which clearly encourage and deliver solutions.
It costs just over £4.5m to run The Connection at St Martin’s services each year and over 40 per cent of this income is raised through donations from individuals, companies, trusts and foundations.
Housing Justice is the national voice of Christian action in the field of housing and homelessness. They support night-shelters, drop-ins and hundreds of practical projects nationwide by providing advice and training for churches and other community groups who work with homeless people. They work by uniting Christians and churches of all denominations across the country to work for change. They embrace partnerships with people of all faiths (and none) who share their values of social justice and compassion. www.housingjustice.org.uk
The service takes place today (Thursday 12 November 2009) 11.30am at St. Martin-in-the-Fields Trafalgar Square, London
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