Parish Church of St Mary Magdalene
Channapatna
St Mary Magdalene's has a link with Bethany Church, Channapatna. The relationship was set up in 1999 as our 'Millennium Project'. Channapatna is a town in South India, half-way between Bangalore and Mysore. Our relationship is being built up through videos, letters, emails, parcels and exchange visits.
So far four groups from our church have visited Channapatna, and we have hosted two visits from the pastor in Channapatna. In September 2001 Pastor Kumar came to visit us for four weeks and in autumn 2003 Pastor Jessie Ranjan joined us for six weeks. She also visited other parishes in the Diocese.
We are delighted that Pastor Jessie has been able to come and visit us again this year. But even more so in that she has been able to bring two members of the congregation from Bethany Church with her - Lilly Sukumari and Edwin Pushbaraj. It is an honour to have the three of them staying with us for two weeks. A full report on the visit will be posted once it is over.
Part of our relationship involves a tailoring project, in which unemployed women from Bethany Church are being taught tailoring skills. The most recent report on the Tailoring Project is below:
A brief Report of the Link with CSI Bethany Church
We, the members of the CSI Bethany Church and the Bethany Tailoring Center bring greetings to all our friends at St. Mary Magdalene Church, Prudhoe. We are grateful to God for the wonderful opportunity God has given us to learn from one another through the relationship we have with you. We are also grateful to the Vicar, Rev. Charles Hope and the members of the church for your love, care, support and prayers.
We remember with gratitude the hard work and effort put behind this link relationship by the Rt. Rev. K. E. Gill, Rev. David Elkington and Rev. Audrey A Elkington and the members of the church. We praise God that along with these our friends our beloved Bishop, Rt. Rev. S. Vasantha Kumar and Rev. P.V.G. Kumar, the then Presbyter-in-charge who took initiative in establishing this relationship. We are benefited so much by the friendship and relationship we have with you.
The Tailoring Training was part of the link relationship between the two churches. The members of the congregation of Bethany Church are very poor and particularly the women are simply at home doing nothing. They were given importance and the decision was that they be trained in tailoring so that they can get jobs in the Garment Factories that were coming up around Bangalore, which is about 60 kms from Channapatna. The first batch was started with 15 women and girls. We must mention here that some of them who were selected for the training did not have any basic education and therefore they were not able to follow the techniques of tailoring. But few girls did very well and they got jobs in the Garment Factories.
The second batch was started after I took over from Rev. P. V .G. Kumar i.e. in the year 2003. The team from St. Mary Magdalene church visited us during the end of 2002 and the beginning of 2003. The interview and the written examinations were already conducted at that time. There were eight girls selected for the training keeping in mind the criteria for training. Rules and regulations were also framed for the training. It was also our decision that Mrs. Lilly Margaret Sukumari who is a local person can be the teacher as she was also good at embroidery. Therefore in addition to the tailoring we also started the training on embroidery particularly the Kasuthi Work. Kasuthi Work is originated in North Karnataka (our own state) in 7 AD itself. The girls mastered this art with the help of Mrs. Patricia Job who is a great source of inspiration to our project.
The Tailoring Training also included production of some things we could make. We began making some bags with Kasuthi Work on it. Later the idea came to us about producing stoles that has a special touch of Kasuthi. The first sample was made with an ordinary cloth and the same was shown to our Bishop when we had visitors from the Diocese of Gloucester. It was very well appreciated and we got courage to make one and send to Rev. Dorothy Weetman at the time of her ordination.
I was invited to St. Mary Magdalene Church, Prudhoe in 2003 and a wonderful programme was arranged during my stay. I was given an opportunity to visit many parishes and meet so many people in the Diocese of Newcastle. I am indeed grateful to all of you for the way in which you made me feel at home. When I was in St. Gabriel Church, Rev. Michael Webb arranged a meeting with the Parish Committee. I was asked to share my ministry with them and I did speak about a small Canteen I had started with women of my church at Channapatna. This canteen needed some infrastructure to attract people and the St. Gabriel Church promised me to send some money through Bishop Gill who was coming to India. When I returned to India I was very sad to see that the Canteen was closed for various reasons. I really did not want to take the money from St. Gabriel Church and I wrote to Rev. Michael Webb about it. But he was very generous to send this money to be used for whatever I feel was worth. That was the time I thought that we could start producing stoles with Kasuthi Work on them. We started and my colleagues started buying them.
The Tailoring Training continued and the students were getting their stipend
every month.
As per the decision we were giving only the 50% of the stipend to the students
and the other 50% was saved in order to buy a sewing machine at the time of the
completion of their training. Accordingly the machines were given to them during
the Confirmation Service where our Bishop was present.
Bishop prayed for the students and the machines were handed over to them.
The students are now the proud owners of their machines.
All of them now have the machines in their homes
There were 8 girls in the training.
After the completion of the training Ms. Sunitha got married,
Ms. Prasanna Kumari who was working in the Baby Wear Garment Factory passed
away due to appendicitis.
Mrs. Geetha is now working in the Baby Wear and drawing a salary of
Rs. 2500/-per month whose photograph is not here.
The women who are into the production unit are very confident of producing any
samples that are brought to the centre.
They are the ones who tell me not to say 'no' to any orders that come from the
churches. Their word is that 'You show us the sample and we do it'.
I am really proud of them for their confidence and creativity.
Some women know crochet work and particularly our women in the senior citizen home, Bethany Ashram. They stitch laces, which can be attached to the sari petticoats that are in fashion now. By doing this work the women are able to earn little for their small expenses. These laces were also used for the Altar Cloth that we made for one of our churches during Christmas.
Our women are so happy to learn these things and we had arranged a week long classes and all those who are in the production unit learnt a bit of crochet work and other stitches that Mrs. Grace Daniel from the Ashram taught them.
The other women who are just at home needed some work and we have started our
Spice Powder unit.
Since we, Indians use more spices and we have more Boarding Homes and Hostels
in the Diocese we thought that the marketing would not be difficult.
We are able to make Mutton/Chicken Curry Powder, Fish Curry Powder,
Sambar Powder, Chilli Powder, Coriander Powder, Chutney Powder etc.
In fact the marketing is not so easy but we are able to make a little profit.
If we have regular buyers we can proceed on without any difficulty.
Efforts are being taken to improve on marketing.
Sometimes we get visitors to the Ashram and our women cook for the group
More than the profit this unit has helped them in their involvement in the work and their participation in doing something in order to build themselves has created in them the confidence to face life and its reality.
Majority of the students who passed out of our centre are working in our Production Unit. Few of them have joined the Bangalore Baby Wear Corporation private Ltd, a garment factory earning about Rs. 2500/- per month. The working condition in the factory is not so good and the women and girls find it difficult to cope up with such situations. Those who can manage themselves are continuing the work but others have joined our production centre. As I am preparing this report I got an order for 40 stoles from the Diocese of Gloucester and when we are away in Prudhoe the work continues here at Channapatna. This is how God is helping us in our struggle.
In conclusion I want to say is that the link has given us the opportunity to look at the problem faced by our women. It is through the Tailoring Training Centre we moved on to other projects. We started focusing on the issues of women and began addressing those issues. I am not fully satisfied with what has been done so far. Much more can be done particularly to the young boys of the congregation. We have our own limitations with regard to the resources and support. I am sure God will guide us through in the future because we trust in God and His word that comes to us afresh through St. Paul - "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen". Phil. 4: 19-20
Thank you friends for giving us the opportunity to be in partnership with you, giving us so much beyond our imagination. It is your love and sacrifice, which made us move forward. We, the members of the congregation and particularly the women remain grateful forever for you have created a sense of importance and worth in us. It is through you we are able to discover our creativity and we are confident of our ability and of ourselves.
Respectfully submitted
Rev. Jessie Ranjan