Clients, volunteers, staff and friends of Action Foundation gathered together for a fantastic End of Year Celebration.
Everyone got into the festive spirit, joining in games like Pin the Nose on Rudolph and Reindeer Quoits. There was a live seasonal set from our former staff member and musician, Chris Buglass, and we also heard from four of Action Foundation’s clients about how their lives had changed for the better over the past year.
Athab Ahmed, one of our former Action Language students and now a resident in an Action Foundation Letting property, shared how he had just passed his NVQ in Rail Engineering Track Maintenance (Level 2) and is hoping to take up employment soon.
Bishop Paul, who is stepping down as our Patron when he retires as Bishop of Durham in February, made a heartfelt farewell speech and our CEO Duncan thanked him for his trusted counsel and unwavering support for Action Foundation and for asylum seekers and refugees over the past decade.
The Bishop summed up the transformative effects brought about by Action Foundation when he said:
“Action Foundation is the living example that the heartbeat of the ordinary people of this nation is to welcome people, is to support them, to care for them, to love them, to meet them in their need.”
It was an afternoon full of joy and friendship and after a year that has been so challenging for the refugee sector, this was a wonderful, positive way to bring 2023 to a close and celebrate all the good stuff that’s been going on!