Winner: Front-Line
Charity and Faith Mission
Name and location: Charity and Faith Mission; Pretoria, South Africa
Pastor: Titus Sithole
Date Founded: 1994
Weekly Attendance: 2,500
Overview: Charity and Faith Mission is serving thousands of the poor in many communities throughout greater Pretoria, an area which has more than 2 million residents. The work and ministry of its main campus in Mamelodi, northeast of the city, is enhanced by seven satellite churches, strategically located to address the desperate needs of those infected with and affected by HIV and AIDS. "We move to the people, rather than ask them to come to us," says Senior Pastor Titus Sithole. Pastor Sithole and others at Charity and Faith Mission have enlightened local residents about the value of volunteering to help others, as well as shattered myths about AIDS. The church's model of care, compassion and commitment is carried out through a wide range of services for adults and AIDS orphans. It is sustained through the dedication of volunteers as well as funding from government agencies, the European Union and private individuals and organizations.
Specific Initiatives: What began as a nurse's 10-minute presentation during a church service in 2000 has grown into a wide array of services and multi-faceted outreach to the poor in Pretoria.
Those services include:
- Community hospice care
- Home care visits
- Trauma care and counseling
- Voluntary HIV testing and counseling
- A school and an orphanage
- Building houses
- Creating vegetable gardens and training people to maintain them
Engagement of the Congregation: A large percentage of the church congregation is participating in the AIDS ministry at Charity and Faith Mission. Church members are conducting the voluntary HIV testing and counseling, as well as adopting AIDS orphans, delivering food, donating furnishings and other items. Members who work in the health care profession, such as nursing, also volunteer their professional services. Every May, the church hosts "Hospice Week" when volunteers visit schools, churches and other institutions to explain Charity and Faith Mission's hospice services. There is also a candlelight service in which HIV and AIDS issues are presented in a way to help break taboos and stigmas. Finally, during December, the church mobilizes a door-to-door campaign to distribute information on HIV and AIDS and answer people's questions.
Judges' Comments: "Charity and Faith Mission has been recognized by the judges in years past. They continue to do outstanding work on the frontlines and their partnership with Crossroads Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio shows the impact that a church to church partnership can have and the difference it can make."
