This year marks the 40th anniversary of the linking of the Diocese of Portsmouth with the Arch-diocese of Bamenda in Cameroon. When the Cathedral Parish of St John was looking for a project to support this year we thought it would be appropriate to support a project in Bamenda.

Project Hope is run by St Martin de Porres hospital in Njinikom, Bamenda. It visits schools and organizes health clubs to teach children about the importance of personal hygiene, food and water contamination and it preaches abstinence and fidelity as a means to avoid sexually transmitted infection which is prevalent in that area. The children learn through playing games, singing songs, dancing and working to become role models among their peers.

In this area of Cameroon, 1 in 10 people contract AIDS/HIV and most children have lost someone to the disease. Project Hope offers free testing and support as well as treatment for those who test positive.

Our Project, which started in Lent, is trying to raise £5000 for primary prevention to make sure all children and young people have accurate knowledge about STI prevention.

When we achieve this goal we plan to extend our project to include the prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV.
We hope that you will support this project with your prayers.

Events in the parish:

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Well Done to Kath who raised £75.00 by asking family and friends on her birthday to donate money to our Parish Project instead of buying her gifts.		Well Done to Audrey who raised £32.12 for Project Hope selling her homemade delicious cakes after the 10am Mass on Sunday. The cakes were that tasty that she sold out. If you would like to bake a cake and sell it on a Sunday. Please contact the Parish Office or email bamenda@portsmouthcatholiccathedral.org.uk

- This is a great way to get involved with our Parish Project.

- Father James Abseil down the Spinnaker Tower on the 24th May 2014

"Wow! What an experience to abseil 102 metres down the Spinnaker Tower to raise money for Project Hope, our cathedral parish project. Project Hope is run by St Martin de Porres hospital in Njinikom in our sister diocese of Bamenda, Cameroon. It aims to help children and young people avoid diseases which are common in that part of the world, including HIV/AIDS.

Luckily the rain had stopped and there was only a slight breeze when I stepped out onto the platform high above the ground. I tried not to look down as I climbed over the railing. Then I leaned back, was pleased to discover that the rope held me and, before I knew it, I was on my way, trying to set the record for the fastest descent! If you would like to support Project Hope, please send your donation to the parish office. Thank you! Thank you also to the large group of parishioners who came to cheer me on".

Fr James McAuley

- BOB a Job Weekend Saturday 24th May 2014 – Monday 26th May 2014

As part of the ongoing fundraising for our Bamenda Project – Project Hope, we run a ‘Bob a Job’ project over the bank holiday weekend of the 24th – 26th May. The idea was that parishioners would sign up to volunteer their time in different time slots to complete tasks for those in the parish and members of the wider community in exchange for a donation towards the Bamenda Project. We worked with our Pastoral Youth Worker Dom DeBoo and hope to use this as an opportunity to bring the parish community together to put our Faith into Action. Please show your Faith in Action by supporting this wonderful project.

We raised £210 and managed to involve 15 volunteers, 9 of them young people in doing gardening, car washing, clearing guttering and cleaning freezers. Thanks to everyone involved and especially those who donated so generously.