Mercifully, the damage to the roof was localised and it was put right at the expense of our insurance company, bless ’em. A few days later, however, Len, our maintenance man, came to me with a report on the condition of the rest of the roof. “It’s in a sorry state,” he said, gloomily. “The majority of the slates are in a state of decay, the lead valleys and flashing need replacing and most of the woodwork is rotten”.
My heart sank. Charis House is a large building and the roof - which can be seen in the picture above - is huge. “Here we are” I thought, “already short of money, facing the prospect of yet another massive bill - this time to re-roof our venerable headquarters.
My despondency was short-lived, however, as I recalled how God inspired His people to support us in purchasing Charis House in the first place. The staggering sum needed was raised in just three years! We thank God and praise Him for the many individuals, churches, trusts and other benefactors who helped us at that time.
With this in mind we decided to “bite the bullet” and find out what was involved and how much it would cost.
In order to reach the top of the 3-storey building, the contractors will need to erect a large amount of scaffolding. The old slates will be stripped off and the roof fitted with new felt and tanilised laths. While the workmen are up there they will hack out and re-point the chimney stacks (something else that has been worrying us for a long time!). 20,000 replacement slates will be fitted, along with new lead in the valleys and on the dormers. All rotten facia boards and bargeboards will be renewed and gutters and gutter boards will be overhauled. Lower parts of the roof will be insulated - helping to reduce our fuel bills! The total cost, including VAT, will be £73,000
Sometimes big problems can be made less daunting when you break them down into bite-size pieces. That was the thinking behind our “Sponsor a Slate” campaign. It means that pretty well anyone can help if they want to. £73,000, divided between the number of slates needed, equates to just £3.65 per slate.
We wanted to enlist the help of as many people as possible in the campaign so we invited the local newspaper to its launch. Local councillor Robin Baldry, (pictured right, with me up the ladder) kicked off the fund by sponsoring the first 10 slates. He was quickly followed by my daughter Megan, who sponsored a slate from her pocket money!
Since then we have had more donations and the fund is beginning to grow. There’s a long way to go but we are confident that the target will be met—with the help of our faithful supporters, the public and even some of the agencies we work with.
If you would like to support the campaign by sponsoring a slate - or several slates for that matter - please send your donation to:
Buy-a-Slate Campaign
c/o Keith Jones
Good News Family Care
Charis House
Hardwick Square East,
Buxton SK17 6PT
Don’t forget to tell us if you want the slates dedicating to someone, and remember to tell your friends and colleagues about the campaign—they might just be on the lookout for an unusual Birthday or Christmas gift!
