Essex Faith Covenant Steering Group Chair, Vivienne Wiggins, welcomes Inter Faith Week
"I sometimes think that Beacon House has an impossible job.
"Each day we open our doors with no idea who will come in, or what their issues may be. We know that they may be lonely and isolated; that they may be frightened and confused by the situation they are in; and that they may have been rejected or shunned from several other places in Colchester. We also know that the reason that many people come into Beacon House is because we know them by their name. They are greeted and respected and valued.
"Every day, each one of us have hundreds of opportunities to interact with other people, and to choose how we react to the different people that we meet. In our encounters with vulnerable and less fortunate people it is sometimes easier to blame the system or blame the person who is suffering and say it is their fault. The more challenging option is to look for good in the situation and ask ourselves what we can do to improve the community around us.
"Embrace Inter Faith Week, not by visiting a website, or attending an event, simply by asking yourself to think of the loneliest or most vulnerable person that you know, and how your next action will make their lives better or worse?"