NEWSLETTER

NO. 45

Winter 2007

PO BOX 16163

CLAPHAM, LONDON

SW4 7ZT

Tel: 01895 823748

enquiries@calcutta

rescue.org.uk

www.calcuttarescue.

org.uk

Registered charity no. 290917

Calcutta

Rescue

F

u

n

d

In the UK Christmas seems to start earlier every year. The present

mountain rises ever higher, the marketing grows more frenzied, the

food and drink consumed, and the cost, just keep on mounting.

Things are different in Kolkata – although even there a few shops

have begun to sell Christmas decorations and restaurants serve

Christmas dinner – with chicken, not turkey (see Susan Lee’s arti-

cle on page 4).

For the people Calcutta Rescue serves, our Christmas is beyond

their wildest dreams. Not just because the vast majority are Hindu

or Muslim, but because just finding enough to feed their families

each day is a constant struggle.

Over the past year, the UK support group has sent £75,000 to

India to help CR continue its vital work of providing healtcare,

education and employment opportunities to the poorest of the

poor.

An enormous thank you to everyone who has contributed to that

total.

Your money has gone a very long way, not just because everything

is much cheaper in Kolkata, but because CR works very hard to

ensure your money goes as far as possible.

But the sobering fact is that, in recent years, UK donations have

been falling. On top of this, the vital work CR is now doing with

HIV sufferers is putting an increasing strain on finances (see Dr

Jack’s Christmas Message on page 3).

We need to find ways of ensuring we in the UK can continue to

maintain our level of support for the projects.

So, in this newsletter we have come up with several ways to do this

in the run-up to the festive season.

First, we have now have wonderful CR Gift Cards which you can

send to friends for Christmas at the same time as making a lasting

contribution to someone in Kolkata.

Second, we would like you to consider making a small standing

order to the charity, if you are able. With the added bonus of gift

aid, this would provide much greater stability of funding for a small

charity like ours, which simply cannot run major fundraising

appeals when funds run short (see page 8).

Also in this issue is an update on developments on our great new

website – www.calcuttarescue.org.uk

Find out why shoppers at a stylish ethnic store next to London’s

Oxo Tower all leave with a small piece of CR.

You can also meet a few of the people CR has helped in recent

months.It is your support that makes it all happen.

Thank you.

Have a wonderful ChRistmas!

Share a happy CR Christmas