It started at 10.30 and finished just before 6pm, it lasted around 20 miles and involved many sore feet and sweaty people.
It was the the Oxygen 2008 Boroughthon involved the Oxygen team, volunteers and young people spanning the entire length, breadth and width of the Borough to visit the site of each of the Oxygen projects in Kingston Borough. This video gives you snapshots of some of our walk, without any shots of developing blisters
St Peters' Rock Solid Club headed away this weekend to Blacklands farm in Sussex for a weekend of climbing, camping and bungee trampolining!
It was a great weekend comprising sunshine, camp fires, toasted marshmallows and deep and meaningful conversations.
The photos give a glimpse of what we got up to, but fail to convey the great sense of fun we all had, which for some of the young people was the first time they had not only camped, but had spent more than a brief period in the countryside.
It was great to see the young people attempt various activities that they hadn't tried out before. Seeing them attempt and succeed in climbing and exploring we were able to chat to them about stepping out in faith in other areas in life.
Two years ago when we went away with the Rock Solid group we returned with an ungrateful group of teenagers, this time however we saw how much this group had moved on as we came back laughing, chatting and wishing the trip was longer.
The next challenge is to recruit a new (paid) worker for St Peters, they will then be charged with developing the work and the going deeper plans of work.
A gap year with Oxygen is a journey of discovery, it is one when people enter into a period in their lives when they are given a chance to discover Jesus for themselves whilst also seeking to reveal Jesus to others. Each year, Oxygen takes on up to 10 people, usually aged 18 – 25, to come together in this MIND THE GAP adventure. They come together in times of sharing, teaching and exploration, learning to rely on God before heading out into streets, clubs and churches seeking to serve and relate to young people they meet. We believe in Jesus’ own instruction when he called for people to go out and be involved in mission and discipleship. As he showed us, it is as we respond to this call so we are transformed by the people we meet, just as we hope and pray that they are transformed by meeting us.
This is why Oxygen’s MIND THE GAP is not a GAP year but rather a chance to respond to Jesus instruction to be involved in the work of the Kingdom. MIND THE GAP is not about people coming to serve us, but more about us going on a journey together to discover what God’s will is for ourselves and the young people that we meet. Our hope is that Oxygen is a place where both young people and workers draw closer to God and closer to each other. If you are wanting to find out God’s plan and pattern for your life, if you love God and love young people and are willing to be challenged, trained and supported through something that will affect you not only for a year but for the rest of your life, then why not apply, or come and visit us and maybe we will see you at Oxygen in the near future!
Rock Solid is a special club in the life of Oxygen. It was one of the very first Oxygen’s projects started just a few weeks after Oxygen started. As the years went by this weekly club that targetted young people from the Cambrdge Estate became a scheme Oxygen operated in partnership with St Peters.
The rock solid, non stop approach to caring given throughout the years means that Rock Solid is a club that now welcomes anything up to 30 young people each week. They come becuase they feel they can share with the workers, that they are listened to, valued and have a significance. The result of the atmosphere of trust that has built up over the years is that many of the young people are able to share prayer requests and need readily, and sometimes truth revealing honestly. For example one week last month the nightly prayer requests included: a young girl who was scared, living in a women’s shelter with her mum becuase of domestic violence at home, another young man who was sleeping rough and looking for a way find food reguallry, another guy who had six friends in prison and wanted them to be safe, and finally one other young lady whose gran had just died and was distraught.
As well as the heart wrenching prayer requests of those who currently attend, many of those who came to Rock Solid in the early years are making contact again as they enter young adulthood. As these young people start to leave their teenage years behind them, and start to become parents for themselves they are turning to the peoelp in this church based club for support for them and their expected children.
Please do pray for this work. It has a very special place in the work of Oxygen and St Peters. It is now the longest running, non statutory youth work on the Cambridge Road Estate. Many of young peoepl who live in the Norbiton area know of it and a good number of them have come at least once.
The Green Fare is looming up and as usual we will be attending it with a tent for prayer and healing stationed on the healing fields where we usually are.
We are looking for team to encourage people in, engage with people and to pray with people, last year and we ran out of prayers - so if you are available on Monday 26th, bank holiday, and want to see God in action, please let me know. The Powerhouse of prayer is preceding that for the week before at the YMCA Surbiton, again you can book into that through me, it runs from 7am until 10pm each day from 18th May until 25th May.
To mark the first seven successful years of their work with young people and to help fund work in the next seven, myself and a group of Oxygen staff, gap workers and volunteers are going to undertake the mammoth task of visiting each of the 18 Oxygen projects in just 7 hours.
Leaving the Oxygen centre at 10am,we will head out to the Cambridge Estate, Kingsnympton Estate, Richmond Park, Kingston Vale, North Kingston, Kingston town Centre, Surbiton town centre, the Alpha Estate, Tolworth Girls School, Hook’s Devon Way Youth Centre, Chessington Methodist Church, Venner Youth Centre, Coombe Boys School, New Malden High Street, Kingston Road, before arriving back at Oxygen by 5pm . Altogether we will cover around 20 miles as they span the entire width of Kingston Borough.
Would you consider making a donation towards our sponsored efforts via:
http://www.justgiving.com/boroughthon
All donations are secure and sent electronically to Oxygen. If you are a UK taxpayer, Justgiving will automatically reclaim 28% Gift Aid on your behalf, so your donation is worth even more.
Thanks and best wishes,
Richard
The Kingston Borough Community Road Shows are RBK organised events intended to reach out to the local community to promote services and important issues and they are looking for groups to come along and be involved. They are looking for a wide range of services and organizations for families with children and young people aged 0-19 to be available with activities, goodies and details about their service.
Following the great success of last years Road Show events across the borough, the Extended School Managers are pleased to announce details of the 2008 Road Shows. The details of the dates and venues for this years road shows are:
The road shows will run after school, 3.00-6.00pm with set up from 1.30pm. There is no cost for being involved. It would be great for us as Oxygen to work with churches in each area to promote the work underway in that location. In addition to working with Oxygen, any group who wish to run their own stall would find themselves coming into contact with children, young people and families from across the community.
- Tuesday 24th June 2008, Alexandra Recreation Ground, Surbiton
- Friday 27th June 2008, Dinton Fields, St Agatha’s Drive, Kingston
- Wednesday 2nd July 2008, Dickerage Adventure Playground, Dickerage Lane, New Malden
- Thursday 3rd July 2008, Churchfields, off Compton Crescent, Chessington
For more information on this great event and Oxygen's input contact Richard James on 020 8547 0566 or email richard@oxygen-online.org
Oxygen is now on Facebook. Here we have posted the pictures from thevent as well as news of forthcoming events. Become our friend by clicking here:
You are invited to the evening launch of the Oxygen 2008-12 Strategic Plan due to be held at St Peters Church, London Road, Kingston at 8pm on Thursday April 24th 2008. It was in 2001 when the churches of the Royal Borough of Kingston came together through their young people to launch a new local charity that they subsequently named Oxygen. Now just six years after it was launched Oxygen has run over thirty different projects, has been in contact with over 4,500 young people and has been the springboard for many new and exciting initiatives around the Borough including Rm1, Street Pastors and Sacred Space Kingston.
Building on the great foundation established in the last few years the staff and trustees of Oxygen have conducted a comprehensive consultation and review of Oxygen, its work, its role and the opportunities that there are to make a long term difference in the lives of those young people who need the greatest support. The results of this review and the subsequent exciting plans for Oxygen’s work over the next 4 years are going to be unveiled for the first time at this special launch event which we hope you are able to come to. Our event will last for 1½ hours and will start with a review of Oxygen up to followed by the Oxygen 2006-7 AGM and a time of thankful worship. After this review of the past, we will move onto the future by giving a presentation summarising the plans and strategic aims for the next 4 years. The issues raised in the presentation will be used then for a time of prayer. Following this and over coffee there will then be a chance for questions and an opportunity to look around various displays and meet different people involved in Oxygen's work in different areas including the Borough wide detached youthwork project Urban Nites, the Extended School club Rm1 and the town centre initiative Street Pastors.
We do hope you are able to join us at this unique day, please feel free to invite anyone you think would benefit from coming as we are excited about what God is doing amongst young people in this area and as such what are our plans to respond to that in the years ahead.
Oxygen’s current work on the Kingsnympton Estate was launched in January 2006. It was developed, planned and undertaken in partnership between Kingston Youth Service and Oxygen The partnership was completed by the Personal Development Trust who provided financial backing to the scheme. The original stated shared aim of the work on the estate was to build self esteem, confidence and motivation in young people on the Kingsnympton Estate and thus have a long term positive impact on the local community.
The Year 1 project report (issued January 2007) outlined how Oxygen workers had used the year to get to know the estate and in particular the lifestyles patterns of the young people who live and visit there. The conclusions at the end of year 1 was that during year 2 it was important to build on the good work started by developing other work, particularly a new work on Tuesday evenings, at the Oxygen centre on weekends and to look at developing a new coordinated work during the summer. Attention was drawn in the report that there was a need to deepen the work established; giving the young people more responsibilities whilst creating opportunities for exploring their values, attitudes and lifestyle choices.
To make these conclusions possible during 2007 Oxygen was awarded two grants by the Personal Development Trust. This funding was split between work that could be delivered during Jan – July and Sept – Dec (£5,000) and that which could be delivered during the summer holidays (£2,200).The report below outlines what was achieved with these two grants and draws up proposals for the development of the project into year 3.
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