So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline.

Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in stepwith each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing.

And cultivate thankfulness.

Col 3:12,15 (Msg)

Simon on the streets

“Recently I went to observe the work of the street pastors in Ashford. I joined a group of two women and one man out “on patrol”, while two others remained behind to pray. We went around the town centre, including the station, Cameo and the Auction House bar, taking a circular route that also included round the back of Wilkinson and an alleyway or two.”

“We were looking out to help people in the streets, those who’d had a night out, but also others, including teenagers on bikes.We gave some flip-flops to a lady in stilettos, but mainly large quantities of lollipops and bottles of water.”

“It was a good eye-opener and I’m thinking about whether to become a street pastor myself.” Simon Burgess

If you’d like to be an observer on one of our patrols like Simon then please contact Lita

Daytime Patrols

We are still trialling our daytime patrols. Our next one is on 16 November from 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm with the aim of making sure all the schoolchildren in town feel safe as they walk through town, meet up with friends, go shopping and catch their buses home. We patrol the town centre, frequently stopping to chat to people and handing out lollipops. If you would like to get involved, please contact Lita.

Freshers’ Fair

On 28 September, 5 of us were happily involved in the Freshers’ Fair at the new Elwick Road campus of Ashford College.It was a wonderful time with lots of smiling students and many stands from different Ashford businesses and clubs.

It was good fun watching people cycle to provide the power to make their smoothies.

God bless everyone who studies and works there.

Case study

 

Being in a helping hand in the right place at the right time

At about 03.15 the patrol was near a nightclub as it was closing and about 700 mainly happy people were preparing to leave the area. Suddenly a man was in the wrong place at the wrong time and he was hit on the head. At first sight there seemed to be a lot
of blood so the patrol stepped in and offered basic first aid. Sitting the young man down against a wall just outside the nightclub, the Street Pastors calmed down him and his friends and within 10 minutes the blood had stopped flowing, the wound had been cleaned with sterile water and bandages and the man was able to leave.

The patrol calmed a potentially volatile situation, gave practical first aid and avoided calling out an ambulance and a visit to A&E at the local hospital that would have cost the NHS £374.

A few statistics…

From January to September we have:
• completed 41 patrols, 1043 hours with Street Pastors on patrol supported by 651 hours of prayer from Prayer Pastors;
• engaged with 1568 people and assisted 260 people in vulnerable situations;
• removed 515 bottles and 55 glasses from the streets;
• handed out 259 bottles of water, 25 foil blankets, 113 pairs of flip flops and 997 lollipops.