CRC newsletter: November 2001: news

Effect of Foot and Mouth on CRC Finances
Many of you will have heard that the YHA have lost about £5m this year as a consequence of the foot and mouth epidemic, and the fear they have that quite a few hostels will need to be closed to balance their budget. CRC have not lost quite so much, about £1000 so far, which although a small sum relative to YHA losses, probably represents a much higher proportion of our total assets.

CRC losses have largely been on events where we have had to make a formal "group booking" with the YHA (corresponding to a booking form on the CRC programme) for which we have to pay 25% of the total cost 6 months in advance and the balance 2 months in advance. It has been unfortunate that this year, in which the YHA have insisted on a larger proportion of group bookings of this type, has coincided with low bookings from CRC members owing to F&M. If a hostel has actually been closed then YHA have held our deposits for a future occasion and we have not lost out. However for all hostels that have been open, even where the walking was restricted, we have lost any money paid that was not matched by CRC members attending.

The general uncertainty this year has also led to many members booking late (sometimes within a week of the event). This has made it difficult for the event leader to plan, and has also made it very hard to estimate demand (we have cancelled some beds that could in fact have been used had we known in advance).

How can CRC stay solvent? One option is to increase annual subscriptions, and the committee will discuss this at their next meeting. The new booking system with YHA will be of particular help (see separate article in this issue). Although the new system has some limitations, it has the great advantage that the deposits required are only £1/bed. This means both that smaller reserves are required to fund the deposits, and also that the scope for further losses is much reduced. One further way that members could be of great assistance is to try to book earlier where possible (especially for big events like the New Year Event), as this assists with both planning and also with cash flow when we have to pay out such large sums.

Jonathan Gower undertook a sponsored cycle ride for Latin Link a Christian charity working in Latin America, he raised £170, if you would like to help this work their contact is 020 7939 9000 or e-mail ukoffice@latin.link.org

Prayer Diary
I hope you will find these suggestions for prayer useful, together with the scripture verses. If you have any suggestions for prayer please email me . It would be good to hear from you

Week 1	For those who have lost loved ones in the recent acts of terrorism, pray that they may find some comfort and that some good will come out of the evil act, pray for an end to terrorism
Week 2	For the local East Anglia group	Psalm 62:1-2
Week 3	Continue to pray for the Foot and Mouth situation	Habb 3:17-18
Week 4	For the pre Christmas event	O come, O come Immanuel
Week 5	For the Christmas and New Year events for those leading, helping and attending	Isaiah 7:14
Week 6	Happy Christmas, give thanks for the gift of God’s Son and all that means to us	Luke 1:46-47
Week 7	Happy New Year, pray for the coming year, for the committee and all events	Isaiah 43:18-19
Week 8	For the local Hampshire group	Psalm 66:1-2
Week 9	For those who are sick, in pain or feeling lonely	Luke 4:40

Chairmans Chatter November 2001		Event Reports November 2001
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