Celebrating 30 years of transforming lives: Angela’s story

Hello, my name is Angela. I am married to Simon, and we have three grown-up sons: James, Alex, and Nathan.

Several years ago, I was diagnosed with a rare and serious eye condition called panuveitis, which causes inflammation, pain and vision loss.

I’ve gradually been losing my sight for several years now. Along the way, there have been times when my sight has suddenly deteriorated, and each time I have had to readjust and adapt to a new set of circumstances.

By the time my youngest son, Nathan, was at primary school and the older two were at secondary school, I was no longer able to be fully independent. I could no longer drive. My sight had deteriorated to the point where reading things was becoming difficult. My depth perception had deteriorated, and even staying safe in the kitchen was becoming increasingly difficult.

And then, at exactly this time, my husband was made redundant. He turned up for work one morning to find his place of work closed because the company had gone into liquidation. 

Almost overnight, our financial situation became extremely difficult. While my husband fought to recover the wages he was owed, we were also navigating the minefield of the welfare system. I was having to fill out lengthy forms to prove I was still entitled to support for a condition that is never going to improve, and is actually only going to get worse.

At one point, we had almost three months with no money coming in. As a result, we fell behind on the mortgage payments, and our debt escalated very quickly.

During this time, I was helping run a ​‘mums and tots’ group in a local church hall. After a while, I built up the courage to confide in them about how serious our situation had become, and they suggested that I reach out to Christians Against Poverty (CAP). After speaking to my husband, we decided to contact CAP.

A very friendly and kind person on the other end of the phone gave us something we desperately needed at that point: hope.

Because of my disability, leaving the house to navigate unfamiliar places can be overwhelming. Having the local Debt Coach and befriender come directly to our home took away the extra stress, especially with everything else going on.

When the local Debt Coach and befriender came round, they were so kind and reassuring. Over three home visits, they helped us gather all our paperwork, make sense of our situation, and outlined the support that CAP could provide.

With the guidance and advice of CAP’s Support Hub in Bradford, we were presented with the different steps we could take to get out of debt, and given a choice of which worked best for our family. We chose to go through a Debt Management Plan, repaying our debts over the next four years.

At the time, four years felt like a never-ending amount of time. But the reassurance and encouragement to keep going were exactly what we needed. We set up a single Direct Debit to CAP each month, which they’d split between our creditors to pay off our debts, as well as setting aside a small amount in savings, which we could use in emergencies.

We also found that our creditors – those we owed money to – were much more responsive and willing to work with us because we were being supported by CAP. CAP’s 30-year reputation as a trusted, professional organisation means they’ve been able to develop positive relationships with creditors and financial organisations, which carries weight when trying to agree on a repayment plan that actually works.

Whenever a crisis arose – like when my youngest son desperately needed some new school shoes – I no longer panicked, wondering how on earth we were going to afford it. Instead, I could pick up the phone, and together we’d come up with a solution.

On some of my darkest and toughest days, when I was at home alone, I would ring the client support line. I always received help and encouragement. They would pray for me and my family at the end of the call. For me, that was a huge source of strength throughout our journey.

During our journey to becoming debt free, a few key things happened that have changed the course of our lives:

• Our financial confidence grew. We learned to budget in a way that will help us withstand any storms that come our way.
• We experienced the supportive community of a local church. Even through the covid-19 pandemic, when the cost of living increased and my husband was furloughed, the local church never stopped supporting us. They were still there at the end of the phone, answering our questions and encouraging us.
• I found faith in Jesus. I even celebrated turning 50 by getting confirmed! I held on to verses like Philippians 4:13, which says, ​‘I can do all things through him who strengthens me.’ (ESV). Early in my diagnosis, I had read about the man in John 9 who had been blind from birth. Jesus said that his blindness was not meaningless, but that God’s work could be revealed through his life. That brought me enormous comfort then, and it still does today.
• We became debt free! I cannot even begin to tell you what that feels like. But what meant even more to me was that these people had shown such patience and kindness. They also went the extra mile to celebrate with us. It was the best feeling in the world.

In the years since we became debt free, my husband managed to get another job and is still going strong. His stepfather passed away, and we inherited a property which we were able to renovate and move into. We now feel incredibly blessed and feel that our family has been given a new start.

I often say that my journey has been a bit like the story of Job – great trials and tribulations, but also perseverance, relying on God and his provision, and having hope. And I’m so thankful for the local church for igniting that hope when we were struggling to find it.

CAP didn’t just change our finances – they changed the direction of our lives. For me personally, they were also part of my journey to faith.

For 30 years, hundreds of local churches across the UK have partnered with CAP to bring free, expert debt advice, money management education and whole-person support to those in their toughest financial storms.

My story is not unique. There are people today who are sitting at home, frightened by debt letters they don’t understand. People who don’t know how they’re going to feed their families. People who are ashamed, isolated, overwhelmed and completely alone.

Some of those people may be just one phone call away from receiving the same help that changed my life.

That is why the next 30 years of Christians Against Poverty matters even more than the first. That’s 30 years of giving people far more than debt advice. It means restoring dignity. It means giving hope where there was despair. It means standing beside people when they feel that nobody else understands. And it means helping families move from simply surviving to believing that they can have a future.

I was once one of those people. I know what it feels like to be frightened about money. I know what it feels like to feel that everything is outside your control.

But I also know what it feels like when someone comes alongside you and says, ​‘You don’t have to face this alone.’ My local church-based CAP team did that for my family.

So, as we celebrate 30 years of Christians Against Poverty, will you help make sure that Christians Against Poverty can continue to stand beside the thousands of people who will need them in the years to come?

Somewhere today, another family will be sitting around a kitchen table wondering how they will pay the mortgage, buy school shoes, or keep the lights on. I know how that feels, because that family was once mine. Our local church met us with practical help, compassion, dignity and hope. They walked with us until we could stand again.

My story is just one story among thousands. Thousands who, with your support, can find that same hope I did.

Will you pray for the vital work local churches are doing across the UK, and for those experiencing debt and poverty? Sign up to receive your free prayer and reflection journal by post or email today.

For 30 years, we’ve been campaigning to see an end to UK poverty in the UK, working with third-sector organisations, politicians, churches and campaigners, speaking up on behalf of those in poverty. Will you join our campaigning community today, and be the first to hear how you can join in with our latest campaigns?

Will you donate today to help even more people like Angela find lasting freedom and hope?