Open a CAP Debt Centre debt help Lifting people out of debt and poverty
67% of clients had sacrificed meals due to debt 60% of clients lived in fear of losing their homes before they came to CAP 1 Setting captives free In Matthew 25, we are called to live out Jesus mission to bring good news to the poor and release the oppressed. As the 21 st century Church, how do we practically reach the poor in our communities and tell them the good news? You cannot escape the news reports about debt and poverty in Canada. Here in this country, thousands of people will not eat properly today. They will sit in cold homes because they can t afford to pay utilities. But since 1996, we have seen hundreds of churches rise up to offer people hope and a solution through CAP s professional debt counselling service. Your church could join them. You will be there to put an arm around people in their darkest hour, showing God s love in action. This partnership of CAP s service and the Church s compassion is changing thousands of lives every year. Will you join us so that, together, the local church can be the answer to one of the biggest problems our society faces? This is our time, our chance to make a difference. A CAP Debt Centre provides debt counselling through communitybased home visits to lift people out of debt and poverty. John Kirkby Founder & International Director 1. Christians Against Poverty client survey 2014. 2 3
The problem of debt in Canada Canada is the 11th largest economy in the world, but the reality is that for every dollar Canadians earn, they owe $1.63. 2 Canadians are playing a dangerous game with their credit that can lead to total financial destruction. On average, people wait at least one year before seeking help with their debts and the primary reason is because they are ashamed. 40% thought there was nobody who could help them. 3 Imagine if you were living like that trapped without hope of your life ever improving. It is heart breaking to discover that 37% of those in debt think that ending their lives is the only choice. 4 At CAP, we have taken a stand against debt enough is enough. We are calling on the Church to rise up and join us in order to save lives and break the chains of shame and isolation. If it wasn t for CAP coming into my life, I wouldn t be here today. Now I m stronger knowing I have God s love. 99% of clients described their Debt Coach as friendly 5 Why a CAP Debt Centre is the answer A CAP Debt Centre is like a doubleedged sword against debt, equipping your church to reach the poor in your community. Not only will you become a centre that delivers the most comprehensive debt counselling service out there, but you will also be able to take Jesus love right into people s living rooms. From there, you will open their eyes to the loving community of God s Church and be able to share the good news of Jesus Christ. A partnership with CAP will enable your church to: Reach the poor in your community. Share the gospel in a relevant way. Offer the very best and in-depth debt counselling service. See people released from poverty and debt. See people come to know Jesus and be discipled by your church. CAP Debt Help client 2. Statistics Canada, 2015. 4 3-5. Christians Against Poverty client survey 2014. 5
How it works CAP gives your church an awardwinning debt counselling tool. We train Debt Coaches to deliver a first class debt counselling service without needing to be a financial genius. They ll be backed up by a team of professional Caseworkers and Specialist Advisers at our head office. CAP takes care of all of the nitty gritty elements of debt counselling centrally. We put together budgets, negotiate with creditors and assess the best route to becoming debt free for every client. This frees up your team to do what the Church does best love and care for people without judgment. 4 1 The CAP Debt Help process The client calls our toll free phone number to speak to our New Enquiries team and book their first appointment. Our fully trained caseworkers put together a budget and contact priority creditors. 3 Your Debt Coach goes to the client s home to introduce our service, before giving the client time to gather all the necessary paperwork. On the next visit, your Debt Coach goes through all the client s financial details and sends the paperwork to CAP s head office team. 2 Your Debt Coach doesn t need in-depth financial knowledge. The quality of the debt counselling is very high, it s CAP s responsibility and it s covered by our licences and insurance. Clients can speak to a Caseworker Monday to Friday, 9:30am 5pm. 92% Your Debt Coach goes back to visit the client to explain the budget and set up a CAP Plan. 7 8 If the client is in severe debt, CAP will discuss the different options with the client including bankruptcy. 7 The necessary bills and debts are paid through the client s CAP Plan. 5 CAP s Creditor Liaison Unit negotiates with the secondary creditors. The client s case is passed on to a dedicated team, who support them until they become debt free. 6 9 of clients describe our service as life transforming or a great help. 6 6. Christians Against Poverty client survey 2014. 7. A CAP Plan simplifies each client s finances. They simply make one weekly or monthly payment into their plan to cover all their bills and debts, which we then distribute on their behalf. This simplicity means that clients are able to stick to their budgets, and obstacles to physically paying their debts are removed. 6 7
God took my by the hand and led me into being a Debt Coach. Now He s teaching me and my church about what poverty really looks like in our city, and CAP has given us amazing and practical tools that we can use to do something about it. We get to share the Good News about Jesus with people that we would never have met outside of our partnership with CAP! Opening a Debt Centre has been a rich experience for me and for my church. As a church, we are given the opportunity to step into people s homes and lives and hear their story, as they have journeyed through both emotional and financial issues. Through God s grace and guidance, we can offer hope through the brokenness and present a way forward through the work of CAP. Helen, Debt Coach, Meadowlands Fellowship Ancaster, ON Lisa, Debt Coach, Cornerstone Church Saskatoon, SK Being a debt coach has been a tremendous blessing. I am invited into the lives and homes of some wonderful people who have real struggles. What a privilege to be able to provide hope to them, God s love from the local church and a real plan to move forward into a better life. Natalie, Debt Coach, Trinity Streetsville Anglican Mississaga, ON 8 9
200+ clients helped* $1.7 million in debt managed* What CAP provides When you partner with us to open a CAP Debt Centre, we will provide your church with: All the professional debt counselling, specialist teams and systems at our head office. All training and materials needed for running your debt centre, including publicity and service delivery literature, and regular tailored press releases. A dedicated member of the CAP team who support your Debt Coach and act as a point of contact for you as the church leader. Comprehensive resources for evangelism and discipleship. Access to our central emergency aid fund to provide food hampers or emergency purchases for your clients. Access to CAP s secure IT, email and intranet systems, including Hope, our custom debt counselling system. A CAP Speaker to launch the CAP Debt Centre at a service in your church. What your church needs to do We choose to partner with local churches to deliver our debt help because we believe that the Church is the hope of the world. It holds the only message that can change lives and communities now and for eternity. In order to run a CAP Debt Centre, you will need: To have your church leader attend a CAP Church Open Day A CAP Debt Coach who can work a minimum of 16 hours per week. Access to a laptop, the internet and a cell phone. A team of volunteers who are willing to support the Debt Coach and befriend CAP clients. To host a CAP Speaker to give a talk at a Sunday service, which will include a financial ask. Please note that having your own church building isn t essential, because CAP Debt Help is delivered through home visits. You need: One CAP Debt Coach. Prayer and support team. Access to a laptop, cell phone and the internet. * As of Dec. 31, 2015 10 11
66 people become Christians every month through our debt help service worldwide You can also choose to have the following: Additional Debt Coaches so that your Debt Centre can see more clients on a monthly basis. A Community Links Coordinator who will be trained by CAP to take care of publicity through the press and referral agencies, helping to ensure a steady stream of clients for your Debt Centre. Launch talk $ How much does it cost? Opening a new CAP Debt Centre costs CAP around $31,500 per year, but we are happy to invest in local churches that want to help the poor and save the lost in their communities. We do ask that churches share in this cost each year and make a monthly donation towards at least a third of CAP s costs a minimum of $875 per month. However, we don t want finances to be the factor that stops a church from partnering with us. If money is the only thing stopping you, please talk to us before you make any final decisions. Hosting a launch talk is vital to the success of the CAP Debt Centre in your church. A CAP Speaker will visit your church to inspire your congregation about the CAP Debt Centre, and motivate people to engage and get involved. 8 The launch talk will also inspire your congregation about the wider work of CAP, giving them an opportunity to pray and offer financial support. 8. If a CAP Speaker has already visited your church, a different talk will be delivered at a CAP Debt Centre launch service. 12 13
Recruiting your team In-depth financial knowledge is not essential for a Debt Coach or Debt Coach because CAP s central teams take care of that. This means your team can focus on sharing Jesus love and allowing people to respond. CAP will interview all candidates and have final approval on their suitability because they will be representing CAP to communicate debt advice. We will always have the best interests of all parties at heart during this process. Your church can then employ your debt centre staff or they can be volunteers. Their commitment would be to work at least 16 hours per week as a Debt Coach. Debt Coaches will need to: Have a heart for poverty issues and a desire to get involved on the frontline to help tackle the problem. Be comfortable and confident working with a wide variety of people. Be able to show previous evidence of evangelistic work, be comfortable sharing their own faith, and able to lead and pioneer a new ministry in your community. A Community Links Coordinator will need to: Be a great communicator or effective sales person. Be confident communicating on the phone and face-to-face to the press and referral agencies (e.g. doctor s offices and social services). I felt so at peace with my Debt Coach, Diane. She made me feel better really uplifted. I felt like a different person! CAP Debt Help client 14 15
Life Changers Working with another church 71% of our regular income in 2015 came from our Life Changers. 9 At your launch service, the visiting CAP Speaker will inspire your congregation about all that God is doing through CAP. They will also ask people to join us to achieve our goal of having a CAP Debt Centre in every town and city across Canada by supporting the charity with a monthly gift through our Life Changer programme. As an evangelistic charity, we rely on Life Changers their support means we don t have to compromise our beliefs to obtain funding. We are very open to partnering with a group of churches in order to open a debt centre in your community. Please contact the team to discuss this if it s relevant to you. One s not enough! There are communities all over the GTA where we already have a CAP Debt Centre. However, that doesn t mean the debt and poverty problems in that area are taken care of. In many places, particularly major cities like Toronto, we need several debt centres to meet the demand. If you re already aware of a church in your location that has opened a CAP Debt Centre, please still get in touch with us. I can honestly say CAP has transformed us as a church. We ve helped hundreds of people out of debt and we ve seen people come to church and become followers of Christ who would not have come otherwise. Simon Benham, Senior Pastor, Kerith Community Church, Bracknell 9. Christians Against Poverty accounts 2014. 16 17
A Life Transformed Colleen s Story Colleen CAP Debt Help client After my divorce in 1996, I found myself alone and living on a fraction of my income. This led to over a decade of living hand-to-mouth and getting more and more into debt. My situation eventually got so bad that I tried to take my own life because of the stress that debt was causing. When I reached out to CAP for help, my Debt Coach, Linda, told me that God wanted to walk alongside me and that I didn t have to to struggle alone anymore. She explained that Jesus wanted to be in my heart. I had never heard that before, and it sounded pretty good! What to do next Attend a Church Open Day The first step to opening a CAP Debt Centre is for your church leader to attend a Church Open Day at our head office in Hamilton, or at one of our regional events around the GTA. This will be an inspiring day and allow you to experience the culture of CAP first hand. You can ask all the questions you need to fully understand how a partnership between CAP and your church works. Your church and community are unique. By discussing your particular situation, we will find the right way forward together. Church Open Days are free and happen regularly throughout the year find dates and locations, and book online at capcanada.org/openday Other ways to partner with CAP If you re not sure which CAP service is right for your church, just give our Church Partnership team a call at 289-684-9181. CAP Job Clubs Order an information pack at capcanada.org/jobclubs CAP Release Groups Order an information pack at capcanada.org/releasegroups CAP Money Course I decided that day to never be alone again and invited Jesus into my heart! Order an information pack at capcanada.org/capmoney Want to book a CAP Speaker for your church now? Call our CAP Speaker team at 289-684-9191 18 19
debt help capcanada.org/debthelp facebook.com/capincanada @CAPinCanada t: 289-684-9181 e: churchpartnership@capcanada.org Registered Office: 383 Hughson Street North, Hamilton, Ontario, L8L 4N2 Corporate Name: Christians Against Poverty Canada Corporation Number: 822846-9; Business Number: 841397532 Charitable Number: 84139 7532 RR0001 Copyright 2015 Christians Against Poverty Canada. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced for any purpose without first obtaining written permission from Christians Against Poverty Canada.