Joanne Briggs shares a very personal story of how one person’s gift felt like a ‘gift from God’.
“My role within TLMNI involves raising funds for those affected by leprosy so you may find it surprising that one recent donation moved me to tears. But let me explain the context. We were a few weeks into our first lockdown. All of our events, speaking engagements and carefully made plans for the year had been cancelled or postponed. I was trying to figure out how we could continue to finance the commitments that we had made to projects around the world.
“With the knowledge that people with leprosy were likely to be extremely hard hit, I was feeling under pressure not to pull back on our projects. There were such real needs on the ground but at the same time I knew that it would be many months before we could organise further events and with church giving down by nearly 50%, how could we give to those in need what we did not have?
“With a heavy heart, I started to revise my budgets. I then opened my mail and found a notification about a legacy donor. Someone, just like you and me, had decided to remember those with leprosy in their will. The tears welled in my eyes.
“This person many years ago had written The Leprosy Mission into their will. In the time following their death, their donation had passed through the legal process and the funds arrived at the most perfect moment. It certainly felt like divine intervention! God’s perfect timing in our hour of need!
"I am always humbled when people give what they can to help those less fortunate than themselves. Leaving a gift in your will gives you the chance to continue to change the lives of people affected by leprosy for generations to come. The gifts of those long since passed are helping to cure, heal and restore people with leprosy today."
