The main article in the Spring 2017 issue of Being Alongside is a detailed portrait of our Croydon offshoot, which is still there providing stability and spiritual sustenance 30 years after it was established in the heady early days of the Association for the Pastoral Care of the Mentally Ill, as we were originally known. Operating a completely open-door policy, Croydon APCMH offers an impressively wide range of services and activities at three locations around the borough, thanks to a dedicated team of volunteers and staff. We hear about what it takes to keep it all going from project co-ordinator Millie Reid and vice chair Revd Canon Andrew Wilson, who has been there from the start.
Also featured in the Spring issue are Sean Kennedy’s reflections on living with a dual diagnosis of addiction and mental health issues; and further excerpts from the retreat diary of our chairman Jamie Summers, in which we find him challenged by Jean Vanier’s ability to forgive.
And when you’ve finished reading this issue, you can have a virtual leaf through several years’ worth of back issues on our magazine page. More to come when we get around to scanning them!