A future king, a yellow cable, and why we need your stories

Why your perspectives matter

By Mags Storey  |  Senior Editor

Photo by Ed Yourdon

Perspective is a wonderful thing.

Recently I was standing in a corridor when His Royal Highness, Prince Charles, walked past.

I bowed slightly and said, "Your Majesty."

He smiled, and joked that he was rather afraid of a certain yellow cable.

Believe me, I'll be telling my grandchildren that story. It will resurface at dinner parties for years to come. When he is crowned King of England—or is passed over for his son—when he next visits Canada, and when he dies, I will be sure to turn whoever is standing next to me, and ask if I ever told them about the time His Royal Highness spoke to me.

But of course, if I leave out the broader context, the whole story is rather nonsensical.

Where exactly was that corridor? (The Yonge Street Mission in Toronto). Why was he there? (The Prince's "Seeing is Believing" Tour). And most importantly—what was going on with this cable? (I'll never tell…)

At last count, there were more than 10 million news articles online about the Prince's recent visit to Canada.

A few thousand—less than 0.002 per cent—even mentioned that he'd stopped in at a place called "Yonge Street Mission."

But only one news outlet sat down with some of the people he'd spoken to, and found out how the Prince's support was enabling them to make a Christ-inspired, life-changing difference in the lives of young people: ChristianWeek.

As a media outlet ChristianWeek is tiny. Miniscule even.

We are a charity—reliant on donations from our readers and partners. Many of our staff members are not fulltime. Our faithful freelancers usually receive between $50 and $75 for the stories they pen for us—not to mention all those who write for free.

Yet, through our pages voices are heard which might otherwise be overlooked and ignored. In a world so saturated with "information," ChristianWeek is the only independent, national, Christian, trans-denominational news outlet in Canada.

Our readers are a special bunch—Christ-centred, informed, other-focused, dedicated to changing lives, for good and for God, in our nation.

We need your help to stay alive—and to help tell those stories which might otherwise never be told.

Starting next issue, we're launching a special feature series looking at how ChristianWeek readers and writers are making an impact. We'll be talking to readers, partners, and people we've interviewed about how being heard through our publication is making a difference. We'll also be highlighting how donations from our partners make these stories possible, and why the voices in our pages should not be silenced.

For this, we need your stories. How has ChristianWeek impacted your life? Have you ever read a story that caused you to take action? Seen something from one of our partners that made you pick up the phone? Have you ever laughed, cried, prayed, given, changed, or been challenged because of one of our articles?

If so, please be in touch. (Contact details are at the end of this article.) Your story may end up in our pages as, over the next few months, we look at the difference perspective can make. We also appreciate your donations toward our ongoing work—every $50 brings a new story to our pages that might not otherwise be heard.

Thank you again for reading. Without you, there would be no ChristianWeek.

(And by the way, the yellow cable almost tripped me. Now you know.)

To make a donation to ChristianWeek, visit us online at www.christianweek.org, call 1-800-263-6695, or send a letter to: Box 725, Winnipeg, MB, R3C 2K3. You can also e-mail us at editor@christianweek.org.

Respond to Article  |  E-mail Article  |  Print Article