Heinrich and Irene’s CMF story
Something very precious about CMF is the experience of being one big family and the support that we provide to each other.
We want to share with you the story of Heinrich, a member of our CMF family, and his journey of grace and resilience. Heinrich worked in end-of-life care for many years until a traumatic brain injury left him certified blind. During his recovery, he and his wife Irene were inspired to become hospital chaplains to support patients, families, and staff. Their work has been humbling and rewarding, and they have found a supportive family in CMF.
Their story has inspired many of us and serves as a testament to the resilience and compassion that define our CMF family. Heinrich and Irene are originally from the USA. They heard about us from a student nurse and subsequently attended CMF conferences (along with Heinrich’s lovely guide dog, Lincoln), finding a sense of belonging and making many new friends in the CMF family.
Heinrich says:
‘We decided to attend the next CMF National Conference. We became CMF members because we were impressed with the faith, sincerity and commitment of so many working in a challenging secular setting while living out their faith. Since then, we have gone every year and made so many new friends.’
In addition to conferences, CMF offers support through the Pastoral Care and Wellbeing service, which provides members with encouragement, prayer, and guidance from trained CMF members who understand the unique challenges of healthcare work.
Steve Sturman, who heads this up, says:
‘While, of course, we encourage members to speak with their pastors when they need support, in my experience, the only people who can really understand the pressures we are under as healthcare workers are others who work in the same profession. This confidential service is a lifeline.’
Your support is crucial to enabling CMF to continue providing essential member services. Donations help fund pastoral care, training and resources, conferences, and local roups. For instance, giving just £100 would cover the cost of inducting and training a pastoral care volunteer, ensuring that our members receive the support they need. £500 could help to subsidise five students’ attendance at the 2025 Student Conference, which, for many members, is their introduction to lifelong membership of the CMF family.
Your contribution, however big or small, will make a real difference to our whole CMF family. Your support is not just a donation, it’s a lifeline for our members and the services we provide.
At a time when charities like CMF are particularly under financial pressure, we urgently need your help to raise the £65,000 budgeted against our Christmas appeal, as we close our 75th anniversary year. Your timely support is crucial to our continued operations. We had fantastic support for our spring appeal, exceeding our expectations. We are deeply grateful for your past prayers and contributions.
Over half of our income comes from donations over and above membership subscriptions. Whatever you can give will be a genuine blessing to our CMF family. Our Board will be setting the budget for 2025 on 7 December. We need to know that we can count on your backing to continue offering vital support to members who need it most, spreading our net wider to reach more who are not yet part of the CMF family. Please would you help us?
Despite very limited vision, Heinrich is still an avid photographer and has provided our 2024 Christmas card image below. As a token of appreciation, we would love to send you a pack of these cards when you support our Christmas appeal. Email communications@cmf.org.uk if you would like us to send you the small pack.
Please continue to pray for the CMF family and consider giving what you can to support us in continuing to provide these valuable resources to our members.
