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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, JUNE 27, 1983
PAGE 2
With many communities in Canada now being hooked up to a cable television
system, we find we can effectively reach a lot of areas with fewer TV
stations. A good example is the province of Alberta, where cable TV allows
the telecast to be seen as far north as Grande Prairie--many hundreds of
miles from the originating station in Spokane, Washington.
Preliminary figures for expected attendance at the 1983 Feast of Taber
nacles are now in. Victoria, as we expected, is a very popular feast site-
over 1,200 people applied to transfer there. Unfortunately, we will not be
able to accommodate all of these requests. Only about 20% of the transfers
can be accepted.
It continues to look very positive for direct reception from the U.S.
satellite during the Feast. The government has given tentative verbal ap
proval. Written confirmation will be forthcoming after our final presen
tation.
Assistance to Third World Members
Do you know of brethren in your area who are intending
to, or are involved in, sending gifts and supplies to
members in Third World countries? Is your congregation
considering it? If so, please read this!
Many brethren read of the situations of members and
conditions in the Third World countries of Africa,
Asia, etc. and decide to help by sending gifts to
brethren they know or whose addresses they have. This
might seem to be a good thing to do, but such generos
ity can cause severe financial hardship to the intended
recipient, or cost the Work money.
Many countries levy customs clearance duties or other
taxes on items shipped in. The member receiving a gift
then feels obligated to pay an amount that often
severely strains his personal finances or is even
beyond his means. Obviously, then, the expense to ob
tain the goods and pay for the freight is wasted or the
Work must cover expenses not planned for by the member
and inadvisable with his small budget.
Before considering such projects, brethren should dis
cuss it with their minister. He, in turn, should con
tact Ministerial Services or the appropriate Regional
Office for advice. In this way, the generosity of the
members can be best utilized, the assistance truly
worthwhile and the money well spent.
This may be announced if you consider it applicable to
your area.