When Ray and Vi Donovan were awoken in the early hours of the morning to the horrific news that their two sons had been attacked by a gang while returning home that night, they felt as though their world had ended.
The couple discovered that one of their sons, Christopher, was fighting for his life. He later died from the injuries he sustained in the brutal attack.
The Donovans would have been forgiven for holding onto the anger they felt at the perpetrators forever. Through the power of God, Ray and Vi found the strength and compassion to forgive their son’s killers, recounting the story in their book Restored and Forgiven: The Power of Restorative Justice which was published in 2018 by Bridge Logos.
Today Ray and Vi have been trailblazing with their Victim Awareness Programme and also their work with The Sycamore Tree Project which saw them receive MBEs in 2018.They now run a programme called ‘Books Inside’ which was inspired by a visit to a London prison where they were informed of the severe lack of funding for books. Energized, they took a handful of their books to a local prison where within minutes the inmates had taken them to read.
They now visit 30 to 40 prisons a year in the UK. The idea is simple, you buy a book, they then take it to a prison. And in doing so could change someone’s life.
For more information on how you can be involved visit www.chrisdonovantrust.org
Together Magazine
Together is the Christian resources magazine for the UK, with stories of what God is doing across the church today, book reviews and publishing industry news. Subscribe now at www.togethermagazine.org.