The history of RESPECT and Eternal Benefits is very much tied into the lives of Ian and Lynn Warelow.  They were transformed by the power of God in 1980 and felt a very definite call from God to reach their own kind.  This is the foundational word from God that has brought everything else into being.

The path Ian took was working alongside gangs on the street, schools, prisons and eventually in 1988 he landed on The Quadrant whilst working with Youth for Christ.  Ian met other church volunteers who had similar vision and together they walked the streets talking to the gangs of young people and began to run activities and trips for them.

In 1990 Ian left Hull YFC because he felt that God wanted him to reach not just young people but a whole community.  Many relationships had been formed by this time and he often found himself visiting the homes of those in prison and the local young people.   During some visits he saw the squalor that many people lived in; children sleeping on floorboards, no cooking or clothes washing facilities and damp, cold houses.  This is what led to Eternal Benefits:  going to church and simply asking for any furniture that still had life in it.  Amazingly, some Christians would throw away a 3 year old cooker because the timer had packed up.  It was easy to find homes for such answers to prayer. 

Ian would delivery these items in the back of his hatchback but eventually he sold his car to buy a light van.  Then the garage wasn't big enough for furniture so Ian and lynn sold their house and bought a shop premises on Inglemire Lane.  Then they added extensions to the property.  A large trailer was then needed to go on the back of the light van.  It mushroomed until a furniture manager was taken on in February 2000.  Because of the growth aspects and the starting of RESPECT, the Inglemire Lane property wasn't big enough, and in September 2001 Eternal Benefits Furniture moved to The Quadrant premises....

  First Eternal Benefits property

We had managed to find some good volunteers during this time and those that were Christians shared the vision to reach the community with the love of God.

Both Ian and Lynn began to get involved in the local primary school.  Lynn is a governor there and Ian takes assemblies, services and lessons.

Eternal Benefits Furniture went on to become a charity and increased to 2 shops, 2 vans and 10 full-time staff.

In January 2003 Ian was asked to manage the furniture project through some difficulties and this led to RESPECT and Eternal Benefits moving into the same premises as the furniture project on The Quadrant.  Now EBF and RESPECT are all under the same roof.  The building is huge and although it's very old it offers amazing possibilities for reaching the community.  A recent refurbishment of the first floor has opened up more opportunity for growth, especially with teenagers.

Because there are now 7 other organisations providing low cost furniture in the city EBF is moving more toward trying to relieve all kinds of poverty: Physical, mental and spiritual.