Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Back to School

Here in the USA, kids have started the school year.  Around the world, some kids are not so lucky, as education isn't free in all countries.  Education is something we often take for granted, but children in developing countries long to be able to go to school and learn.

Here are some amazing statistics:
  • Worldwide, nearly 80 percent of primary-school-age children attend school. In least developed countries, this figure is around 66 percent.
  • The largest out-of-school population is in sub-Saharan Africa, where around 45.5 million children of primary school age are out of school.
  • Of the 67 million primary-school-age children who do not attend school, 53 percent are girls.
  • Worldwide, only 49 percent of children of secondary school age actually attend secondary school.
  • Of the 49 percent of secondary age students who do not attend school, 52 percent are girls.
  • The world’s functional illiterates include more than 130 million children who do not attend school, 73 million of them girls.
Sources: www.crin.org, www.unicef.org, www.childinfo.org













If you feel like making a donation to a great cause, click the link below to make a donation to the Compassion International textbook fund.  Thanks!


Click here to donate to the textbook fund.

Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Serving Those In Need

Today we received a new blog prompt to write about the following topic.  "How did you start serving those in need and what works best?"

This is such a broad topic that I'd like to throw a few random ideas out there of ways to serve those in need in small ways, as well as our main way of helping those in need:   Sponsoring kids with Compassion International!

Some random ways we help those in need are by giving money to our church, to other local/national charities, helping donate food to a food drive, donate items to women's shelters, etc.  We went on a mission trip to Costa Rica a few years ago with church and helped out at an orphanage for a week.  We try to help our neighbors, friends/family, etc. when we can and just be helpful people (since those in need might not always be in poverty....they might just be someone without the same skills as you).  What works best is doing what you financially and physically are able to do at the time.  No one can be expected to give millions or work full time volunteering (although it would be awesome if we had those capabilities!) so any good deed is appreciated by the recipient.  Even kind words of encouragement can go a long way to brighten someone's day (which is free).

Our main way of helping those in need is by sponsoring children with Compassion International.  Over the past 3.5 years, being sponsors has been so rewarding for us.  By sponsoring, we see the good it does in their lives to have a sponsor who cares for them, writes to them, and helps them with their basic needs (through the Compassion project they belong to).  We've also had the opportunity to visit 5 of our 14 kids so far and those are life changing experiences and memories.  Being able to see their homes, the poverty they live in, meet their families and see the joy they have in their lives (despite their poverty), etc. was amazing.  Even being a correspondence sponsor has been a really rewarding thing to bring encouragement and support into the children's lives through the letters we write, stickers we send, and birthday gift money we send too.  

I strongly encourage you to sponsor a child today.  It is $38 a month (for us, its eating out one or two less times a month) and you are helping one child help break the cycle of poverty through sponsorship and encouraging words in the letters you write them (and they write back wonderful letters too!).  Click on the links on this blog to sponsor a child today.  Thanks for reading.

Monday, June 22, 2015

Happy Fathers Day!

I know I'm a day late, but its never too late to celebrate our fathers!  I want to thank my own dad for being such a wonderful guy.  He has always been there for me, he's a silly and fun guy, and a great role model.  My father-in-law is also an awesome dad.

Our heavenly father is also a great dad.  He blesses & loves us each and every day even when we probably don't deserve it.  I want to thank God for always being there for me too :)

I know this is a short post, but sometimes life gets crazy so back to work for me.

Happy belated fathers day everyone.

Tuesday, June 9, 2015

Anyone want to sponsor Lebron James?

Last week I went to a meeting with other advocates to learn some new ways to tell people about Compassion and the different programs (Bite Back, Water of Life, etc.).  It was a fun meeting but we also got to look through some child packets to take to advocate for.

I was immediately drawn towards little Lebron James.


Isn't he a cutie!  He's from the Philippines, which holds a special place in my heart (since our two correspondence kids are such great writers from the Philippines and we were able to visit them last November and see where they live).

When we were in the Philippines we saw just how much they LOVE basketball so I thought it was cute that this little guys parents may have named him after a basketball player from the USA that they like.

His birthday is the day before Christmas (December 24, 2011).  He's 3.5 years old now.  He lives with both his parents and there are two kids in the family.  He likes art.

If you, or someone you know would like to sponsor little Lebron James (any basketball fans out there?), just let me know.  I have this packet for the next month.  Thanks!


Thursday, May 7, 2015

Happy Mother's Day!

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all mothers out there for the work they do every day!  I've had one of the best mom's ever growing up and I am lucky that she is still healthy and a big part of my life.  She has shaped me into the woman I am today with strong morals, good budget/saving skills, a kind heart, etc. (not to brag).  Without her good example, I wouldn't be who I am today. 

I was blessed with other positive female role models too such as coaches, grandmothers, aunts, family friends, etc.

While I am not an actual mother myself yet, I do consider myself a "mom" to my 14 Compassion sponsored and correspondence kids.  While in the Philippines, 14 (almost 15) year old Zymvra asked if he could call us mom and dad which was a special moment.  Now every few sentences he calls us mom and dad in the letters he writes to us.  Some of the other kids call us parents too and a few call us auntie & uncle.  I care about each of them as I would my own child. 

I'd like to thank all mothers out there and encourage you to sponsor a child today in honor of your mother :)  Or even just write to your sponsored children and tell them to give a special message of thanks to their mothers. 

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Older Kids Needing Sponsors

On Monday I mentioned how I had found several kids from the projects where our Compassion kids are located that still need sponsors.  I had posted about "Alone" from India, and today it looks like he was sponsored!  I am so happy for him to get a sponsor (and glad I won't be tempted to sponsor him myself now).

Since he's off my list now, I figured I'd post a few more kids still in need of sponsors.  Today I figured I'd concentrate on the older kids since they hold a special place in my heart.  These kids (young adults really) are 18 years or older so they have less than 4 years left in the program (some are older yet, so they have even less time).  If you want to sponsor someone for only a couple years, these kids would be perfect since the time frame is shorter than sponsoring a 4 year old.  Older kids are awesome too because they can write their own letters, write longer letters, and you can be a great friend/mentor to them for the last few years of the program.

So without further ado, I present the young adults.....


Tanzania:

Rose

 

Rose's birthday is November 28, 1995 (so she's 19 years old...will be 20 in November).  She only has 2 years and 9 months left in the program so it would be awesome if she had a stable sponsor for the remainder of her time in the program to give her advice and encouragement.  She's only in middle school currently so your support would mean so much to her and could help her finish off school hopefully!  We've received report cards for some of our Tanzania kids so you might even get to see how she's doing in school too!  She's in the same project that our oldest (Selemani) was from (he left the program when he moved out of the area a little before he turned 21). 
 
Click here to learn more about Rose or to sponsor her.

India:

Chandralega


Chandralega is from India and her birthday is November 13, 1996 (so she's 18 currently...will be 19 in November).  She's from the same project that our Priyanga is from (our girl is 15 now).  Our girl from this project writes to us in English so it makes it easy to send her things in English as well.  She did write to us once in her other language (but also translated her own letter) so it was pretty seeing the other language too.  Chandralega lives with her parents and there are 4 kids in the family.  I'm assuming that she's probably getting close to graduating HS but would then go on to skills training or even college hopefully depending on the situation.  She likes singing and art.



Rwanda:

We have an 18 year old girl from the same project as the next 3 kids.  She writes nice letters when she's able to (since she's at boarding school for her high school....so these kids might be as well, in which case they would write when they go to the project during breaks and such).  Our girl Diane might even know some of these kids since they are all similar aged (which is why I'm trying not to sponsor them myself since my letters would be the same and I'd hate for them to compare...lol).

Furaha



This young lady- Furaha has a birthday on July 26, 1996 (so she's 18 currently but 19 in July).  She lives with both parents and there are 3 kids in the family.  She's in High School currently. 

Click here to learn more about Furaha or to sponsor her.


Jean Paul



This young man has been waiting 211 days for a sponsor!  Jean Paul's birthday is October 16, 1996 (so he's 18 years old now, 19 in October).  He lives with his parents and there are 7 kids in the family so I'm sure he and his family could really use the support of a loving sponsor.  He likes volleyball, soccer, and he's in High School.  Consider sponsoring Jean Paul to end his long wait!

Click here to learn more about Jean Paul or to sponsor him.

Ruvuta


Ruvuta has been waiting for 230 days for a sponsor.  His birthday is May 25, 1996 (so he's 18, but soon to be 19).  He lives with his parents and there are 5 kids in his family.  He likes soccer, basketball, marbles, and singing in the choir.  He's in High School as well.  Help end his wait for a sponsor!

Click here to learn more about Ruvuta or to sponsor him.



Please let me know if you end up sponsoring any of these kids since I'd love to find out how they do.  Thanks again for praying for these kids and feel free to pass on their information if you have a friend that might be interested in sponsoring them as well.  Thanks!

Monday, March 2, 2015

Help "Alone" not be alone anymore!

Today I did the dangerous task of looking to see if kids were needing sponsors from the centers we already have kids in (since its hard not to click the sponsor button!). 

I noticed that of the 14 centers where we have kids, there were 12 kids total available on the US website still needing sponsors.  Some are older (6 are over 18...so only a few years of sponsorship left) but some are younger.  Some were waiting for awhile.  It is all so tempting, but I am trying to be good and not click the button.

They all stuck out to me for various reasons, but today I want to advocate for the little boy named "Alone".


 Alone


This name is very fitting for him as he is an orphan.  He lives with his grandparents.  He lives in East India (the same project as our boy Ignatius).  He just turned 10 in February (his birthday is Feb. 4, 2005).  Workers in his village earn an average of $22 a month (although since he lives with his grandparents, they might make even less if they don't have stable jobs). 

Our boy from this project writes pretty regularly and draws us great pictures.  I know that within the last few months I saw a Compassion project alert that there was a fire in this project destroying a few of the kids homes (I'm hoping it wasn't this boys or my boys....but either way, I'm sure the community and these kids could all use some extra love!).

Would you consider sponsoring 10 year old Alone today to help him not be alone?  Could you be his mentor, friend, and sponsor?  Help put a smile on his face today by clicking on the link below.  If you do sponsor him, please leave me a message since I'd love to know how he does when you get future letters.


Click here to learn more about Alone or to sponsor him.

Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Sponsor Group Trip vs. Individual Trip

In 2014 we were blessed enough to do 2 international trips....a sponsor group trip to Peru to visit our 3 Compassion kids there in May, and an individual trip to the Philippines to visit our 2 Compassion kids there in November.

We still have more Compassion kids to visit someday but I wanted to get to see several of them now while we still had the chance (both financially, and before we get too busy if we have kids of our own someday).

People have asked if we preferred the group trip or the individual trip more and the answer is......both!  They each had their pros and cons so I think it really depends on the person, how many kids they sponsor in that area, how familiar they are at arranging travel plans, language barriers, finances, etc.  Both trips were so special and life changing that we really wouldn't trade them for the world.  We are so blessed to have had the opportunity to meet our kids.....it just makes us love them even more!
 
A reminder of where we went:
In May we went to Peru to visit Said (sponsored), Flor (sponsored), and Yessica (correspondence child) on a group trip.
In November we went to the Philippines to visit Zymvra and Precious (both are our correspondence kids) on an individual trip....so we did the visits and then had a vacation of our own with snorkeling, swimming with whale sharks, etc.

Below I will go over a few of the pros and cons of each based on our personal experiences.  Of course these might be in different categories for you, or not an issue so this is just my perspective to give you a few things to think about. (Obviously it is a win-win situation either way....so the con's aren't really that bad, but just things to think about when deciding.)

 Visiting with Child Survival Program participants in Peru.

Sponsor Group Trip: (with a Compassion leader, they arrange everything, go to several Compassion projects, and then have one (maybe 2) fun day to meet your sponsored child...where the child comes to your location)

 Pros:
* Nothing to plan (other than your plane ticket from your location to the group meeting spot....Miami in our case).  Then sit back and relax (and shop like crazy for gifts for your kids).

* You get the knowledge and expertise of the Compassion staff who have arranged every detail, the schedule, the projects you are going to, the travel arrangements for your Compassion kids, etc.

* You get to socialize with other sponsors who love Compassion just as much as you!

* You learn about all the Compassion programs first-hand by visiting several Compassion projects, home visits of kids in those projects to see living conditions, Child Survival Program, meet LDP kids, etc.  It is amazing at the wonderful work going on around the world with this great organization.

* TRANSLATORS!  Every step of the way, we had translators and I can't tell you how important this is when you want to be able to understand what is going on and to be able to connect with your child.  On our fun days, each sponsor has a translator so that you can have that one-on-one time with your child to get to know them more.

* Able to take gifts for other sponsors for their sponsored kids (drop them off at the country office, or give to local Compassion staff to take it there for you).


Cons:
* Having the kids share a "fun day".  In most countries, there is only one "fun day" to meet your sponsored/correspondence kids.....so if you have several kids, they are sharing your attention.  Thankfully in Peru we had 2 "fun days" since we were in different parts of the country during the week (so kids went to whichever location was closer for them).  This helped us by having 1 kid the first day, and 2 kids the second day.  Having more than 2 at once might get too overwhelming trying to learn about each of them and to make them each feel special.  Thankfully since both my husband and I went, on the day with 2 kids he was Said's buddy and I was Flor's buddy for rides and such, which did work out well.

* Not visiting the actual homes, Compassion project, etc. of your own sponsored child (unless you are lucky enough to have a child in one of the 3 projects you visit that week).  This obviously wouldn't be possible for everyone, but it is something to keep in mind if that is your goal...since an individual trip would work better for you then.

* Having to stick with the group at all times, and the group schedule.  Sometimes we allowed way too much time to get the group together (and sometimes people were still late from their rooms).  If we were by ourselves we would have just left and been on with our day much sooner.  Sometimes we did more shopping or filler activities than we would have done ourselves, but its hard to please the whole group regardless :)

* Expensive:  This trip cost over $6000 for my husband and I to go on (plus domestic flights...since you meet the group in Florida before continuing on to Peru....thankfully I have plenty of frequent flier miles so that portion was free for us).  Some countries you visit cost even more....plus I was lucky enough to use my advocate discount towards my portion (not my husbands) so that helped a little.  I like planning trips so I know I could have found cheaper deals on our own hotels (but then we wouldn't be on the group bus, same hotel, following the itinerary, etc. so it would be totally different too).
           *Disclaimer:  Part of the fee you do pay for a group trip does cover the travel costs of the kids to come to see you on the fun day.  In Peru, this worked easier than an individual trip for us since our kids are in the very north, middle, and very south parts of Peru so it would have been a lot of traveling for us to have to go to each of their locations (although now that we've been there, we might try it the next time).  This also allowed the kids and one of their parents an opportunity to travel, stay in a hotel before meeting us, etc. (if they lived farther away.....2 of our 3 had to do this).  This was a fun opportunity that we are glad we were able to give them.  Getting them there does cost money, which is why it is worked into the cost of the trip....regardless of if you are visiting 1 kid or 10.

This is us meeting Said on one of the group fun days.

Individual Trip:  You plan the details, let Compassion know the day you will be in the child's town and they help arrange that day (and give you the costs so that you bring enough cash to pay for it all), etc.

Pros:
* You can visit more of the country..... at your own pace..... doing your own interests (snorkeling, hiking, relaxing, etc.)

* Costs less (in some cases it might be close....totally depends where you are going).  Since you are booking your flights from your home location, you might get better direct flights or plane schedules at least compared to needing to meet up with the group in a set location (or use your frequent flier miles and such).  You are able to book hotels you choose (some people like fancy, others do not since its only a bed), and restaurants you want.  This saves a lot in some cases!  Our trip to the Philippines only cost about $1600 for the two of us (food, hotels, inter-island plane tickets, taxi's, tours, snorkeling, etc.), including what we spent on the two days we met the kids.  International airfare would be extra but I used frequent flier miles so it was free.  This made our trip so cheap that it was a no brainer to go!  The exchange rate and costs of hotels and such is so cheap in the Philippines so in this case, an individual trip did make more sense.

* You can go when it works the best for you.  The Peru group trip wasn't ideal (since it was over payday....and that is one of my job duties so I had lots of planning to do in order to be gone).  For the individual trip we were able to go over a holiday (Thanksgiving) when it worked the best for being gone from work (less vacation days).  Group trips are set dates, where individual trips are totally up to you!

* You are able to see your sponsored child's Compassion project, meet their local project workers (those there that day), visit their home (which is awesome to see how they live), do a fun activity together and take them out for a nice meal, take them shopping to buy them what they need, etc.  You pay for the actual cost incurred for the day so in some cases this might be a few hundred, but other times not as much.
                *In the Philippines, we paid for our private driver to drive us the 1.5 hours to Zymvra's town, wait for us all day, and then drive us back to our hotel at night (about $60 or so).  Then we paid for the vehicle in his town that took us around all day (along with his family) which was another $60, then lunch (probably like $40 or so), entrance fee to the pool at a hotel ($20 or so), shopping (probably close to $95 since we couldn't tell him no when he picked out some more expensive shorts/shirts and hair gel...lol).  Then the second day when we met Precious we flew to her island (only about $100 round trip for 2 of us), then paid for groceries ($60), playing at an indoor playground ($20), lunch ($30), swimming at a hotel ($25 or so), and a driver for all of us for the day ($60 or so).  We also paid Compassion $25 for making all the arrangements and plans for these two days (very good deal!).  Usually you just meet your child and one of their parents, but in our case we requested to have the whole families come along (which they can do....you just have more people to pay for in terms of food, fun activities, etc.).  It was totally worth it to us though to be able to meet them all and make them all feel special.  Some of these costs would go up or down depending on the country, activities you do, how many in the family (if you include them all or not), how much you say you are willing to spend at the market for things they need, etc.

Cons:
* You have to visit the kids Monday through Friday....so make sure to plan your vacation around which days you can be in your child's town.  This isn't a huge deal, but something to keep in mind.  Since it is during a school day, your child will skip school (for a good reason though!).  This means that when you go to their project, no other kids will probably be around if its during the day.....again, not a huge deal unless you really wanted to interact with more of them.  It does make it nice doing activities though, since the hotel pools and such will be pretty empty in the middle of the day! (so this is both a pro and a con).

* You are responsible to arrange your trip and to make your arrangements to get to your child's town.  If you are not a savvy travel planner, this might be difficult (especially if they are in a remote location).  I think you are able to have the child come to you in some cases, but then you are paying for their travel costs instead of your own (which might also limit the time spent with them), and you wouldn't see where they actually live.

* You are limited to up to 3 visit days within a particular country (only one day with each kid though).  If you have more than 3 kids in a country, you would need a few of them to share a day together meeting you (at least this is what I was told at one point....since I have 4 in Rwanda, plus the girl my mom sponsors so I wanted to meet 5).  This is still way better than a group trip when you only have 1 and in some cases 2 days total to meet all your kids.....but still something to keep in mind. (I originally mentioned 4 days, but I have since edited this to 3 days total after being reminded by others....I had mixed this up by mistake (sorry)).

This is me with little Precious in the Philippines on an individual visit.

Whether it is a group trip or an individual trip, your sponsored kid will feel so special that you came around the world to see them!  They are all smiles, and usually can't sleep the night before from excitement (us too!).  It builds your relationship and you are able to ask (and get answered) all the questions you feel like asking but don't always want to put in a letter.

I'm sure I'll think of more later, but this is a great start of things for you to consider.  If you have any questions at all, please leave me a message and I'll try to help out :)

Consider sponsoring a child today.....or visiting the ones you do sponsor!  They will cherish it always.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Advocacy Kids


I've been good lately and haven't checked out the kids awaiting sponsors (since otherwise I want to sponsor them all myself and I know I can't do that!).

I have a real heart for the older kids.  They are sometimes without a sponsor for various reasons, but I know they are harder to find sponsors for because people gravitate towards the young/cute ones.  These older kids are just as special and really need someone to write to them and encourage them the last few years in the program.

Sponsoring an older child is also great if you know your life circumstances will change in a few years and you don't want to commit for too many years (but you could handle a couple).  You would make such an impact in their lives (and of course they impact you right back!).

A few different older kids jumped out to me today for various reasons so I want to advocate for them.  If you feel like you would like to sponsor any of these kids, just click the link I provide and it should take you to the Compassion website to sign up.  Thanks!



Gatie from Kenya

She just turned 20 a few weeks ago so she only has 2 years left in the program.
Since my name is Katie, her name stuck out to me (different, but similar).  There are 5 kids in her family and she is above average in school.  You could be a great friend to her and encourage her to follow her dreams.  She's so pretty!



Click here to sponsor Gatie



Selemani from Tanzania

His birthday is tomorrow (Jan. 29th) and he will be 20.  He jumped out to me since we used to be correspondence sponsors to a Selemani in Tanzania too so it was kindof fun finding another one on the site.  Our guy left the program at about 21 years old (to find a job in another community) so hopefully this Selemani can finish the program.  It says he is in vocational training right now so he's probably already finished high school.



Click here to sponsor Selemani


Sintayehu from Ethiopia

He is 20 (will be 21 in November).  He is only in middle school at this time so your help would be great to help him continue on in school.  He lives with his mother, who is at home so I'm sure they could really use the help!  He was the oldest child available for sponsorship on the Compassion site at this time so I was hoping to advocate for him to help finish his time off with a great sponsor!



Click here to sponsor Sintayehu


There are over 1000 kids over the age of 14 still needing sponsors.  If you would like to sponsor one of these older kids, I would love to help get you signed up, give you pointers, or just share in the joy of sponsorship.  These older teens write great letters and some even draw great pictures for you (our Yessica is an amazing artist and she's almost 15).  We sponsor/write to kids from age 3 to age 18 so we have some of all ages. 

Let me know if you have any questions at all.


Or to sponsor a different child, click here: