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Stories written by Shelley Callahan

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Ready for Takeoff

Children Incorporated staff visit affiliated projects in Africa

It’s a long way from Kentucky to Ethiopia – 7,432 miles to be exact; twice as far as the Bolivia-to-Kentucky trip we just made. One would think the differences in the three locales are profound, but other than the climates, they are strikingly similar. Children play in the roads near dilapidated homes and other signs of obvious poverty. But they laugh and sing, clad in pants and t-shirts and sneakers, pretending to be sports stars […]

Sending Relief After Flash Floods

Our Hope In Action Fund helps families in Dunlow, West Virginia after severe flooding

Wayne County lies nestled amid the vast natural beauty of the Allegheny Mountains, which still conceal deposits of the coal that once made this a rich and populous area of the Mountaineer State. Automation of mines and the ecological stigmas attached to coal as a fuel source have seriously damaged Wayne County’s economy. With coal mining almost shut down, all businesses that once depended on mining – and the buying power of the miners — […]

From Kentucky to Kenya

The universal truth of children

“I don’t know who gave us these bikes, but tell her I love her!” The boy’s words keep echoing in my mind as we make the eight-hour trek from Kentucky back to Richmond, Va. Over the course of the last several weeks, we’ve met with so many children I’ve nearly lost count, but their faces and words stand out in my memory. Kentucky and Bolivia are worlds apart, but there are many similarities between the […]

Two Wheels and the Wind in Your Hair

Cyclist donates bikes to Kentucky children

Nothing is close in eastern Kentucky. Schools are an hour apart, and each one can easily be an hour away from the children who go there. Walmart – the only place to buy a bike in the entire region – is an even longer drive. In a rented pickup truck, we trekked out to Walmart on a mission: to pick out and purchase bikes for underprivileged elementary and middle school children. The bikes would be […]

Skills Training for the Future

At the Juan Apostol School in Guatemala, young people learn skills that will help them to obtain employment once they graduate

Located just southeast of Mexico, Guatemala is the most populous country in Central America. Its spectacular mountains boast a wealth of natural resources and stunning biodiversity. For centuries, this land served as the core territory of the renowned Mayan civilization. Following two centuries of Spanish colonization, Guatemala gained its independence in the early nineteenth century — only to endure another 150 years of political instability and civil unrest. Additionally, this area is prone to devastating […]

Virginia Woman Sends Help and Gifts to Young Kentucky Friend

Sponsors have special bonds with their sponsored children

We arrived in Jackson, Kentucky on Wednesday and caught up with some of the kids at LBJ Elementary School. The children here seem like typical kids. Some are shy, some are rambunctious, but each has faced incredible hardship in their short lives. Jackson is one of the poorest cities in the state. Several have lost one or both parents to the rampant drug epidemic in the region and live with a single parent, grandparents or […]