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 […]
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
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 […]
Bolivia: Visions of hope from 30,000 feet
Reflections on time spent visiting our affiliated projects
After more than a week in the mountains of Bolivia, I’m headed home — back to Richmond, Virginia, and my life of comparative ease and comfort. As the ground falls away beneath the plane, I’m staring out the window, trying to compose coherent thoughts, but they are lost amid a thousand mental images of the people and scenes I’ve experienced in the last few days. Our tour guide: An architect rises from poverty Roberto Andrade’s […]
These Kids’ Futures Just Got a Little Brighter
The Montero School in Bolivia has updated classrooms
Roberto Andrade and his wife, Verónica, are waiting for us when we step off the plane in hot, humid Santa Cruz. Roberto is an artist and an architect now, but he was once a little boy with enormous potential and struggling parents who worried about his future. They saw the talent and creativity in their son and knew that a quality education would help him develop into a happy, healthy adult. “Because the happiest people […]
Touchdown in La Paz
Sights and scenes from Bolivia's City in the Sky
Our Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, and I flew into La Paz just before sunrise, after an overnight trip from Richmond. I was woozy from fatigue or the elevation — 13,000 feet above sea level — and grateful when a young woman woke up at 4 am to check us into our hotel. A City in the Mountains I woke up as the sun rose, and got my first view of an amazing vertical […]
Children Incorporated Invites Readers to Join Them “On the Road”
A new blog series to highlight stories from affiliated sites around the world
Today, Children Incorporated announced the launch of its inaugural blogging series: On the Road. Starting this week, the international child sponsorship organization will take readers on a real-time, virtual journey to actual sites as far as Bolivia and Kenya and close to home as Kentucky. “We have an extensive volunteer network of trusted educators and child care professionals who are native to the communities they serve. They know the children well and see them often.” – Ron […]