Tag Archives: child poverty

Shelley Callahan | En Español

Renowned for its wealth of culture, arts and beautiful European-style architecture, Buenos Aires draws thousands of tourists each year.

However, there is a hidden side of the city that few tourists experience. Extremely high inflation, rising unemployment and an increasing poverty rate leave many parents struggling to feed their children.  As a result, impoverished families are forced to live in Buenos Aires’s slum neighborhoods, packed together in wooden shacks with tin roofs, separated by narrow footpaths with few resources and little hope for a way out.

Impoverished families are forced to live in Buenos Aires’s slum neighborhoods, packed together in wooden shacks with tin roofs, separated by narrow footpaths with few resources and little hope for a way out.

Located in the Florencio Varela slum neighborhood, our affiliated project Casa del Niño – Padre Jose Kentenich Daycare Center provides for the physical and social needs of impoverished children throughout the day. Serving as a daycare center and afterschool program for children while their parents are at work, Casa del Niño offers tutoring and recreational activities as well as a secure place for kids to escape from the poor conditions and uncertainty that are typically associated with urban slums.

Serving many children in need

According to Luis Bourdet, our Director of International Programs, Casa del Niño alternates their hours of operation with the local public school’s schedule.

“For those students that have school in the morning, they come to the Center in the afternoon, and vice versa.  About 300 children attend this Center daily,” explained Luis.

The Center receives funding from the local government. The children most in need are enrolled in our sponsorship program to ensure they are provided with additional food, clothing and educational support — as well as the emotional and psychological support in knowing their sponsors care about them and their well-being.

Casa del Niño offers children an education and access to basic needs thanks to their sponsors.

On a recent visit to Casa del Niño, Luis, along with Children Incorporated International Projects Specialist, Kristen Walthall, found that the Florencio Varela neighborhood had received much-needed improvements in infrastructure since his last trip to Argentina nearly four years earlier.

“Roads have been improved, as well as housing. Families lives have been steadily improving too,” said Luis.

Besides the changes Luis could see outside of the home, he also found that Casa del Niño has made quite a few improvements under a new administration, which included an entirely new board of directors. Luis and Kristen toured the facility’s fully equipped kitchen, which serves children nutritious meals twice a day. A new arts program had been added as well as a sewing group for parents. The Center also began hosting parent meetings in the evenings and established a sports program for the children in the afternoons.

A dedicated and loving staff

Luis was impressed.

“The children are well cared for at the home, and their parents’ needs are being met as well — the sense of camaraderie and support can really be felt here. This Center has a bright future,” he said.

Kristen felt similarly to Luis during their visit to the Center — her first to Casa del Niño.

Casa del Niño offers tutoring and recreational activities as well as a secure place for kids to escape from the poor conditions and uncertainty that are typically associated with urban slums.

“The Center has both paid and volunteer staff members who are some of the most dedicated and passionate people I have ever met,” said Kristen.

“One board member volunteers to work with the children on a daily basis, as does her sister, who regularly teaches music to students, opening their hearts and minds with her guitar playing and hearty singing voice.”

“During our tour, we also had the chance to meet a loving and committed cook who attended the center herself as a little girl,” explained Kristen.

“When she grew up and started a family, her daughter started attending Casa del Niño. She then began volunteering as a cook and was eventually hired to run the kitchen full-time. More than twenty years later, now her granddaughter is in attendance, and benefits from the culinary talents of her grandmother and the nurturing ambiance of the Center.”

Meeting Ale

The administration of Casa del Niño works hard to ensure all of the students’ needs are being met.

Before their visit ended, Luis and Kristen had a chance to meet a staff member at Casa del Niño named Ale. According to Kristen, Ale, who is a former attorney, is a vivacious young woman who has taken on a critical role in the Center’s growth.

After becoming involved with the Center’s recreational activities, Ale found that there was a divide among the kids that prevented them from getting along with one another during their allotted sports recess times. Since soccer was the only game the children played, some of the kids were much better at the sport than others — and fellow participants criticized those that weren’t very skilled.

Ale came up with a plan that would help to level the playing field among the children. She introduced baseball into the afterschool curriculum, giving kids a chance to try something new so the focus wasn’t solely on their soccer abilities.

When Luis and Kristen visited the Center, they witnessed the newest sport being introduced: field hockey. Ale explained to them that thanks to a generous donation, she was able to obtain field hockey sticks and balls and give the children another sport to learn together for the first time. 

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How do I sponsor a child in Argentina?

You can sponsor a child in Argentina in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child who is available for sponsorship in Argentina.

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan |

Joseph*, like many of our sponsored children, is being raised by his grandmother.

Joseph and his siblings live in Arizona and were abandoned by their mother after their father died. Suddenly, Joseph’s paternal grandmother found herself raising children again with no income and no means to support them.

She can scarcely provide food and shelter for her grandkids, and she has virtually no money to keep them clothed properly. Thankfully, Joseph has a caring sponsor who provides him with the items he needs as he rapidly grows into a young man.

Joseph and his new shoes

Recently, our volunteer coordinator at Joseph’s school called him into her office to present him with brand new shoes, along with other items he needed.

Joseph is young and plays hard, and his old shoes were badly worn. Joseph was ecstatic, and proudly stood for a photo of him with his new shoes.

Thank you for all that you do to make sure children’s basic needs are met each and every day! We are incredibly grateful for your support.

*Name changed to protect the child.

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Sponsoring a child in Arizona

You can sponsor a child in Arizona in one of two ways – call our office and speak with one of our sponsorship specialists at 1-800-538-5381, or email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org.

A sponsor’s friendship and encouragement is priceless to a child in such circumstances.

The sponsorship relationship enables a sponsor to help support a needy child through monthly contributions, and through the exchange of correspondence with a sponsored child, if the sponsor so desires. A sponsor’s friendship and encouragement is priceless to a child in such circumstances. Indeed, many children value the relationships they establish with their sponsors as much as they value the financial support they receive from them. There is an opportunity to build a relationship between sponsor and child that can be quite profound.

Our current monthly sponsorship rate is $35, and it goes toward providing basic necessities such as school supplies and fees, food, clothing, and access to healthcare, among other services.

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | En Español

In the town of Santa Tecla, located six miles west of El Salvador’s capital, San Salvador, our affiliated project, the Marillac School, is providing children with the opportunity to receive an education — and a quality one at that.

Communities and schools around the world face barriers in providing children with a quality education.

Founded in 1940 by the Sisters of the Order of St. Vincent de Paul, the school serves as not only an escape from the harsh realities local students face growing up in poverty but an escape from poor public education or no education at all.

Considered a semi-private institution, the administrators of the Marillac School — with sponsorship support from the Children Incorporated program — work hard to ensure that kids are receiving basic needs and the best education that they can provide. This gives our sponsored and unsponsored children the opportunity to succeed.

What constitutes poor education?

Children at the Marillac School during recreation time

Communities and schools around the world face barriers to providing children with a quality education. Lack of adequate funding to educational institutions can lead to overcrowded classrooms with little or no resources for students. Untrained teachers, lack of proper food and improper classroom facilities can also significantly affect children’s ability to learn.

The consequences of an inadequate education

What are the consequences of inadequate education? Poor education can lead to illiteracy. It also inhibits children from qualifying for higher education or being prepared to join the workforce later in life. Children who aren’t properly educated tend to be less healthy than those who do and are susceptible to turning towards crime and remaining in poverty in adulthood.

A better chance at a future

For impoverished children around the world, like those at the Marallic School, the benefits of quality education are tremendous.

Higher quality of education is associated with positive outcomes such as better health and well-being and a greater interest in politics and social issues. Students who attend quality schools gain a competitive advantage at getting jobs upon graduation, which can lead to a higher income and the chance for a family to break the cycle of poverty. Quality education also can discourage crime because when educated, children feel a sense of hope and opportunity for a brighter future for themselves and their loved ones.

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How do I sponsor a child in El Salvador?

You can sponsor a child in El Salvador in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child in El Salvador that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD

 

Shelley Callahan | En Español

Abundant in rivers, lakes and fertile, tropical farmland, El Salvador’s natural beauty traverses a vast central plateau bordered by Pacific coastal plains to the south and rugged mountains to the north. For centuries, several Mesoamerican nations called this land home, including the Lenca, Olmec, Maya and Pipil/Cutcatlec.

“Santa Luisa is blooming. They have added new classrooms for the children. There were new labs for skills training programs, and a small kitchen was built as well,” said Luis.

However, this small and densely populated Central American nation is particularly susceptible to natural disasters such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, and has been plagued by chronic political and economic instability for more than a century.

High unemployment rates, rising inflation, organized crime and a soaring birthrate leave many Salvadorans living in abject poverty. The border town of Sonsonate — where our affiliated project Escuela Santa Luisa is located — is one of many places affected by these afflictions.

A school to be proud of

Nearly a century ago, Sisters of the Daughters of Charity established Escuela Santa Luisa to provide a safe haven and sound education for the orphaned, abandoned and impoverished children of Sonsonate. The school continues its mission today helping children in need — including the more than 60 children our sponsors support at the project.

A sponsored child at Escuela Santa Luisa

On a recent visit to El Salvador, our Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, visited with our volunteer coordinator Sister Marta at the school. Sister Marta took Luis on a tour of the grounds to show him the renovations that had taken place at Escuela Santa Luisa that made her very proud.

“Santa Luisa is blooming. They have added new classrooms for the children. There were new labs for skills training programs, and a small kitchen was built as well,” said Luis.

While on their tour, Sister Marta took the opportunity to mention to Luis some additional improvements she would like to see happen — ones that the school did not currently have funding of their own to complete.

Our Hope in Action Fund to the Rescue

“The school’s biggest need now is to install a roof in the playground of the school, which they want to use to protect the children from rain and excessive sun. It will mean that the playground can be used all year long and that it can double as a place for students, parents and school administrators to hold meetings,” explained Luis.

Luis felt strongly that anything that could be done to improve the school would also help the children be more prepared, focused and active in their learning — all things that can lead to academic success. He made up his mind before their meeting was over that he would propose using donations to our Hope in Action Fund to help Escuela Santa Luisa continue with their important improvements.

A new roof for a special school

Not long ago, Luis received pictures of the new roof build at Escuela Santa Luisa. Luis commented by saying, “The cover is truly large, and will benefit the children during rainy days and very hot sunny days. The school can now also host large assembly activities with parents and students. I am glad Children Incorporated could provide this support for the benefit of so many children at the school.”

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How do I sponsor a child in El Salvador?

You can sponsor a child in El Salvador in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child in El Salvador that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | En Español

Nestled in northern Central America, Honduras was once home to several Mesoamerican peoples — most notably, the Maya. This ecologically diverse land — with its rainforests, cloud forests, savannas, mountain ranges and a barrier reef system off the northern coast — teems with life.  Its wealth of natural resources is equally impressive, including a variety of minable minerals as well as agricultural exports such as coffee, tropical fruit, sugar cane and lumber.

In Honduras, schools are often overcrowded which causes children’s’ education to suffer.

Moreover, Honduras’ growing textile industry serves an international market. The nation’s wealth of natural beauty and resources, however, belies the dire poverty in which its people live — Honduras holds the unfortunate distinction of being one of the poorest nations in Latin America.

This is due, in part, to its longstanding political instability, social strife and economic issues such as fluctuating export prices, rising inflation and unemployment. Other factors contributing to the nation’s high poverty rate include frequent natural disasters, disease and inadequate education, resulting in a high rate of illiteracy.

The town of Sigueatepeuque

In the quaint, rural town of Siguatepeque — where our affiliated project the Siguatepeque Primary School is located — unskilled workers like the parents of our sponsored children receive a wage of only a few dollars a day. The poorest residents subsist on a daily diet of beans and corn, which only propagates the widespread malnutrition among children.

In 1970, a local church group recognized the dire need for education among the town’s most impoverished children and established the Siguatepeque Primary School. Today, the school is run by the Lutheran Church and — along with our sponsorship program — provides for children’s most basic, immediate needs while offering a comfortable place in which to receive an education without concerns about overcrowded classrooms.

The issue of overcrowding

Children need and deserve room to grow and learn within their school setting, but parents who can’t afford school fees or tuition have no choice about what school their children attend.

Overcrowded classrooms are a problem in many public schools across the world. Overcrowding negatively affects students and teachers.

Teachers’ morale is low when their classrooms are overcrowded. They find their work environment to be stressful and have a hard time focusing on appropriate lesson planning and teaching techniques. Also, crowded rooms often mean that students can’t concentrate because of their proximity to classmates, meaning they miss valuable lessons because they are distracted by chatter.

Often, cramped classrooms lead to a drop in grades for students because they don’t receive one-on-one attention from instructors or have access to proper school supplies, textbooks or technologies that help with learning.

Sponsorship to the rescue

Children need and deserve room to grow and learn within their school setting, but parents who can’t afford school fees or tuition have no choice about what school their children attend.

Thanks to Children Incorporated sponsors, families do have a choice. Instead of sending their children to overcrowded public schools in Siguatepeque, they can send them to the Siguatepeque school where teachers can give special attention to students who already face plenty of challenges getting ahead in life.

With a lower attendance, a quality education can be guaranteed for some of the most underprivileged children in Honduras, giving them the opportunity they deserve to succeed.

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How do I sponsor a child in Honduras?

You can sponsor a child in Honduras in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child in Honduras that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD

 

Shelley Callahan | En Español

Honduras’s industrial center and second-largest city, San Pedro Sula, has a reputation for being dangerous. Deemed the “murder capital of the world” for almost a decade until 2016, crime and economic distress have led to the mass migration of Honduran minors seeking safety from gangs and drug-related violence.

But for those children who have no choice but to stay behind and face the harsh realities of their environment, places such as our affiliated project the Maria Reyna Home offer a safe place in which to grow up — and receive a quality education.

A home for neglected girls

Founded in 1942 as a girls’ orphanage, the Maria Reyna Home cares for orphaned, abandoned or neglected girls. Located in one of the most impoverished and most crime-ridden neighborhoods in San Pedro Sula, the Home offers a refuge from slum housing, hunger, disease, crime and pollution that are all-too-tragic realities in the city.

For those children who have no choice but to stay behind and face the harsh realities of their environment, places such the Maria Reyna Home offer a safe place in which to grow up — and receive a quality education.

“At the Maria Reyna Home, children from some of the darkest districts of San Pedro Sula are accepted. They have suffered neglect, malnourishment and even abuse before they come to live at the Home,” explained our Director of International Programs Luis Bourdet.

While living at the Home and attending classes on the grounds, the Sisters of Mercy of the order of St. Vincent take care of the children every day. They provide a clean and adequate living space, nourishment, protection and most importantly — an education. And according to Luis, the girls do very well academically at Maria Reyna.

“The change of living conditions is so great that most students excel in school here, while they had a hard time before,” said Luis.

“The Sisters provide the children with training in embroidering and baking so that they have a skill once they graduate from high school. Because of this, many children upon graduation want to continue with their education.”

A new initiative

During his visit, the Sisters and Luis discussed a recent initiative to raise funds for additional dorms rooms for students who want to continue their education after graduating from high school.

“I agreed with the Sisters completely that this was a vital need for the school, and Children Incorporated has agreed to support the home so they can remodel and accommodate those students who have the desire to attend local universities or technical schools,” said Luis.

“After the renovations are complete, some of the children will be able to stay, during a transitional period. That way they can be supported while finding sound employment so that they don’t return to the harsh conditions they come from.”

Additionally, the Maria Reyna Home administration plans to request scholarships from the local government and local universities for those students that are exceptional in academics.

In conjunction with the Home’s efforts, Luis also wants to support these young women through our Higher Education Program Fund so all who wish to can continue to pursue their academic dreams.

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How do I sponsor a child in Honduras?

You can sponsor a child in Honduras in one of three ways: call our office at 1-800-538-5381 and speak with one of our staff members; email us at sponsorship@children-inc.org; or go online to our sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child in Honduras that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD