Tag Archives: education

Shelley Callahan | En Español

Spanning over 2,000 miles of South America’s western coastline with deserts in the north, rainforests in the south, and the snowcapped peaks of the Andes Mountains ranging throughout, Chile is truly a nation of contrasts. Although politically progressive when it comes to human rights, Chile suffers from excessive inflation and an ever-increasing unemployment rate. Due to these economic realities, millions of Chileans are desperately poor.

Chile suffers from excessive inflation and an ever-increasing unemployment rate. Due to these economic realities, millions of Chileans are desperately poor.

Facts about Chile

  • The capital of Chile is Santiago
  • The currency is the Chilean Peso
  • The population is 18 million
  • The official language is Spanish
  • Chile is the world’s longest country
  • There are approximately 90 active volcanoes in Chile
  • Easter Island officially belongs to the country of Chile


Facts about poverty in Chile

  • Although Chile has a relatively low poverty rate of 14%, the problem lies in high rates of income inequality.
  • There are approximately 75,000 Chilean children who do not attend school.
  • Healthcare inequalities among the poor are a big issue in Chile meaning poor families often get low-quality services or none at all.
  • Due to high rates of domestic violence in Santiago, many children flee their homes to live on the streets, where they struggle to find adequate food and water.

Where we work in Chile

In Chile, we are affiliated with three sites: The Handicapped Children’s Center, the Maipu Center and the Santiago Day School, all of which are located in Santiago.

Read more about our affiliated sites in Chile

Impacted for a Lifetime 

New Teachers with Fresh Ideas in Chile

Easing the Burden on Families in Santiago


How you can help children in Chile

You can help a child living in poverty in Chile in a few different ways. One way is through our child sponsorship program. Sponsorship provides an underprivileged child with basic and education-related necessities such as food, clothing, healthcare, school supplies and school tuition payments.

This vital support allows impoverished, vulnerable children to develop to their full potential — physically, emotionally and socially. Sponsors positively impact the lives of the children they sponsor through the knowledge that someone cares about their wellbeing. This gives children in need hope, which is powerful.

Our policy has always been to consider the needs of each sponsored child on an individual basis. We work closely with our volunteer coordinators at our project sites in Chile, who are familiar with the individual circumstances and needs of every child in their care. Sponsorship donations are sent to our sites — orphanages, homes, community centers and schools — at the beginning of each month in the form of subsidy stipends. Our on-site volunteer coordinators use those funds to purchase items for children in our program, to ensure that they have what they need to do their very best and succeed in school.

We work closely with our volunteer coordinators at our project sites in Chile, who are familiar with each individual circumstance and the needs of every child in their care.

You can also help children in Chile by donating to one of our special funds. Our special funds offer a variety of giving options for sponsors who wish to further their support, as well as for donors who wish to make a difference without making a commitment. In the past, thanks to donations to our Hope In Action Fund and our International Feeding Program, we have been able to further support our projects in Chile beyond sponsorship.

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How do I sponsor a child in Chile?

You can sponsor a child in Chile 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 Chile that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD

Education, Stories of Hope, Chile

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written by Shelley Callahan

Shelley is the Director of Development for Children Incorporated. She is also the lead social correspondent, regularly contributing insights through the Stories of Hope blog series. Sign up for Stories of Hope to receive weekly email updates about how your donations are changing the lives of children in need.

» more of Shelley's stories
Ron Carter | En Español

I recently had the privilege of visiting several schools in West Virginia where Children Incorporated offers our child sponsorship program. It had been several years since my last visit to these schools; while I had clear memories from my previous trips, I wasn’t sure what I would find this go-around. Reflecting on the fact that everything in our world changes rapidly, I expected to find that these West Virginia schools were different from how they were when I last visited them. What I discovered, however, is that I was wrong to anticipate significant changes, for visiting these schools was, in many ways, like stepping back in time.

Sponsoring a child changes their life.

Mr. Carter with our Volunteer Coordinator Lara at Genoa Elementary School

The first two schools I visited, Genoa Elementary School and Dunlow Elementary School, both in Wayne County, West Virginia, are very small institutions; one has a total enrollment of approximately 75 students, and the other, just around ninety. The school buildings are old and showing signs of wear after many years of use; and both sit in extremely rural areas, void of businesses and commerce.

As I drove to these schools from Huntington, West Virginia, a city of 50,000 people less than an hour away, I couldn’t help but feel a drastic shift from city to country — from have to have not. The roads began to curve; some became much narrower and less maintained. Businesses and houses became fewer and farther apart. Then, while seemingly in the middle of nowhere, I arrived at the first school I was scheduled to visit: Genoa Elementary School.

Hearing from our sponsored children

While the staff at the school was extremely welcoming to me — and they clearly take their responsibility of caring for students quite seriously — the heaviness of poverty just hung in the air. It was palpable; I could feel it. As I interacted with several students enrolled in the Children Incorporated sponsorship program, I was moved by their obvious need.

As I spoke with one little girl, she told me that her sponsor writes her letters and encourages her to study hard and always do her homework. She said that she always looks forward to the letters she receives from this woman, for they remind her that someone cares about her and wants her to succeed in life. A little boy at the same school showed me some of his artwork, and he told me that his sponsor sent money for the supplies he used to create his little masterpieces. He was very thankful for the gift.

For more than half a decade, we have been touching lives and offering hope and opportunity in areas where necessities are often in short supply. That, friends, is why our organization exists; and you, through your generous support of our work, make it all possible.

Our wonderful volunteer coordinator at the school shared that a number of children would go without shoes, warm clothing, and food if it weren’t for assistance provided by their sponsors through our organization. She voiced her appreciation, as did the school principal, for all the years that Children Incorporated has helped the poorest among their student body to fit in and experience a sense of normalcy while at school, by providing them with clothing similar to those worn by less financially-stressed youngsters. She talked of the significance of ensuring that these children, too, have pencils and paper, and adequate school supplies, as well as food on the weekends, when they do not receive the free hot meals provided on weekdays in the school cafeteria.

A sense of hope

At the second school I visited, Dunlow Elementary — even further away from a major city, and perhaps even more remote – I found a very similar situation: a small, dedicated, caring staff working very hard to ensure that the children they serve are being well-provided-for and are offered a safe place in which to learn and grow. Children who live in extreme poverty, as most of the youngsters enrolled in our programs do, look forward to attending school, because while there, they not only have access to heat, clean water, and nutritious food — things often missing in their home lives – but they also experience a sense of hope and possibility for their futures. They see beyond what is to what could be, and they dare to dream.

It saddens me that the assistance offered by Children Incorporated is still so vitally important in the lives of these youngsters; yet I am also grateful that we can be there to extend a helping hand and offer support that is truly life-changing. That is what Children Incorporated is about: improving the lives of children and their families as they face financial hardships and trials of all kinds. For more than half a decade, we have been touching lives and offering hope and opportunity in areas where necessities are often in short supply. That, friends, is why our organization exists; and you, through your generous support of our work, make it all possible.

Thank you very much!

From the heart,

Ronald H. Carter

President and Chief Executive Officer

About Wayne County, West Virginia

Wayne County is 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, businesses that once depended upon mining and the buying power of miners have closed. Unemployment continues to rise, and industry development remains at a crawl.

Like many small towns in this rural part of West Virginia, Genoa is remote, located far from any sizeable town or city. A few strip mines still produce coal, and there are some sawmills that cut lumber. Overall, however, Genoa’s economy is struggling, with high unemployment and a lack of industry development. Many residents in this region live well below the poverty line.

For these reasons, Genoa Elementary School and Dunlow Elementary School serve as beacons of hope and safe havens, as they are among the few places where children from impoverished families can count on support, encouragement, and a warm nutritious meal each day. The caring teachers at these schools strive to improve each child’s self-esteem and well-being through a well-rounded education — the key to breaking the cycle of poverty.

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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN WEST VIRGINIA?

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

SPONSOR A CHILD

Ron Carter | En Español

A few years back, my younger daughter, who was in grade school and believed wholeheartedly in Santa Claus at the time, asked me a couple of questions that I have since replayed in my mind time and time again. She had heard me talk about the fact that many children go without presents at Christmas, and she knew that Children Incorporated works with various organizations, companies, and individuals to provide gifts to many such youngsters at this special time of year. She did not understand why Santa, who is supposed to care about all children equally, would overlook some, leaving them with no presents at all. So she asked me, “Why doesn’t Santa Claus also give those children toys? Why does he pass them by?”

So she asked me, “Why doesn’t Santa Claus also give those children toys? Why does he pass them by?”

No gifts for children living in poverty

Thanks to you, children all over the world are receiving Christmas gifts this holiday season.

As many parents through the ages have struggled with questions about Santa Claus, I, too, wrestled with responding in a way that would make sense, yet would not rob my child of her innocence and brief belief in the man in the red hat. I quickly came up with something along the lines of Santa not paying for the toys he delivers; but rather, parents send him money for gifts that he either makes or picks up, and he delivers them on Christmas Eve. Then I explained to my child that some parents cannot afford to send Santa money; thus, their children go without gifts. My daughter seemed to accept this explanation fairly well, and we moved on to the next topic.

Now, years later, my child is in high school – her belief in Santa long forgotten. She and I still struggle, however, with the concept of poverty, and the fact that many youngsters have little to celebrate at Christmastime – or throughout the year, for that matter. Basics such as food and clothing are often in short supply in their lives; thus, presents wrapped in pretty holiday paper, adorned with bright sparkly bows, are merely something about which they can only dream. As their parents struggle to provide shelter, pay rent and utilities, and ensure that their sons and daughters get to and from school – where parents hope their children will receive an education that will lead them to a better life – the brilliance of the Christmas season is greatly dimmed.

Because of kind donations, many children around the world are feeling the Christmas spirit during this magical time of year – a warmth they would not be feeling otherwise.

A season of new beginnings

Christmas is a magical time for many. Advent, the period leading up to it, is a season of new beginnings; fresh starts and hopes and possibilities – the very things those who struggle are often missing in their lives, and so desperately need. During this special time of year, I want to thank our sponsors and supporters for all that they have contributed to the work of Children Incorporated by sponsoring children, making donations to our Hope In Action Fund, and helping us to provide not only food and clothing – but also sometimes a toy or book or ball – to children who might otherwise go without. Because of kind donations, many children around the world are feeling the Christmas spirit during this magical time of year – a warmth they would not be feeling otherwise. Thanks to you, so many youngsters are having a very merry Christmas and a happy holiday. We can’t thank you enough for changing the lives of these children in need.

From the heart,

Ronald H. Carter
President and Chief Executive Officer

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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD WITH CHILDREN INCORPORATED?

You can sponsor a child with Children Incorporated 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 that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | En Español

As we reach the end of the year 2018, we want to take time to reflect on what we have been able to accomplish, thanks to our amazing sponsors and donors, over the past year. Because of our supporters around the globe, not only have we provided basic needs for thousands of children at nearly 300 affiliated projects through our sponsorship program, but we have also funded dozens of special programs that expand our reach to even more children, their families, and entire communities. The following are some of our successes that you have made possible – and we are extremely proud to have this opportunity to share them with you.

We are so grateful for each and every person who helped make 2018 such a successful year! We look forward to another great year helping children in need in 2019!

Our accomplishments

– We provided regular aid to thousands of children in eight U.S. states and Washington, D.C. As the heart of our organization, our sponsorship program provided for the basic, health, and educational needs of vulnerable youth, as well as the opportunity for our caring sponsors to correspond with their sponsored children.

– We provided hand tools, seeds, plants, soil conditioners, and other materials to a school in Martin County, Kentucky. Our volunteer coordinator there was selected as a “Healthy School Hero” by Kentucky’s Action for Healthy Kids for having spearheaded the establishment and expansion of a school greenhouse and garden. The students there enjoyed outdoor lessons, continued working and learning over the summer, and took the harvest home to their families.

– We facilitated the attendance of interested children enrolled in our program in Alleghany County, North Carolina at the Junior Appalachian Musicians after-school program. The young students took lessons in traditional Appalachian instruments, like the banjo and dulcimer; as well as in an area of cultural enrichment, like clogging, stories, and singing.

In 2018, we supported children in India with one meal a day during school days.

– We enrolled 25 new children at the Rainbow Center in Ethiopia, 25 at Fortune’s Children at Parang in the Philippines, thirty at the Pinagpala Children’s Center in the Philippines, 25 at the Dandora Community Center in Kenya, and we supported 200 children at St. John’s Community Center in Kenya.

– We provided materials and supplies for a reading pergola and native canyon grape vines at a school in the Navajo Nation in Arizona. The vines were trained up the pergola to provide shade, and students will make jam from the grapes. The kids love the pergola, and our volunteer coordinator at the school has already seen increased reading activity because of it, which means improved literacy.

– We provided additional warm clothing for children attending a special education school in Arizona and at a charter school in New Orleans.

– We supported Backpack Feeding Programs for weekends and holidays for children in Kentucky and Washington, D.C.

– We provided assistance that allowed nine high-achieving graduates who were in our sponsorship program in the United States to attend college.

– We supported children at five schools in India and the Philippines with one meal a day during the school days so that they could stay focused and alert, experience improved physical development, and perform better academically.

– We provided emergency relief for families after a volcanic eruption near Antigua, Guatemala, where our affiliated project Sagrada Familia is located.

We are so grateful for each and every person who helped make 2018 such a successful year. We look forward to another great year helping children in need in 2019!

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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD WITH CHILDREN INCORPORATED?

You can sponsor a child with Children Incorporated 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 donation portal, create an account, and search for a child that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | En Español

Kimper Elementary School, one of our many affiliated projects in Pike County, Kentucky, is proud of its reputation of academic excellence. With an attendance rate of 96 percent, this school has had a positive impact on the children and families of this struggling Appalachian community for decades. The school itself is very small, with an enrollment of about 175 students from kindergarten to the eighth grade. Our sponsorship program is making a difference there, as we help to ensure that the children receive the clothes, shoes, school supplies, and hygiene items they need on a regular basis.

So little time left for family

Kimper Elementary School students’ parents often work long hours away from home.

Recently, on her way to visit with our Volunteer Coordinator at Kimper Elementary School, Vivian, our U.S. Projects Specialist, Shelley Oxenham, drove by a fairly large Kellogg Company factory, where well-known breakfast cereals and other convenience foods such as Corn Flakes are produced; she also passed a McCoy Elkhorn Coal Operation mine. Shelley was surprised that both seemed to be in full operation, and she was pleased to see industry in such a remote part of the county, where there would usually just be closed factories and mines.

When she arrived at the school, Shelley asked Vivian about employment options in the area. Vivian told Shelley that the McCoy Elkhorn Coal Operation mine used to be one of the better companies to work for – offering great pay, good benefits, bonuses, and pensions. Today, however, the mine operates on only a very small skeleton crew.

The Kellogg Company factory, on the other hand, employs a large number of people in Pike County – many of whom are parents of our sponsored and unsponsored children. Their shifts are long, though; employees work twelve-hour shifts either from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., or overnight from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. This leaves staff with little time to be available for their kids. The long shifts are especially difficult for single parents.

The effects of working long hours

Thankfully, these children have the Family Resource and Youth Services Center (FRYSC), Vivian, and the support of their sponsors.

Even with better-paying jobs, parents who work long shifts still have plenty to worry about when it comes to providing for their kids. If they aren’t home in the evenings, they aren’t able to help their kids with homework, or prepare nutritious meals for them. Parents that work into late afternoon can’t take their kids to and from after-school activities, either; their kids may therefore miss out on sports and other school functions.

Kellogg Company employees may not have a chance to ensure that their kids are ready for school and properly dressed, with their book bags packed for the day. They may also miss important evening meetings at school. Thankfully, however, these children have the Family Resource and Youth Services Center (FRYSC), Vivian, and the support of their sponsors. Although their parents may not have as much time to dedicate to them as they would like, these kids are still being looked after and cared for each and every day.

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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN KENTUCKY?

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

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | En Español

At Children Incorporated, we know very well that we couldn’t help kids who are living in poverty to obtain an education without our amazing volunteer coordinators. Because of their hard work and dedication, we are able to provide basic needs to some of the most vulnerable children in the world.

This past June, one of our special volunteer coordinators, Leeann, at our affiliated project Millard Elementary School in Pike County, Kentucky, retired after 25 years of working at the school’s Family Resource Center. In a community where many children are in the foster care system because they have been removed from their homes due to their parents’ drug abuse problems, having a special person like Leeann who can offer consistent support for kids is incredibly important to their well-being and development.

CATCHING UP WITH LEEANN

We caught up with Leeann to ask her some questions about her more than two decades of work with Children Incorporated, and how our program has impacted the lives of children at her school.

CI: How long have you been working as a volunteer coordinator with Children Incorporated?

L: 25 years

CI: What special challenges do children at your school face?

Leeann with one of our sponsored children at Millard Elementary School in Pike County, Kentucky

L: The greatest need at the school is for school supplies and clothing for the students. I would say that more than forty percent of our students are in foster care, living with other family members, and/or are adopted at some time in their lives. Many of these students have low self-esteem and sometimes make bad decisions because they don’t have any guidance in their lives.

CI: How would you describe the community in which you live?

L: There are no jobs in this community. With the decline of coal mines, there are no jobs for the men.

CI: In what ways does the Children Incorporated program help the children enrolled?

L: It helps with the purchase of school supplies throughout the school year. Also, it helps to purchase new shoes and clothing when they are needed. Students visit the Family Resource and Youth Services Center (FRYSC) when they have a need.

CI: For you, what is the most important aspect of the Children Incorporated program?

L: The children enrolled in the Children Incorporated program are set up to succeed in school through the basic needs they are receiving. The sponsorship program also helps build their self-esteem and gives them the feeling that they are being treated with respect.

“The sponsorship program also helps build their self-esteem and gives them the feeling that they are being treated with respect.”

– Leeann

CI: Can you tell us a special story about a sponsored child and how sponsorship helped them in their life?

L: I have a girl that has been in the Children Incorporated program for five years. I will call the girl Alica. Alica has one brother and one sister. Her father worked in coal mines for twenty years – but now, he works at McDonald’s. They barely make it every month after paying rent and utilities. They do receive a small amount of food stamps. Alica had been wearing the same pair of sneakers for three years when I first met her; of course, her feet had sores on them, and she said it was hard to walk in the shoes. I asked her why she hadn’t told her parents about her feet, and she said that they were still pretty good shoes. She didn’t want to hurt her parents’ feelings or make them feel bad. The first thing I did after that conversation was go and get her two new pairs of shoes.

CI: What is most challenging for you as a volunteer coordinator for Children Incorporated?

L: Christmas shopping is the hardest because I wish there was enough money to provide for entire families.

CI: What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

L: I love to read, make wreaths, and watch TV movies from start to finish.

Leeann, thank you for your years of dedicated service to children in need in Eastern Kentucky. We hope you enjoy your much-deserved retirement!

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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN KENTUCKY?

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

SPONSOR A CHILD