Tag Archives: help children

Shelley Callahan | December 2, 2017En Español

Bath County Middle School is located at the end of Main Street in Owingsville, Kentucky, where residents have experienced economic decline, unemployment, and poverty in an otherwise picturesque region of the United States. On a recent trip to Owingsville, our Director of U.S. Programs, Renée Kube, visited with our Volunteer Coordinator at the school, Kaye, to find out more about how Children Incorporated is helping kids enrolled in our program get what they need so that they don’t fall into a pattern that is all too common for students living in poverty:

Exterior shot of the school

“Our biggest problem is the students who drop out of school before graduation,” says Kaye. “Our goal at Bath County Middle School is to encourage students to graduate from high school and go on to some useful post-graduation training or higher education.”

Meet the Andrews

Bath County Middle School serves 471 children in grades six through eight. The Family Resource and Youth Services Center at the school provides the primary support for kids in need. While talking with Renée, Kaye said that she works hard to provide simple things to the children — usually items that we don’t think about going without, like toiletries, clothes, and shoes.

Kaye mentioned the Andrew* family, who Renée had met the day before while visiting with our volunteer coordinator at Bath County High School. Kaye described the Andrews, a family of six with two children living at home, as one of the neediest families that she works with. Although the parents are incredibly loving, they have a hard time finding steady employment due to their lack of education and skills. The father picks up odd jobs, but is unemployed more often than not. The mother is disabled; she has some health conditions that affect her greatly, and she is plagued by cataracts and extremely poor vision.

“Our goal at Bath County Middle School is to encourage students to graduate from high school and go on to some useful post-graduation training or higher education.”

Recently, when their landlord sold the small house they were renting, the Andrews became homeless. Thankfully, they were able to stay with another family temporarily; but the transition only caused this already impoverished family to struggle more than ever. Kaye was able to help them by providing them with soap and shampoo — things that the Andrews couldn’t afford – thanks, especially, to the Children Incorporated program. With two sponsored children enrolled in the program — a son at the high school and a daughter at the middle school — Kaye says it has been a blessing for the Andrews’ children to have sponsors to help them while their family tries hard to get back on their feet.

Kaye continued to praise our sponsors and what they do for the children at her school. She said it is an incredible feeling, at times when she is trying to figure out what to do to help a child who is really struggling, to receive an additional monetary gift for that child from a sponsor, or a package or caring letter or card from the sponsor. Kaye said that the sponsors’ interest in and devotion to these kids are transformational for them.

Overwhelmed by the need

Renée with the Andrew Family

When Kaye first started working at the resource center, then became our volunteer coordinator, she felt overwhelmed by how in need the students at Bath County Middle School are. Over time, she has established many methods and systems through which to care for them, one of which is stocking her supply closet full of the important small items that help kids out a lot. Donations of school supplies and food come from local churches and school staff members here and there, but Kaye relies mostly on the support of sponsors for purchasing clothes and shoes for kids.

Despite receiving help for the more than forty kids she now has enrolled in our program, Kaye says that her greatest need is more funding still for the purchase of hygiene items like sanitary napkins, deodorant, and laundry detergent. Kaye washes a lot of clothes for students in a washer at the resource center that was purchased years ago with Children Incorporated funds. The children bring their dirty clothes to her in the mornings, and she cleans them and returns them to their book bags before the school days are done, ensuring it is done discretely so as to not embarrass the kids she serves. The students also need more food to take home on the weekends, because oftentimes they don’t receive food outside of the free meals they receive at school.

It all adds up; these small things that don’t cost a lot really add up and become expensive when the need is so great. Renée told Kaye that she was impressed that she is able to accomplish so much for the children on the small budget she receives for the resource center. Kaye returned the compliment to Renée, telling her that without a doubt, Children Incorporated is her favorite program and her best resource to help kids get the little things they so desperately need.

*Name changed to protect the family.

***

HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN KENTUCKY?

You can sponsor a child in Kentucky in one of three 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 or click the link below:

SPONSOR A CHILD

Children Incorporated | December 1, 2017En Español

The past two fall seasons, Altar’d State’s Mission Monday program has upheld the clothier’s motto: “Fashion Focused. Cause Motivated.” – contributing more than $10,000 to our Warm Clothing Fund, and “standing out for good,” just as the company promises it does.

Every Monday, ten percent of each store’s net sales go to the nonprofit that it is promoting.

How the Mission Monday program works

Each Altar’d State location chooses a nonprofit local to it to be its beneficiary for several weeks to a couple of months, depending on the length of the brand’s current theme. Topics vary from self-esteem, to pets, to cancer awareness, to service men and women, to children, to hunger and homelessness. Every Monday, ten percent of each store’s net sales go to the nonprofit that it is promoting. Literature about the Mission Monday charity is posted at cash registers during its promotion, so Monday shoppers can learn even more about the new life their dollars will find beyond the shopping experience, as one-tenth of that money exchanging hands is going toward a philanthropic cause.

That should really make Altar’d State’s clients shine when they don their new bohemian flair!

Not only does the outfitter provide financial support to charities, but it also offers greatly-needed and too often overlooked manpower; its employees have contributed over 8,000 hours of their treasured time to carrying out community service tasks on a volunteer basis at the nonprofits they benefit.

“Giving back is more than just what we do… it’s who we are.”

And give Altar’d State does! In 2018 alone, the brand donated over $2.5 million to charitable causes through its “Give Back” brands, the sales of which have funded the construction of a number of high schools and community centers in Peru through a nonprofit organization called Coprodeli. The retailer also sponsors 200 children in high-risk areas of the country through the same charity, helping disadvantaged kids to receive nutritional, educational, and psychological support. Altar’d State employees may also choose to sponsor Coprodeli children individually, too.

While the business itself is fairly new – barely ten years old – it has done a whole lot of good in less than a decade.

Each and every day, one percent of Altar’d State’s total profits are directed toward Coprodeli causes. These contributions have also provided computers and books to students, as well as clothes, school supplies, and other necessities to sponsored kids. The “Give Back” incentive has supported relief efforts in times of disaster through the sale of globally-conscious T-shirts for causes, with proceeds being donated for the purchase of supplies in times of immediate need. In addition, members of the Altar’d State home office team have participated in a number of Habitat for Humanity construction projects.

From coffee to attire – but always giving back

While the business itself is fairly new – barely ten years old – it has done a whole lot of good in less than a decade. In November of 2009, the first Altar’d State, which was then both a retail store and coffee shop, opened in Knoxville, Tennessee. The original and lasting mission of its duo of founders, Aaron Walters and Brian Mason, is upheld to this very day: to utilize the retail industry to change the world for the better.

Little by little, the Altar’d State brand personality bloomed into the artful flower that is now poised in the garden of the fashion industry. Today, the company oversees more than 100 boutique stores in thirty U.S. states – each and every location contributing year-round to the efforts of local nonprofits.

Children Incorporated’s local store and great advocate for children is located at Short Pump Town Center in Glen Allen, Virginia. Many kids in Appalachia, our Inner City Division, our Native American Division, and in Altar’d State – Short Pump’s and our own backyard in Richmond, Virginia are staying warm and healthy this winter season because of Altar’d State’s Mission Monday program and the store’s chic, socially-conscious shoppers.

***

HOW DO I DONATE TO THE WARM CLOTHING FUND?

You can donate to the Warm Clothing Fund 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 make a contribution to our Warm Clothing Fund.

Shelley Callahan | November 29, 2017En Español

A few months ago, we reported on our partnership with the international nonprofit organization Wine To Water, which works to bring clean water solutions to some of the most remote parts of the world. Before Luis Bourdet, our Director of International Programs, and I left for our trip to India in August, I visited the Wine To Water headquarters in Boone, North Carolina, and took a training course on how to use Sawyer water filters, which when used properly, can last for up to ten years.

A Sawyer water filter provides clean water for up to ten years.

Requiring little maintenance and upkeep, the Sawyer filters were perfect for us to take to India to distribute to our affiliated projects. I could easily fit thirty of them in a suitcase — enough to give three or four to each of our volunteer coordinators in India, so that they could provide clean drinking water for the children in our program, reducing their risk of contracting illnesses such as typhoid or cholera.

Training day

When Luis and I arrived in India, we found that most of our projects, including the Grace Aaron Boarding Home in Bhoorgampahad, had wells on their properties and used groundwater as their source for cleaning and drinking water. In fact, Children Incorporated supporters funded the installation of the well and pump at the Grace Aaron Boarding Home about ten years ago so that the home would have a freshwater source for cooking, cleaning, and bathing. The problem with the groundwater there, however, is that it is not safe to drink, because sewage disposal in the country is ineffective, and wastewater from toilets is fed into the same water system from which well water is pumped.

On our first day in India, four days before we visited the Grace Aaron Boarding Home, where 68 girls in our program live, Luis and I held a training session for all six of our coordinators who work at our affiliated projects in and around Dornakal. I showed them how to properly assemble the Sawyer water filters and how to correctly use them. The filters require two containers — one on which to attach the filter, where the contaminated water is contained, and another for the clean water that comes out of the filter. All of our coordinators were enthusiastic about using the filters, and they were grateful to have them to start using right away at their projects.

Sanitary practices all around

The girls at the Grace Aaron Boarding Home now have clean water, too, which is essential to their well-being.

When we arrived at the Grace Aaron Boarding Home a few days later, our Volunteer Coordinator there, Mrs. Jesintha, had set the filters up in the activity room where the girls practice singing and dancing after school. Now all the girls have access to clean drinking water throughout the day, whenever they want it. As we toured the rest of the home, we saw that the structure had newly-updated bathrooms, which included tile floors and large hand-washing sinks, which are important in good sanitation practice, helping keep the girls healthy so that they can attend school.

On top of receiving nutritious meals every day and having a safe and sanitary place to live, the girls at the Grace Aaron Boarding Home now have clean water, too, which is essential to their well-being. What seemed at first like a small gesture — providing basic, easy-to-use water filters to our projects — I now understand to be a crucial part in providing basic needs to children living in poverty.

***

HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN INDIA?

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

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | November 20, 2017En Español

Bath County, Kentucky is known historically for the mineral and medicinal springs from which its name was derived. Unlike many other counties in Eastern Kentucky, Bath County is not a coal-producing area, and the main cash crop there used to be tobacco. This crop provided small farmers with a decent living with the help of the federal Tobacco Price Support Program, in which the government purchased surplus tobacco from farmers to ensure a yearly income for them.

“Sponsors give these teens hope and a window into a bigger world,” said Cindy. “The clothing and shoes received through sponsorship funds give these kids a sense of dignity and pride.”

When the Tobacco Price Support Program ended in 2004, small farmers were no longer secure supporting their families by farming tobacco, so they began to seek out other work opportunities. As a result, most tobacco farmers in the county switched to raising cattle, which does not require nearly as many laborers as tobacco farming does, so many jobs were still lost.

Unfortunately, the loss of farming jobs in Bath County isn’t the only thing that negatively affected the local economy there. Most of Cave Run Lake, built by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1973, is located in Bath County – another potential source of income for families could come from tourist dollars generated by use of the lake; but all of the boat ramps, marinas, small restaurants, and gas stations around it are nestled on either the Rowan County side or on the Menifee County side. A path that was bulldozed on the Bath County side of the lake shows the start of construction; but many years after it was first blazed, subsequent work has yet to be done – and even Bath County residents have to leave the county to access the lake.

When parents aren’t being parents

On a recent trip to Bath County, our Director of U.S. Programs, Renée Kube, visited the only high school in the county, Bath County High School. Sitting on a large complex, the school has 589 students in grades nine through twelve. Seventy-four percent of those students qualify for free breakfast and lunch every day, which is a reflection of great poverty in the county. One in five Bath County citizens are living in poverty; and 29 percent of the children there are living below the poverty line.

When Renée arrived at the school, she met Cindy, our Volunteer Coordinator, in the school’s Resource Center, along with Cindy’s assistant, Sandy. Both Cindy and Sandy work very hard to help the children in their care to get basic needs, as many of them come from neglectful households. Cindy told Renée that she thinks the children are having to grow up too fast – some of them have to fend for themselves completely.

Their parents or guardians are absent from their lives in different ways – sometimes physically, sometimes mentally or emotionally. In some cases, they are away from the home a lot, working minimal-income jobs; in some instances, they are disabled and unable to do much to support their children. Some caretakers, tragically, due to a serious drug problem in Bath County, aren’t looking after their kids as a result of their addictions. Last year alone, there were fourteen overdoses of parents of Bath County High School students.

According to Cindy, many of these families can’t even begin to imagine another way of life for themselves, and they teach their children to think no other life is possible for them, either. This fostering of this negative mentality is one of the many reasons why Cindy and Sandy value the Children Incorporated program as much as they do. “Sponsors give these teens hope and a window into a bigger world,” said Cindy. “The clothing and shoes received through sponsorship funds give these kids a sense of dignity and pride. Being sponsored is encouraging for the students to stay in school and achieve their diplomas.”

It is important for these impoverished kids that Cindy and Sandy see the value in our program, and what sponsorship does for those children. When teens live in poverty, but are expected to get their schoolwork done and take care of themselves with little to no support from family, it is invaluable for them to have sponsors. It helps them to not feel alone, and to receive the positive motivation they need to keep working hard, so that they can have better lives once they graduate.

Going above and beyond for kids

Renée and Cindy in the Resource Center

Cindy and Sandy do more than just help kids in our program receive basic needs – they also do a lot to prepare them for being on their own, as many of them practically already are. There is a washer and dryer in the Resource Center for the students to use to wash their own clothes, because many of their parents don’t do it for them. There is also a shower for the kids to use to clean up when they don’t have a usable shower at home.

Cindy also takes the students that she feels need extra attention on field trips, because she knows that many of them never leave their homes other than to go to school. She takes groups to a ropes course at Morehead State University for team building. She also takes some to a cosmetologist for haircuts and conversations about appearing professional for job interviews. She takes some teens to a restaurant – for some students, for the first time in their lives – where they can practice table manners.

It’s hard to think about what these children have to endure while they are still so young, with little to no guidance at home. Even before they graduate, some Bath County High School students are kicked out of their homes when they turn eighteen years old, because at that age, their parents stop receiving welfare checks with which to support them.

Now homeless, those kids go to school hungry and desperate. Thankfully, however, each school year, Cindy and Sandy help these scared and overwhelmed teens move into tiny public housing apartments, and they teach them to apply for welfare in their own names, so that they may receive that assistance until they graduate from high school; and our sponsors are there to provide additional support for these kids who are forced to grow up too fast when they really need it the most.

***

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.

Ron Carter | November 13, 2017En Español

Growing up in a fairly average middle-class American family, I never went without food or decent clothing, and I always received birthday and Christmas gifts. My parents weren’t particularly wealthy, yet they were able to pay the bills; we had a solid roof over our heads and a sturdy shelter to protect us from the elements. I, like so many raised this way, took it for granted that everyone was provided for — that all children had toys with which to play. Then, I started working for children’s causes, and I discovered that my beliefs were badly flawed.

I am thankful, also, for caring people like you, who are right by my side on a journey to improve the lives of others.

Eyes opened wide

I will never forget my first visit to an underdeveloped country, where I witnessed incredible deprivation for the first time. The sight of thousands of tiny make-shift houses constructed of cardboard, wooden sticks, plastic tarps, and discarded pieces of metal and tin dotting the side of a barren mountain still remains as clear in my mind as when I first experienced it two decades ago. Likewise, I can still clearly see the face of the precious little girl from Eastern Kentucky whose ramshackle home I visited going on ten years ago now – her big, expressive eyes, the dirt on her cheeks, her disheveled hair, and the beautiful, heartbreaking smile she gave me, even though in reality, she had very little to smile about.

A life forever changed

This Thanksgiving, I am thankful, not for these deplorable situations, but for the fact that I had the opportunity to see them firsthand; and as a result, my life was forever changed. The poverty, hunger, and suffering that I had only heard about became very real to me when I saw these conditions in person; and I knew then and there that I would spend my life in service of others.

I am also thankful that I, personally, do not have to deal with being cold and thirsty and uncared for. I do not have to worry where my next meal will come from, or if my dwelling place will withstand a simple rain or wind storm. I do not have to question whether my children will have decent clothing to wear to school, or if I will be able to find transportation to my place of employment.

I am thankful, also, for caring people like you, who are right by my side on a journey to improve the lives of others. Together, we can make a difference. Together, we are strong. Together, we can change the lives of children and families all around the world, and offer them hope for their futures.

I am thankful in so many ways, and I am truly blessed.

From the heart,

Ronald H. Carter

President and Chief Executive Officer

***

HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD THROUGH CHILDREN INCORPORATED?

You can sponsor a child 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 who is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | November 9, 2017En Español

As the end of the year approaches, I can say that the Children Incorporated staff as a whole is amazed by what we have accomplished thus far in 2017, thanks to our incredible sponsors and donors. When our President and CEO, Ron Carter, sent out a letter in December of 2016 asking our supporters to help us reach our goal of providing 1,000 pairs of new shoes to sponsored and unsponsored children at our projects in the coming year, we never dreamed the response would be so tremendous.

Just three months after launching our Shoe Fund campaign, our supporters had already donated more than $35,000 to ensure that children in our program in Latin America, Africa, and Asia would receive new shoes. We can’t thank you enough for what you have done for these special young girls and boys.

The importance of shoes

There are a lot of basic needs that children go without on a daily basis – something we understand all too well. Providing basic necessities, like clothing, food, hygiene items, and educational support, to kids is the foundation of our sponsorship program, and we believe that each and every one of these aspects is incredibly important in helping children have a greater chance to succeed in life. So why did Mr. Carter want to focus in particular on getting shoes to kids in need?

“Over the years, we have heard many heartbreaking stories about children who are unable to attend school because they don’t have wearable shoes.”

“Over the years, we have heard many heartbreaking stories about children who are unable to attend school because they don’t have wearable shoes,” says Mr. Carter. “In some cases, children attend school only every other day because they have to share a single pair of shoes with a sibling. We have always made a point of providing good, solid shoes to these children, knowing that shoes can be very expensive. As such, the Children Incorporated Shoe Fund campaign has been one of our most meaningful endeavors.”

1,235 pairs and counting

We are very grateful that our donors understand that items that can sometimes appear small and insignificant can really improve the lives of children. Shoes may not seem like a big deal, but as Mr. Carter stated, it’s sometimes the difference between a child going to school or not.

Because of you, we have provided children at our affiliated projects the Pedro Poveda School, Guarderia El Angel, the Lourdes School, the Santa Clotilde Orphanage, Villa Emilia, the Montero Home, and the Cristo Rey Mission in Bolivia with shoes this year. Thanks to you, children at Hogar Santa Julia and Hogar Santa Maria in Mexico have brand new shoes to wear to school. If it weren’t for you, children at the Dandora Community Center in Kenya, the Rainbow ‘Erdata’ Center in Ethiopia, Chrishanti Lama Sevana in Sri Lanka, La Milagrosa in Costa Rica, and Santa Isabel Ana Seton in Guatemala wouldn’t have received new footwear, either.

To date, we have provided 1,235 pairs of shoes to kids in need, and we will continue distributing shoes in the upcoming months.

Thank you for all that you do to help children – we couldn’t do it without you.

***

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 in that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD