Tag Archives: sponsor

Shelley Callahan | September 13, 2020En Español

Last year, Children Incorporated Director of International Programs, Luis Bourdet, and Director of Development, Shelley Callahan, visited our affiliated project, the Centro de Orientacion, in Manizales, Colombia.

“It was terrifying to think that these children and their mother lived in such an unsafe place,” said Callahan.

During their trip, they met with a family of two of our sponsored children who were living in a difficult and dangerous situation — and one from which they desperately wanted to escape.

“The home was in terrible condition. The children showed us a hole in the floor where the shack flooded every time it rained. They were at risk of the entire structure being destroyed in the rain. It was terrifying to think that these children and their mother lived in such an unsafe place,” said Callahan.

“When we returned to the United States, Luis spoke with our volunteer coordinator, Pilar, at Centro de Orientacion, to find out if the home could be repaired. She came back to him with the news that it couldn’t because the family didn’t own the property and therefore couldn’t make improvements on it. We were sure at the time there was nothing that we as an organization could do help improve their home.”

“What we didn’t realize at the time, is that Pilar was determined to get this family out of [harm’s way]. She contacted the local government to find out about housing options for the family, and within a few months, they were able to move. Once they relocated, Children Incorporated was able to provide support with household items as well as funding for some smaller necessary items so they could enjoy their new and safe home.”

About Colombia

Situated in the northwestern corner of South America, Colombia is rich in natural beauty, comprising rugged Andean mountains, lowland plains, sprawling Amazon rainforest, and coastline on both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. Archeological evidence suggests that humans have called this land home for thousands of years. Its modern history begins at the end of the fifteenth century, when Christopher Columbus and the first Spanish explorers arrived in the region, subsequently establishing the area’s first successful Spanish settlement in 1508. Spanish colonization continued for over 400 years.

In the mid-nineteenth century, Colombia gained its independence and established itself as South America’s first constitutional government. However, political instability in the mid-to-late-twentieth century led to the uprising of guerilla groups which have wreaked havoc through all manner of social injustice. Tragically, their targets are most often children. Kidnappings, human trafficking, recruitment as soldiers into paramilitary groups, and forcible participation in drug-trafficking rings are all too common realities for vulnerable and disadvantaged children in Colombia.

Kidnappings, human trafficking, recruitment as soldiers into paramilitary groups, and forcible participation in drug-trafficking rings are all too common realities for vulnerable and disadvantaged children in Colombia.

About Our affiliated projects

Rondon Center
Bogotá, Colombia

The Rondon Center serves as a beacon of hope to the surrounding community in Bogotá. The center’s mission is to provide a safe environment for the children of working mothers. By looking after the children’s immediate needs while providing the foundation for a brighter future, the center helps deserving families rise above the difficult circumstances from which they come.

Centro Primavera
Medellín, Colombia

Located in the large, industrial city of Medellín, Centro Primavera fills multiple roles, serving as a daycare and an afterschool enrichment center. While children receive nutritious food, medical care, and skills training, working mothers savor the peace of mind knowing that their children are safe, well cared for, and receiving the guidance and encouragement they need to become productive citizens.

Centro de Orientación
Manizales, Colombia

Centro de Orientación offers a source of hope in the large, central-highland city of Manizales. Established by an order of nuns, the center offers a place of protection and safety for impoverished mothers and their children. The facility functions as a community center to rehabilitate mothers who have fallen victim to the ravages of poverty, while helping their children become mature, confident, and educated young adults.

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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN COLOMBIA?

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

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | September 6, 2020En Español

In Honduras, where lack of adequate funding has led to inadequacies within the healthcare system, COVID-19 is a massive threat. For those Hondurans living in poverty, who rely on earning money daily to provide for their families, they often can’t stay home to protect themselves.

For those Hondurans living in poverty, who rely on earning money daily to provide for their families, they often can’t stay home to protect themselves.

Thankfully, our COVID-19 Response Fund and our incredible sponsors offer support to sponsored children, which relieves their parents from some of the enormous burdens they feel as they struggle to provide for their kids during a global pandemic. Our volunteer coordinators at our affiliated site in Honduras report to us that thanks to donations from Children Incorporated, they have provided hygiene items and food bags to families every week, which is helping to keep them safe and healthy during these unprecedented times.

About Honduras

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 barrier reef system off the northern coast – teems with life. Its wealth of natural resources is equally impressive, including a variety of minable minerals and agricultural exports such as coffee, tropical fruit, sugar cane, and lumber. Moreover, its growing textiles industry serves an international market. The nation’s wealth of natural beauty and resources, however, belies the dire poverty in which its people live. In fact, 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, including fluctuating export prices, rising inflation, and unemployment. Other contributing factors include frequent natural disasters, widespread poverty, disease, and inadequate education, which results in a high rate of illiteracy.

Our affiliated Sites in Honduras

Siguatepeque Primary School
Siguatepeque, Honduras

Offering families in need food and hygiene items has been critical to their survival during COVID-19.

In the small, rural town of Siguatepeque, unskilled workers receive only a few dollars a day, a tragically typical wage. The poorest residents subsist on a daily diet of beans and corn, which only propagates the widespread malnutrition among area children. In 1970, a local church group recognized the dire need for education among the town’s most impoverished children and established Siguatepeque Primary School. Today, the school serves as a beacon of hope, not only providing for these deserving children’s most basic immediate needs, but also offering them the tools with which to build a promising future.

Maria Reyna Home
San Pedro Sula, Honduras

Founded in 1942 as a girls’ orphanage, the Maria Reyna Home cares for the area’s orphaned, abandoned or neglected children. The home serves as a safe haven, away from the slum housing, hunger, disease, crime, and pollution that are all-too-tragic realities in this region. Through education and moral support, these deserving girls receive the opportunity to rise above the difficult socio-economic circumstances from which they have come.

El Refugio Welfare Center
El Progreso, Honduras

El Refugio Welfare Center was established here in response to the devastation inflicted by Hurricane Mitch in 1998. This natural disaster claimed thousands of lives, causing catastrophic flooding and landslides. The damage was so extensive, in fact, that the Honduran president estimated that the storm set the nation’s economic development back a full 50 years. The progress of rebuilding homes and schools has been very slow, and residents here still grapple with the aftershocks of homelessness, disease, and heightened poverty. For this reason, El Refugio Welfare Center is a place where many of the town’s impoverished and abandoned children come to receive food, clothing, and educational assistance.

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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 donation portal, create an account, and search for a child in Honduras that is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | August 26, 2020

We are pleased to invite you to a very special fundraising event to be held virtually on September 12, 2020 at 3:30 p.m. EST.

Themes from Childhood: A Classic Concert for All Ages will feature Children Incorporated Board Member Theresa P. Steward along with special guests and will benefit our COVID-19 Response Fund.

We hear from Children Incorporated President and CEO, Ronald H. Carter, who discusses more about the event:

“Theresa P. Steward is a member of the Children Incorporated Board of Directors. She is a classically trained musician; she holds a Ph.D. in Musicology from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.

Theresa also serves as pianist and organist at Grace (American) Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia, which is also the church that I attend.

Grace Baptist has been a loyal supporter of Children Incorporated for more than a decade, supporting our work each December with funds raised from their mission market. They have also partnered with us on our work to support families in need in Puerto Rico.

Theresa and various other musicians have staged four previous concerts at Grace Baptist for charitable purposes. Those concerts, which were held in person, have been great successes, raising thousands of dollars in support of various missions and ministries. Themes from Childhood is the first of these concerts to be held virtually, and Theresa has designated that all profits from it will be donated to Children Incorporated in support of our COVID-19 Response Fund.

I have had the pleasure of attending all of Theresa’s concerts at Grace Baptist Church, and I have been astounded by the talent she and the other musician’s display. I have been blown away by what Theresa shares. She chooses music that is familiar, fun, and uplifting, and her performances are warm and welcoming. I encourage all fans of good music, whatever their tastes may be, to tune in and share in this event.”

Please plan on tuning in on Saturday, September 12th at what will surely be an unforgettable event!

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How to attend the event

Please visit either the following Facebook or YouTube link on Saturday, September 12th to watch live:

https://www.facebook.com/gbcrichmond

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChAd9AwM8gzX7Tc6_oT6jCw

Shelley Callahan | August 26, 2020

Dear Friends,

People often ask me how the Children Incorporated sponsorship program works.

I love having the opportunity to share with them, for it’s my belief that our operation is one of the best. For more than half a century, we have been addressing the most basic and immediate needs of children in the United States and in numerous other countries.

I love having the opportunity to share with them, for it’s my belief that our operation is one of the best. For more than half a century, we have been addressing the most basic and immediate needs of children in the United States and in numerous other countries, and our work has been honored with superb ratings from all of the major charitable monitoring groups as a result.

One thing that I value is that, unlike other child sponsorship programs, Children Incorporated does not pay our coordinators who work directly with our sponsored children. We work with a network of caring individuals, already employed by the schools and centers with which we are affiliated, and they include our program in their targeted efforts to improve the lives of those in their communities. This allows us to keep the portion of funds that go directly to helping children as high as possible, and for nearly 55 years, due to our system of using volunteer coordinators, we have succeeded in this effort.

Without your help, unsponsored children go without life-changing basic needs.

Additionally, our volunteer coordinators know the children and families we serve, often on a personal basis. They usually live within the same communities, and in many instances, have known or been familiar with the children included in our sponsorship program for a number of years. Many of the communities remain small and either church- or school-centered, so our coordinators develop a keen awareness of the families’ struggles and observe these struggles on a first-hand basis. In many of our international programs, as well as at some of our Native American sites, the children attend boarding-type schools where they actually live with those who work as Children Incorporated volunteer coordinators. This personal knowledge adds a special layer of uniqueness to the type of services we provide, for rather than dolling out cookie-cutter benefits to the youngsters, Children Incorporated addresses the needs of each child individually.

When we connect with a school or child-care center, we ask the coordinators to identify a group of their most needy or most at-risk children for enrollment in our sponsorship program. The coordinators work with the children’s parents and guardians to get them added to our roster of children who become available for sponsorship, and we then begin seeking caring individuals and groups to meet the needs of the children and families. Sometimes it takes months or longer for us to find enough sponsors for each child, so we created the Shared Hope Fund so that all of the children begin receiving the assistance they need as quickly as possible. The Shared Hope Fund is now one of our most important funds because it allows us to provide for those children enrolled in our sponsorship program, though not yet linked to individual sponsors, as they wait. The dollars raised for Shared Hope make it possible for unsponsored children to receive the very same benefits as sponsored children, sometimes for months on end.

Will you please help us by supporting the Shared Hope Fund today? It truly makes a difference in the lives of children whose needs would be unmet without Children Incorporated’s assistance.

Every donation today changes the life of a child tomorrow. Please consider donating to our Shared Hope Fund.

From the heart,

Ronald H Carter
President and Chief Executive Officer

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How you can donate to our shared hope fund

We enroll new children in our program every day, and finding enough sponsors for all of them is one of our greatest challenges. The global need is so profound that some children wait months for a sponsor. Donations made to our Shared Hope Fund provide immediate assistance to children awaiting sponsorship.

DONATE TODAY

Shelley Callahan | August 16, 2020En Español

All over the world, our volunteer coordinators are taking on the massive responsibility of providing for children in our program outside of our affiliated projects — and for some, that means traveling quite a long distance to give aid to them and their families at their homes.

Our volunteer coordinator, Sister Deo, at Hogar Medalla Milagrosa in Paraguay, recently drove over two hours to deliver food and clothing to some very needy families. Accompanied by a social worker, they also spoke with the families about the sponsored children’s health, emotional states, and their virtual learning assignments. Sister Deo found that all of the girls who attend the Hogar Medalla Milagrosa Girls’ Home are doing well during COVID-19 restrictions.

Sister Deo wrote Children Incorporated an email about how she is helping kids in our program thanks to donations from our COVID-19 Response Fund.

Sister Deo wrote Children Incorporated an email about how she is helping kids in our program thanks to donations to our COVID-19 Response Fund.

A message from Sister Deo

“Good Morning!

We hope you are well and that this difficult situation we are going through will soon pass. I want to share with you photos of how we are working thanks to the valuable help of Children Incorporated. We bought food that we are sending to every girl and family. We purchased books so that the girls can follow their studies remotely in a virtual way with the teachers.

We also buy much needed personal toilet items for our girls.

Thank you for the support,

Sister Deo”

About Paraguay

Sister Deo delivers food to families in need in Paraguay.

Nestled in the heart of South America, Paraguay comprises an area roughly the size of California and is characterized by semiarid grasslands, forested highlands, marshlands, and rivers. Paraguay boasts a well-preserved indigenous identity and heritage, but a wide range of ethnicities call this small, landlocked nation home, including immigrants from Australia, Germany, Russia, Italy, France, and Spain. Paraguay’s rich cultural diversity and wealth of natural resources, however, belie the abject poverty in which the majority of its residents live. Many areas of the country remain underdeveloped, with inhabitants relying on subsistence farming for livelihood.

Today, Paraguay is one of South America’s poorest nations and is plagued by a history of bloody wars with neighboring countries as well as internal political instability, corruption and deficient infrastructure.

Our affiliated projects

Asunción School
Asunción, Paraguay

Established by the order of St. Vincent de Paúl, the Asunción School (or, as it is known locally, Santa Luisa de Marillac) serves the impoverished children of one of Asunción’s poorest neighborhoods. Many of these children suffer from neglect and malnutrition as a direct result of their parents’ poverty. The Asunción School truly serves as a beacon of hope, providing these deserving children with the basic needs, moral guidance, and well-rounded education that may help them rise above the difficult socio-economic circumstances from which they come.

Hogar Medalla Milagrosa
Asunción, Paraguay

Just as with the Asunción School, Hogar Medalla Milagrosa was established by the order of St. Vincent de Paúl to support children of Asunción, most of whom come from the streets or from broken homes where even affording food is a daily struggle. Founded in 1895, Hogar Medalla Milagrosa serves as a primary school and a boarding home for orphaned or abandoned children. It not only strives to provide for these deserving children’s immediate, basic needs but also instills moral guidance while equipping each child with a sound education.

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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN Paraguay?

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

SPONSOR A CHILD

Shelley Callahan | August 10, 2020En Español

Thanks to donations to our COVID-19 Response Fund, our affiliated projects in India are able to provide food and hygiene items to children to take home to their families.

Like many countries around the world, COVID-19 infection cases have risen in India despite a strict lockdown that began in late March and was partially lifted at the end of May. Currently, India is the fourth worst-hit nation in the world behind the United States, Brazil, and Russia — and the worst-hit Asian country to date.

In India, most of our affiliated projects are group homes for children, in which they live throughout the year. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak and the lockdown, our sponsored children and their families are at home and receiving food, hygiene items, clothes, and any other necessities, as they cope with the situation.

We recently heard from our volunteer coordinator at the J. Calvitt Clarke Home in Dornakal, India regarding the support we have provided to children in our program at this time.

“Dear Children Incorporated,

Thanks to donations from our supports, families in India are receiving much-needed food.

The parents of the children [in the Children Incorporated Program] were happy to receive the given items to support their daily nutritional needs in the middle of this time. We have distributed items such as rice, oil, onions, and soap to the families, among other food items, and the beneficiaries convey their heartfelt thanks to the organization for the support.”

About India

From the snowcapped Himalayans to tropical beaches, India is truly a nation of contrasts. It boasts a rich history spanning tens of thousands of years. In fact, the earliest known civilization in South Asia once called India’s fertile Indus Valley home. Today, with the world’s second-largest population, India includes a staggering variety of ethnicities, languages, religions and cultures. Its wealth of natural resources and vibrant cultures, however, belie the abject poverty in which so many of India’s citizens live.

Our affiliated projects

Like many countries around the world, COVID-19 infection cases have risen in India despite a strict lockdown that began in late March and was lifted at the end of May.

Auxilium School
Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India

Founded in 1981 and run by members of the Salesian Sisters, the Auxilium School provides the poorest children of the Guntur slums — as well as children from surrounding rural areas — with shelter, nutrition and education. As a caring sponsor, you are coming alongside these dedicated Sisters and providing these students with the hope, education and opportunity they need to rise above the difficult socio-economic circumstances from which they come.

Parikrma Home
Bangalore, India

The Parikma Home was founded in 2003 as an extension of the Parikrma Humanity Foundation, a local nonprofit that strives to provide education to over 1000 children from slum neighborhoods across Bangalore. This “end-to-end” program serves children from the youngest ages all the way through to higher education and job placement. The home’s four core areas of focus are education, nutrition, health care, and family care. Its mission is to “unleash the potential of under-served children in urban India, which will provide them with equal opportunities and make them valuable contributing members of society.” Children who stay at the home receive their education at one of the nonprofit’s four “Centers of Learning” schools.

English Medium School and Hostel
Dornakal, Andhra Pradesh, India

Situated within the Cathedral compound in Dornakal, the English Medium School is run by the Church of South India. It offers impoverished children of this region shelter, nutrition and education.

St. Mary’s Girls’ Hostel
Khamman, Telangana, India

The St. Mary’s Girls’ Hostel boarding school was open in 1980 with a mission to address the poverty facing many of the families in this community. The hostel serves as a safe haven where these deserving young women receive immediate, basic needs, a well-rounded education, and the opportunity to reach for a better future.

Lou Ann Long Girls’ Hostel
Yadagiri, Karnataka, India

The Lou Ann Long Girls’ Hostel provides boarding, nutrition, and a quality education for area girls who come from impoverished families. At the Hostel, deserving young women receive the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty and rise above the difficult circumstances they face.

Dornakal Girls’ Hostel
Dornakal, Andhra Pradesh, India

Since its founding in the 1970s, the Dornakal Girls’ Hostel has provided countless girls from surrounding tribal settlements with education, encouragement, and a window into the outside world. Its mission remains to provide for these deserving girls’ immediate needs, while also investing in their future.

Kothagudem Girls’ Home
Kothagudem, Andhra Pradesh, India

Located in Andhra Pradesh, India, the Church of South India established the Kothagudem Girls’ Home to provide underprivileged girls basic needs along with a well-rounded education with the support of Children Incorporated sponsors.

Grace Aaron Childcare Center
Burgampahad, India

Founded by the Church of South India, the Grace Aaron Childcare Center provides shelter, nutrition and educational support for girls from the region’s poorest families. In this way — and with your support — the Grace Aaron Childcare Center offers these deserving young women the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty and rise above the difficult socioeconomic circumstances.

Thanks to donations to our COVID-19 Response Fund, our affiliated projects in India are able to provide food and hygiene items to children to take home to their families.

Chandrakal Boarding Home
Chandrakal, Telangana, India

Founded in 1950 by American missionary Lillian Woodbridge, the Chandrakal Boarding Home has provided education for thousands of impoverished children, many of whom have since made valuable contributions to their towns and villages in the fields of education, medicine and commerce. Due to the severe poverty in this area, most of the children’s parents are unable to pay tuition each month. Knowing that contributing to their child’s education gives the parents a great sense of pride, the home accepts whatever amount the parents can afford, and sponsorship donations cover the rest, along with other basic needs.

J. Calvitt Clarke Home
Dornakal, Telangana, India

Named in honor of the father of Children Incorporated-founder Jeanne Clarke Wood, the J. Calvitt Clarke Home serves impoverished children in this region by providing for their basic, immediate needs while also investing in their futures by way of a well-rounded education.

Durgi Home
Durgi, Andhra Pradesh, India

Originally established by the Catholic Diocese of Guntur in 1982, the Durgi Home began as a health center; ten years later, it expanded to include a boarding home, which provides area children with a place to stay while attending local schools. In 1998, brothers and sisters of the Order of the Sacred Heart opened a school nearby to further benefit the children of this community.

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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 sponsorship portal, create an account, and search for a child in India who is available for sponsorship.

SPONSOR A CHILD