Tag Archives: sponsors

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 22, 2020En Español

Although much of the world is living in some type of isolation for the foreseeable future, the support from our sponsors helps our sponsored children and their families feel loved and taken care of in these uncertain times.

Our volunteer coordinator at our affiliated project, the Recanto Esperança Center in Brazil, writes to us about how the support of our donors is making an impact on children in need.

Although much of the world is still living in some type of isolation for the foreseeable future, the support from our sponsors helps our sponsored children and their families feel loved and taken care of in these uncertain times.

“We are fine, still in isolation. Thanks to you and the sponsors, we can buy food basket items and hygiene products for children. Many families are without income and are very grateful for this help.

Last week we launched a milk campaign, and we have already achieved a lot. We will continue to provide as much as we can for the families, as we probably need to help them for a long time to come.

Thank you so much for everything you are doing to help children in our program at this time.”

About Brazil

Brazil is the fifth-largest country in the world – both geographically and in terms of population. It is truly massive, sharing borders with every other country in South America except for Ecuador and Chile. The Amazon rain forest — recognized for having the greatest biological diversity on the planet — sprawls over the country’s northern half, with rugged mountains to the south. Despite its wealth of natural resources and beauty, Brazil suffers from staggering poverty, rising inflation, unemployment, and lack of social development.

About our affiliated projects

Recanto Esperança
Curitiba-Paraná, Brazil

Located in the Urebaba District of Curitiba, where many families lack the resources to provide for their children’s education and basic needs, Recanto Esperança is a non-profit organization whose mission is to support children and their families to rise above the difficult socio-economic circumstances from which they come.

CARITAS-Novo Milênio Center
Lages – Santa Catarina, Brazil

Thanks to donations to our COVID-19 Response Fund, sponsored children in Brazil are receiving food and hygiene items regularly.

In the city of Lages, located in the south of Brazil, many families are forced to live in urban developments like Novo Milênio, which lack electricity, drinking water, and even sewage service. Job opportunities here are extremely limited, and area public schools are ill-equipped to provide a quality education to the ever-increasing number of students. Children here roam the streets, sad, neglected, and vulnerable to the threats of crime, drug abuse, and worse. The plight of these children aroused the compassion of CARITAS, a non-profit organization run by the Catholic Church. As a result, the CARITAS Center in Novo Milênio was established to help these children and community members.

Casas Lares–ACRIDAS
Curitiba, Brazil

Curitiba’s city slum neighborhoods inspired ACRIDAS (Christian Association of Social Assistance), a non-profit organization of business and civic leaders, to establish several orphanages to assist these deserving young ones. Many children are placed in Casas Lares–ACRIDAS by court order, to protect them from the threats of abuse, drugs, violence, and malnutrition. Casas Lares–ACRIDAS serves as a safe haven, offering underprivileged and vulnerable children the opportunity to live in a safe home environment.

Nossa Senhora Das Graças
Lagas, Brazil

The plight of children living in Lagas aroused the compassion of a charitable civic organization called Nossa Senhora Das Graças (Our Lady of the Graces) who founded the Nossa Senhora Das Graças daycare center to provide assistance, support, and hope to the needy children in this region of Brazil.

CADI CENTER
Fazenda Rio Grande – Curitiba, Brazil

In Fazenda Rio Grande, a town on the outskirts of Curitiba in southern Brazil, many families struggle to afford even the most basic of needs, let alone education-related expenses for their children. What began in 1994 as a soccer school to motivate and assist the children of these low-income families has now become CADI (Centro de Assistência e Desenvolvimento Integral) – a national nonprofit that maintains a center of holistic development in Fazenda Rio Grande. The CADI center’s mission is to motivate and equip these deserving children with an education and the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty.

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HOW DO I SPONSOR A CHILD IN BRAZIL?

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

SPONSOR A CHILD

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

Shelley Callahan | July 26, 2020En Español

It’s hard for people to ask for help in many situations — especially when it involves a person’s ability to care for their own family. But for families living in poverty, it is often a necessity for them, which is why our Hope In Action Fund exists to provide support when they need it the most.

Today we hear from our volunteer coordinator, Genevieve, at Sebastian Elementary School in Eastern Kentucky, about how Children Incorporated has been able to help families through our Hope In Action Fund thanks to our donors:

“As director of the Sebastian Elementary School Family Resource Center for the past fourteen years, let me say that no program does so much to help so many as Children Incorporated.

I am so thankful I work at a school Children Incorporated serves. It is a blessing, especially for the aging 61-year old grandmother struggling after surgery to raise her 6 and 7-year-old grandchildren, who attend my school. Children Incorporated stepped in and sent them money for laundry along with food boxes just to help out, blessing them with basic needs until the grandmother could get back to work. In the past, a home was devastated by fire in the dead of winter leaving seven of our students with nothing. Again, Children Incorporated stepped in and gave them clothes, shoes, and coats.

In the past, a home was devastated by fire in the dead of winter leaving seven of our students with nothing.Children Incorporated stepped in and gave them clothes, shoes, and coats.

Recently, a struggling mother asked for help, as she could not provide her daughter with an Ipad for educational support. Children Incorporated gave the blessing for that to be made possible. Thank you for helping her provide that need for her child. Her daughter was so happy as she looked at the Ipad and was absolutely jumping for joy!”

About Sebastian Elementary School

Located in rural and mountainous eastern Kentucky, Breathitt County is one of the 100 poorest counties in the United States. The economic prospects of Breathitt County are, at best, bleak. The coal mining industry that once dominated this area and provided employment for the majority of its population has been declining.

Today, there are few job opportunities for the area: three small factories, a community college, a grocery store, a department store, a small medical center, a juvenile detention center, and the county education system. Many families who once relied upon mining jobs for income now depend upon part-time employment at minimum wages and/or federal assistance such as welfare checks and food stamps. Tragically, drug and alcohol abuse are common, both stemming from and further contributing to these difficult socioeconomic circumstances. Children here, therefore, not only struggle with lack of basic needs, such as food, clothing, and school supplies; they are also often in dire need of encouragement and positive interaction with adults — positive role models who teach them how to maintain strong moral values and to be and have friends of good character and caliber.

For this reason, Sebastian Elementary School serves as a beacon of hope for the surrounding community. The school’s caring and dedicated staff is thrilled to partner with Children Incorporated sponsors to better equip students with the basic essentials, positive influence, and well-rounded education they need to break the cycle of poverty and rise above the difficult circumstances they face each 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 | July 17, 2020En Español

At the end of every school year, our volunteer coordinators from all over the United States write to us to let us know about the power of sponsorship and what it has done for children at their respective schools.

We hear from Lara at Genoa Elementary School in Wayne County, West Virginia about how our sponsors have changed the lives of their sponsored children.

We hear from Lara at Genoa Elementary School in Wayne County, West Virginia about how our sponsors have changed the lives of their sponsored children.

“Dear Children Incorporated,

I am writing in appreciation of your continued dedication and generous contributions to the students of Genoa Elementary School. This year more than ever, our students have needed support, attention, and love from their sponsors. Our little school faced closure (and won) this year. The students at Genoa Elementary love their school. It was a very hard time for them. The gifts from the sponsors during that time reassured the students that no matter what, they are loved and cared for.

Students at Genoa Elementary School love their school — and their sponsors!

The support from the sponsors is invaluable to the Genoa Elementary students. They love getting new clothes to wear to school. They cannot wait for a gift to come. In addition to the excitement of getting a gift from their sponsors, students look forward to writing thank you letters. They enjoy telling the sponsors what they have been doing at school or activities they do over breaks. This correspondence makes the students feel special. They like the extra attention, which many of them need.

My favorite time of the year with the students is Christmas. The gifts from the sponsors make the students so happy. The students come to my room at school to open their gifts from the sponsors. We gather around the Christmas tree to open presents. I love to see their expressions when a sponsor gets exactly what they wanted. They will look at me and ask, ‘How did they know?’ with bright eyes and a huge smile on their faces. There is such joy in the air! This truly is a blessing for me. It fills my heart to see the students so delighted.

I want to express my gratitude and appreciation to all of the wonderful Children Incorporated staff members and the life-changing sponsor heroes! The world is a better place for children because of people like you. Thank you!

With my utmost respect,

Lara”

About Wayne County, West Virginia

For this reason, Genoa Elementary School serves as a beacon of hope and a safe haven, one of the few places where children from impoverished families can count on support, encouragement, and a warm nutritious meal each day.

Wayne County lies 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 the mines and the ecological stigmas attached to coal as a fuel source has seriously damaged Wayne County’s economy. With coal mining almost shut down, all businesses that once depended upon mining (and the buying power of the 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 this reason, Genoa Elementary School serves as a beacon of hope and a safe haven, one of the few places where children from impoverished families can count on support, encouragement, and a warm nutritious meal each day. The caring teachers at Genoa Elementary strive to improve each child’s self-esteem and wellbeing 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