That's exactly what our Communications Coordinators do every day. We get awesome photos in from them all the time, but unfortunately, there's no way we can use all of them. No need to let them go to waste! Here are some of the latest and greatest they've submitted.
Our Lusaka, Zambia community centers offer sponsored children medical and dental care, school tutoring and balanced meals, but many times, kids just come to hang out with their friends. I chose this photo not just because of the kids' smiling faces, but because of what they're watching on TV. Made me chuckle.
Volunteer mother Patricia Cuascota was leading Quito Communications Coordinator, Cecilia Carrión, around the neighborhood to take photos when she got a call that her daughter had fallen and hurt herself. She apologized profusely to Cecelia for not being able to continue the tour as she said turned to go home. No wonder Cecilia named this photo "Volunteering is an act of generosity."
Kids in our feeding program in Quezon City, Philippines aren't afraid to dig in! Photo by Carmie Carpio.
Patricia Calderón, Communications Coordinator in Barranquilla, Colombia couldn't help but snap a photo of cousins Andrea and Cheli. "They caught my attention when I found them coming back from running an errand, holding hands as if they were taking care of each other. They were wearing their uniforms and ready to go to school," Patricia says.
When Communication's Coordinator, Nivedita (Neenee) Moitra, takes her camera out into the neighborhoods of Kolkata, India, everyone wants to be in the picture.
October 16th is World Food Day, and from 1981 on, it has been creating awareness of the problem of hunger and malnutrition around the globe in the hopes of alleviating hunger.Providing nutrient-rich foods to malnourished sponsored children is an important part of Children International's child sponsorship program. In addition to inviting these children to have healthy lunches in our community centers, we teach parents how to prepare balanced meals that won't break the budget. Volunteer mothers help us keep our costs low by becoming the lunch ladies during the week and cooking and serving nutritious dishes for the children who need it.And when times get truly desperate for our sponsored families as the cost of food rises, Children International's Lifeline Food Program is there. Through the program we are able to provide families in need with food baskets that they can take home when the cupboards are bare - without a doubt, an enormous relief for parents struggling to feed their sons and daughters.To see just how Children International helps malnourished children regain their health, view our slideshow "Something Good to Eat."
Photo by Marelvis Campo, Communications Coordinator in Cartagena, Colombia.
When I think of hunger, a face comes to mind.
Pinched cheeks. A painfully thin body. No way to correlate her size with her age. A disposition that could swing from heartbreaking eagerness to disconsolate sobbing in a split second.
Hunger has a name. It's Tania, and I saw her the other day in Ecuador.
On the rare occasions her alcoholic father shows up at home, the family cowers in fear. Mom is sick; she considers her own life to be beyond help, and she desperately hopes for something better for her children. Some days they don't eat at all.
You've probably already received a letter from our president, Jim Cook, explaining to you about our Lifeline Food Appeal.
For the sake of many children like Tania, please read it.
Note: If for some reason you didn't receive Jim's letter and you'd like to help feed a child like Tania, please visit our website. Thanks.
Children International’s communications coordinators are the field correspondents who serve as the eyes and ears of the organization at each agency. Because they are the reporters who feed us the material you later read in
Journeys,
eNews, our website and our other publications, we thought you might enjoy getting to know them a little better. This month we chose to introduce you to Patricia Calderón, the communications coordinator from Barranquilla, Colombia.
Patricia holds a degree in Journalism and, prior to joining Children International, served as an award-winning television reporter and program host in Barranquilla. She also served as the Director of Communications for the Barranquilla Carnival Foundation.
We found a couple of her answers to be particularly engaging:
What is your favorite memory of your job as communications coordinator?One day as I was interviewing a 9-year-old boy, I asked him what made him feel happy and he just laughed very mischievously but didn’t answer. I repeated the question and he laughed even more, but he still didn’t answer. I asked him again and he came close and whispered, “Being close to María Alejandra!” I laughed and asked him who she was, but he put his fingers to his lips and went “Shhhh!” and let me know through gestures that it was a girl sitting at a table next to us at the community center library. We both giggled and I told him I’d keep his secret.What is the most touching experience you’ve had in your job?I was covering the announcement to a family that lived in horrible conditions that they were going to receive a house. The sponsor requested that they find out the news through a letter he had written, so we sent word for the whole family to gather. The Sponsor Relations Manager went to the family’s house and read them the letter. As the family of 10 heard the news they became more and more excited, until finally they all burst into tears. They were hugging each other and crying and couldn’t believe such happy news. The family’s excitement was so great that even those of us who went to break the news ended up crying to see how overjoyed they were.Patricia concludes, “I’m happy to be doing this job because it allows me to put into practice a lot of the areas I studied. Besides, I feel like I’m contributing a little to the neediest families by making their stories known, which gives them an opportunity for change in their lives.”
One of the best ways to find out the straight skinny on anything is to ask someone who does it. And for those who want to know the inside story on child sponsorship, there’s no better source than the people who sponsor and the professionals who run the sponsorship programs.
Does such a definitive resource exist for people who sponsor through Children International? The answer is yes!
The Children International Sponsors Google Group is a place where sponsors and professionals from CI get together and talk. You’ll hear sponsors share their happy stories…and some sad ones also. And you’ll get a chance to communicate with people like Neeta Goel (Director of Program Services), Paul Hooper (Regional Director for Africa), other staff from the Program Services department, Greg Jones from Sponsor Services, and many others.
So if you’re curious about how to sponsor a child in Africa…what CI is doing to help feed starving children through our nutrition program…what it’s like to visit your sponsored child in Guatemala…and any number of other questions,
check out the Google group today. You’ll like what you see. Most importantly, you’ll get a chance to share your ideas with other sponsors just like you – people who have decided to make a difference…and are doing it!
Inspired by recent editions of our Journeys magazine and their daily tasks with sponsored children, volunteer mothers in Guatemala took it upon themselves to write their own stories about the trials of living in poverty and how Children International is helping them get by. These simple, handwritten letters, short stories and even one multi-act play show us the honest and giving nature of the families we serve and the volunteer mothers who make everything possible. Here are just a few excerpts from these lovingly-written pieces:
Once upon a time there was a poor family with a mother who was struggling along with her three children. Then someone told her that there was an institution that helped many needy families. One day when she least expected it, the help that she needed came when one of her children got sponsored... – Iris de León
Thank you so much to all of the people that work for this program. May God bless you and help you find people with big hearts to continue helping the families that need it the most. – Elsa de Paz Tepaz
[María Elvira] feels so happy and thankful for the letters that her sponsor sends her...and that motivates her to keep moving forward in school...She wants to achieve all of the goals she sets for herself in life...She thanks her sponsor and Children International for having made her dream come true. – Hercilia Pérez, María’s mother
Once upon a time there was little girl who cried a lot because her sister was sent pretty cards because she had a sponsor in the United States... [One] day she received word that she had a new sponsor, and the sponsor had sent her a package. The little girl jumped and laughed with excitement and happiness, because no one had ever sent her what her sponsor did. – Keilin Aquino
Mothers unable to pen their own stories were aided by volunteers like Carmen Duarte and Claudia Beltetón, pictured here with volunteer coordinator Wendy Ávila (center). These and other mothers helped to ensure that their stories were told.
Helping children write letters to their sponsors, delivering messages, managing sometimes hectic gift distributions, cooking food for malnourished children in our feeding programs... the deeds of these hardworking volunteer mothers (and some fathers) are endless. Without a doubt these special parents are what keep our child sponsorship program moving forward.
To learn more about our volunteer mothers in Guatemala, check out our “A Tribute to Motherhood ” slideshow.
Photo and reporting assistance by Javier Cárcamo, Communications Coordinator in Guatemala.
By Damon Guinn
The Midwest is probably the last place you’d expect to hear diplomats debate worldwide hunger and international food relief. So it may come as a surprise that Kansas City was the site of this week’s International Food Aid Conference, sponsored by the USDA and USAID.
In a sense, Kansas City could be considered the agricultural epicenter of the nation. It’s home to a major board of trade for agriculture and is surrounded by states that produce a bounty of cattle, corn, grains, pigs and poultry. What better setting then for interested parties to take a place at the table and talk about the future course of food aid?
During the conference, Tom Vilsack, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, announced that the USDA will nearly double its support of a $95.5 million food aid program that benefits starving and hungry children in poor countries.
Speaking on behalf of President Obama, Secretary Vilsack reiterated the importance of providing food relief to children in need. “The president understands that if we do that and do a better job of it, then it will make (eventually) all of us much safer, because if these kids are well-fed and well-cared for at the beginning of life, then they will see that there are boundless opportunities for them.”
The announcement is good news for Children International, considering our efforts to reduce malnutrition in several of the world’s poorest communities.
Last year, we appealed to many of you for help in providing emergency food relief to sponsored children and their families, and your response was overwhelming. We raised nearly $1 million worth of food relief for struggling families who have seen the prices of food items like rice, corn and cooking oil skyrocket – in some places as much as 75 percent.
With your support, we have been able to deliver food relief when, and where, it's needed most. And our ongoing nutrition workshops and nutritional rehabilitation programs make it possible for us to take direct action in curbing hunger and malnutrition.
In a world where a child dies of hunger every 5 seconds, your support through sponsorship is a key component of a global initiative to save lives. And that can give us all a little more food for thought.
Learn more about world hunger, and what Children International is doing to curb it, by clicking the links below:
Based on reports from The Associated Press
and The Kansas City Star.
Eric Newman, Director of Sponsor Administration for Children International, recently had the opportunity to visit our child sponsorship agency in Manila, Philippines. Below he gives us a glimpse into his trip.
The smiling face of a sponsored child eating a warm bowl of chicken soup and a plate of rice in one of our Manila feeding centers that feeds hungry children was great to see as we visited one of our Service Area Centers in the Philippines. And it was equally rewarding to see a group of sponsored youth giving an energetic, enthusiastic presentation, proudly telling about their many activities, which include service projects, leadership training and community education. But then I was pleasantly surprised to learn about a new aspect of the sponsorship program…something of which I had not previously been aware.
We were introduced to a young man named Michael, one of the newly elected officers of the recently created CI-Manila Alumni Association (CIMAA) for former members of the international children's charity. Just formed in December, this group is comprised of graduates of our sponsorship program. I learn that the fledgling group already boasts 57 members, which include a teacher, a nurse, an architect, an art director and a call center agent. There are members who meet locally, as well as members who now live abroad and communicate with the association through an E-group. The members of the group have tasked themselves with serving as mentors – big brothers and big sisters – to the sponsored youth in their area. One of their first endeavors has been to provide job interview training for the sponsored youth who are preparing to enter the workforce. What an inspiration to see the alumni of our sponsorship program not only achieving success in their own lives – breaking the cycle of poverty – but also giving back and passing their experience and lessons learned on to our sponsored children! My guess is that we’ll see this concept continue to spread, and we’ll be hearing more about the CI alumni in the future.
Finally, as we left the Center we passed through a large crowd of very young children with their mothers, all eagerly awaiting their turn to register with our sponsorship program. Our staff, teamed with volunteer mothers of current sponsored children, was working hard to sign up this next group of needy children, who will soon become sponsored children and receive nutritious meals, grow into energetic youths and ultimately graduate and become the next teacher, or nurse, or architect.
Salamat po (Thank you), Manila!
By Garrett Kenyon
Nothing inspires me more than children. Having a job that gives me the opportunity to impact a child’s life is one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. When I’m tired at the end of the day I draw strength from the pictures of sponsored children hung throughout our headquarters.
As much as those pictures move me – it’s no match for the experience of getting into the field and seeing those children face to face. I am currently on my first trip with Children International – to the Dominican Republic. So far, our journey has confirmed something I’ve always believed: children are basically the same everywhere.
Yesterday we visited a community called La Mosca (The Fly) that sits on the edge of a massive dump. Today we spent the afternoon in a dangerous neighborhood called La Havilla, or, as the locals call it, “Under the Bridge.” All of the hallmarks of poverty were present in both places – gut-churning pollution, overcrowded, tiny houses, and a pall of violence that casts a shadow over the narrow streets. And yet, among these unpleasant locations, like glimpses of the sun through a cloud-covered sky, were the beautiful faces of thousands of children.
Despite the crushing poverty that envelops their lives – they still light up with smiles and wonder when they see something they’re not accustomed to. They still give each other bunny-ears when a camera comes out. They still laugh and sing and play together, often oblivious of the danger so close to them. Meeting a sponsored child is always a special experience. But it’s the thousands of unsponsored children that are tugging at my heartstrings tonight.
You see – I was lucky. After spending the day ducking in and out of shacks, walking dirt roads, conducting interviews and photographing these dangerous communities – I got to leave. Today a little boy named Antony tugged shyly on my sleeve and asked if I would take a picture of him and his sister. Knowing that those two children are still there, in that desolate slum, waiting for a ray of hope, as I sit in this air-conditioned hotel room writing this blog is getting to me a little tonight. It would probably have the same effect on anyone.
When I return, I’ll write more about my experience here. It may take a few days to digest. Right now, the sheer force of the poverty is a little overwhelming. What make it bearable at all are the visits we make to the CI community centers, and getting the chance to talk to a sponsored boy or girl. My favorite part of each interview is when I get to ask them about their future. Sometimes they smile and hesitate before speaking – but they always seem sure of their answer once it has left their lips. They just can’t wait to tell me what they want to be when they grow up – just like children everywhere.
Garrett Kenyon is Children International's newest staff writer. He is currently experiencing his first visit to the field -- an experience many sponsors hope someday to share (or maybe already have shared!). It's hard to adequately describe the impact of personally meeting hungry children...families who live their lives in quiet desperation, barely clinging to hope....But Garrett has also had the joy of seeing the incredibly positive impact of CI's child sponsorship program. Look to hear more from Garrett about his visit in the days and weeks to come.
If you are a sponsor who has been able to personally meet your sponsored child, why not take few moments to post a comment and share that experience with the rest of us?
By Patricia Calderón
One of the greatest satisfactions in
life is giving thanks to God for blessings received, especially in the
Christmas season. There are many ways of expressing gratitude, but the
best of all is sharing what one has received with those who need it
most.
That’s
exactly what Yesenia García, a mother of two sponsored children who
lives in the Realengo neighborhood of Barranquilla and who two years
ago took a course in pyrography (woodburning) and painting on cloth
offered to mothers by Children
International, did. She has specialized in making lovely Christmas cushions.
“I
did really well this year. I sold a lot of cushions, not only in
Barranquilla but in other cities as well,” shares Yesenia. “That’s why
I...invited 20 very
poor
children to come [to] my house. I used the earnings from the cushions
to buy a little present to give each one on Christmas Eve.”
This
past Christmas was different for Yesenia’s family, too. Unlike previous
years, she was able to buy clothes for her four children and give them
a nice allowance.
One of her greatest accomplishments was that
at the end of last year a reseller managed to sell 15 of her cushions
in the nation’s capital, Bogotá. Yesenia had to stay up all night to
deliver them on time, but the important thing is that she made it.
Two years ago, Yesenia had to leave her children so she could go out and work in order to
feed
them. Now, thanks to her new line of work, she works in her own home
and earns enough to live comfortably and still have enough left over to
offer happiness and smiles to those who have nothing at Christmas.
Patricia Calderón works as Communications Coordinator for Children International’s child sponsorship program in Barranquilla, Colombia. CI helps needy children in Colombia by offering medical and dental care, educational support, housing assistance and youth programs that help develop strong community leaders.
In Lusaka, Zambia, Africa poverty is rampant and many children go hungry. The lucky ones eat once, maybe twice a day, yet Sandra Nkontankota and her three sisters count themselves among the most fortunate. With monthly special donations from a loving and dedicated sponsor, worrying about what they will eat has become a thing of the past for the Nkontankota family. The mother of the family, Juliet, explains, “We used to eat once a day. Now we eat three times. Apart from the usual, CI also buys us rice, juice and sugar.” In addition to the three meals a day, the girls also enjoy something almost unheard of in their village – snacks between meals.
While feeding programs are not the main focus of Children International’s sponsorship program, our Lifeline Food Program is there to help feed hungry or malnourished children that come to our community centers. The special donations that Sandra’s sponsor makes help to supplement the family’s nutrition even further. And for Juliet the difference in her children is clear. “I am very happy. My kids now look healthy, and they are in school.”
Photo and reporting assitance by Clementina Chapusha, Communications Coordinator in Lusaka, Zambia.
Thanks for visiting our new blog. We hope that your new year is on its way to being one of the best. As one of the top charities for children, we strive to bring our sponsors and those interested in helping children in poverty the stories and insights they desire. And this blog is a great place to look for more insider information. For those of you familiar with our original blog format, you can still find all of our great content here - we’ve just made it better (and prettier) with a New Year’s makeover!
This new blog page has the look and feel of Children International’s homepage with a little added blog flare. You can add comments by clicking on the gray “Comments” button underneath each post, as well as read what others have to say. Give it a try and let us know what you think about our new look.
Kelly and I also have our own personal blog pages where you can read a little bit about us and see what we’ve been posting. Children International’s President, Jim Cook, will also be joining the blogging world and giving you his point of view on child sponsorship and how we help children living in poverty.
Peruse the links on the side of the screen, set up an RSS feed or even sponsor a child. We look forward to sharing even more with you through our blog. So here’s to a fabulous new year and helping even more needy children grow into healthy, educated and self-reliant adults through our child sponsorship program.
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