Sponsor Children

Take a Picture. It'll Last Longer.

Monday, November 16, 2009 by Sarah Trapp

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.

The Help That's Hard to Talk About

Monday, November 9, 2009 by CI Staff

Sponsoring a child through Children International is so much more than a monthly contribution, a photo and a couple of letters. It’s an entire network of sponsors and dedicated field staff who really care about each and every child we serve. Javier Cárcamo, Communications Coordinator in Guatemala helps us illustrate this point:

Sponsorship provides support for diverse circumstances and needs, and sometimes, it’s the only support that families receive when they face emergencies and tragedy. When the Children International team must cover an emergency, our involvement goes far beyond just doing our jobs. In moments of uncertainty, when families are confronted with a loss, framed by despair, poverty and the anguish of not being able to do anything, Children International is there to give support and a comforting hug.

This is the case of Ludwin, a sponsored boy of just 8 years, who comes from an impoverished family. Sadly, Ludwin passed away recently due to a prolonged illness. Since the detection of his illness, Children International - Guatemala made a series of efforts to help him improve his health - exams, tests, treatments, transportation to specialized treatment centers, medicines, food. But after several months, we got the devastating news; the specialists had given Ludwin only a few weeks to live.

This information pulled at the hearts of our committed staff at the community center. A moved Field Official, Nelson Cali, realized that Ludwin would not live to see his next birthday. With great sorrow, but the intention to give Ludwin a moment of happiness amidst the inevitable, staff members took up a collection of gifts so Ludwin could celebrate his last birthday properly.

The community joined the celebration full of happy moments, yet our hearts were heavy. There were dozens of gifts, toys, stuffed animals and items of clothing. A cake with candles. A clown who donated his regular performance fee to the family. Two piñatas, only one of which Ludwin was able to break open, and candy, lots of it, which little by little got a smile out of Ludwin. Only he knew the pain that forced him to remain seated during much of the party.

They were hours of joy for Ludwin. Perhaps this was the best memory that accompanied him until his last breath when he finally could rest from his suffering, surrounded by all of his gifts in his little bed.

The help that sponsorship provides in these heartbreaking cases allows families like Ludwin’s to get support for the funeral costs, which for a poor family is an expense that is almost impossible to cover. Many sponsors and donors don’t know that their support is the only thing that the sponsored families can count on when they are confronted with these situations, and only in this way is it possible for them to provide their loved ones a dignified last goodbye.

Right now there are dozens of cases of children who are receiving specialized medical attention around the world, and in other cases for various reasons, a loss is mourned. It’s comforting to know that when facing this pain, all the sponsored families can count on Children International to offer the help that sometimes is hard to talk about.

Great News from Consumers Digest

Monday, November 2, 2009 by Jim Cook

We’re excited here at Children International about Consumers Digest having just identified us as 22nd in terms of charitable efficiency in its annual guide to charities. That puts us in some very good company given the number of charities doing great work today, and we’re very proud of that.

Consumers Digest is a widely read and well-respected publication that really provides a great service to the giving public, enabling people to make informed decisions about where to put their charitable contributions. It is one of a number of organizations that either rank or list charities.

The listings or rankings of all these organizations are necessarily based on quantitative measures; and while those are good indicators, they tell only part of the story.

The full picture is complete when one is able to see the programs in action, preferably over time. That’s when the qualitative aspects can be seen. In our case that plays out in our field locations, most of which are in other countries. There one can see the children we’re helping and how we’re helping them. The conditions in which the families live is also a valuable input to the overall picture and those conditions paint a clear picture as to why the help we’re providing is so necessary.

One of the most impressive things to me every time I travel to the field is the dedication and commitment of our field staffs. Working under often extreme and almost always adverse conditions, they do a great job day in and day out. Again, this isn’t something that lends itself to a ranking system but if it did, I humbly believe we’d be Number 1.

Another interesting measure is impact over time. I vividly remember something said to me by our field director responsible for sponsored children on islands in the Philippines…he said that while sponsorship was making a big difference in the lives of the sponsored children every day, the biggest impact was measured over time—for instance, he said, anyone really evaluating our programs should compare how people manage their health now compared to ten years prior when they were still using very primitive, ineffective cures and techniques compared to a more enlightened approach today. And all that was thanks to persistent teachings and the introduction of modern practices by our staff.

I also believe that the amount of time we are in the communities where we work is a valid program effectiveness measurement. We’ve been in many communities for nearly thirty years. I still think of our Ecuador agencies as “new” ones and we began working there in 1989—twenty years ago! That consistency of presence and service has enabled us to become part of those communities and a steadfast and dependable support for children from a young age to their graduation at age 19.

All that said, we are most appreciative of Consumers Digest’s mention of Children International. Being Number 22 is good…great, really.

But there is so much more!

Jim Cook

Staff Bio: Meet Patricia Huerta, From Guayaquil, Ecuador

Monday, October 26, 2009 by Kelly Nix

Patricia Huerta graduated from the Catholic University of Guayaquil, Ecuador with a degree in interior design. However, her early career took a very different course, leading her to work for the Canadian consulate in Guayaquil as well as serving in Human Resources and as an assistant manager at two different banks.

She and her husband welcomed a daughter…and then another. Recognizing the importance of spending time with her children, Patricia took a break from her career to become a full-time mom. But after her daughters were older, she returned to the professional world – this time to work for Children International. Although she started as the director’s assistant, in 2007 Patricia took on the challenging role of Communications Coordinator for our Guayaquil agency.

“I love visiting children and youth at their homes and to be in their neighborhoods with their special particularities and similarities,” shares Patricia. “I like to talk to them and listen to their thoughts, wishes and ideas. I feel proud when our sponsored children and youth express themselves better than many kids with better economic resources and education; maybe they're more mature because of the difficulties they face in daily life, and they do recognize and acknowledge the support CI is giving them.”

Going to the field for stories involves advance planning, particularly to secure the use of the agency vehicle and its driver – who also serves as Patricia’s bodyguard in the sometimes dangerous neighborhoods she visits. “Before an interview I go to the community center to collect the staff who will guide us to the house to be visited, sometimes the Supervisor, other times one of the assistant and in many occasions, the volunteers go with me to the houses,” she reflects. “Talking to the volunteers is the best; they're nice and they know helpful information that could lead to a good story. We visit the houses, take photos, talk to the family and go to the next house or return to the community center. If the driver doesn't have other vehicle requests, I stay in the community doing interviews, talking to children and taking more photos. I love my job!”

Sometimes the job is incredibly rewarding, as was the case when a former sponsored youth, Diego, stopped by to let the office staff know of a prize he is being awarded by the Nobis Foundation for his service when he was in the sponsorship program. And some days it’s incredibly sad…like when she got the news about a sponsored youth who lost his battle with tuberculosis. “I visited him twice, as I heard he had tuberculosis; I wanted not only to write a good story, but to know if he was taking good care of his health with the help of the Agency doctors. Unfortunately he couldn't make it and I feel so sad because he was a valuable young man whose only illusion was to return to school and to rejoin the youth group at the community center – activities he had to leave when he became ill.

“I think that bringing the stories direct from the field, and sending a photo of the reality our children and youth live in, is one of the best resources CI has to let the world know the importance of its labor to help needy children,” adds Patricia. “I feel so good when I see one of my photos published in Journeys or in other CI publication; it's like a dream come true for me.”

A Review of Sponsorship in India

Monday, October 19, 2009 by Kelly Nix

When an outside news organization decided to visit Children International's child sponsorship agency in India to see firsthand how an international children's charity functions, they encountered a model of efficiency. See for yourself the results of their visit.

Something to Munch On - World Food Day

Friday, October 16, 2009 by Sarah Trapp

A sponsored girl enjoys a refreshing drink with her meal.

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.

Recovery Efforts Continue in the Philippines

Friday, October 9, 2009 by Kelly Nix

Children and families in the Philippines are still struggling to recover a measure of normalcy in the wake of typhoons Ketsana and Parma.

Staff from Children International’s Manila and Quezon City child sponsorship agencies continue to carry out disaster relief efforts – an overwhelming challenge due to the enormity of the losses, which, sadly, include the lives of a sponsored child and most of her family.

Manila Agency Director Cynthia Tiotuyco visits with flood victims.

Two top-priority efforts are food relief and medical assistance. Thousands of dollars of food items have been distributed to affected families, and thanks to the generosity of a local drug manufacturing company, children and families have also benefited from the donation of thousands of dollars in medicine.

Staff works to keep families healthy despite difficult circumstances.

Preparing to distribute emergency food supplies.

Our agencies are also helping with in other ways. Families who lost everything they owned are receiving help with materials to repair their houses; additionally, many children and families are receiving items like blankets, clothing, footwear and – of critical importance – school uniforms and supplies, so no more time is lost from school than is absolutely necessary.

Replacing children's lost or damaged school supplies is critical.

We are looking at ways to make life safer for families in the future. Our agency staff is working with local government officials to identify more secure sites for settlements that, prior to the typhoons, were located in flood-prone areas such as riverbanks and sewage canals. The agencies have also registered with the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs and the National Disaster Coordinating Council to ensure all relief efforts meet international and national standards.

Grateful children smile after receiving emergency rations.

Our sponsored youth are no less involved. Local Children International youth council members are working to launch preventative education efforts to address issues like improper garbage disposal, which has been identified as one of the factors that contributed to the widespread flooding during the typhoons.

Please check back Monday for a special message from Children International President Jim Cook.

Photos by Children International's staff in the Philippines.

A Typhoon in Photos

Wednesday, October 7, 2009 by Sarah Trapp

Typhoon Ketsana landed in the Philippines on September 25th, bringing with it heavy rain that flooded much of Manila and Quezon City.

Water reached up to the roof in some areas.

People were forced to swim to safety through several feet of water in the streets.

Swimming became a necessary mode of transportation.

When the water had receded enough to survey the damage, countless families found many of their possessions wet and unusable.

This family found their possessions soaking wet.

Children International's community centers were not immune to the destruction.

One of Children International's community centers suffered damage as well.

Check back Friday to see how Children International's well-organized team is helping to provide relief to our sponsored children, their families and others severely affected by the typhoons.

Photos courtesy of Children International staff in Quezon City, Philippines.

The Way Out of Poverty

Monday, October 5, 2009 by Kelly Nix

Just ask any mom or dad of kids in our child sponsorship program what is the best hope of their child overcoming poverty, and the answer you're likely to get is, "Education."

Education really is a powerful tool for children living in poverty. Sponsoring a child is not just about giving material aid such as food and clothing; it's about opening the door to a better future. Through education, our sponsors help open the door to success for their sponsored children.

A Note from Jim Regarding the Philippine Disaster

Wednesday, September 30, 2009 by Jim Cook

I thought I might contribute some information about the Philippine flood disaster. Today, after evaluating excellent assessment reports from our two agencies in Metro Manila, we have made the decision to send over $500,000 in cash and $1.6 million in badly needed supplies to provide further emergency relief and to help people begin to rebuild their lives.

This is a significant contribution that addresses similarly significant destruction caused by the flooding. Our sponsored families are disproportionately affected because they are forced to live in very marginal locations and situations. Areas that are often prone to flooding with homes not built to withstand the force of floodwaters.

I should also add how proud I/we are of the amazing efforts our staffs there have made. Within three days, under the most difficult of circumstances, they have accounted for all the sponsored children! In addition, they were there almost immediately passing out emergency supplies. One staff member reported a flood victim saying how reassuring it was to see familiar staff there with emergency supplies!

Thanks to all for your interest and support!

Jim Cook

Flood Relief Efforts Continue in the Philippines

Wednesday, September 30, 2009 by Kelly Nix

Thanks to all of you who continue to hold the people of the Philippines in your thoughts and prayers.

No doubt you’ve followed the situation in the news. To say matters are grim would be an understatement. Our child sponsorship agency staff in the Manila area continues to work tirelessly to track down sponsored children and their families at different shelters to verify their wellbeing and ensure their basic needs are met.

As we receive news from the field, we’ll be updating it on our website, www.children.org. Please continue to click the “Emergency Alert” button on our homepage as your first source for the latest information from our staff at ground zero.

A Life Half Emptied, Slowly Being Filled (Part 2)

Friday, September 25, 2009 by CI Staff

After Soledad’s parents traded her to a man twice her age for a bottle of moonshine, she never imagined she’d find a way to escape her misery. Then, years later, in a desperate attempt to help her kids, she discovered Children International…

Taking matters in her own hands, Soledad enrolled three of her children in Children International’s sponsorship program: 6-year-old Maritza,* 4-year-old José,* and 9-year-old Ana.* Through sponsorship, her children receive school supplies and uniforms, material support and health care.

Ana* is perhaps the luckiest. Children International covered the costs to repair a heart defect she’d had since birth. (Staff members at our Quito agency even donated blood to her when they learned there was a shortage at the local hospital.) Help like that, Soledad admits, gives her reason to believe in a better future.

“I haven’t been able to do much in my own life,” she says, “but I’m working hard so my kids can at least achieve reasonable careers – maybe not something extraordinary, but something where they can have a good life.”

She’s helping her two oldest daughters, María,* 14, and Nadia,* 12, study to be seamstresses at a school near the airport, and she hopes she’ll soon be able to make a down payment on a sewing machine so they can perfect their trade and get good jobs.

Now when Soledad looks out into the distance, she no longer sees her life disappearing before her eyes. With the support of sponsorship, she sees opportunities for her children, and that’s enough to fill her heart with hope.

*Names have been changed to protect the indentities of those mentioned.

Damon Guinn is a senior staff writer with Children International.

Meet the Communications Coordinator from Cartagena, Colombia

Monday, September 21, 2009 by Kelly Nix

Marelvis Campo, Communications Coordinator for our child sponsorship agency in Cartagena, Colombia, has been part of the CI team for the past eight years.

Marelvis holds a degree in Journalism and Social Communication. Prior to joining Children International, she worked in radio and television in local and regional markets within Colombia. She began working for CI as an intern, but very soon, says Marelvis, “I realized this was where I needed to be; I needed to apply everything I had learned to the organization to show people the work Children International does to help the poorest and neediest children of the city.”

Children International’s Communications Coordinators (CCs) are the field correspondents who report on the stories and news items that later appear in our print and Web publications. According to Marelvis, a typical day for a CC might include visiting community centers, where they are joined by community volunteers prior to launching out into the community to visit children’s homes for photos and interviews. They walk through the neighborhoods seeking information, taking pictures, chatting with people and interviewing children and their families to gain a better understanding of how the program is impacting their lives. Then, at the end of the day, they travel back to the office and begin to compile the information they obtained to be transmitted to our writers in Kansas City.

When asked about her favorite memories of her job, Marelvis immediately speaks of working with a young girl with osteogenesis imperfecta, or Brittle Bone Disease. “In spite of her disabilities, she was able to finish grade school, and she’s close to graduating from high school,” she recalls. “When I learned of her story, I interviewed her and she told me she dreamed of having a computer so she could do her homework. I shared her wish with a friend who works for a local newspaper. Stirred by this girl’s efforts and by her mother’s great love for her, my friend wrote a special Mother’s Day feature about the girl’s mother. As a result, a kind reader donated a computer for the girl so her wish could come true.

“One very special moment for me,” reflects Marelvis, “was when I realized that even small efforts mean a great deal to the people for whom we work.”

Another Made-up Holiday?

Wednesday, September 16, 2009 by Sarah Trapp

Tomorrow, September 17th is Special Hug Day. Sure, it may not mean much to you unless you’re familiar with Children International’s child sponsorship program. But let me assure you that this holiday is very meaningful to our sponsored children. In fact, it’s downright, well...special.

We didn’t come up with this holiday to sell cards or cheesy decorations or to make people feel compelled to commemorate the day with frivolous gifts. Perhaps the name Special Hug sounds silly, but the items the children and their families receive are nothing but practical.

Even making the bed is fun when you’ve got new clean sheets. “The bedspread is beautiful, and I like the color,” says Angie from Barranquilla, Colombia.

View our Special Hug slideshow to see gifts from past years and read what children living in poverty say about this special day.

Photo by Patricia Calderón, Communications Coordinator in Barranquilla, Colombia.

Putting the "Labor" in Labor Day

Tuesday, September 8, 2009 by Jim Cook

My favorite Bloggers, Sarah and Kelly, have gently reminded me that it’s time for my first-of-the-month blog contribution. I knew that. They also suggested that, since it’s Labor Day weekend, I might want to weave that into my entry.

And so it shall be. Gladly.

As I’ve been thinking about this it’s pretty obvious that labor is one of the dominant themes in the lives of our sponsored children and their families.

Those families have at least some kind of chance when Dad and/or Mom is able to find work. Often when I’m visiting the families of the sponsored children, I ask the mothers (the dads are often out working!) what kind of work the husbands do and how much they earn.

As often as not, the answer to what they do is “day laborer,” often some type of job in construction. The answer to “how much does he earn in a month?” is often a dollar amount ranging from not very darn much to just a little more than that. And that answer is invariably, quickly, followed with, “When there is work.” And the dads I’ve met, the few times they’re home and not working or looking for work, don’t expect a handout. They want to work and are happy to find work when it is available.

As far as Mom’s work…if she doesn’t have a “real” job such as doing housekeeping for another family, taking in laundry or doing some type of “cottage industry” such as making anything from hot pads to tortillas, then she is, I guess, what might be called a stay-at-home-mom…except when she stays at home, she works harder than I’d care to…and she does it every day, seven days a week. Her “stay at home” job likely includes cooking not enough food over a wood stove, burning wood that she may have cut, bundled and carried, balanced on her head, for over a half mile.

And the water she uses in cooking she may have had to collect in large buckets and, like the firewood, lugged to the house. Water is about eight pounds per gallon…a family of five goes through a lot of gallons…the math makes my back hurt.

And then there is the typical housework…I’ve seen moms determinedly sweeping dirt floors and most houses I’ve dropped in on are quite orderly and well kept. There’s laundry for the family—often done under very difficult conditions, given the lack of available water. It’s just one hard, often back breaking task, after another. That their spirits are as good as they are is a testimony to the human spirit and a person choosing to have a good attitude.

Children in this environment tend to learn to contribute to the family toil at a young age…I’m sure there isn’t a lot of whining, not that I remember my own kids ever doing that! Our sponsored children are happy to help out when needed…and thankful for the opportunity to be able to attend school and not get a “real job” to help supplement the family income. That’s often a tough choice the families make. But most of our sponsored children are able to attend school and big reason for that is parents typically really believe education is the best chance the kids have for a future better than what the parents are experiencing. And our staffs work hard to reinforce that concept!

So, however you spent your Labor Day, whether enjoying a picnic with the family or “laboring” around the house or in the yard, it’s nice to remember how central labor is to the families you’re helping through sponsorship!

Hope you had a nice and safe Labor Day!

Jim

Jim Cook is the president and CEO of Children International.

A Reflection on Ecuador

Friday, September 4, 2009 by CI Staff

At the waistline of the World, half a league over seas and oceans, the mottled outline of Earth's tectonic bosom cradles the city below. I behold, through wispy haze, the vestiges of a conquistador’s Elysium…

The mountainous area that surrounds Quito is shockingly gorgeous. Its Andean air is a pleasure to breathe, while succulent clouds tease the eye from greater heights. And yet at city-level, the reality of human life smothers the carnival of emotions swirling inside of me.

Before long, thoughts start to grind their way through my head, reducing my ego to pulp. Here I stand in a neighborhood located in a single section of one city of a developing country among many around the world. How many more people are out there – how many more instances of abused and abandoned children, of battered and desolate mothers, of families imprisoned within labyrinthine grids of cold concrete, cane, and dirt so dismal they would make Daedalus smile?

While I bask in sunlight, there are so many more who soak in clammy darkness. And rather than blind myself with the light of a good life, I continue squinting toward the mouth of that pit and tighten my grip on the small piece of rope in my pocket. There are very long pieces in the hands of a few, but I should not wait for them. I should tie mine to the small bits of many others who share theirs, and together, we may have enough to lasso the Moon.

These baroque allusions are nothing but a smoke screen for my lack of answers. The hope I have in humanity's ability for compassion and charity, regardless of our source for inspiration or however we might find them, is one of the few antidotes to my paralyzing frustration regarding poverty.

David Nebel is a translator and photographer for Children International. In this post, he reflects on a recent visit to the children and families of our child sponsorship program in Ecuador.

Sponsorship: A Youth Report

Monday, August 24, 2009 by CI Staff

You all asked for it, and we at Children International listened. Sponsored youth and Youth Reporter Leydi Marroquín describes for us what sponsorship means to poor families in rural Guatemala.

Sponsorship is very important in my community because it is the only hope for the poorest families that live here. When mothers fill out the sponsorship forms, they feel happy because it’s one step forward in the search for a better life.

Sponsorship isn’t about covering every need that people have; at least that’s how I see it. But it does cover the most important things to have a better life. Sponsored children receive medical attention, free medicines, dental treatment and a lot of help so they can go to school. When mothers are told that their children have been sponsored, I have seen the happiness on their faces. That is an experience I wouldn’t exchange for anything.

I like to see the kids when they come to the service area to pick up their gifts. They anxiously await that day. They mark it on their calendars like a special day. I can’t explain how much love the children feel when they receive their gifts. They make good use of them too, because they enjoy getting gifts from their sponsors.

Sponsors are like angels. I have my own angel, and they have given us all help despite the fact that we are far away. Sponsors make kids smile; they make them feel loved without having seen them. They make us youth feel like someone has our backs and motivate us even though we have never heard their voices. They help us stay away from drugs and alcohol, because they make us feel important. They allow us to attend workshops and sports activities that let us enjoy life amidst adversity.

I thank each and every one of those angels and everyone who works here in Patulul. And I thank the staff everywhere in Guatemala, like Javier Cárcamo who not only taught me how to use the camera to take photos and shoot video, but who taught me to organize my ideas and know that what I have to say is important and that my opinion really does matter.

Reporting for you,
Leydi Marroquín

From Lows to Highs in Ecuador

Thursday, August 20, 2009 by CI Staff

Forgive me if this post is a little long, but it’s after midnight, and I’m still reeling from a broken heart...

After two hectic days of interviewing sponsored children and families in Guayaquil, and encountering the extreme poverty faced by families there, my colleagues and I packed up our gear and headed to Quito. Now here I sit, at 2:00 in the morning – thousands of feet higher and several degrees cooler – trying to condense the intense emotions I’m feeling into a few meager paragraphs.

Our first day in Quito was supposed to be light. But that wasn’t to be. Before I could even acclimate to the altitude, the first interview of the day took my breath away.

Driving high up into a hillside neighborhood named La Colmena, or “The Beehive,” because of the clusters of poor families who live together in single buildings stacked like honeycombs, I was startled by the contrast to the homes we’d just visited in the low-lying river region of Guayaquil. Whereas impoverished families in Guayaquil typically live in split-cane shacks perched over dusty roads, those in Quito mainly occupy concrete tenements that cling to steep slopes that swarm with traffic. And it was there that we met 10-year-old Jessica.

Fellow writer Deron Denton and I wanted to interview Jessica because she had recently received one of the wheelchairs a group called Free Wheelchair Mission donated to sponsored children with disabilities, and we were curious to know how it was helping her get along. Our answer waited at the top of a dizzying set of narrow stone stairs that led to a claustrophobic, attic-like apartment Jessica shares with her petite grandmother, Doña Carmen.

Despite the steep surroundings, Jessica’s grandmother, 63 and barely five feet tall, used to carry her granddaughter up and down the hills to school and physical therapy every day. Pushing the wheelchair wasn’t much easier, she said, but it gave Jessica freedom to move around at school without someone to support her. When we asked who helped Jessica up the stairs to the house, the room grew quiet.

Jessica’s mother had passed away and her father, Juan Luis, had mysteriously disappeared a few months earlier, explained Doña Carmen. The police searched for him but to no avail. All she and her granddaughter could do was wait and worry about his safety.

That’s when Jessica got up and stumbled into her bedroom to show us the picture her father had drawn for her. A big smile flashed across her face as she told us what a good artist he is, but her smile turned to grief as the thought of his absence brought tears to her eyes. When I asked her what her father last said to her, all the heartache she’d been bottling up inside came rushing out in a wave of tears. Two staff members, Maria and Cecilia, rushed to her side and took her in their arms while Deron and I furiously wiped away the tears from our own eyes.

The pain of Jessica’s loss filled the room as we desperately tried to console her. And yet thanks to Maria’s and Cecilia’s kindheartedness and expert reassurance, Jessica’s smile soon returned, and she was able to find comfort in the pink sunglasses we gave her as a gift.

And now, as I sit here typing this post, bleary-eyed and heartbroken, straining to imagine a happy ending, there’s no doubt in my mind that Jessica’s loss would be unbearable if she didn’t have sponsorship to connect her with people who love and care for her. Because even at those times when life can’t seem to sink any lower, the spirit of a young girl like Jessica can still soar to new heights if you and I are there to lift her up.

By Damon Guinn. Photo by Children International Communications Coordinator in Quito, Ecuador, Cecilia Carrión.

On the Ground in Ecuador: Revisiting Reality

Wednesday, August 19, 2009 by CI Staff

As a former Communications Coordinator for Children International in the Dominican Republic and coming from a poor family myself, I thought I knew everything there was to know about extreme poverty; and, therefore, that it wouldn’t affect me all that much to see once again the way sponsored families live. Until now, that is...when I had the opportunity to travel to Ecuador with some staff members from Children International. It was a trip that made me face once again the reality of living in extreme poverty.

I was very moved by some of the stories of the families that we visited during our first trip to the field in Guayaquil.

I saw very nice people trying to make ends meet out of very little. We met families with sponsored children that have serious health conditions; families that survive day by day with only the bare minimum; volunteer mothers who care about their communities and believe in the sponsorship program; sponsored youth who have a chance to step up and build a better future for themselves and their families; and sponsored children have faith in their sponsors’ contributions.

We also confronted the reality that there is a lot more to be done for these families. I realized that yes, there are differences among countries, cultures, food and ethnicities; but there is also a common reality that they all face: they desperately need help. But despite the sadness of these situations, I noticed that the families we visited were always so grateful for the little they have, always with a smile on their faces, always welcoming and trying to accommodate us and make us feel comfortable in their tiny houses. It was a valuable lesson that made me think about how much we have, and how sad sometimes people's lives can be...

I was also very impressed at how the staff interacted with the sponsored families, always trying to get the best interview, the best picture, and the best story. And I was happy to know that with the support of Children International’s programs and their sponsors’ contributions, these families have at least some of their needs covered.

I am so glad for this great opportunity and for experiencing for myself – this time as a visitor – how amazing, helpful (and sometimes life-saving) is the support that Children International provides to the sponsored families. This is, without a doubt, a sponsorship program in which I personally believe.

Vilma Nebel, a former Communications Coordinator for Children International in the Dominican Republic, is traveling with the CI team in Ecuador. Check back tomorrow for an update from Senior Staff Writer Damon Guinn.

Thoughts from Ecuador: Confluence

Tuesday, August 18, 2009 by CI Staff

This is my first trip to Ecuador, and – as always – we met some amazingly resilient people on our first day in the field here in Guayaquil, Ecuador. We’ll be writing stories about the families we met in the weeks and months to come. But I just thought I’d share a small insight I gained today.

I learned that the city of Guayaquil is named after the Guayas River. Two large rivers – the Daule and the Babahoyo – merge here, making the Guayas.

As we left Guayaquil proper on our way to visit sponsored children and their families, we crossed the Daule River. Patricia (our communications coordinator extraordinaire) pointed to the wealthier homes on the bank from which we had come. Even from a distance, we could see that the homes were large, well-constructed and neatly spaced apart, much like what I am used to back home in Kansas City. On the other side – the one we were approaching – we could see the rickety shapes the poor call home, tightly bunched together in a seemingly haphazard way.

After a day of visiting with the families on the “other” side, I thought of the confluence of humanity that merges in every city around the world, like the two rivers that make up the Guayas. I was pensive as we headed back to the hotel...asking questions that – for me – have no satisfactory answers.

You know: the “why” questions.

But, as is the case each time we make a trip to the field, the families we spoke with had a gift for me. They may not be living in that big, sturdy, expensive house with the expensive TVs and furnishings, but their homes are often filled with generous spirits, a love for one another, beliefs and bonds that help them stay strong, and a gratitude for what they do have.

And every one of them mentions that the help they receive from sponsorship is one of the things they are grateful for.

It made me wonder how easily I can come up with a list of all the things I should appreciate....

Deron Denton, staff writer for Children International, is currently on the ground in Ecuador with a team from CI's Creative Services Department. Look for an update each day this week through Friday.