By Deron Denton

I don't know about you, but it seems to me there is a serious deficit of good news out there. I mean, we all KNOW there are plenty of people doing good things out there (and a lot of them are in here - in the CI family!), but acts of generosity don't seem to grab the headlines or get very much air time.   

Well, we recently received a report from our agency in Quezon City, Philippines, that put a smile on our faces. We hope that by sharing it, we might reduce the good news deficit by just a little.

When husband-and-wife sponsors (who wish to remain anonymous) received a letter from their sponsored child, Rafael Yap - who just turned 18 this week - stating that Rafael's father was no longer living with the family, the sponsors wanted to learn more.

As it turns out, Rodolfo (Rafael's father) hadn't actually abandoned the family...it was just that he couldn't find work near home. So, in order to provide for them, Rodolfo was living in another city and sending money back home to support his wife and three children. He was only able to return home every 2-3 months.

The sponsors sent us a letter of inquiry, asking our staff in Quezon City to look into what it would take for Rafael's father to move back home. The only plausible plan the family and staff could foresee was to provide Rafael's mother with money to start a small store. If that succeeded - it might be possible for dad to return at some point in the future.  

Only in a passing flight of fancy did Rafael's family mention that purchasing a jeepney (a private, small bus-sized taxi) would solve the problem. They understood this wasn't possible: the amount of money required to purchase a jeepney was beyond their dreams.

Although it was more than what they'd originally intended to donate, when Rafael's sponsors heard about the cost of the jeepney, they decided to make it happen. Measuring the cost against how much good it would do - in terms of re-uniting a family and in terms of income-generation - it seemed like a bargain.

There was one catch: the sponsors really wanted to see Rodolfo back home with his family, permanently, in time for Christmas. Quezon City staff and Mr. Yap had about one month until Christmas from the time the money was donated.

As promised above, this is a story about good news...Rafael, his mother, and his siblings had their father home for Christmas. Permanently. Rodolfo is now driving his own jeepney and supporting his family. And he gets to be with them every day.

Oh, and there was even money for Mom to start her own small store, helping to reduce the family's level of poverty even further.

How's that for good news?