Most Recent Blog Posts

• Going back to school Going back to school

  • From: CI_CommQTO
  • Description:

    When September comes, parents know it is time to set things in order for children to start a new school year. Beyond the expectations children may have about meeting again with friends or dealing with those subjects they like less, going back to school puts a difficult matter on the table, particularly for people living in poverty: the lack of money.

    In a country like Ecuador, where 7.5 is the average number of years of study, and 9% of the population is illiterate, it is definitely necessary to take action to support education. At Children International Quito Agency, we are proud to know we are helping about 19,600 children and youth go back to school this year by providing school supplies, keeping in mind that not having money to buy school supplies is one of the reasons that might make the difference between continuing to study and quitting school.

    Sharon, a sponsored youth says: “This is very helpful for us because it helps our parents not to spend too much. I am very grateful because I have received this every year.” And she is happy to receive this benefit for her last year of high school, with the motivation to keep up with her university studies in IT engineering.

    

    Little children are eager to receive the school supplies even if they do not really understand how much they mean for the family’s economy. Like Kerly, who wants to start using the notebooks and colors right away and is happily posing for the photo showing some of the supplies she received.

    

    Meanwhile Carmen, Kerly’s mother, explains: “Everything is expensive and we have another child, the money we make is not enough, so it is a big help. I could not pay for everything Kerly needs for school, we have to pay for books, notebooks, uniforms and there are other needs; with this, I will not need to buy notebooks and supplies.”

    It is uplifting to know that we are taking action to help thousands of children around the world pursue their education. Seeing Johan smile makes me think that it definitely must be heartwarming for parents to see their children set up with what they need for their new school year.

    

    On behalf of those parents, I just want to say THANK YOU to every one of our sponsors, who make change possible for our sponsored children.

  • Blog post
  • 1 day ago
  • Views: 40

• 23 years and more! 23 years and more!

  • From: CI_CommTAB
  • Description:

    When the African proverb “It takes a village to raise a child” was crafted, surely volunteers are essential part of that village.

    In the 28 years that Children International has been operating in Tabaco, Philippines, volunteers have been there from the start. Today, their role in realizing our mission of serving underprivileged children is as significant as it was back then.

    Mostly mothers and fathers of sponsored children, each volunteer plays a significant role in delivering vital services to the children and communities we serve. There are volunteers assisting at the clinic, conducting health and nutrition classes, administering medicines during anti-parasite campaigns and to Pulmonary Tuberculosis patients, and sector volunteers who help in community organizing.

    

    Among these tireless individuals is Sharon Dacuno, a mother of two sponsored children living in far away Batan Island. She started volunteering for CI 3 years after it began in Tabaco – that was way back in 1987! From then, she has probably held every volunteer position there is: secretary, coordinator, extension health worker, barefoot doctor and now, a sector volunteer.

    In the 23 years of her volunteer service, she has undergone several trainings that prepared her for her changing roles. The knowledge and experience she has gained through all these years had not only helped her carry out her duties well but also developed her as a person. “Before I started volunteering, I was very timid and I can barely participate in public discussions but after years of exposure, I learned to become confident enough to speak in a crowd. Being a volunteer made me a better person. Now, I am no longer just a housewife…I felt empowered,” she says.

    Sharon also shared some of her unforgettable moments as a volunteer which include bringing her baby along on the field and being caught by a storm at sea while carrying out her duties. She explains that her continuous service to CI is her way of giving back for all the help her family has received. With the help of sponsorship, her eldest is now a Civil Engineer. A small income family struggling to raise five kids and dreaming of giving them a bright future needs all the help it can get that is why Sharon is deeply grateful to CI.

    Being a volunteer for more than two decades, she had her share of challenges but she didn’t let any of it stop her. “I’m happy with what I’m doing that’s why I’m still here. Somehow, volunteering makes me feel that I’m doing my part in realizing a greater good and that makes me feel good inside.” She added that the friendships developed with other volunteers over the years are invaluable and they have become their own unique support group.

    From only 17 children in 1987, there are now more than a hundred sponsored children in her small island community. For Sharon, “as long as there are children to serve,” she will be a CI volunteer - always ready with her warm, toothy smile.

  • Blog post
  • 3 days ago
  • Views: 74

• 4 + 4 = 6 Thousand. Seriously! 4 + 4 = 6 Thousand. Seriously!

  • From: CI_CommJAL
  • Description:

    

    At Children International’s Jalisco agency, we couldn’t be happier. Last week we opened our fourth community center in Mexico. Isn’t that amazing?

    Thanks to this center, along with the other three, we’ll be able to help over 20 thousand kids in Mexico. That seems amazing since we’re one of CI’s newest agencies. We’ve only been working here for six years, and we’re already seeing the results and the impact of Children International’s work in the communities.

    

    I bet you’re still wondering about the title of this post. Like I said, this is our fourth community center in Mexico. It was build on Cerro del Cuatro (Four Hill), and it will benefit six thousand kids.

    We hope in four years – less if possible – to see the results in the community where the center is located, with healthy and educated kids, and youths aware that they can become agents of change and transform their communities. In the end, this is our main goal.

    I asked the mother of the first sponsored child at Tlaquepaque Community Center, “What changes do to expect to see in your community with the arrival of Children International?”

    “Until now, I know that you’re promoting values and unfortunately in this area, we’re lacking in those…also the things that you offer, like clothes and shoes, are really helpful. I’m really interested in sports and English classes. I hope we can get all the parents involved in rescuing the youths who are wasting their lives on drugs. I think that one the biggest problem here is gangs, but more than that, people’s apathy. As for my kids, I would like for them to continue studying and to be healthy,” was María Mena’s reply.

    

    Our president, Jim Cook, joined us for the opening event, and after the ceremony 300 hundred kids who are members of the sports program gave him a big welcome in another service area as a way to celebrate the accomplishment of this goal. We imagine that happening in the new center in a close future.

    

    Just look at this last picture!!!!

    

  • Blog post
  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 93

• Summer time is visit time! Summer time is visit time!

  • From: CI_CommQTO
  • Description:

    Summer time is usually a busy time at Quito Agency. From June to September, we are used to seeing sponsors and their sponsored children share and enjoy together during sponsors’ visits.

    I hear my colleagues talk about the visits they have assisted with, and I get amazed at how exciting and meaningful this is for both sponsors and children. As my colleagues say, a sponsor visit is “unforgettable”, “enriching”, “a chance to make bonds stronger”, and “an opportunity to better know about the person behind photos, letters and benefits.”

    Most of the time, sponsors are very interested in visiting the child’s home. When Cynthia received the visit of her sponsor Krisaki and her family, she was pleased to have her at home, which gave the sponsor a better perspective of how Cynthia lives.

    

    In a sponsor visit, both sponsors and children have the chance to see new places together. Here is Erick enjoying the ride to the Middle of the World and having an ice cream with his sponsor Irene; and Erick’s mother and brother also liked the little tour.

    

    Learning a bit about our culture and traditions may also be part of the experience. See how delighted Guissela and her sponsor Julie are for sharing some traditional Ecuadorian food.

    

    What about fun? Well, there is time for that too. Like Bryan shows here, he had a good time playing some foosball with his sponsor Richard at the Vulcano Park.

    

    The most important thing with the visit is that two friends get to finally meet each other. Look at Tannia and her sponsor Juan José, who are just glad to be together.

    

    Sponsor visits come along with nice, fun and emotional moments, and it is definitely worth every minute of it. Wouldn’t you like to meet, hug and share with that little boy or girl you are helping?

  • Blog post
  • 2 weeks ago
  • Views: 284

• Life or Limb Life or Limb

  • From: CI_CommSAH
  • Description:

    

     

    Nothing is going to pin him down, nothing will keep him static, he may fall over many hurdles but he is going to pick himself up and keep going on. This is Biswajit– a former sponsored youth, a below-knee amputee and a bundle of positive energy.

    What could be more shocking to a nineteen year old who loves playing soccer and cycling to be told that he would have to choose between his life or limb?  Little did he think that the pain that he often complained of in his left ankle and the eventual swelling would actually be malignant and put his life in danger. The news of his illness was also devastating for his family, who for the first time was worried about how to meet the huge financial expenditure of the treatment as he was no longer a sponsored youth. They tried meeting the medical expenses on their own, and accumulated staggering debts, and realizing that they were on the verge of losing their son to cancer due to lack of proper treatment then appealed to Children International for help.

    

     

    
    Children International stepped in with financial help, but that did not mean the end of worries for Biswajit or his family. Soon the doctors recommended surgery and removal of a part of his left leg to prevent the spread of cancer. This was a tough choice for a nineteen year old to make but as Biswajit says "Sometimes you have to make hard choices in your life," "And this is one of them”. Luckily for Biswajit, the surgery saved his life and after going through a series of chemotherapy the doctors declared him fit and cancer free.

     

    Then started the tedious process of rehabilitation and picking up the threads of his life before becoming an amputee. Learning to walk all over again was difficult but Biswajit dealt with it differently. "I made sure not to feel sorry for myself, and I didn't let others feel sorry for me either.” After learning to walk again, it was difficult to take the firs steps outside his house, but that he did that too, and has now gone back to college, reconnected with his old friends and what is amazing,  is actually cycling again.

    

     

    
    Between attending college and spending time with friends, Biswajit also makes time to speak to the youth in his locality and try to encourage them to make the most of the opportunities that they have rather than feeling sorry for themselves. He hopes to continue speaking to different groups and telling his story so that it makes a difference in somebody’s life.

    

    
    Biswajit plans on completing his degree and living a productive life in the future, despite his prosthesis. It is much like learning to cycle – you keep picking yourself up and putting your self back on the seat after each fall, to master the art", says Biswajit.

    
    His family and he have had to deal with a number of adversities over the last year, but because of his positive thinking, he's been able to move ahead and continue living his life even while he awaits painful plastic surgery in the years ahead.
    P.S. He is planning to play a soccer match soon too!

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    

  • Blog post
  • 3 weeks ago
  • Views: 174

• The Story of Doña María The Story of Doña María

  • From: Children_Intl_Admin
  • Description:

    The Story of Doña María

    By Cesar Ovidio Clara, field officer, Area 4, Patulul

    We were traveling through the areas affected by Tropical Storm Agatha, in a place called Barrio el Triunfo (Triumph Neighborhood) in Patulul. We thought we had helped everyone that could be helped, when we came upon 75-year-old María Yoxon de Gómez, a widow and grandmother of sponsored child Byron Gómez Martínez. 

    

    When she sees me, Doña María begins to cry and tells me that she’s lived here for 58 years. It’s where she saw her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren grow up. She used to come out and rest on these rocks in front of what used to be her house – a house destroyed by the currents of the Madre Vieja River. Now she simply asks God to give her patience, strength and courage to keep living the years she has left.

    Doña María says that she survived thanks to her children, but they were also affected by the storm – and they have an even greater struggle. “Now who will care for me?” she laments. “They don’t pay attention to old people like me, because according to them, we’re useless now. Children make your life happier and they are the future. Youth make life happier, but we old people, to a lot of people, we’re a nuisance. I just ask God for his help as long as I’m still alive on this blessed earth.”

    I can’t help but wonder: Perhaps people who have a deep love for children can also find it in their hearts to help this little grandma...

    Read more about the children and families affected by Tropical Storm Agatha in Journeys: More of the Story. 

  • Blog post
  • 3 weeks ago
  • Views: 499

• When a child turns 12 When a child turns 12

  • From: CI_CommTAB
  • Description:

     

    

    

    Transitions aren’t always easy. It means making adjustments, getting out of comfort zones, and getting used to new environments. Perhaps one of the most difficult periods of transition is adolescence, when a child is no longer just a child but becomes a teenager – an exciting yet often confusing phase.

     

    In Children International, when a child turns 12 they also go through a transition, a certain rite of passage. Each year, thousands of sponsored children are formally welcomed into the Youth Programs through an induction. In the Philippines, it’s dubbed as the Succeeding Teenage Encounter Program or STEP… and rightfully so, children take a big step into a whole new world of fun, learning, and more opportunities that would prepare them for the challenges ahead.

     

    STEP welcomes each child by introducing them to the different opportunities available to sponsored youth. These include scholarships, various trainings in leadership, life skills, alternative skills, and many more. They also find out about the youth fund, agency youth council, youth health corps and how to be a part of it. It is also through this that CI’s mission, vision and goals and core programs are explained. Ultimately, the goal of STEP is to introduce and at the same time encourage greater involvement and participation from the youth.

     

    

     

    The process doesn’t happen through the usual discussions that could easily lull any 12-year old to sleep. This year the Tabaco Agency adopted a different strategy, one that would appeal to the participants and loaded with lots of fun – the Amazing Race style! Divided into several groups, they hurdled different tasks spread in various stations each one giving them a valuable lesson.

     

    The wood walk... taking it one synchronized step at a time

    

     

    Knowing thy letters...

    

     

    The Youth Health Corps puzzle

    

     

    Core Program benefits...

    

     

    Balancing the ball blindfolded needs a lot of concentration and team effort.

     

     

    The group who finished with the least amount of time wins, but at the end of the day... everyone one goes home a winner.

    

     

    With almost 1,400 children to be inducted from the end of July until September, this is one transition the kids would love to go through!

  • Blog post
  • 1 month ago
  • Views: 572

• A mother's take on Sponsorship A mother's take on Sponsorship

  • From: CI_CommSAH
  • Description:

    Surely all mothers are extraordinary? Well, Radha certainly is. Living in one of the poorest communities in the village of Danga in West Bengal and bringing up three children all by herself is certainly not easy, yet amidst all these difficulties she maintains a cheerful front.

    

    I spent sometime with her talking about her life and came away humbled that a person who has so much hardship can still be so open and loving especially towards her children. What touched me most was that when requested for a photo with one of her daughters she got up and hugged her daughter and wanted a photo of that moment.

     

    This is almost unheard of in rural communities in West Bengal were hugging is not that common – and a widowed mother hugging her ten year old daughter that too in front of strangers is most certainly a no, no.

    

    
    This is what Radha said: I lost my husband recently. He could not handle the pressures of poverty and just lost the will to live, but I still have the zest for living especially for my children Piyali, Pinki and Suman.

    

    Without a husband I have to earn money for the family. I am a daily worker as I cannot afford to take on any permanent work like that of a domestic help. Domestic help would mean spending long hours away from my children and though the money would be good they would be deprived of my company and would have no one to look after them or supervise their studies. I cannot help them in their studies but I keep an eye on them making sure that they are studying.  Life is not easy, in fact things are really tough, but all my three children are sponsored and their education and healthcare, the two most important things are being taken care of by their sponsors.

    

    Often we do not have enough to eat, but we have each other, and sponsorship program to help my children reach their dreams of making it big in life even in the midst of such poverty and hopelessness. The program is gradually instilling in them the courage to pursue their goals unhampered by any limits and I can see the change in them. My heartfelt thanks to my children’s sponsors for being there for us always.

    

     

    

    

  • Blog post
  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 432

• Olympic Snowboarder Teams With Olympic Snowboarder Teams With Children International

  • From: Children_Intl_Admin
  • Description:

    Hannah Teter and Ryan Sheckler are both up for VH1 "Do Something Awards" this year under the athlete category. These action sports icons might have a tough task ahead of them in the face of their competitors including Yankee Derek Jeter, Phoenix Sun Steve Nash and New Orleans Saints sensation, Reggie Bush.

    

    "Hannah sells maple syrup and other products on her website to provide water to a village in Kenya, sold underwear online to support Doctors Without Borders, and had a Ben & Jerry's flavor named after her, with proceeds going to charity. She's raised over $250,000 for Kirindon and at least 40% of all net proceeds from the sale of her Sweet Cheeks panties line is given to charity partner Children International to help feed and nourish children living in extreme poverty."

    The awards take place on July 19th so get your vote on here.

  • Blog post
  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 372

• Breaking the cycle of illitera Breaking the cycle of illiteracy

  • From: CI_CommTAB
  • Description:

    When the school year opened this June, most kids saw it as the end of the blissful summer days when they can sleep and play all they want. But for some, the first day of school was a day they have long waited for.

    Of course, who wouldn’t get excited over the thrill of wearing a new pair of shoes and uniform, a fresh set of school supplies and a new set of books? At least for the nerdy types, that is. But more than the buzz of writing on the first pages of a new notebook or doodling on a crisp notepad, for sisters Maricel and Noela, going back to school is all they ever wanted.

    

    These two girls came from a long line of people deprived of an education. Their father can barely read and their mom can’t even write her full name. He is a farm helper and she is a housemaid. Of their three older siblings, Noel and Norlyn are already fortunate to even make it to first grade. Noli wasn’t that lucky; he didn’t experience going to school at all. In fact, their mother Norma couldn’t remember a single relative who finished high school. For their family, this seemed like a fate they have long accepted and getting stuck in menial jobs was a fact they’re already resigned to. It was true for the generations that came before them, it’s still true for them today. 

    But when Maricel and Noela became part of the sponsorship program in 2008, it gave them a chance to hope… that things can be better, that maybe, there is a possibility that they can break away from the crippling cycle of illiteracy that runs in their family.

    With the help of sponsorship, their mother Norma is convinced that life could be different for her two youngest daughters. The educational support that Children International provides to sponsored children encouraged her to send her girls back to school. Maricel and Noela, ages 12 and 8, are now both in Grade 2. They maybe lagging behind compared to the students in their batch but their eagerness to learn more than makes up for it.

    

    Talking to these girls, I saw how badly they wanted to learn. At first, they seemed aloof and couldn’t even meet my gaze but they warmed up eventually and started sharing their thoughts with me. They said they both wanted to go to school but their parents just couldn’t afford it so they had to stop. Noela, the more outspoken one of the two girls, told me how she loved being in school because they get to meet new friends and most of all learn how to read and write. She proudly demonstrated how well she could write her name and filled an entire page in no time.

    

    Maricel, on the other hand, brought out the story book she got from CI last Christmas and read me a paragraph from her favorite story. She loves books and history is her favorite subject, she told me.

    

    Looking in their eyes you can see that the thirst for learning is so real you could almost touch it and their enthusiasm so high you can’t help but root for them. If the writings on this wall are any indication, these girls will go a long way… all they need is a chance.

    

    

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 727

• Countering the Cognitive Effec Countering the Cognitive Effects of Poverty through Sponsorship

  • From: CI_KellyN
  • Description:

    Evidence continues to emerge that underscores the often devastating effects of poverty on children's ability to learn.

    In an article from December 10, 2008, in USA Today, Greg Toppo addresses the results of a study performed on 9- and 10-year-olds who live in poverty. The damage inflicted by poverty conditions on the brain is in some cases compared to the damage inflicted by a stroke. The lead researcher, Mark Kishiyama of the University of California - Berkely, describes it as "a similar pattern to what's seen in patients with strokes that have led to lesions in their prefrontal cortex."

    According to Toppo, "the study adds to a growing body of evidence that shows how poverty afflicts children's brains. Researchers have long pointed to the ravages of malnutrition, stress, illiteracy and toxic environments in low-income children's lives. Research has shown that the neural systems of poor children develop differently from those of middle-class children, affecting language development and ‘executive function,' or the ability to plan, remember details and pay attention in school."

    However, what I find most significant is this: "Such deficiencies are reversible through intensive intervention such as focused lessons and games that encourage children to think out loud or use executive function."

    Perhaps this explains why the picture I see every time I visit a Children International community center - and I've visited dozens - is so dramatically different from the picture painted in the study.

    It's not that our sponsored kids don't grow up in poverty; quite the contrary. But spend a little time around our sponsored youth, and you'll soon realize you would be hard-pressed to find sharper, more articulate and more engaged young people in any area of society.

    It would be irresponsible to arbitrarily assign causality without engaging in proper research. But I've seen the love and care the staff of our community centers invests in our children. I've seen the many programs they operate to engage children from preschool age on up through graduation from sponsorship. Our children are constantly challenged...constantly mentored...and consistently outstanding in their leadership, character and contribution to their communities.

    Whatever the technical reasons might be, sponsored children are beating the odds. Very soon, you'll see a new section on our website that features the successes of sponsorship - real stories of real kids who grew up and took control of their destinies.

    Keep doing what you're doing. Sponsorship works.

    To read Greg Toppo's article in its entirety, click here.

     

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 525

• Soccer (and life skills) time! Soccer (and life skills) time!

  • From: CI_CommJAL
  • Description:

    

    

     

    LEADERSHIP + RESPONSIBILITY + TEAMWORK= DRUG-FREE YOUTH

     

    

    

     

    The World Cup season seems the perfect time to share with you one of the strategies we’re really proud of at the CI Jalisco agency!

     

    Last year, Children International made an alliance with the International Alliance for Youth Sports (IAYS), and thanks to that we’ve been training volunteer youth and parents to become coaches and organize sport tournaments and trainings.

     

    But it’s not just about soccer and other sports, but about promoting life skills through physical activity. Life skills and values such as: responsibility, leadership, gender equality, teamwork, effective communication and conflict resolution strategies. Sponsored youth are now leading teams formed by sponsored and non-sponsored kids in their communities.

     

    We have an important network of participants that is getting bigger every day. Besides the IAYS support we also signed an agreement with a Mexican soccer team named Chivas, whose Chiva Barrio program aims to form community trainers.

     

    But, what is the program about? It is part of our vision to form true leaders, responsible adults who are avoid drugs and unhealthy lifestyles. The program is now being settled in other agencies as well, and the goal is to have it in all the countries were we work.

     

    Mothers, who are also the coaches, say: “We’ve seen the results; our kids are more responsible, and because of that, better students and better kids as well”. 

     

    Just imagine, what if one day the soccer players who are in the World Cup would be former sponsored children from Children International, or better yet: your former sponsored child!

     

    

     

    -The future world champion? 'Monarchs', the soccer team who won the first tournament at the agency-

     

    

     

    -This is one of the fields where kids play soccer-

     

    

    

     

    -Women's roll  has been really important for the development of the sports program.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

        

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 584

• Living in No Man's Land Living in No Man's Land

  • From: CI_CommSAH
  • Description:

    To me one of the best part of being a communications coordinator is that I get to meet varied people in the community, both sponsored and non-sponsored and every meeting is a learning experience for me. In one of my recent visits to the villages along the Indo-Bangladesh border, I had a very interesting experience – I met a sponsored family living in no man’s land between India and Bangladesh, in the village of Shilberia and this is the first time I have met someone living in “no man’s zone” between two countries.

    

    Fencing started at the Indo-Bangladesh border in 1986 to curb cross border movement. Due to this many Indian families have fallen outside fencing and a huge quantum of Indian land has fallen in the 'no man's zone'. Those who could afford it moved inland and abandoned houses like the one in the photo below is a common sight, but for some like the Sarkar family movement was not an option due to economic reasons. Indeed, the border fence has cut off thousands of Indians from the rest of India and the people residing in such no-man’s land have to now show their ID cards to pass through the border gates into their own country.

    

    At one such border checkpost I watched Munmun Sarkar, resident of Nichpara, pass through the gate after her credentials were checked by the BSF border guards and I talked to her to find out how it is to live in the no-man’s land:

    

    “Q: What is it like living in a no man’s land? Munmun: Our family has lived in this particular plot for the past 35 years and we did not have the wherewithal to move when the fencing came up in this area in 1995. The main problem that we face is that of movement from fenced Indian land to Indian mainland. Being under constant vigilance of the Border Security Forces is at times stressful. There are also certain protocols that we have to follow if we have visitors or if we stay out late as the border gates have fixed times of opening and shutting. Also, if someone falls ill at night it takes a while to get proper authorization for the gates to open beyond the scheduled time.

    

    What’s more, there are associated problems of smuggling as this is a very porous border. This is corrupting the community. There are so many young people who get enticed into drug trafficking because of poverty and difficult living conditions. These young men and women drop out of school because of poor economic condition of their families and then take to smuggling to relieve their boredom and to make quick money. Often this leads to disastrous results with lives being lost. Luckily for me, while we are poor and have to live here, being sponsored makes a world of a difference. I can continue to go to school, attend youth group meetings, take the various trainings, avail of the health benefits etc. While being a girl and living in a no man’s land has its own baggage, the number of trainings that we have received as members of the youth group has equipped me to handle these problems with confidence. The program has made me aware of what I can achieve if I put my mind to it. I am now more aware of my rights and can be quite vocal about it. Being in the program has given me the strength to say no to my peers who have at times wanted me to join in their schemes of making quick money in a border area. Infact with my communication skills, negotiating skills and problem solving skills that I have learned through leadership training I have tried to wean some of the youth away from their present violent lifestyles.

    

    While we were talking the hands of the clock was slowly creeping towards 6PM and noticing this Munmun, along with a few others turned to leave India and return to their homes beyond the border fence as they do everyday, before the gates closed shutting them out.After meeting this exceptionally mature young adult who lives in an area where steel wires have divided people, communities and villages even though they share the same linguistic, ethnic and cultural similarities, I felt that for the many many sponsored youth living in these border areas, this program offers a beacon hope, the ship that will take them to safety, away from poverty and deprivation, to places where nationality and sovereignty are not alien concepts.

    

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 633

• A Board Member's Perspective: A Board Member's Perspective: Keeping Disaster Victims in Our Thoughts

  • From: CI_JimCookBlog
  • Description:

    Dr. Charles Maahs is a long time member of Children International's Board of Directors and a retired Lutheran bishop and pastor. Over the years, he has traveled to many of Children International's field locations. At a recent Board meeting, which took place in the wake of the calamitous events in Central and South America, Dr. Maahs opened the meeting with the following thoughts...

    I was moved by reading the reports of the recent natural disasters in several of the countries where we have our sponsoring agencies: the volcanic eruptions in Guatemala and Ecuador, and the destructive tropical storms in Guatemala and Honduras. In fact, looking at some of the pictures on the CI website had me thinking, I’ve been down that muddy street before on one of our Board visits to that agency. It sure looked familiar.

    However, what always stands out for me is not the suffering and hardship of the families we sponsor, but the faith, durability, and the strength, of the families and children we serve. This reminded me of the passage from Psalm 46 which surely  has to be at the heart of the faith these people have in order to sustain them from one disaster after another and the reality of the poverty they face each day:

    “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
    Therefore, we will not fear though the earth should change,
    Though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
    Though its waters roar and foam,
    Though the mountains tremble with its turmoil.”
    (Psalm 46:1-3)

    We pray for the many children and their families who have been beset by natural and human disasters and who see their way of life threatened. Grant that  they may live each day with the assurance that it is not FEAR, but HOPE that will enable them to face each new day.

    May our decisions today continue to further the vision and mission of Children International.

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 615

• Video of Guatemala Mudslides Video of Guatemala Mudslides

  • From: CI_KellyN
  • Description:

    I just posted a number of video clips taken by Javier Cárcamo, our communications coordinator in Guatemala, as he and other staff members entered the areas stricken by the mudslides from Tropical Storm Agatha to assess damages and determine the wellbeing of sponsored children and their families. For a firsthand view of what a mudslide can do, visit our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/ChildrenInt.

     

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 640

• Images from Guatemala, Part 3 Images from Guatemala, Part 3

  • From: CI_KellyN
  • Description:

    Hope...Although the weariness on his mom's face is evident, this young Tropical Storm Agatha survivor's smile indicates that the emergency food aid they have just picked up at the Children International community center in Patulul has made life a tiny bit better after the devastating mudslides that changed his family's world in a moment. Photo by Dálide Oliva.

    
    

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 569

• Images from Guatemala, Part 2 Images from Guatemala, Part 2

  • From: CI_KellyN
  • Description:

    Pain...the eyes of these Mayan villagers are haunted by the horrors they have seen in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Agatha. Photo by Javier Cárcamo.

    
    

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 599

• Images from Guatemala Images from Guatemala

  • From: CI_KellyN
  • Description:

    Courage...As if being abandoned by her father were not enough, this 4-year-old girl's bedroom collapsed into the gulch behind her home under the onslaught of Tropical Storm Agatha -- taking with it much of what was left of her world. Yet, somehow, she still finds the faith to smile. Photo by Javier Cárcamo

    

     

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 661

• Guatemala Disaster Update Guatemala Disaster Update

  • From: CI_KellyN
  • Description:

     

    The following is a firsthand account from the disaster area in Guatemala, as reported by our communications coordinator, Javier Cárcamo. Please be advised that it contains very graphic descriptions of death and human suffering.

    It's nine o'clock at night. Just a few hours ago I was in the disaster area that Tropical Storm Agatha left in Ciudad Vieja, a community situated on the outskirts of the Volcán de Agua (Water Volcano).

    My arms are covered in small scrapes and insect bites. My eyes are irritated, and my skin reeks of mud and death. A smell of death that could be a person or an animal...whatever the case, it is so penetrating that I can't get it out of my pores or my mind.

    I walked nearly four hours alongside CI Guatemala team members, through the mud that looks like unstable sand, hiding enormous rocks, objects and human remains.

    "Yesterday they found a woman holding her eleven month-old baby," recounts Mario Morales, a sponsored youth who has joined forces with the volunteers. "They also found a boy's hand, or a girl's. We won't know until we find the rest."

    The magnitude of this tragedy has left behind the rain of volcanic sand from the eruption of the Pacaya Volcano that just five days ago covered a large part of the country. Ironically, I am in the disaster area, and because I've been helping the sponsored families, I haven't been able to clean my own house, which also was covered and damaged with that toxic and corrosive sand.

    Hundreds of people from the communities have worked without rest since Saturday the 29th, when Agatha hit the hardest. You can see volunteers from various countries with shovels and hoes digging out homes in search of the missing or to rescue belongings. The most fortunate families, with homes made of block and cement, saw the river of mud, rocks and trees uprooted by the volcano, open up holes in their walls, bend their metal balconies and sweep away their things. The water that has now receded left its brown mark above the windows. More than two meters of mud; cars swept away and destroyed; tons of rocks inside of their rooms...even the home of the parents of San Lorenzo Center's Social Work Supervisor.

    

    But our sponsored families...they have nothing. Their homes disappeared; their lands are unrecognizable. Everything is a horrible valley of debris that smells of death and misery, where you can't plant your feet without slowly sinking in.

    

    There are remains of unrecognizable objects - a few pieces of destroyed furniture, tables, chairs, dressers and beds. The mud is so high that it looks like there is a decorative border a few centimeters from the ground, by what was once the home's wall. Men and women work their shovels, with mud up to their knees. Children who have found items that are still usable walk barefoot, protecting their treasures in black plastic bags.

    Members of the army watch us carefully. Despite the chaos, there are always criminals who take advantage of the abandoned homes to steal things.

    

    Yellow tape that announces, "Keep Out, Crime Scene," alerts us to a desolate panorama. An unidentified child cries behind a barbed wire fence. He and his family must flee to the shelter. The fear that this child is feeling now - I feel as though I'm swallowing it with anger and impotence.

    Upon seeing us, the hopeful families gather around field officer Cristóbal Hernández, and they show us what once was an impoverished but colorful rural area. To anyone who didn't know this community called San Miguel Escobar before, maybe there isn't anything out of the ordinary. There is a river of mud, enormous rocks and overturned trees. But it wasn't like this just a few days ago. This was a village. "That's where the road was," says Cristóbal, "And that's where a sponsored family's home used to be...there, where you can see a piece of a dresser."

    

    The sensation is indescribable. This is a cemetery full of ruins, broken families - in heart and spirit - who walk one behind the other with their few possessions over their heads and in their hands. Many of them talk with us telling us their own experiences.

    "Do you know how people who die drowned by the mud end up?" one of the men carrying a bag of clothes asks me. "They are found stiff, with their mouth open as wide as possible, full of dirt, with their cheeks swollen, about to burst...You don't get over seeing something like that. It's impossible to stop thinking about it."

     

  • Blog post
  • 3 months ago
  • Views: 1412

• The learning experience of spo The learning experience of sponsorship

  • From: CI_CommQTO
  • Description:

    I have been working with Children International as a Communications Coordinator in Quito Agency for one year now, and since that day I have been able to see lots of things and meet lots of people that have proved something to me: it is worth it every minute of our work!

    The first family I met was Nathaly’s, and I must say I was nervous, but they just made it easy from the moment Nathaly and her sister started to sing and dance for me. How would not I feel warmly welcome with such cute smiles?

    

    Sharing that time with them made me feel there is a lot to do for those who need a helping hand; for those who know they want something more for their future, but just cannot find the way to make it.

    When I find children like Josselin, grooming and keeping a cute smile to look nice in the photo.

    

    Like Kevin and Welinton, concentrated on studying with the help of a tutor to better their performance at school.

    

    Like Josselyn, happily playing after seeing the doctor.

    

    And youths like Estefania, making their goals real.

    

    The only thing that comes to my mind is a big Thank you to all of our sponsors that make this possible.

    The work we are doing together can make a difference in our children’s lives, and I am glad for being part of this. I can tell this has been a life-changing experience to me, and I am sure you could say the same about sponsorship, so here is my invitation: let’s keep bringing hope and help to our sponsored children!

  • Blog post
  • 4 months ago
  • Views: 733