People Against Poverty - Child Sponsorship Newsletter

Transcription

1 People Against Poverty - Child Sponsorship Newsletter In This Issue Moving on Does CS work? Do you know someone that can help Ranjana? A note to our Romania sponsors Top Marks! Days out! Finding a new home Dreaming big A note to our Nepal sponsors Moving on from Child Sponsorship In the majority of cases the aim of Child Sponsorship is to support the children until they reach the age of 18, or until they finish their education. In this time we aim to equip them the best tools that we can give them to help them fight poverty - hope, self esteem, love, an education, adequate nutrition and medical care. Sunitha is a 20 year old woman living in India and came onto the Child Sponsorship Scheme in 2007 as a teenager. Life was hard for Sunitha at 14 and her mother failed to make ends meet after being forced into the sex trade to support her children. Through the love and support of her sponsor Haven Home were able to help Sunitha and get her into school where she flourished! 6 years on we see Sunitha leave the scheme after completing her sewing and tailoring course. Earlier this year she passed her final exams with flying colours and the Dear Child Sponsors, Welcome to our new quarterly Child Sponsorship Newsletter! This new Newsletter will bring you more information on what is happening in the projects we work with and will focus on stories about the children that you all sponsor in our projects in Romania, Nepal, Haiti, Tanzania, Malawi and India. Each Newsletter will bring you news and updates - and show you exactly how your sponsorship is making a difference in these children's lives by bring them basic but powerful tools in life - Food, Education, Medical care and much more. We will also feature a child that is currently in need of a sponsor to support them and give the same opportunities that the children you sponsor have to lift themselves from poverty. Perhaps you know someone that can bring hope to Ranjana? If so please forward them this . As well as this new Newsletter, you will still receive our general monthly Newsletter which brings you all the general fundraising, business and project updates from People against Poverty. Id like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your love and support of the children that you sponsor, it has a profound and lasting effect on their - and hopefully your - lives. All the best Jenny James Office Manager Days out in Iasi

2 excitement continued when she became engaged! The future looks bright for Sunitha and because of her own hard work and the support of sponsorship she has been able to break the poverty cycle. We wish Sunitha all the best and will keep you updated when they set a date for the big day! Does Child Sponsorship work? Well the short answer is yes!! But don't just take our word for it, this article cites a study done by the University of San Francisco which shows the "statistically significant" impact that sponsoring a child in poverty has. Sponsorship is about more than money, its about the relationship, its about hope, it about knowing that someone far away loves you and considers you precious. Its about a long-term commitment that gives these kid the best possible chance that they could hope for. Thank you for everything you give to these children! Your child sponsorship money goes to providing the basics in life for these children. Enough food for the whole family, the chance to be able to go to school and the opportunity to see a Doctor if needed. But a little is put by every month so that the projects can do something special with the children, perhaps a party or a day out. These activities may seem normal to you or I, but for these children who have more worries on their young shoulders than any should have, it is a chance for them to socialise, play and just be children. In Romania, Alex recently took a group of the sponsored children for an afternoon out. It didn't start well when they arrived at the circus that they had planned on visiting and it was closed. She quickly came up with a plan B and decided to take the children to the park where they all played games together, sang songs and ate lots of candyfloss and doughnuts. They were having so much fun that soon other children in the park came to join in! They finished the day off by going to a restaurant to enjoy some pizza and a cold drink. All the children had a fantastic day out, some even commented on the way home that it had been the most beautiful experience of their lives. Thank you for making this possible. Finding a New Home Do you know someone who can help Ranjana fulfil her potential? Wilson, Wilberson and Wildania Siblings Wilson, Wilberson and Wildania Desirin arrived at St Josephs Crèche in Haiti in 2008 after their mother

3 died giving birth to Wildania. Believe it or not these 3 were some of the lucky ones, they found a loving and nurturing home with Gertrude and volunteers at the orphanage. They soon settled into a life there and began to grow and flourish under Gertrude's love. But their lives were to change in a way that they couldn't imagine after a family from the US came to visit Port au Prince, and decided to love these children like their own and start the process to adopt them - all 3! This was a process that was completed this year and Wilson, Wilberson and Wildania are now settling in to their new home in the USA with their loving family. We are desperately looking for someone to help 10 year old Ranjana from Pokhara, Nepal. Ranjana and her sisters have it tougher than most; not only do they live in abject poverty, in a small hut with no heating, lighting or sanitation, but their mother has just left the family leaving the girls with their father who is suffering from Tuberculosis and struggling with alcohol addiction. Though she is currently at school it is highly unlikely that she will complete her education without support. We want to help Ranjana with the basics; making sure she always has enough food to eat, that she is able to go to school, that she can access medical care when needed and just as importantly we want to give her hope that she can aspire to a better life. This is more than words and a picture - this is a 10 year old girls life. Please send this to anyone that you may think is interested or us for more information And Carly too... Carly arrived in Notre Maison Orphanage in 2008 after her mother had passed away and her grandmother was no longer able to take care of her due to disability. Carly too is disabled and this caused to her to be wheelchair bound. Thanks to the tireless work of the orphanage and her sponsorship she was able to travel to the USA and has started a series of life changing surgeries of her spine and legs, which has resulted in her be able to walk using her hot pink crutches! On all of her visits to the USA she stayed with a host family, who, understandably very quickly fell in love with her! They too are currently nearing the end of the adoption process to take Carly into their family and give her and the love and attention she deserves, as well as the first class medical care that she needs. In an ideal world the children we work with will stay in their family and in their own country, however for the children of the orphanages in Port au Prince a "normal" family unit is not an option. Though they are very loved and well looked after by the orphanage, adoption really is their only chance of a getting back into a loving family where they can grow and flourish like any child deserves to. The families and children maintain contact with the St Josephs Crèche and Notre Maison. The families are very well chosen and vetted and work hard to keep the Creole alive in the children. We are sure you will join us in wishing Wilberson, Wilson, Wildania and Carly all the best in their new lives. For sponsors in Romania Turning dreams into reality We have had a couple of queries from sponsors regarding letters from the children in Romania, when they are started with "Dear

4 sponsor, I am...", people have asked if that means that the children don't get your letters or know your names. Please be assured that this is NOT the case! The children write their letters to you all as a group activity when they come to the Way of Joy, some struggle to spell English names, as they are completely different to Romania versions, also they are taught at school that the polite way to begin a letter is "Dear Friend" or "Dear sponsor" and then to introduce themselves, so it is really meant as a sign of respect more than anything else! We hope that clears up any worries you might have had but if not please don't hesitate to contact us! Top Marks! Well done to sponsored child Jenny in Tanzania who has recently completed form 3 and has finished in the top 5% of the 145 children in her form. 15 year old Jenny's dream is to continue and finish her studies up to form 6 and maybe beyond. And with grades like that and the support of her generous sponsor we just know she will fulfil this dream! This is Roshan from Kathmandu, Nepal. Roshan has always been a hard worker and intelligent and dreamed one day that he would become a Pilot, however without the means to finish even basic education, let alone further, it seemed likely to stay just a dream. That was until he came onto the Child Sponsorship Scheme in 2008 and suddenly his educational future looked more secure. Now 18 years old and Roshan has completed his schooling and passed with excellent grades and last month we received the fantastic news that he has been accepted on a part scholarship into South-east Missouri State University in the United States. His plan is to complete the 4 year BSc Degree in Cyber-Security and then to continue on studying to become a Pilot. Sadly only $8000 per year is covered by the scholarship and he will needs to find an additional $10,000 per year to fund his course but we will feel confident that with his tenacity, intelligence, work ethic and the love of his sponsor Roshan is going to go far. He begins his course in August and we will of course keep you updated! If you would like to help support Roshan in completing his degree, for whatever amount, or if you would like more information please us. A note to our Nepal Sponsors... Hopefully you all should have received the letters from the children that we have recently sent. Our apologies that communications from Nepal have not been so good of late. Krishna the project leader has been having some family issues, earlier this year one of his twin girls was rushed to

5 hospital to have a very large tumour removed from her abdomen (which thankfully was benign) and he has been travelling far and wide to find funds to support his son Roshan in his degree (see story above!), because even though Krishna and his family have huge hearts they are by no means well off themselves. We thank you for all your patience! People against Poverty Grangeside Business Centre Wilts, BA14 7SZ jenny.j@peopleagainstpoverty.com