Getting Ahead on the Mean Streets

Before he attended a life skills workshop offered by Children International, Harold Osorio, 10, followed a precarious path that was full of potential for disaster.

“Harold lives in one of the most dangerous zones of the city,” reports Patricia Calderón, Communications Coordinator for Children International’s agency in Barranquilla, Colombia. “Often, he witnessed armed robberies and saw his neighbors and relatives taking drugs. He was always out on the streets, and that exposed him to the danger of picking up vices.”


The workshop changed Harold’s entire perspective. Now he understands the dangers of his environment and realizes that the wrong kind of behavior could put his life at risk. Harold is now convinced that there is a better way to live, in spite of the pressure from his friends.

In fact, Harold has decided he wants to be a businessman and become someone in life. Now that’s what you call “street-smart”!

Photo and reporting assistance by Patricia Calderón.

Q&A with a Boy Named Gift

What is your favorite part of sponsorship?

My favorite part of sponsorship is when I receive things. My favorite was a set of pots I recently got. My mum was very excited and happy to have new pots.

What is your best memory about coming to the community center?

I was happy the first day I was allowed to read the the nice books on the shelves in the library.

What would you like to tell your sponsor?

I would like my sponsor to see my books and also visit my school and see how well I am performing - all because of her help.

Photo and reporting by Clementina Chapusha, Communications Coordinator in Lusaka, Zambia.

These are a Few of My Favorite Things...about Sponsorship

I have fond childhood memories of sitting down with my family, the Trapp family, and watching the The Sound of Music together. Listening to Julie Andrews happily singing “My Favorite Things,” we couldn’t help but join in too. “Silver-white winters that melt into spring, these are few of my favorite things...” It’s a catchy tune.

Sponsorship is no doubt one of my favorite things too. Now, I know I’m a little biased since I work for Children International, but I’m also a sponsor. I sponsor a little boy in Mexico, and a group of my coworkers and I sponsor a young lady in Rural Guatemala. While I’m not going to sing about it, I thought I would take a moment today to share just a few of my favorite things about sponsorship:

-Letters from my sponsored child. I love getting mail, and if it comes from my sponsored kiddos, all the better.

- The pictures of course. I always get a kick out of their toothy grins (or seeing how many teeth they’ve lost since the last photo.)

-Knowing that I’m helping a needy child.

If you’d like to share your favorite things about sponsorship, we’d love to hear from you. Open a thread on our Google Groups page and tell us your story.

Joy and Fulfillment through Volunteering

Posted on behalf of Sarah Jane Velasco, Communications Coordinator in Tabaco, Philippines.

Ermilinda Bigol has been a volunteer mother for almost five years now. She is also a widow single-handedly raising five children.

Considering that her hands are already full with family responsibilities, how Ate Emmy (Sister Emmy), as she is fondly called in the community, manages to devote time to volunteer in the sponsorship program is indeed a wonder. But for her, it’s just a matter of time management and setting priorities: “Family comes first and volunteering follows closely.”


Since her husband died in a vehicular accident years ago, she had to learn to accept the fact that she must raise five children on her own. She knew it wouldn’t be easy, but she had to step up to it. The family gets by with the monthly pension she receives after the death of her husband. But for a family of seven, including Ate Emmy’s mother, a Php 3000 monthly budget is not enough, especially if all of her five children are in school. Because of this, she decided to go into rope-making. If done alone, it would take some time before a person could weave one bundle of rope. That is why the whole family shares this task, taking turns weaving bundle after bundle.


At 4:30 in the morning, Ate Emmy gets up to prepare breakfast for the family and begins weaving rope. By 5, two of her children are already up to help. After three hours, they already have 70 bundles of rope. Also by this time, the kids are all set to go to school. After going through her domestic routine, Ate Emmy transforms from being the super mom to being a tireless volunteer.

In her five years of serving as a CI volunteer, she’s already gone through some ups and downs. According to her, handling an area with almost a thousand sponsored children is not an easy feat. She has to deal with the parents, regular requirements, CI staff and fellow volunteers. “I think the key is proper communication and leading by example. I try to be honest with them, give them the facts, and tell them what we have to do. They know I’m not doing it for myself, so we help each other out,” she added.


Despite her seemingly tireless efforts, Ate Emmy admits that being a mother and a volunteer can be exhausting at times but “the satisfaction I get makes the hard work worthwhile.” This plus her acknowledgement of the help the sponsorship program extends to her two children is what keeps her going. “As a widow, having two of my children sponsored is really a blessing. The assistance we get is already a big help.”

“As a mother, seeing my children grow up to be good individuals is more than enough reward; as a volunteer, knowing that I’m able to help even in a small way and getting personal affirmations tells me that I’m doing the job right, and that keeps me motivated,” said Ate Emmy.

Have You Hugged Your (Sponsored) Child Today?

Chances are, you’ve heard from us by mail, email or both in the last few days about something we call “Special Hug.”

And you may be asking yourself, “What in the world is Special Hug?”

Most of our activities center specifically around our sponsored children. However, once a year -- September 17 -- we give them a gift that is designed to help their whole family.


For most of us, it’s hard to imagine a plastic chair, a laundry bucket or a set of dishes being a major investment. But that’s exactly what it would be for most of our sponsored children’s families.

By giving them items similar to these each year, we let the moms and dads of sponsored children know we think about them as well…and we want to make their lives just a little bit easier.

I hope you’ll take a moment if you haven’t already – either through our website, www.children.org, or by filling in the form you receive in the mail – to send a small gift for the children and their families.

It may be a small gift – but it’s a big deal for them.

Mission Accomplished!

Thanks to sponsor Alice...Liliam is no longer waiting! We trust Alice and Liliam will have a long and rewarding friendship.

Liliam Still Needs Our Help!

I hope everybody had a fantastic weekend! Despite dire forecasts of heavy rains, Kansas City stayed dry and sunshiny…with unseasonably cool temperatures. Lovely!

It promises to be a busy week, but top on my list is reminding our readers about Liliam Lissette, our featured child from August 4.

As you may recall, Liliam is 12 years old and lives with her parents and her brother in Guayaquil, Ecuador. She has been waiting for a sponsor for over three years.

Liliam’s dad works as a street vendor, and the family struggles to survive on the barely $100 a month he’s able to earn. But in spite of her family’s difficult situation, Liliam loves to sing and dance and works hard on her studies.

We’ve yet to find a sponsor for Liliam, so once again I’d like to appeal to our readers to help us get the word out. Some of you have even printed out pictures of children we’ve featured before and pinned them to your bulletin boards at work. Whatever you’re able to do will be greatly appreciated…and as always, Sarah and I are standing by to personally help Liliam’s new sponsor get started.

Thanks for your help…we – and Liliam – appreciate it.