Pass It On
When a package for me came in the mail, I knew exactly what it was. I ripped into it with excitement as my parents watched. I didn't even read the letter or look at the brochures just yet, but thumbed through all the extra paperwork until I found his picture. "Look!" I showed my parents with a smile. "This is Aristide." And this was my sponsorship packet from Sheltering Wings.
I and my family both have sponsored children through organizations like Compassion International, World Vision, and Food for the Hungry. But this sponsorship was different because I knew Aristide. I saw that big smile of his in the picture, and it took me back to Africa - back to tea time in Burkina Faso, when we would all sit around the courtyard and talk while Aristide made tea for us. I spent almost two months living in the orphanage with him. Most people sponsor a child and then go on a trip to meet them, but my experience was the exact opposite. Meeting him in person and getting to know him made me want to be his sponsor.
As I continued to look through the materials in my sponsorship packet, including the stationary to write a letter, I explained to my parents that each child living at the orphanage actually needs four sponsors to cover the all the costs of living, schooling, and medical expenses. "I know Aristide already has two sponsors, so I will be the third. Just one more and he will be entirely covered."
My dad didn't hesitate at all: "Can we be Aristide's fourth sponsor?" So now we have another sponsorship packet en route to our home.
When a child gets a sponsor, it means so much to them. Most of them come from a situation where their own families do not invest in them at all. Some of their families don't want anything to do with them. To have a sponsor in America that writes letters, sends gifts, and provides the money needed to cover their education, health, and stay at the orphanage is hugely significant. It means someone cares about them. Someone values them and considers them worthy of love. Someone believes in them and will prove it by investing in their lives.
There are lots of kids at Sheltering Wings still in need of a sponsor. If you have been reading my blog and following my journey in missions to Africa, I kindly ask that you respond to my stories and posts by sponsoring one of these amazing children. This sponsorhsip program with Sheltering Wings is so close to my heart. It is very much like Compassion International and World Vision, except that I know these kids. I saw them dressed in their uniform pink shirts and navy pants, walking to school every day. I played soccer in the courtyard with David, Yanike, and Moumouni. I doodled in Fanie's notebook as we practiced English and French words together. I tucked Mariam and Medina into bed at night. I played ball with Deudonne, gave piggy back rides to Monica, and cuddled Claudine to sleep in my lap. These kids are precious and deserving of a sponsor to tell them, "You are not forgotten. I care about you. I believe in you. You are worthy of my investment in your life."
I hope that one day you will be able to meet your child and get to know him or her like I did this summer. In the meantime, know that your monetary gifts and words of affirmation through your letters make a huge difference in their lives. And after you get your packet in the mail, show it to a friend and tell them about Burkina, Sheltering Wings, and your sponsored child. That way, until every child is sponsored, we will pass it on.
Please check out the Sheltering Wings website for more information on how to select and sponsor a child in Burkina Faso.
"Religion that our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27
I and my family both have sponsored children through organizations like Compassion International, World Vision, and Food for the Hungry. But this sponsorship was different because I knew Aristide. I saw that big smile of his in the picture, and it took me back to Africa - back to tea time in Burkina Faso, when we would all sit around the courtyard and talk while Aristide made tea for us. I spent almost two months living in the orphanage with him. Most people sponsor a child and then go on a trip to meet them, but my experience was the exact opposite. Meeting him in person and getting to know him made me want to be his sponsor.
As I continued to look through the materials in my sponsorship packet, including the stationary to write a letter, I explained to my parents that each child living at the orphanage actually needs four sponsors to cover the all the costs of living, schooling, and medical expenses. "I know Aristide already has two sponsors, so I will be the third. Just one more and he will be entirely covered."
My dad didn't hesitate at all: "Can we be Aristide's fourth sponsor?" So now we have another sponsorship packet en route to our home.
When a child gets a sponsor, it means so much to them. Most of them come from a situation where their own families do not invest in them at all. Some of their families don't want anything to do with them. To have a sponsor in America that writes letters, sends gifts, and provides the money needed to cover their education, health, and stay at the orphanage is hugely significant. It means someone cares about them. Someone values them and considers them worthy of love. Someone believes in them and will prove it by investing in their lives.
There are lots of kids at Sheltering Wings still in need of a sponsor. If you have been reading my blog and following my journey in missions to Africa, I kindly ask that you respond to my stories and posts by sponsoring one of these amazing children. This sponsorhsip program with Sheltering Wings is so close to my heart. It is very much like Compassion International and World Vision, except that I know these kids. I saw them dressed in their uniform pink shirts and navy pants, walking to school every day. I played soccer in the courtyard with David, Yanike, and Moumouni. I doodled in Fanie's notebook as we practiced English and French words together. I tucked Mariam and Medina into bed at night. I played ball with Deudonne, gave piggy back rides to Monica, and cuddled Claudine to sleep in my lap. These kids are precious and deserving of a sponsor to tell them, "You are not forgotten. I care about you. I believe in you. You are worthy of my investment in your life."
I hope that one day you will be able to meet your child and get to know him or her like I did this summer. In the meantime, know that your monetary gifts and words of affirmation through your letters make a huge difference in their lives. And after you get your packet in the mail, show it to a friend and tell them about Burkina, Sheltering Wings, and your sponsored child. That way, until every child is sponsored, we will pass it on.
Please check out the Sheltering Wings website for more information on how to select and sponsor a child in Burkina Faso.
"Religion that our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27
I know just how you feel, Ashli, because our family sponsored a child in Honduras through the Christian Relief Fund, where I worked as a translator. At the time we began sponsoring her, our own daughter was 7 years old, so we chose a 7-year-old "sister" for our daughter, and our family continued to sponsor her even into her college years. She is now a mother, and we now communicate with her via FB. We were blessed to be able to travel to Honduras and visit her and her family on two occasions and also help them to build a small house of cement blocks with indoor plumbing, so they wouldn't have to continue living in the shack we found them in. The greatest blessing is that this family helped to plant a church in their neighborhood, next to their own home!
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