SEATTLE — The United States is home to some of the wealthiest people in the world, and often categorized as a nation of consumers and excessive living. However, many U.S. citizens have realized that they can forgo a fraction of their abundance and allocate those funds towards child sponsorship in foreign countries.
In the late 1930s, people began the practice of “Child Sponsorship,” wherein they would send money, gifts and handwritten words of love and encouragement to specific children in foreign countries who live in extreme poverty. Child sponsorship continues today, and it has grown into a movement that is one of the driving forces behind the first world’s fight for the destitute.
Child Sponsorship
Lynne Dodge, a former nurse from Damariscotta, ME, is one of the millions of Americans who sponsor children around the world. The Borgen Project interviewed her about her time sponsoring a young girl, Ludmia Pierre, for 15 years. Dodge states that: “My experience was awesome, because I made many trips to Haiti to volunteer at the mission in a medical capacity and I was able to see her and her family while I was there.”
Ludmia was 5 years old when the sponsorship began. As Dodge said, not only was she a sponsor in the general sense of sending money and writing letters, but she also made annual trips to Haiti to spend quality, in-person time with Ludmia. She also helped out in “a medical capacity” using her nursing skills to give Ludmia and other children routine health screenings.
New Missions
Dodge’s partner organization is New Missions. It is a non-denominational organization that uses a religious-based approach to aid Haitian children. New Missions is just one of hundreds of different organizations that provide child sponsorship programs. But, as Dodge warns, “I would exercise caution and recommend [investigating]whichever program you are thinking of working with.”
CBS ran an article back in 2008 discussing this same issue. It listed off five different categories to consider when choosing a child sponsorship charity:
- Fiscal responsibility
- Region
- Religious affiliation
- Individual or community-based intervention
- Cost of sponsorship
Not only should potential sponsors find an organization with a “good track record,” as CBS put it, but also one that aligns with the personal views and economical capabilities of the individual.
Save The Children and Child Fund
If we look at two different sponsorship programs, we can see where the differences emerge. New Missions is a Christian-based organization where sponsorship money goes directly to the child and their family. With an organization such as Save the Children, there is no religious affiliation and the money is distributed within the child’s community. In the end it is not so much about finding a “good” program vs. a “bad” one, but rather a program that fits with an individual’s goals and purpose. Dodge suggests Charity Navigator to help with the search.
When it comes to child sponsorship, it is more than just about providing aid; it is also about building loving relationships. ChildFund International provides reasons for becoming a sponsor on their website. The organization cites an example of a young girl named Raquel from Bolivia, who shares: “I have a beautiful relationship with my sponsor. I know she thinks about me all the time.”
ChildFund also encourages sponsors to try and get a face-to-face meeting with their child, as Dodge did throughout the years. This strengthens the relationship, and shows the child real, unconditional love. But, it is not just in-person visits that show this love — an organization called Children of the Nations can also provide existing sponsors with a suggestions list. On this list they teach sponsors how to write a good letter, send impactful gifts and find other ways to stay involved.
Cross-Contintental Connections
Child sponsorship is a commitment. It is not merely throwing money at an issue, it is about developing a relationship with another human in order to show them that they matter, that they are cared for, and that they are loved. In a way, child sponsorship is a quasi-adoption — one takes a child into their care with few monetary or temporal requirements.
In reference to her time and money, Dodge stated: “My husband, Scott, and I were able to help our family in building a home of their own in their village. Our sponsored child has done very well. I was able to see her this year when I was in Haiti at the mission. She is a lovely young woman. She is 25 now and… she works at the New Mission school in her village. Her family is doing very well!”
Dodge’s first child has grown up, thriving from the support she was given for 15 of the most crucial years of her life. But, Dodge has not stopped at one. She is currently sponsoring a 4 year old girl named Echnailande Chervil, another example of how this incredible woman has made charity and relationships some of her life’s work. Dodge thinks that “child sponsorship is a wonderful way to support families and children living in third world countries,” and the world will surely be a better place if more people take her perspective.
– Zach Farrin
Photo: Flickr