Undercover With Compassion
I have been feeling challenged lately to get closer to the heart of Compassion, where we interact with sponsors, churches and children. I recently read a quote from a top executive of a large retail chain (I can’t remember which one — maybe Best Buy). He said, “I have never wasted a day visiting a…
Leave Things Better Than You Find Them
“I grew up poor, just like you,” explains Albert Pujols. “No matter how successful you may become in baseball or in life, you can never forget where you came from. Never be ashamed of being poor; never forget that Batey Aleman is your home. You will always have a responsibility to your God, your family…
This is About God
So many people erroneously think that because the poor live such difficult lives, marred by illness, hunger, gangs and all other symptoms of poverty, that they are somehow used to death around them. I am here to tell you, a parent is a parent in all cultures and classes and that loving bond is not…
Anticipating the Launch of Batey Baseball
The anticipation of the official launch of “batey baseball” with Albert Pujols, the president of Rawlings, 60 Minutes, the Pujols Family Foundation and of course Compassion, is evident at Batey Aleman. People have really come together in this community to take ownership of it, to take pride in it, and to give thanks for it.…
The Heart and Soul of Guatemala (in Pictures)
Pictures courtesy of Keely Scott. Visit compassionbloggers.com to experience all of the highlights of the Guatemala blog trip through the words, pictures and videos of the team.
A Cup of Gratitude
The woman gleefully handed me a cup. It was filled with a warm drink made of corn and cinnamon. Our staff guide looked at me and said, “She wants to offer you and the group this drink. Please take it, so you are not rude, but don’t drink it for it might make you sick.”
Our Sixth Blog Trip Begins Sept. 8
The Compassion Bloggers are traveling to Guatemala on their latest trip to see our ministry in action.
Made for Each Other
Each of your sponsored children is uniquely yours. You may not know the reason exactly, but that child was chosen by you for a reason. And you were chose for for that child.
Baking Without a KitchenAid in Sight
The girls teaching me to bake were part of a baking class at the Compassion student center I was visiting in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. As part of the class, they make snacks for the nearly 400 students at the center. They also make baked goods they can sell in the community. With that money, they have…
A Pear and Prayer
There is nothing in the world like visiting a Compassion-assisted child’s home. Absolutely nothing. Nothing can prepare you for the sights, the sounds, the smells. Most of all, nothing can prepare you for the beating your heart is about to take. It’s like you got in a fight with the Holy Spirit. And every time,…
United by Baseball, United Through Christ
I found out today that the word “batey” is Creole for a shanty town. I find it hard to imagine feeling good about wearing the word “batey” on a uniform. I would have difficulty feeling a sense of belonging with that polarizing label sewn across my chest.
For these kids, that does not matter. Where…
If You Build it, He Will Come
Yesterday was Father’s Day in the Dominican Republic. It’s no coincidence that the day we handed out uniforms to these young men and boys is a day that represents the absence of a father for many of them.
When we arrived at the batey, we assembled all of the parents for a meeting. The assembly…
Bringing Baseball to the Batey: Rained Out
Yesterday, I made it into Batey Aleman, during a complete rainout. Tropical Depression Bonnie paid a visit and the rains haven’t ceased.
Right before going to the batey, I stopped at the Compassion Dominican Republic office and saw the 87 boxes of Rawlings and Nike equipment lining n entire wall three feet deep. I also…
Bringing Baseball to the Batey
A batey (buh-TAY) is a sugar plantation in the Dominican that mostly uses the labor of Haitians. Most bateys are defunct, but in some case the Haitians have been permitted to stay on the land, living in slums with little clean water or any means of support.
Received from Ken Laura, a member of our Haiti Relief Team working in Port-au-Prince.
Sunday, April 25 — I moved last week and it has changed my situation and my perspective. Instead of sleeping in a tent beside the main road of Delmas listening to trucks roar up and down the street all night, I…
This was written earlier in the week by Ken Laura, a member of our Haiti Relief Team. He has been in Port-au-Prince working with our Haitian staff since shortly after the earthquake.
Five-thirty comes early most days, but especially on a Sunday morning when you hope to get some extra sleep before church. Not this…
I’m still not quite sure how I made it to Phoolwari Child Development Center in Delhi’s Suraj Park slum, but perhaps one never understands the directions and way to the places that exist beneath the radar.
I remember looking out the window of the van and noticing the markets, the vibrant colors of the fruits, the…
The Saturday program at Mathare Community Outreach begins by focusing on the spiritual development of the children. It starts with devotions and worship and is followed by 30 minutes of small group Bible study.
For the children who have accepted Christ as their Savior, the center staff conduct a discipleship class which occurs during…
Being a Sponsor is Not Easy
Dreams are made with sweat and discomfort, effort and uncertainty and moments of success and failure. They’re kneaded together with sacrifice and generosity and held together with drive, perseverance and surrender.
Relationships are like that too. And so is sponsorship.
You Are Giving Children Hope
Children without hope do not smile. You did this.
Education is the Key
Education. Education. Education is the key.
Do you think these children at KE-630, Good Shepard Isinya Student Center, believe that education is the key?
You can also view the Education is the key video in Vimeo.
By attending classes at his or her child development center your sponsored child receives age-appropriate instruction in four main areas: spiritual, cognitive, physical and socio-emotional.
At KE-630, Good Shepard Isinya Student Center, all the children begin their Saturday at 9 a.m. with spiritual learning.
I Met An Orphan Today
What follows is an excerpt from a blog post we recommend you read. It’ll move you.
We sampled the post selectively. There’s emotional stuff in between the samples. Promise.
I met an orphan today.
The poverty in my life is emotional and spiritual. The poverty in the lives of the kids you sponsor and the kids we’re meeting here in Kenya is that and more.
What does a kitchen garden have to do with increasing the chance a child lives to see age five?
Kitchen gardens are a part of the “empowerment training” that moms and caregivers receive at the Kawangware Child Survival Program (KEC28), and Caroline is a mom who is benefiting from this training.
Outside of her…
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