My name is Boer, James Boer. But you can call me Kees, which is pronounced “case.” My middle name is Jacobus, which translates to James. See, I’m Dutch, which means I grew up in the Netherlands, but doesn’t necessarily explain why I’m a Compassion Advocate, but I am … Dutch and a Compassion Advocate.
As I mentioned, I grew up in the Netherlands, and once in a great while we would have people visit our home from the United States. It was always such an exciting time. I used to love listening to them so I could imitate their English.
When I went to high school, I started learning English myself and was finally able to communicate with our guests. At the end of the visits, I’d be sure to get an address, and I would write letters and then wait and wait and pray that they would send a letter back
Some of them did, and I was always so excited. I wouldn’t receive more than a couple a year but getting one made my whole month. I’d read and reread the letters until I almost had them memorized. And I still have those letters after all of these years.
A few years ago I interviewed Wess Stafford. He shared a story about a huge flood in one of the countries Compassion works in.
The local staff was evacuating the children, but one child kept trying to get back into her home. Finally, the worker let the child go. A couple minutes later, the child came back with a little pouch. In it were all the letters her sponsor had written her.
This is a sample of what my sponsored children write to me. Although the words are different, they often have the same message.
The first one is from Dulce, from Bolivia. She doesn’t have a father anymore. And although we have been writing each other for quite a long time, she didn’t actually know how to write then so someone from the child development center wrote for her.
“Dulce always shows your letter to everybody. She tells them that her father is named Kees and he is from the Netherlands.”
This one is from Gabriela, also from Bolivia.
“I like receiving your letters and reading these. I keep these in a small box; I hope you visit my country.”
Then this one from Jhoselin’s mom … also from Bolivia. I like Bolivia. 
“She feels so loved by you and when she feels sad, she looks at the letters and she feels glad to know there is someone who loves and helps her from afar.”
Then this one from Rasmané, a little boy in Burkina Faso, who I cosponsor.
“I was so glad to read your letter. I can’t find the words to express my joy. I love you so much!”
Then this last example is from Shedenka … Bolivia … again.
“Letters arrive often, but some children don’t get letters. I always receive a letter, thank you. I feel the most important girl, because I get your letter.”
That last letter reminded me of a trip I took with my Dad a couple months ago. It was to meet the child he sponsors.
When we met Cristina, she was happier than a dog with two tails! But I noticed her little sister crying. I asked her why and found out that she is also a sponsored child, but her sponsor never writes.
Every time the mail comes to the child development center (which doesn’t happen every day but rather once a month or so), she is excited to see if her sponsor wrote, but she never gets a letter. I took her under my wings for the visit to help convey her sponsor’s love, and had impressed upon me the importance of writing regularly.
Since then, I spoke with a Compassion sponsor relations representative in the call center, who told me that some children actually drop out of the program because they are so discouraged that their sponsor hasn’t written them. I don’t understand this. Nowadays, it’s so easy to write a letter to your sponsored child.
Have you written your child recently? Your letters are very important.
@Sharon I don’t know how the children view letters versus emails. I know I feel letters are more personal, but the kids will love anything they get. As for the processing time, it is basically the same. The emails are printed in Colorado Springs, then put with written letters until they have enough to send. Then all the letters and emails go to the country where they are translated. So, there is really no time savings sending email. Also, you can send photos and various “stuff” with letters. Email doesn’t allow that. But, whatever form you choose to use, the number one thing is be sure to write your kids. The letters are gold to them.
I’ve heard multiple times that the emails are sent directly to the country office and that it can save about 2 weeks time vs mailing letters.
I too think letters are more personal, so I like to alternate between the two.
I just checked with Compassion. The emails do go to the country office now. When I visited Compassion earlier, they where sent with the other letters at that time. I send an occasional email, but will stick with letters. I always have other things to send my kids, so email doesn’t usually work for me.
Thanks Garry for checking!
I can’t speak for all the Compassion countries, but I do know that in Bolivia, a letter via email goes much faster. They are being sent from Colorado Springs every day ain MS Word Attachment. Then every other week, they are being printed out. They also are being emailed to one translator, who will translate them within a few days. Because of the email, this process goes much faster. Also, the letters are then printed on very nice stationary and they are sent to the project. Most of the other letters that arrive in the country office are on the US stationary that comes with the letters, that you receive. I would guestimate this to be about 80 to 90 %. So, the letters, that are on email, actually are on very nice stationary with colors.
Anyways, depending on when you send your letter, it could take anywhere from 1 to 4 weeks to reach the letter by the child. This is much faster than via the regular mail.
Again, I want to emphasize that I just know how the Bolivia office handles this. It might be very different with another country office.
Wow, Kees thank you so much for that! I now know how long Abigail will have to wait to get my letter!
Muchos Gracias!
this is awesome info. we try to write emails at least once a week-been feeling so bad bcoz we want to send handwritten ones with little ‘gifts’ to go with it as it definitely is more personal, but sometimes just don’t have the time to put it all together. the email letters have been so helpful for me just to even write to my little girl there in bolivia to tell her that we are thinking of her and praying for her and that we love her. thank you for this info..it feels nice to know, she gets them quicker..
If the little girl is very small, it might be difficult for her to write back every week….. When your letter arrives in the Bolivia country office, it generates a piece of stationary that the child will get along with the letter. It’s a thank you letter. It has green parts to it. The child is given that letter along with the stationary. They have 10 days to reply to the letter, otherwise the country office follows up on it. I’ve heard some small children with their parents taking about 4 hours to write the letters. So, with the ones that are under 10 years old, I only write them once a month because of that. Once they are older, they are much faster, because they can write the letter themselves. But you should be getting a lot of letters soon…..
she is 11yrs old!!
Thanks so much, Kees! I’ve learned so much more about the process of sponsoring “my child” from YOU than I ever have from the CI website! I sure wish you’d do something on the CI website for fairly new sponsors like myself AND for all the others I’ve seen post that say, “I’ve sponsored my child for 5 years and never knew that!” You’ve been an absolute blessing to so many of us sponsors and we love you and your heart! -Kim
My self and the wife are sponsoring 4 very nice and God loving kids at present. It takes Months for letters to get to and from. But we love getting the letters. One letter let us know that Mom and Dad came to know Christ. We Wept. We give thanks that we can do this.
This touched my heart. It took me a little while to finally write my child, but it is so rewarding to know that you are making such an impact on a child’s life and his or her Christian development. It almost brings tears…
Last month, I shared a story on my blog that was written by a friend over on Our Compassion. It is titled The Delivery and is a must read. It will show you just how important those letters are. Click my name to go to my blog, you’ll find a like to The Delivery on the right hand side-bar.
Michelle, I visited your blog some time past and read the story titled, The Delivery, and I thought it was really good! I agree that it does show how important our letters are to our children. As I was reading it, I myself took on the emotions of the children. I can imagine the hurt and disappointment of looking to see if something comes for you, but nothing does. I hope that this story inspires sponsors to write their children. It sure inspired me to keep on writing to my beloved friend in Ethiopia. No doubt he is now happy to receive something from me every time mail arrives at his center for the first time in 4 years! Just the thought of his face beaming with joy fills my heart! It is important to all of us to know that someone whether their near or far loves and cares for us. Thank you for sharing this wonderful story. God bless you.
Hi Kees,
I’d like to let you know the impact this blog post (and the associated comments) has had on me. At the time I first read it, I’d been a sponsor for about 2.5 years, and while I’d sent several birthday and family gifts, I’d written only about once a year because I didn’t think letters were all that important. Learning how impactful letters can be made me decide to write more regularly. I’m not as prolific as some folks around here, but I have developed a habit of writing to each of my kids every other month (I wanted to establish a writing frequency I can commit to long-term — ). It has been such a joy to read their responses and see them open up more to me!
So I thank you for myself and, I’m sure, on behalf of Josephine, Jennibe, and Manzi!
Long term impact of letters:
In the 1990s, my son, Abbot, sponsored a girl, Indris, in the Dominican Republic. When he was 19 years old (1992), he sent Indris a letter with a photo in it of himself and his older and younger brothers. The youngest brother, Giles, was 9 years old at the time. Fast forward to 2009: Giles and I are on vacation in the Dominican Republic. Indris is all grown up now, and she and Abbot have continued to correspond by email, after Indris graduated from high school and the Compassion program. Giles, of course, is all grown up now, too (27 years old at the time of our vacation). We go to visit Indris, who still lives in the same house with her mother. When we come in, she greets Giles, like a long lost brother, though they have never met. She goes and gets a box out from under her bed with Abbot’s letters in it and the photo from 1992—and there is tiny little Giles at the end of the row of his very tall, adult brothers. Now, of course, he is
the tallest, and he and Indris had a good laugh over that. On the walls of Indris’ home were photos of Hope and Brooke, Abbot’s now 8 and 6 year old children. Our families are united forever by photos and correspondence—and Abbot didn’t even write or send photos that often in the 7 or 8 years that he sponsored Indris, but apparently those few letters and photos still mean the world to her!!!!
my tears are flowing how absolutely beautiful. I’ve been writing about 1x/mo and email 1x.. thanks for your story
Just curious how often everyone writes? How often do you send small packages?
I write every 3 weeks, and send a little something – stickers, photo, pictures to color, etc. with each letter to the younger children. To the older ones, I will often send a short devotion with the letter. When I have a new-to-me child, I will immediately send an e-mail, then when I get it, send the Sponsor Folder, then in the next week send a letter with additional family photo or a map of where I live. I know the children are as anxious to know some basic stuff about us, and see our pictures, as we are to see theirs, so I will send several of those things quickly, then go to the every 3 week schedule.
@stephanie I try to write to my kids every month. I just got two letters in the same day from my girl, Julietta, in Colombia. They were written on the 15th and 21st of September. You can’t send small packages. http://blog.compassion.com/give-a-gift-to-your-sponsored-child-how-what-why/ will give you an idea of what you can send.
Just curious…How is the “forever yours…” post relevant to this blog?
It wasn’t relevant. It was spam. Thanks for being our second set of eyes.
I write to my sponsored kids once every 2 weeks. I am 36 years old and every time I go to the mailbox and see no letter for me, I am disappointed. I don’t ever want my kids to feel that way.
Question: Would it be possible and/ or a good idea to put a card in with our regular letters and ask our child to give it to someone who didn’t get anything? It would almost be a way of teaching them to give. I was thinking of just saying “You matter and God loves you”.
Thoughts?
Hi, Amy,
That is awesome!!! I appreciate you writing so much!!! Well, I’ll tell you, one thing for sure is that your child is not disappointed by not getting enough letters. As a matter of fact, your child is probably known as the one, who gets a lot of letters. And many children wish they had you as a sponsor. The average child gets 1 letter/year. So, no, your child should be very excited. Now, if your child is from a reciprocal country like Bolivia, you should get quite a few letters back. I was in Bolivia and Holland for 4 1/2 months and when I got back, there were around 300 letters!
Regarding your question as to adding a card. I think that is a great idea!!! I did this myself. The only thing that I noticed when I went to visit the child is that the child showed me all of the letters that she had gotten and there were all of the cards. Instead of giving them out, she kept them all. I think she didn’t understand it. Now if your child is from a country, where they answer the letters, maybe you can say something like: “I sent you some extra cards. These are for some of your friends, who don’t get letters. Can you tell me whom you give them to?” Maybe that would make it clearer.
LOL. Yeah. my child hood passion was pen pals, so it’s just journeyed into my adult years.
I am going to give it a shot. You never know, right?
Wow. I’ve written one letter now, just because every time I try to write one, I’m totally lost for what to say. But I haven’t heard from him since I sent the letter, so hopefully it’ll get easier?
I really liked writing the letter, but goodness, it was tough!
To: Amymist,
Before I write a letter, I ask the Lord for wisdom about what to write. Trust me, He always gives me great ideas! So ask Him and He will do the same for you!
A blog that has really helped me is Michelle’s (scroll up to her Oct. 4 post on this page). Click on her name and on the right hand sidebar are links to tons of things to write about.
Hope this helps!
i recently had a conversation with my mother. the subject of compassion arose. and i said, you can have all the compassion you want but there will still be people dying, suffering, starving, with loss and pain. and these are people that you do not know and they will never know you. i said maybe it might make a difference in your life but only for you and not for the other people. well i may be wrong. i will be the first to tell you that i don’t know very much. i am very much aware that we are all connected. but we have drifted so far apart. not only from each other but from god. i know i am not the only person who is experiencing this. i am sending this message not for me but for the ones i know and love.
This post totally inspired me today!
http://bohemianbowmans.blogspot.com/2010/12/asking-poverty-to-share.html
Tigh, have you ever heard the story about the starfish? It may not make a difference to everyone, but it will make a difference to that one person.
Amy, I reminded my ten year old of that story after showing her your blog about your daughter’s birthday party!
the letter writing is important, Compassion is the only child-sponsorship program we know of that allows a person to sponsor a child with special needs. Our son is developmentally disabled and he sponsors 2 boys just like him. They really relate to each other. My son can encourage them and they know that he knows what he is talking about. I can’t imagine growing up in poverty, let alone being special needs and growing up in poverty. The letters they exchange are precious to both the kids and our son
Our son Chris sponsors a boy named Dex from the Philippines and he writes in every letter how much he loves receiving letters from Chris, he asked his mother to get him a special book to keep the letters in, she reported to me in one of the letters that he sleeps with this special book every night. We sponsor some girls and they write to tell us that our letters mean so much to them and that we really care because we ask questions about their family, what they do at the center, etc. One girl wrote that she would not be in school now if she didn’t have our encouragement. The most important letter so far is from a young man in India who stated that through our encouragement, he prayed to become a Christian and now all the bitterness toward his dad abandoning the family is gone.
I have written before but everytime I receive a letter from one of our kids I realize the impact letters have. But has anyone ever thought of the impact they have on someone other than the child? Like the parent(s). I say this because my son sponsors a child that is developmentally disabled like my son is. I received a letter from the mother stating how glad she was that her son had someone as a sponsor who understands his disability. His problems almost exactly copied my sons problems when he was a child. She wrote a letter to me personally stating her feelings regarding her son (she loves him very much) and how she wanted him to be a “nice caring young man like Chris” who is able to handle quite a few things on his own. She says that her son has a goal now and that Chris is his inspiration and that as a mother she doesn’t feel so alone knowing that someone else, even though I am far away can relate to what she is feeling, her letter made me cry. I realize now why Chris and I went though all we had to deal with when he was small. It was to help Gustavo and Jack his other developmentally disabled sponsored child. They are truly a blessing to us. Even though Jack has lost both parents and lives with his Aunt,he says he knows he has a hope and future, what more could someone ask for?
Yes, those letters are many times read by the friends of the children and the family might get together to listen to what the sponsor says. It has a huge impact. I even know a translator and his wife got saved because of what the letters that her husband would bring home to translate.
This is a mother expressing her thankfulness on behalf of the child. Notice how it affects her:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0hRldheqe0
I have been sponsoring Kevin (13) in Rwanda since May of last year. My children and I have sent many letters to him in our 10 months of sponsoring him. We have only received 2 letters back, the last one being in July. We send at least 2 letters a month, along with pictures that my children draw and pictures of our family. I am concerned that I have only received 2 back from Kevin. Should I be concerned or is this normal? I am honestly worried about him. In the last 3 months, our letters have asked him if he is OK and if he could write us a letter telling us about his family and what they are all up to. My children (13, 9 &
check the mail box all the time, hoping for a letter from their brother. 
We continue to pray for our sweet boy!
Children in Rwanda in general send only three letters per year, so it could just be that his most recent letter was delayed for some reason. However, since it has been over 6 months since you last heard from Kevin you could call Compassion and ask if there are any letters in the system. If no letters are on their way a request can be put in to the field.
I was curious if you ever considered changing the page layout of your site? Its very well written; I love what youve got to say. But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people could connect with it better. Youve got an awful lot of text for only having one or two images. Maybe you could space it out better?
I don’t work for Compassion, but I can tell you that they actually redesigned their blog last year (I think, maybe my memory is off), and got dozens of comments about things to keep, things to remove, and things to modify or make better placed. There were lots of comments about not having the page take a long time to load (some people have what I consider slow connections-ie, slower than dsl), which I imagine is in part why they have more text and fewer images. One text thing that people did ask to keep was the ‘recent comments’ part, and that’s exactly how I found your comment and thought I’d respond to it. I’ve noticed a few changes over the past few weeks (or else I’ve just paid more attention the last few weeks). Obviously, there is always room for improvement though, so I’m sure if you had specific changes they’d listen to your suggestions
I’d recommend using the ‘contact us’ link at the top right of the webpage rather than putting specific feedback in a comment though to ensure the right person sees it.
I’ve recently become a Compassion sponsor for the third time. I sponsored two Compassion children in the late 80s, after learning about Compassion International while attending a Micheal W Smith concert. Compassion was a fairly young organization at that time, and there was only one method available for sending letters to a child. I’m thrilled to discover that I can now simply log-on, and send a message of hope and encouragement to 8-year old Ana (Peru) on a regular basis. Of course, I’ll also be sending hand-written letters and other flat gift items to Ana throughout the year, though. From my past experience as a sponsor, I understand the importance of the “personalized” touch. My former sponsored children never failed to express in their letters how much they loved and appreciated everything they received from me; letters, photos, postcards, postage stamps, “connect-the-dots”, paper dolls, bookmarks, etc. I can’t imagine how hurtful and sad it is for the sponsored children who never hear from their sponsors; especially while other children in the project do. Please Sponsors, WRITE, and write often even if it’s just a few words. If your writing by email, consider dedicating a scripture verse to your child. One of my past Compassion children, Carmen from Bolivia, dedicated a scripture to me as a Christmas gift one year. I have the verse marked in my Bible, and pray for Carmen each time I see it. Just remember that a few kind words can often times be more valuable than something money can buy. God Bless each of you, and praise God for Compassion International.
A question for Compassion Staff, or others. Can a sponsor ever write too frequently? I tend to write my children about once a month, with maybe an occasional birthday card or Christmas card tossed in. Each letter is different (I hope!) and usually includes some small item, such as a bookmark or some stickers. But from the child’s standpoint (or from the perspective of the family or the local CDI, does this come to be seen as “routine” or “expected” — sort of an automatic kind of correspondence rather than a sincere expression of love and concern? Would it be better to skip a month or two and then send out a letter or two or three as the Spirit moves me? Right now I don’t have a set schedule but I find that after three or four weeks I have an increasing urge to write to “my” kids. Any thoughts?
I think this is wonderful. The vast majority of children love to get your letters!!! They love to get any letters that you can send them. Now, some of the children don’t like to write the letters…. In the reciprocal countries, (which in the next few years, all of them will be) the children generally get the letters and they are required to write back a letter within a certain time frame. Like in Bolivia, it is 10 days. The real younger children will take a long time with the letters. I’ve heard of children spending over 4 hours on a letter. The older ones write the letters faster.
For this reason, I write my children twice a month, but if they are under 10 years old, I write them once a month. Your letters mean a lot to these children and they read them many times.
Just yesterday, I heard of a boy in Bolivia, whose sponsor never writes him letters. He’s so discouraged over it, that he’s considering not even coming to the center any more.
So, I wouldn’t write more than once a week, especially not with the smaller ones. Also, the mail does not get to the center more than once a week anyways, since it doesn’t get to the country office more than once a week.
Could that boy be put in the correspondence program?
What is the correspondence program? I haven’t yet read about it.
Hi, Patti,
The correspondence program is a program where sponsors who can not write (for whatever reason) can call Compassion and request that their child receives a correspondent. Then, there are volunteers, who will get assigned this child and the volunteer will write to the child and the child to the volunteer. Some of the children will know that the person writing them is a correspondent, others will look towards the correspondent as their sponsor.
The reason that the financial sponsor can’t write might be that a huge company is sponsoring 1000 children, and can’t have their employees write, or the financial sponsor doesn’t have the health or the time to write.
I’m very thankful for these financial sponsors, because they love the child enough to make sure that the child gets letters. It would be a dream come true that every sponsor, who doesn’t write would call Compassion and request a correspondent.
Just today, I received a letter from Shedenka telling me about her two friends, who never receive letters and how sad they are and how they are always praying to get to know their sponsor, because the children are required to write letters. (at least 2 program letters/year) They feel they write and write, but never receive an answer. This week, I also heard of a boy, who wants to drop out of Compassion, because his sponsor never writes. And I’ve heard of a father telling his child that the child is “worthless and trash and that everyone knows that, even the sponsor knows that because the sponsor never writes.” This can be very harmful to the child.
Ken,
How do I become a correspondent? I love to write letters to children. In fact, I may be sending too many letters to our sponsored Compassion children, if that’s possible. Seriously, I would take on corresponding with another 5-10 children TODAY. It doesn’t matter if they are boys or girls, what their ages are, or what country they are in. Just tell me how to sign up, and I’m on board!
Kees – I would like to be a correspondent. What steps do I need to take? I love to write letters and send items to our 3 sponsored children, and probably do so way too much. Seriously, I would be happy to write on a regular basis to 5-10 other children. I have no preference to gender, age, or country, and begin ASAP.
Hi, Patti, That is wonderful. You need to call the Compassion Office. If you are in the USA, just call 1-800-336-7676. There is only one drawback to keep in mind….. If the financial sponsor quits, you generally get 30 days to sponsor that child. If you can not sponsor the child at that time, you can not continue with the correspondence. You are allowed to write a final letter though. There is also the remote possibility that the financial sponsor changes their mind and decides they want to write the child themselves. In that case, you also have to discontinue the correspondence.
Kees, you have been such an encouragement to me, and obviously a strong advocate for Compassion and the various programs offered to children through Compassion. THANK YOU! In the way of an update, I contacted Compassion by email late last Thursday evening. By the time I logged on to the computer Friday morning, I already had a reply from the “Sponsor Donor Relations Department”. Here’s what I learned. Due to a limited number of children waiting for a correspondent, only three correspondent children can be linked to any one sponsor’s account. (I had asked for 5-10—any gender, any age, any country!) It was explained that, although many sponsored children are not receiving letters from their sponsors, those children cannot automatically be assigned a correspondent UNLESS the assigned sponsor request for them to be assigned one. That’s where the problem lies. As you stated, most sponsors don’t even know this option is available. It would be wonderful if all sponsor could and would write to their children, but of course in some cases, there’s valid reason that is not the case. Would you know if Compassion contacts sponsors that have not written at least a couple of letters to their sponsored child in a certain time period (such as a year) to make them aware of correspondent program?
Hi, Patti, From what I understand…. The sponsors do get encouraged to write their letters. If they haven’t written their child, they get a postcard thing in the mail, that they can just write a little on and send it back. I don’t think that it even needs a stamp from what I remember. I remember sorting the letters in Bolivia and I would see quite a few of those cards, so they do work. One of those cards was a little sad to me…. The sponsor had just written “God bless you” with a smiley face and send it in…..I wish the sponsor had taken 10 seconds more and written just a little more…. If the sponsors call in and ask about their child, the representatives will check the account and see if the sponsor has written recently. They will encourage the sponsor to write.
Personally, I think it would be great if there were two lines on the sign in sheet, like:
__ I will write my child from time to time
__ I will be happy to pay for the sponsorship, but please find a correspondent.
I think it is good to educate the sponsor before the sponsorship instead of afterwards….
But I am very glad that you are going to be able to correspond to three of the children. These children will be so blessed. I think the children that have correspondents get way more letters than the ones that just get sponsors, because the correspondents are committed to writing and know the importance. Whereas the sponsors might not know, depending on how they might have learned about Compassion.
A sponsor might go to some concert. Hear about the plight of the poor and how $38 can make such a difference in the life of a child. They might think: “Oh, that’s a good way for part of my tithe.” Then they raise their hand and get a child given them during a packetpass. They take the packet. Sign the paperwork and turn it in, never realizing that they just also stepped into a relationship with that child. On the other side of the world, the project learns that one of their children is sponsored, because they receive a piece of stationary called a “First Letter” So, that’s how the child finds out that they have a sponsor, so the first thing they do is write a letter.
So, to the sponsor it is primarily a financial commitment, but to the child it is a relationship.
This is why during concerts, I have made it a point when the sponsor comes to me and ask what they need to do to sponsor this child, I take two things out, first I tell them to fill out their first letter and then they fill out the financial form. I think that is the best way to start off a sponsorship….
Re: “Personally, I think it would be great if there were two lines on the sign in sheet, like:
__ I will write my child from time to time
__ I will be happy to pay for the sponsorship, but please find a correspondent.
I think it is good to educate the sponsor before the sponsorship instead of afterwards….” Oh, YES, Kees! I would have never known had I not read your blogs! I sure hope the CI folks read your suggestions! I truly believe there would be more sponsors IF they realized that some folks don’t sponsor due to not being able to write their child for whatever reason. I’ve learned so much from your blogs, Kees, and I thank you for taking the time to teach me. You cannot imagine the difference you’ve made for so many of us and our sponsored children! I’ve emailed your suggestion I’ve quoted above to CI and I hope that others have, too. If they hear it enough, perhaps they’ll incorporate it. Thanks, again, Kees. You rock!
Courtesy of Compassion International: http://blog.compassion.com/letter-writing/#ixzz1SbXrFndi
I ALWAYS talk about letter writing when helping a new sponsor sign up (I’m an advocate). I always say, “Many children value the letters more than the money. They treasure your letters; there are stories of children who had to evacuate their homes and all they wanted to get was their letters.”
It’s crucial that people understand this. My dad was a sponsor for years and never understood that the letters were important. Now he does and just signed up for the online account so he can write online.
If the financial sponsor discontinues the sponsorship, then the correspondence sponsor will get first dibs on sponsoring the child. I had this happen and it broke my heart that i couldn’t take on another child at the time. But they do give you a chance before simply putting the child back in the system.
Kees, I really love to read all you write and all the wealth of info share on children sponsored from bolivia. our little girl is from bolivia and it is exciting to think that we will recieve letters a bit more frequently than we thought…can’t wait to send out her little package tomorrow-got some great spanish books on CBD!!
Wonderful. If you tell me your child’s number, I’ll be in Bolivia soon, there is a remote chance that I might be able to see her and take photos and videos of her.
Maybe you want to email it to me at: keesboer@positive-entertainment.com
Hi, Brenda,
The only way that the boy would be in the correspondence program is if the sponsor were to take the initiative and call Compassion or write them and request this to happen.
Thanks, Kees. That’s very sad about the boy whose father thinks he’s trash.
I know we must all be grateful for the financial sponsors, even when they don’t write, because without money, the programs couldn’t continue.
Oh well…
Yes, that’s why poverty is so much more than just a lack of money. We really need to help these children. And ultimately, the Solution is Christ.
Yes, I’m very happy for the sponsors, who choose to have a correspondent for their child. They are still helping the child a lot and they love the child enough to request that. I just wish that sponsors understood that this is even a possibility. You have to almost look for it to know that this is a possibility and if you don’t know that it is a possibility, you’re not going to look for it.
How do you get involved by writing letters to children who don’t have people to write to them? (e.g. those sponsored by those unable to write or sponsored by large corporations). I cannot afford to sponsor more children, but would be willing to write letters.
You just call Compassion and request it. It’s called a correspondent. Do be aware though that if the sponsor decides to cancel his sponsorship that you get the option of sponsoring the child yourself. If you can’t, you’ll be able to write a final letter to the child. There is also the remote possibility that the sponsor changes their mind and decide that they do want to write….
Ellen – If you prefer, you can click on the tab “Contact Us” on the home page of the Compassion site. That’s what I did, after reading Kees info about the correspondent program last week. Within just a few hours, I had two messages from Compassion’s “Sponsors Donor Relations Department”. I was informed that I would be receiving a child packet within 3 to 4 weeks. Like you, my husband and I cannot afford to sponsor any more than the 3 children we currently are sponsoring. I certainly have the “time” to send encouraging letters, and lots of Christian love to other children, though. What a blessing it is to have this additional way to reach out to God’s precious children.
Kees – Thank you again for the great information you add to this blog on a regular basis. I know I must speak for many others when I say your input is extremely valuable. On the subject of becoming a sponsor at a concert, I did; and not just once, but twice. About 25+ years ago, I went to a Christian concert on the Missouri Fair Grounds, and left the concert as a new Compassion sponsor. Recently (March), our church hosted a musical group, and a representative from Compassion was traveling with the group. Honestly, I don’t recall if letter writing was emphasized at the concert I attended 25 years ago (doubt it), but once I received information from Compassion stating I could write my sponsored child, I was thrilled. And, the minute I received Ana’s information a couple of months ago, I wrote her a letter immediately, with my photo attached. In my opinion, letter writing serves as the “bridge” between God’s heart, my heart, and my sponsored children’s hearts. I recently heard that children spell the word love, “T I M E”. All children hunger for the undivided attention of a caring adult. As Compassion sponsors, our monthly gift provides a child the opportunity to learn, have nutritious meals, health screenings, and medical treatments; however, the letters we send the Compassion children deliver the most valuable gifts of all…the message the child is “worthy” of someone’s time, caring, and love.
Kees, I am just coming back to this and I have to thank you for all of the time and effort you put into this. For each sponsor you inspire, that is one more child who will be smiling on mail day! Today I posted about giving the gift of time. Just 20 minutes a month can make such a difference! http://www.bloggingfromtheboonies.com/2011/05/gift-of-time.html Later this week, I hope to post about the importance of letters and am going to link to this post.
Thanks, Michelle. I tried to leave a comment on your blog, but it is asking me an “openID.” I have no idea what this might be….
I would like to make contact with other sponsors of children in Ecuador. I’d like to be able to send an actual gift by someone who is going there, instead of just sending money, with no personal touch.
Kees is in Bolivia at the moment and his internet access is slow and hit and miss. Mostly ‘miss’ lately. He will be there another couple of weeks. But – I can tell you, that yes, Ecuador is a reciprocal country.
Of course, I can gaurantee that sponsor letters are very important and meaningful to children. I’m one of staff who is working with child & sponsor letters in Compassion Thailand. Thailand is also a reciprocal country. I can say that a child who usually receives sponsor letter, he/she tends to write a letter better and better each time. On other hand, It’s kind of hard if a child rarely or never received a response from sponsor to think of/write a good content especially, when is young. I encourage Compassion sponsors to write to your children. It doesn’t have to be long and nice prepared just showing something that you still love and care for them or just send one of your photo. PS. it would be helpful if you just simply put the date on each letter you write. Blessings!
My 8 year old keeps saying “Please write me a letter!” I write to him CONSTANTLY. (I hope this doesn’t mean he isn’t getting my letters, though I can’t imagine why he wouldn’t?)
Even though I write to my children on a regular basis, a few of them will still tell me to write and send pictures. Its seems that they always look forward to receiving a letter and pictures regardless of the amount of times I write. This may be the reason why he always tells you to write. It’s exciting for him to be told he received a letter and he wants to make sure those letters don’t stop coming.
I know that I am guilty of this! I encourage/ask my kids to write to me. Even if they are in a reciprocal country, I want them to know that I look forward to their letters and enjoy getting them. As a kid, I was one of those kids that always sort of wondered if I was bugging people or if they wanted me around or were just being nice. I think that for these kids knowing their sponsor actually WANTS their letters, and looks forward to them is huge. So it may be for them that they just really want your letters; perhaps they feel that if they don’t ask, you won’t write. You never know.
But I can assure you that, unless something really unusual is happening, yes, your boy is getting your letters!
@Sharon Does your boy answer your questions? That is one way to know that he is receiving your letters.
Garry, no, he doesn’t… but I just thought maybe that was because he is young and might not be used to letter-writing (yet!). I’m sure he’s getting the letters…. i was just surprised that he would say that, but Ken is probably right – most likely he is just telling me to keep writing.
Sharon, my children don’t always answer my questions. I think the main reason is because they aren’t on the reciprocal letter system. By the time it is time for them to write to me, months have passed and they don’t remember that I asked a specific question. I read that sometime next year, most if not all countries will be on the reciprocal system of writing. I will be happy about that. Right now my children only write 3 times a year and sometimes I feel like I don’t know them.
I’m sure that’s probably a big part of it. Yeah, I’m curious about the reciprocal letter system as well. (I read somewhere else around here that Kenya is on the current list of reciprocal countries – I have another child in Kenya and his letters are definitely not reciprocal, although they are very sweet and full of detail when they do come.) I’ve also heard of the plans for the new reciprocal system for next year and am interested to see how that turns out.