Comments on: Sponsor Letter Photos

By: Amy Buzan

Amy Buzan — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 02:29:08 +0000

Thanks so much for posting these beautiful photos…I was in Uganda recently as part of a mission trip, and these photos are a very real reminder of how much the smallest things are cherished by these more than deserving children!

By: Caitlin

Caitlin — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 22:43:58 +0000

I just received a letter in the mail from Compassion, reminding me about sending a Christmas gift for the kids, on the letter there was a picture of a girl with the Barbie doll she got for Christmas. I think it would be really awesome if may sometime we could get a slide show like this one, but with the different “project bought” Christmas presents…and maybe even a few labels to show which kids are sponsored and which are still waiting.

By: Veronika Cook

Veronika Cook — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 00:18:12 +0000

Hi, today I got a new picture of my sweet girl. She’s so cute!!

By: Jenny Van Ryswyk

Jenny Van Ryswyk — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:30:16 +0000

@Amy Brooke – Hi, Amy. Sounds a bit unusual to not have a good translation. I have a child in Columbia and the translation seems to be done very well from my point of view. Mind you I do not know Spanish at all but looking at the words that are obvious helps me understand that the translation is done quite well. I try to make my letters very simple because translating is difficult when using colloquialisms and slang. One thing I am doing for my Columbian child is sending Father’s Love Letter in Spanish which I found on the internet. That is so beautiful. If you have not seen it, it is worth looking at. It is available in multiple languages. Check
http://www.fathersloveletter.com/languages.html

By: Mike Huskey

Mike Huskey — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 10:36:57 +0000

@Amy Brooke – Hi Amy, we seem to have about the same proficiency in Spanish and I also scan the letters to try and pick up more words.
I received letters from 2 of my girls in Colombia that also was not translated entirely. Like you I sent it back to Compassion and they send it back to the country office to get it translated again. Then they work with the original translator to improve the translations. It took a couple months before I received the translated letter again.
Occasionally I will find a word or two not translated correctly, but for the most part the translations have be good. I’ve not had a problem with letters from my children in Ecuador.
Hope you recieve your new translations soon.

By: Chris Giovagnoni

Chris Giovagnoni — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:33:08 +0000

@Amy Brooke -

Does anyone check the letters for accuracy in translation?

Yes. In fact, we just profiled someone in our Bangladesh office who does that as part of her job – Meet Jhumur Biswas

Several weeks ago, I got a letter from my child in Ecuador. I know just enough Spanish to be dangerous. She wrote about her "hermano" (brother), "juego" (which is, I believe "I play"), "flores" (flowers), "La foto queme enbiastes estan muy bonitas" (the photo . . . something . . is very pretty) My concern is that the translation I received doesn't mention ANY of these items. It makes me wonder what else I am missing. I contacted Compassion and mailed a copy of the letter back, but I haven't received a new translation yet. I know there are a lot of letters, but if my translation is missing things, are the letters I send to my children missing things

I apologize for my delayed response. I was waiting for a reply from our International Program Group - the folks who are responsible for the translation process in the countries. I was told that we do use trained translators, and the translators work is quality checked, but the reality is that with the volume of letters we process 100 percent of the translated work can’t be double-checked. You did exactly the right thing in contacting us and asking that the translation be verified. It also helps us identify if there are consistent translation issues that need to be addressed.

By: Vicki Small

Vicki Small — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 13:33:27 +0000

@Amy Brooke - Amy, so much depends on the tranlator's real grasp of English. I have two girls in Ecuador and know about as much Spanish as you do. I often scan their letters in Spanish to see if I pick up anything that is not tranlated; so far, I've never found any lack as pronounced as your letter seems to have. I think if I were to find an unsatisfactory translation, I would call the 800# to let them know and ask them to pass my observation along to the country office. Then if I needed help completing the translation for myself, I would contact a Spanish-speaking friend and ask for help. If I didn't know anyone like that, I would probably call a college in my area and see if someone could help me--maybe a student working as a tutor. @Catherine Shaw - Catherine, you can call 1-800-336-7676 and tell whoever you talk to that you would like to be added to the list of correspondent sponsors. I have no idea whether they have a minimum age requirement, so you need to ask that. Thanks for your desire to meet this critical need for a child!

By: Catherine Shaw

Catherine Shaw — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 08:32:53 +0000

@alyson - I am fifteen as well. I Cannot afford to sponsor a child, although i would like to become a correspondence sponsor. How do i do this?

By: Amy Brooke

Amy Brooke — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 19:03:26 +0000

Does anyone check the letters for accuracy in translation?

Several weeks ago, I got a letter from my child in Ecuador. I know just enough Spanish to be dangerous.
She wrote about her “hermano” (brother), “juego” (which is, I believe “I play”), “flores” (flowers), “La foto queme enbiastes estan muy bonitas” (the photo . . . something . . is very pretty)

My concern is that the translation I received doesn’t mention ANY of these items. It makes me wonder what else I am missing. I contacted Compassion and mailed a copy of the letter back, but I haven’t received a new translation yet.

I know there are a lot of letters, but if my translation is missing things, are the letters I send to my children missing things?

My other child is in Rwanda. I don’t know any words from her language, so nothing would clue me in.

Just curious.

By: Sharon doris

Sharon doris — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:23:44 +0000

Thanks. I imagine Lizbeth getting my letters and wonder if she studies mine like I study hers.

I will get to meet her in September and am so looking forward to it.

I will be taking pictures and will submit them when I am able.