We began our ministry in East India in 2002 with the Child Sponsorship Program. In 2006, the Child Survival Program began, and the Leadership Development Program followed in 2009.

In just eight years of ministry, we have had a great impact on impoverished urban areas and poverty belts in East India. We have also networked with other agencies to bring together resources and raised awareness about child issues in the local churches.

Country Director

D.G. Jebaraj joined us as the East India Country Director in 2004. Before coming to the ministry, Jebaraj worked in various positions at World Vision for 13 years.

His last position there was as National Tuberculosis Coordinator.

Jebaraj holds a bachelo’rs degree in English and a master’s degree in social work from Madras Christian College and a master’s of philosophy from Annamalai University.

He is currently pursuing research on the effect of sibling rivalry in sponsorship programs toward community transformation. This research is being done through the Oxford Center for Mission Studies under the University of Wales.

Implementing Church Partners

Implementing Church Partners are local churches in East India with whom we work to deliver child development programs and frontline ministry in the field.

• Spiritual Climate
  East India is dominated by Hindus and Muslims. Throughout history Christians have been persecuted in India. In spite of this, Christian mission work continues to be carried out by committed missionaries. There are laws that exist that were created to provide support to minorities, but churches in India do not get adequate support from them.
• Unique Challenges
  There are many challenges we face in East India including anti-Christian movements, civic unrest, lack of qualified and committed staff, poor infrastructure, health issues, natural disasters, and Naxalism (a Maoist Communist group that has been categorized as a terrorist organization).

  Naxalism is an antisocial movement that is well-established throughout Eastern India. The government is constantly working to try to curb these rebels and bring peace and security. Naxalism creates terror among people and inflicts injuries, death and damage to public property.

  To ensure the safety and security of our children and to ensure visitors are not threatened, we must conduct our activities sensitively. The Naxalites do not harm our child development centers; however, due to disturbances they cause in the region where our centers are located, we occasionally have to put activities on hold for a day or two.

  Natural disasters such as flash floods, drought and hail storms are also a challenge. These disasters put our development efforts at risk as well as make our children and their families extremely vulnerable to migration, displacement and loss of livelihood, assets, and even their lives.

  We experience high numbers of departures due to natural disasters, which poses a challenge to achieving our outcomes as well as to the quality of the program implemented by our partners.



• Contributions
  Implementing Church Partners provide the infrastructure for the child development centers. They also take care of most of the spiritual development activities which are led by church volunteers. Some Implementing Church Partners provide curriculum modules as well.
• Partner Development Activities
  We develop partners through training, focused capacity building, timely support, and conferences designed to equip them with the knowledge needed for holistic child development, child advocacy and other child-related issues. Partnership Facilitators visit child development centers to analyze and better understand unique challenges.

Child Survival Program

• Caregiver Literacy
  We use material from the government-sponsored National Adult Literacy Program to teach mothers in our Child Survival Program. This program includes vernacular language learning, small stories and simple mathematics.

  Literacy classes are held weekly in most Child Survival Programs, but in others they are held twice a week. The Implementing Church Partners receive training from non-governmental organizations such as Child in Need India.



• Income-Generating Skills
  Two to three times per week we teach skills such as tailoring, embroidery, craft items, food processing, candle making and soap making.
• Health Care
  We connect mothers to the local primary health center to ensure they receive prenatal care, health screening, immunizations and delivery assistance.

  If there is no primary health center in the vicinity, the ministry pays for monthly checkups for pregnant mothers and children as well as costs for labor and delivery. We work to raise awareness of health issues such as hygiene, immunizations, nutrition, common illnesses, disease prevention, family planning, and HIV and AIDS. We also provide hygiene items.

• Nutritional Support
  Child Survival Program beneficiaries are provided with a nutritious meal during every visit. Dry food is provided at home. They also receive regular teaching on nutrition.
• Involvement of Fathers
  Fathers are expected to attend the parents’ meetings, which are held either bimonthly or quarterly. They are also expected to be at home during the home visit with the Child Survival Program Implementer.

Sometimes special programs such as a couple’s get-together or a family day are organized. Fathers are also encouraged to attend Christmas programs and graduation.



• Transitioning Out of the Child Survival Program
  Because of quota limitations, not every child in the Child Survival Program will be transitioned into the Child Sponsorship Program.

  Mothers are informed about this beforehand and no assurance is given that their children will be immediately transitioned into the Child Sponsorship Program upon graduation from Child Survival Program.

• Areas of Expansion for the Child Survival Program
  We will open additional Child Survival Programs in Bihar, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh.

  Due to high rates of illiteracy in these areas, the general population has extremely low awareness of proper prenatal and postnatal care.

Child Development Through Sponsorship

Your sponsorship of a child in East India provides a variety of benefits.

Children come to the child development centers either before or after school depending on their school schedules. Saturdays are set aside for service opportunities as well as clubs such as prayer, music and dance.

• Meeting Times:
• 3 to 5 year olds: 2 hours a day, from Monday through Friday, and 4 to 6 hours on Saturday
• 6 to 8 year olds: 2 hours a day, from Monday through Friday, and 4 to 6 hours on Saturday
• 9 to 11 year olds: 2 hours a day, from Monday through Friday, and 4 to 6 hours on Saturday
• 12 to 14 year olds: 2 hours a day, from Monday through Friday, 4 to 6 hours on Saturday, and 2 additional hours for special tutoring
• 15 to 18 year olds: 2 hours a day, from Monday through Friday, 4 to 6 hours on Saturday, and 2 additional hours for special coaching
• 19 +: 4 to 6 hours a week, the days and/or times vary depending on the students’ schedules, and 4 to 6 hours on Saturday
• Nutritional Support
  Each child receives one nutritious meal every day. The menu usually consists of rice, beans and vegetables. Eggs and meat are provided once a week.

  We hope to counter the children’s nutritional deficiencies by providing this food.



• Vaccinations
  Medical checkups are conducted twice a year by medical professionals at the child development centers. Vaccines are administered at the centers when needed. If a child has an emergency medical situation, he or she is sent to a nearby public health center.

  Hepatitis vaccinations are given in the areas that have the highest incidence of hepatitis.

• Extracurricular Activities or Community Service
  Children are given several opportunities for extracurricular activities and community service, the most common being dance, music, art, sports tournaments, and cleaning at the development center and in their villages. We also conduct awareness programs on malaria, alcoholism and adult literacy.
• Vocational Activities
  Vocational training programs are selected based on each child’s interests and capacity to learn. The intention of vocational training is not to undermine the value of formal education, but to help those children who are not doing well in formal education. This training helps these youth earn an income for their families.

  Activities such as soft toy making, quilting and embroidery are offered at the development center. Certified courses such as computer training, motor vehicle repair and electrician training are offered at nearby recognized institutes.

• Child Sponsorship Program Alumni Activities
  The Alumni Association meets twice a year to focus on spiritual development and to reconnect the students with one another.
• Parent Involvement
  Parent meetings are held either monthly or bimonthly depending on the center. We have programs on subjects such as child rearing, alcoholism, HIV and AIDS, malaria, adult literacy and income generation.

  Because many parents are day laborers, we schedule these meetings according to their availability.



• Areas of expansion for the Child Sponsorship Program
  We plan to expand into northeast India, because this is a needy area, there are potential church partners, and the region fits our strategic growth plan.

Leadership Development Program

• Universities Attended
  Leadership Development Program students attend government, private or Christian universities.
• Location of Universities
  The universities are located mostly in the state capitals.
• Service Opportunities
  The students are given many opportunities to participate in community service activities. They can participate in awareness programs, blood donation drives, university functions, church activities and university business fairs. They are also given the opportunity to visit nursing homes, teach children at their child development centers, help clean up the centers and teach children who live in the slums.
• Leadership Development Program Meetings
  The larger Leadership Development Program group meets for training programs, summer camps and Christmas programs.

  They cover their program curriculum, have individual health screenings, participate in cultural programs and morning exercise, have sharing and worship times and complete their program requirements such as My Plan for Tomorrow.



• Mentors
  It is the responsibility of the students to find mentors; however, if they are having difficulty, then the Leadership Development Program Specialist will help.

Complementary Interventions

Compassion’s core Child Sponsorship Program, while comprehensive, cannot address all obstacles to a child’s healthy development. Compassion’s Complementary Interventions program works in harmony with the holistic child development model to provide additional services as needed such as the AIDS Initiative, Bibles for All Children, disaster relief and water projects.

Typical Complementary Interventions in East India include:

• Water
  Tube/bore wells provide drinking water for children. We also provide water storage tanks, rain water harvesting and water supply for toilets.
• Malaria Prevention
  We provide awareness training, insecticide-treated mosquito nets for Child Survival and Child Sponsorship children and their families.
• Disaster/Crisis Relief
  We provide assistance to churches who experience persecution in Orissa. We will also provide assistance in Aila-West Bengal floods, droughts and food crises.
• Solar Power
  Many of the child development centers in remote areas are using solar power provided by our ministry in collaboration with the West Bengal Renewable Development Agency.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

Sneha grew up in a poor farmer’s home. Her father could not afford to pay a dowry to marry off his two daughters, as is custom in much of India. There were already enough financial struggles at home. So Sneha assured her father she would marry whomever he chose for her after her sister married outside of their clan.

Sneha’s father got a proposal for her after a year. When the two families met over lunch at their home, it seemed to be the perfect match because no dowry was even asked for. They agreed, and Sneha got married.

But after one month, life started to change. Fights started at home. Sneha’s husband started accusing her of being unfaithful, even with her brother-in-law.

She thought it was his possessiveness of her that made him angry and verbally abusive. But when Sneha learnt about her husband’s abusive and suspicious nature from the neighbors, she was hurt. Sneha kept his behavior secret from her family, and she had no way out.

Sneha thought perhaps a child would end the tension in their marriage. After a year she conceived and gave birth to a beautiful little girl.

Things did not change as Sneha had expected. Her husband started abusing her even more because she had a girl instead of a boy. Gradually his verbal abuse turned into physical torture. He would burn the little baby’s tender skin with cigarettes. He would grab Sneha by the hair, and hit her in front of the neighbors.

He even stopped Sneha from going home to see her parents. But Sneha never complained to her parents because she knew it would break her father’s heart. Sneha thought she would be able to change her husband with love and affection.

After two years Sneha conceived again. She was afraid to tell her husband, and when she did, he threatened to kill her if she gave birth to another girl. Sneha struggled a lot during her second pregnancy. Her husband tortured her, she cried much of the day, and half the time she did not even eat.

One evening Sneha’s husband came home from work furious. He didn’t talk with Sneha. After dinner he called Sneha into the room, picked a fight, and tied her up with her daughter. He then poured kerosene on them and Sneha started screaming for help.

The neighbors heard Sneha’s voice and rushed to rescue her. She took shelter in their home that night and left with her girls early the next morning to go home to her parents. Sneha went home battered and bruised.

Even after returning home to her parents, life wasn’t easy for Sneha. People in the community began talking ill about her instead of sympathizing with her. Sneha gradually became depressed because the trauma she went through was immense. Her hope was lost and her dreams for her children shattered.

Sneha worked hard as a single mother so that she wouldn’t become a burden on her parents. She rolled bidi, which are local cigarettes, to support her children and herself. And every day Sneha would hear children singing inside a church building that she walked by on her way home.

She was curious what was going on, so one day she stood for a while peeping through the window. She heard children singing and praying, learning moral values and the Word of God.

Sneha was inspired by what she heard and saw inside the church. The next morning she went and met the pastor and shared her life’s story with him. The pastor urged her to attend the Sunday worship service and since then Sneha began attending the church with the hope that she would get some help for her daughter from the church.

Last year our Child Survival Program (CSP) opened at the church. God heard Sneha’s prayer. She enrolled in the Child Survival Program with her younger daughter, who was 8 months old at that time. When she first started attending she would sit quietly in the corner and cry.

Sneha is an industrious mother with great potential and eagerness to learn. She shares the Scripture stories she learns in the Child Survival Program with her daughters and parents back home. She has grown in prayer. Sneha has become firm in her faith in God.

“I do know that if God is there with me, it doesn’t matter how difficult the circumstances may be.”

The Child Survival Program offers income-generating activities through which Sneha is learning tailoring and stitching to help her become independent in the future.

“I don’t have go to a tailor for stitching my clothes now …. I can stitch a frock, skirt and small tops for both my daughters sitting at home.”

The Child Survival Program has helped Sneha to have a vision for her children.

“I am saving a little money in a mud pot every month for both my daughters for their education when they grow bigger … it is hard for me to set that apart but I have to for their better future.”

Sneha could not buy milk and hygiene supplies for her young baby, but the Child Survival Program provides them for her now. Mothers eat a nutritious diet at the program that consist of foods like rice, lentils, mixed vegetables and fish, eggs or meat.

Mothers meet at the center for their group activity three times during the week. Sneha has learned to keep herself clean. Though she lives in a house with a dirt floor, she is careful to keep it clean.

It is hard to live as a single mother in her community, as it is considered a social taboo. Many women look down on her. They don’t let their children mingle with Sneha’s children. But that has not stopped Sneha from sharing God’s goodness in her life with other women in her community. She has brought along many mothers to the Sunday service.

“It amazes me when I hear Sneha share the Scripture with other mothers both in the Child Survival Program and in her community knowing the trauma she went through in the past … she has come to the knowledge of God just recently and yet Sneha has the faith to say that God will take care of all her needs and circumstances, even if others forsake her,” says Sona, a CSP implementer.

Sneha leads the other mothers by example. She inspires them to win over their brokenness by sharing God’s love with them. The CSP staff can rely on Sneha with any work because they believe she is a smart and a fast learner.

“We have delegated Sneha to lead worship for the mothers during devotion at the center …. Sneha is forthcoming and ahead of the other mothers in every sphere of learning, be it tailoring, singing, organizing, generating awareness in her community and even praying for others,” tells Sona, a CSP implementer.

Today, Sneha witnesses God’s goodness through her life that has been transformed through the intervention of the Child Survival Program. The struggles she endured in the past help her to relate to the pain of other mothers both in the program and in her community.

Sneha is determined to bring up her two daughters with good values to show that girls can make a great contribution to society. God has turned her pain into a blessing that she uses as a tool to spread the message of God’s love.

Kancherapara Child Development Center and Child Survival Program is part of our Church to Church strategy.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

One-to-one sponsorship helps children across the globe write off poverty and begin living a lives of hope. And it begins when someone picks up a child packet and makes the commitment to sponsor a child. That’s when our sponsorship notification process gets rolling.

The field country office initiates the process of notifying the child with the exciting news that he or she has a sponsor.

In the country office, the Program Communication Department is the first to learn that a child has been sponsored. It takes 60 days from the time the country is notified that there is a new sponsor to when the first child letters arrive in our Global Ministry Center in Colorado Springs.

In East India, for example, the Sponsor Donor Services (SDS) Associate generates the list of newly sponsored children from our Correspondence Tracking Application each Monday.

Next, the packing list for new assignments is printed for every child development center and the blank stationary for each child’s first letter is also printed out along with the bar code, the names and numbers of the child and the sponsor on it. The letters are dispatched to the centers the following day.

The centers learn about the sponsorship details from the new assignment packing list and letters they receive from the country office. They check the individual child folders of the children mentioned in the list to see if they are first-time or formerly sponsored, and they update the child sponsorship register accordingly.

The sponsorship date and the child numbers from the list are then recorded in the Correspondence Data Chart that every center maintains. The original packing list is photocopied and filed at the center in a separate folder.

The center manager then goes into individual classrooms to notify the children about their new sponsors. Once children are notified, the center staff makes it a point to explain them about the whole idea of sponsorship through informal talk. This helps them relate you better in the future.

Parents are notified about their child being sponsored either during a home visit by the social worker or during the parents’ meeting at the center.

Each child has to write a letter of introduction to his or her sponsor. A child’s first letter includes information about the child’s family, the family’s income, the community, the challenges the family faces, and a small note of thanks from the child’s family. The child development workers (CDW) collect this information from the children and their parents through informal interaction.

In each center, the child development workers help children to write letters. The manager writes down the sponsor’s name and number along with the sponsor’s country on a small piece of paper and hands it out to the tutors. The tutors help the children to memorize their sponsors’ names. The center staff assists small children who cannot frame full sentences by writing on their behalf.

Children who can’t yet write are encouraged to write the alphabet, numbers or draw in the space provided for them in the child letter. Older children write on their own in their vernacular, which is corrected for grammatical errors and translated back into English by the child development workers.

After children finish writing their letters, the check box next to the child names in the New Assignment Packing List is ticked. The center manager then checks each letter before they are returned to the country office for processing.

Once the letters arrive at the field office they are again checked for quality, content and child contribution by the SDS Associate. The letters are then sorted by sponsor country and scanned into our Correspondence Tracking Application.

A packing list is generated for each scanned set of new assignment letters and the printed copy of it is attached with the physical bunch, after which it is ready for packaging and subsequent mailing to the Colorado Springs office.

Once the letters reach the Colorado Springs office, they are routed to sponsors in the different countries where sponsors live. A child’s first letter is important as it begins the link between the child and the sponsor and sets the foundation for bonding in the future.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

The young and dynamic Andrew leads the team of two LDP specialists, Vikho and Charles in South India, and also coordinates with the East India Leadership Development Program team. He is a passionate and efficient leader, involved in training and building the capacity of the staff.

Andrew is a man who challenges himself and his students to surpass the best. With his unyielding integrity, he has succeeded in assessing, identifying and developing the skills and potential hidden within young minds.

He dreams that one day the Leadership Development Program will be able to give opportunity to many more young men and women who have the potential to transform their families, communities and country.

He envisions a day when all students graduating from the program will be able to develop their God-given gifts and become skilled professionals and influential Christian leaders across the globe.

He wants them to be influential personalities not only in the professional realm, but in the political arena as well. In the future, he expects them to shake the Indian political system through their radical and powerful leadership.

Andrew, along with Vikho and Charles, promotes the vision of the Leadership Development Program, discussing ideas to effectively facilitate, counsel and advise the students for a dynamic change in their attitudes.

“LDP students study at various colleges. We help them start prayer groups called care groups at their respective colleges. We also identify a local pastor/leader to mentor them.

“The groups meet once a month for prayer and worship, and the pastor conducts Bible study. As the days go by the students also start to share testimonies, pray together, lead worship and preach the Word themselves.

“Such prayer groups are being conducted in different places in India, such as Bangalore, Madurai, Trichy, Coimbatore, Trivandrum, Vijayawada, Warangal, Anantapur, Arogiavaram, Chennai and Kanpur. At times even the children in our sponsorship program come and join them.”

The students also have curriculum training, which lays a firm foundation in areas such as financial management, effective mentoring relationships and program participation.

They are also trained on basic principles of Bible study, commitment to the local Church, time management, studying, leadership, effective communication and public speaking, influencing and educating peers, a biblical view of poverty, and understanding their social responsibility.

Andrew spends individual time with each student at least twice a year, and he makes sure that the students are free from financial constraints and are moving towards their goals.

“Andrew is passionate about his work and is a person driven by God’s calling in his life. He is probably the most meticulous person I know. I feel it a privilege to work with him.” – Vikho

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

The political leaders were visiting the center to address the children with words of encouragement, as the local leader himself is from the same region. He had a vision to develop the area and uplift the future of its children.

Souri is a tribal village in eastern India surrounded by mountains and small creeks. It is very remote, with little development. The primary schools don’t have teachers available on a regular basis, and the health-care center struggles to attract doctors from the city.

The native villagers are mostly illiterate, and engage in cultivation. Only a few have traveled outside of the colony in search of better jobs.

With so many struggles here, children who grow up in this community face a bleak future. 

During his visit, the political leader walked through the community to reach the center, and he was saddened by what he saw:  groups of children helping their parents in the field or just roaming aimlessly. But when he reached the Compassion-assisted child development center, he was heartened. 

He and his party were greeted by little children who each had a piece of flower garland in their hand. As the party members walked around, they saw the thatched-roof shed with no covering on its sides, where children sat and sang songs.

Children were dressed in nice, clean uniforms, and they stood up to greet the guests in one voice: “Good afternoon, sir.”

Talking with the children, the leaders were so impressed with Compassion’s child development work through the center that they promised to give 150,000 rupees for the construction of a new building. Said the local leader:

“The state government has not done much to reach out to the needs of the poor people here . . . Giving a new building will not lead to the development of the children here, but it will definitely provide a proper shelter where children can build their dreams by exercising their talents without fear, when children find themselves in safe boundaries, their minds work well and it helps in their overall progress.”

Before the child development center program was established, Souri village was completely undeveloped. Souri people would have many children so they could have may workers to help them in the fields and in the houshold. But they lacked knowledge how to instill in their chidren good moral values.

Children were left on their own as parents left home early daily to work and cultivate fields. Parents didn’t understand the significance of sending their children to school, and children were often neglected.

Most families could not afford to send their children to school because of their small incomes and large families. Today, children registered at the center are the first generation of learners.

There was also a large spiritual void among the people of Souri village as they are workaholics. They did not think attending church or participating in church activities were important. They would find an excuse to work and to skip church on Sunday. They never used to pray, let alone read the Bible.

Children at the center are taught how to pray, to participate in Sunday school activities, to sing songs, and are told stories from the Bible that depict God’s love for them. When children return home, they teach their parents and siblings what they learn, especially to pray before meals and sleep and to thank God after waking up in the morning.

Many families have been transformed through their children. The children have so influenced their parents that the parents have started coming to church on Sundays now. Many parents are also volunteering to participate in various church activities.

The children have become healthy and are growing very fast. They relish and enjoy the nutritious hot meal the center provides every morning before the children leave for school. The daily meal consists of rice, lentils, a mixed vegetable, and fish, egg or chicken served on alternate days.

Without this meal, most of the children get to eat only a bowl of rice with some potato for dinner as that is all their parents can afford at home.

In the program children are coached on basic manners, etiquette and socializing skills to help them live in harmony and love with others in their community. The center organizes a parent meeting once every month to teach about various issues that can become impediments to  children’s development.

Children age 12 years and older are encouraged to set realistic goals and document them in their “My Plan for Tomorrow.” The church staff members also sit with each child to help identify the child’s interests and motivate him or her in that direction for the future.

At the end of each year these goals are measured and evaluated, based on the child’s progress. This helps children know where they stand so they can press toward their goal zealously with confidence.

The essence of sponsorship is far above the monetary gain that it provides. It involves relationship-building over a period of time. It provides an opportunity for both the sponsor and the beneficiary to unite their hearts and partake in one another’s joy, sorrow and celebration.

Sponsorship is a prayerful commitment made by you to care a child and for their family over the long term. You help to alleviate difficult living conditions lurking around by providing hope through education and encouragement through letters and gifts.

“Given a chance and opportunity, our children have the potential to become future leaders of this region to further development work and to help many more children and families come into the mainstream of the society.”

– Maijo, center coordinator for Souri Child Development Center

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

The theme for the training was “Released to Maximize Impact.” The first day’s session centered on biblical foundations and biblical mentoring principles with special emphasis on the leadership qualities of biblical characters such as Moses, Joshua, Jacob and Joseph, shared by the Rev. K.E. Henry, Program Manager of Compassion East India. Henry also shared about “Discovering your Spiritual Gifts.”

On the second day, the students learned about the curriculum they would use during their time as LDP students, and the mentoring relationships they will have.

In the Leadership Development Program, each student chooses a mentor who guides them through the program, helping them with emotional, physical, social and even educational needs.

Mentors need to be of the same gender with an ability to capacitate, empower, encourage and motivate the student with godly admonition, love, care, concern and support. Students learned about their roles and responsibilities, and their accountability to their mentors.

Deep, one of the 20 new LDP students, can attest to the positive outcome of mentoring from his days as a sponsored child.

Deep grew up in abject poverty. His father worked at a tea shop, and his mother did dishes and mopped in a few houses to support the household.

Deep’s father was an alcoholic and addicted to marijuana. There were frequent fights at home because of his father’s addiction.

At times Deep’s father would beat and abuse Deep’s mother for money to buy his drugs. There was no peace in the family. Deep was moving into depression because of the unhealthy atmosphere. His parents took little to no interest in his development at the church; neither did they have time for him when they were home.

Because of their poor family condition, Deep’s mother wanted him to drop out of school. She would often pester him to find a part-time job to help in the household. Deep suffered from low self-esteem and lack of confidence.

It was at this time that the accountant at the Compassion child development center began to invest in Deep through counseling, encouragement and prayer.

Deep’s self-confidence grew. He also developed a personal relationship with God during this time. His academic performance improved as he began to excel in his studies. Deep got first division scores in his 10th and 12th grade exams that helped him qualify for the Leadership Development Program.

Deep says the mentoring relationship in the Leadership Development Program will be pivotal to the success of each student. His mentor in the Leadership Development Program is be the same man who helped him as a sponsored child, Lalnufela.

“Lalnufela has been a close friend and guide to me. He has helped me, encouraged me, edified me and prayed for me every time I needed help.

“I know that my journey in the Leadership Development Program is not going to be just that of me alone, but my mentor will be there to help me every step of the way, whether I am faced with difficult circumstances or standing at the crossroad of life. I want my mentor to be a guide to show me the right direction in life and also to pray for me and my family.”

The mentoring relationship is based on trust, hope and confidence as it can either build or demotivate a student. A mentor must be a mature Christian, exemplifying humility, mutual respect, love, hope, confidentiality and accountability.

Through the mentoring relationship, a mentor can share wisdom, value, knowledge and experience to help the student develop Christian values and professional skills.

Deep’s mentor has helped him in many ways. He helps Deep in counseling when he needs it. He has also helped guide Deep to discern and set priorities while making important decisions in life.

A student can discuss many things with a mentor during regular contact time that corresponds to the student’s academic, social, spiritual and leadership progress.

Deep’s mentor shares his experiences with him, counsels Deep from the Word of God, and helps him plans how to best fulfill the requirements for all 24 curriculums that LDP students must complete while in the program.

After completion of his bachelor’s degree in administration, Deep plans to pursue management studies for two years. After his graduation from the Leadership Development Program, Deep wants to help children who cannot reach their potential because of poverty.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

Holistic child development has four aspects: physical, socio-emotional, economic and spiritual, and there are different issues that we have to grapple with when applying our child development model to the child survival and child sponsorship programs.

This is what holistic child development looks like in eastern India.

Holistic Child Development for Child Survival

For the physical aspect, the problems that we have to tackle are:

• maternal and infant mortality
• miscarriage
• malnutrition
• lack of knowledge about immunization
• lack of prenatal medical checkups
• late breastfeeding
• no birth spacing
• diarrhea, malaria, tuberculosis, and gestational diabetes (mother)

In order to address the needs outlined above, special health awareness programs are conducted in the program to teach mothers about ways to protect their children and themselves.

The mothers learn to fight diarrhea through administration of Oral Rehydration Therapy, and they learn about breastfeeding techniques, family planning, the need for immunizations, and precautions against common preventable diseases.

For the socio-emotional aspect, women:

• are looked down upon by society
• have no voice in the community
• suffer from low self-esteem and dignity
• lack knowledge
• are not allowed to leave home when pregnant

To address these issues, mothers are given opportunities to voice their opinions freely. They are given leadership roles to help them come up in life, and they are given scientific explanations to help break their superstitious mindsets about different things in life.

Mothers are taken on field trips and exposed to places they have never been to in order to give them a feel of the world outside their communities. Mothers are taught about social manners and etiquette. They are taught to be humble, patient and forgiving.

Economically,

• jobs are not readily available
• there is limited knowledge of income generation
• mothers are illiterate, which stifles opportunity

To address the problems outlined above, we offer income-generating programs for the mothers and self-help groups that enable them to become economically self-supporting.

To help with motor development, children are given educational toys like building blocks to play with and visual charts to learn from.

In the spiritual realm, the problems we address are:

• superstitious beliefs
• idol worship and animism
• ignorance about the gift of salvation and the existence of the true living God

To address the lack of spirituality in the life of mothers, they are taught about creation and the history of biblical truth through stories outlined in the Bible.

Mothers are also taught about the special place that God has bestowed on women and motherhood, besides teaching them about the free gift of salvation that is available to all.

They’re taught to pray, and over a period of time they discover the power of prayer in their lives. They’re also taught about the light of God as opposed to animism, superstition and idol worship.

Holistic Child Development in Child Sponsorship

Physically, the problems that we have to tackle are misuse and abuse of children and forced labor.

We conduct various awareness trainings for our children to teach them about healthy and unhealthy touch, and we teach them about various forms of abuse — which could be internal as well as external.

For the socio-emotional aspect of child development, the issues we address are that children:

• suffer from inferiority complexes
• feel pressured to express themselves
• lack opportunities for schooling or drop out of school
• have low self-esteem and self worth
• experience a sense of shame, guilt and fear

We help children to be on par with other children by providing a platform for them to demonstrate their innate capabilities despite social pressures. We create opportunities for children through various activities to overcome their fears guilt and shame and to be accepted by their peers.

We provide education for many children up to high school, enabling them to move from illiteracy to becoming literate and possibly try for jobs, if they don’t pursue further studies.

We also create an atmosphere for them to feel socially accepted in communities that are filled with various caste/religion prejudices.

Economically, the problems that we have to tackle are that children:

• lack opportunities and are bound in poverty because of it
• lack the most basic needs of life

We are addressing the economic problems that pull our children down by providing them opportunities to think, providing them needs beyond food, clothing and shelter, and helping parents dream of a future that they have been denied.

Spiritually, the concerns that we have to tackle are that children don’t know the real God, don’t know the gift of salvation and don’t get an opportunity to sing.

Through our child development centers we are providing opportunities for them to learn about God in a community besotted with thousands and thousands of gods.

We provide a platform for the children to sing, pray and preach; thereby sowing seeds of faith and growth. We equip them to become who God wants them to be.

Children going from a belief in thousands of gods to belief in ONLY ONE GOD is the biggest contribution of the child sponsorship program.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

In the midst of turbulent economic times, political uncertainty and a global food crisis, 29 of our sponsors proceeded with their decision to come to India to experience this great ministry among children.

It is one thing to hear marvelous stories about sponsors and how far they would go to support a child, but it is definitely a red letter day to meet them in person. For most of the sponsors, the sponsor tour we recently hosted was their first time in India, and they surely were thrilled by the sights and sounds around them.

Churches and projects in Bangalore, Yelagiri and Chennai welcomed the visitors into their community, and the sponsors had the opportunity to witness the harsh realities of life for our children, and the hope that Compassion offers through the child development centers in our various programs.

The home visits enabled the sponsors to have a feel for the poverty surrounding the communities, as well as the traditions and superstitions that some of the communities are bound by.

The traditional welcome with garlands, sandalwood and rosewater, personal testimonies of children and parents, and the cultural events by children at the centers left each sponsor humbled.

Amidst everything, the one thing the sponsors would not give up were those personal moments of interaction with the children. The sponsors connected with the children through songs, skits and crafts. They learned, listened, laughed with the children, and cried every time they had to leave a center.

The “fun day” planned for each sponsor to interact with his or her own sponsored child was assuredly the defining moment.

Surrounded by the Bay of Bengal on one side and luscious green pastures on the other, VGP Golden Beach was ideal for fun in the sun. Every sponsor wished this day would never end.

Bidding farewell to their precious little children by giving gifts they brought all the way from the United States continues to amaze me. Hugs, handshakes, loads of tears, and treasured memories made the day worthwhile for these faithful sponsors.

Another sponsor tour has ended, and I am grateful to God for the way he led us in putting it all together. As I look back, it gives me even greater satisfaction that those 29 sponsors who explored and experienced the work of Compassion in person left India with more than just a bagful of memories! Compassion is indeed blessed with such wonderful and committed sponsors.

Please continue to pray for these sponsors that God would bless their efforts as they serve as advocates for India. Please pray also for the many unsponsored children in our ministry.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

1. How long have you been in your current position, and what are your main responsibilities?

I have been in this position for the last three years.

My main responsibility entails supervision of the three core processes for Program Communications: Field Communication, Sponsor Donor Services and Tours and Visits.

Besides that I am responsible for communication with Global Partner Alliance (GPA) staff, mentoring my team, budgeting and working alongside the country management team (CMT).

2. Describe what an average day is like for you.

An average day starts with the corporate devotion. It is followed by attending to my “To Do List” where I address each request, need or assignment based on priority while also following up during a morning briefing on any pending work assigned to my team members.

The later part of the day involves meeting with the Country Director and/or other CMT members for updates, approval or planning.

3. What is the best part of your job, and what is the most challenging part?

The best part of my job is when I am able to represent the work of Compassion in East India to visitors from overseas in a way that moves them to become strong advocates for children. It gives me pure delight to take them around the child development centers we work with and show them the tangible difference Compassion is making in the lives of children coming from impoverished communities.

What better feeling can there be than to see vibrant young boys and girls emerge as healthy, confident, outgoing children ever glowing in the love of God, which would otherwise be hard to imagine in their given circumstance.

In the light of growth that we are experiencing from the past few years as God so graciously has opened new avenues for us to expand and touch more lives, sustaining quality in our work can be quite a challenge.

4. Why did you choose this particular area of work?

I started out with a job in a renowned chain of hotels only to realize with years that my heart’s desire was not fulfilled, as all I was doing was achieving targets and pleasing those who already had enough.

Having done my major in Human Development, as I had a desire to work with children, this working in the private sector for eight years was no longer fulfilling for me.

Coming from a strong Hindu Brahmin background, I found myself in Christ in 2003. Thereon, I was exposed to various outreach ministries from my church, primarily to do with children.

Working as a volunteer with the lesser known from the society was a privilege and an eye-opener which put a deep burden in my heart to reach out to them and make a difference by showing them God’s love, who otherwise were considered insignificant.

5. Why did you choose to work for Compassion?

I felt my calling was to do something for children, and God graciously opened the avenues for me through Compassion.

6. Do you ever feel overwhelmed by your job?

When too many things needs to be attended simultaneously, it does get overwhelming at times. But with God’s grace I am able to pull through all of that.

Also seeing children leave before completing their term in the sponsorship program is heartbreaking. But I need to accept this reality, which is circumstantial, and move on, praying God will go with them and cover them with His grace.

7. What motivates you in your position?

To see hope in the eyes of children who have absolutely nothing in life and to see dedicated people choosing to leave their comfort zone to come and work among the impoverished, with very limited resources in hand, humbles and challenges me each day.

8. What have you learned as a result of your job?

When I look at the abundant need around, my faith in God and His awesome power gets grounded more firmly in me.

Amidst great dearth, neglect and poverty His love is manifested through the help little children receive at Compassion from their sponsors around the world.

All this has made me more determined than ever, that, slowly but surely we can make a difference in someone’s life, one at a time.

9. Tell us about a situation or incident you experienced through your job that touched your heart?

Once I was following up on a child’s update and came to know that he had been paralyzed for sometime and stopped attending the Compassion center due to his illness.

We followed up on his treatment’s possibility and the center staff tried to convince the child’s guardians to send him to city for a treatment by which he would most certainly get cured.

This was the most challenging part as the guardians were so under the bondage of old traditional practices where they would rely on local village quack doctor and witchcraft.

This went on for a few months. In the meantime, the child would write to his sponsor on and off with the help of his young friends, expressing himself longing to be normal again and run around like his other friends, go back to school, as he enjoyed studying.

It used to be so touching to read his letters. The guardians never did agree, and the child had a pitiful death without receiving any medical care.

I have not been able to quite come out of this as I know there are many such cases all around the world, and we have a greater responsibility to reach out to these children.

10. Do you have a message for sponsors who support children?

I just want to thank them for being an extension of God’s arms in reaching out to these children and supporting various programs of Compassion by overcoming innumerable personal sacrifice.

They are making a big difference, impacting a generation, and touching lives which would have otherwise continued to live in despondency. They are the very reasons for hope and opportunity in their life. They are making a difference for Christ!

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates

You can now find all of those maps in our Flickr account.

My Account l Sponsor a Child l Help Babies and Moms l Crisis Updates