The question to measure the success of interventions to the poor is, “Did the person delivering the service and the person receiving the service build trust in each other?”
Resilient and Bearing Good Fruit
“Honestly, I used to go to the center to get away from my house. I didn’t want to be at home because I always had to do something, and if I had free time my father always took me to work.” – Josue
María lives in the La Victoria Alta neighborhood, a place with limited access to public transportation and public services. It is one hour away from Quito’s downtown area, a place where the cold weather is so intense that people feel chilled to the bone. María is one of the hundreds of mothers who cry at…
Christmas Tradition and Celebration in Colombia
Officially, Christmas begins on Dec. 7 when Colombian people celebrate Candle Day, an important festivity in which kids and adults join at night to light candles in the streets and windows. Offices and homes are decorated with lanterns and candles that welcome the holiday season. They are also accompanied by fireworks.
A Past Full of Poverty, a Future Full of Hope
Just as artists on the stage have people working behind the scenes to make them shine, Felipe has a grateful heart toward one person who helped him shine: his sponsor, Barry. “If it wasn’t for him, his love, his letters, and his sponsorship maintaining me in the center, I’m sure that I would not be…
Delivering Hope
Sponsored children receive letters from their sponsors. Unsponsored children do not.
Andrea, one of the Compassion workers and our translator, told me that the only time there is a true distinction between a child who is unsponsored and a child who is sponsored is when letters are handed out. It’s a little bit like the unsponsored…
Poverty Eradication: That’s a Tall Order
I think the volunteers at this center, the facilitator, the pastor and the director understand the importance of eradication. I know they rely on God for the victory, but I think your faithfulness and your commitment to your sponsored children is running poverty out of the minds and hearts of these children.
The Water Is Now Safe to Drink
This brand-new plant will supply, among other areas, the 21 Compassion-assisted centers in Manabí Province. These child development centers assist 6,394 boys, girls and adolescents. With the consumption of this water, the number of cases of parasites and cavities among children is expected to decrease from 80 percent to 50 percent.
The Words We Carry
Your words are not just printed ink on paper. When I think of the cards I see a weapon that will be used by God. I see hundreds of hammers, in the shape of letters, shattering the lies of poverty. I see the grip of discouragement falling away from the children Jesus watches over.
A Christmas Card Drive of Epic Proportions!
We’d like to make a way to send hundreds and thousands of words of encouragement to kids who really need them in this season of Thanksgiving. That’s where YOU come in! Well you, DaySpring, and Compassion International.
“They wonder why they don’t get a letter or a card. Of course we explain the situation to them and tell them it’s because they don’t have a sponsor, but that’s not enough for a child. This is something that makes unsponsored kids feel very sad and even discouraged.” — Yovi de Racines, Secretary of…
No different from parents everywhere, parents in poverty are in the trenches of child-rearing day in and day out. So, encourage your child’s parents in your next letter. Consider including a Bible verse or a small card “For Mom & Dad.”
God Truly Becomes the Character
Poverty tries to suffocate those who are caught by it. Realizing that we are made in God’s image and that we are nothing less than the crown of His creation completely changes the way we face our obstacles. Understanding that God loves us is the first step to overcoming poverty.
Christian Community Outreach in Bolivia
A small shade tree on the street, some borrowed chairs and a lot of enthusiasm from the neighborhood children, is how church La Capilla 20 de Mayo started in 2004.
At that time, Pastor Raul was the youth pastor at a church in the city of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. He started to visit the Normandia neighborhood…
In the countryside of Bolivia, it’s normal to have your baby at home with the help of relatives or neighbors, rather than going to a hospital. But being only 6 months pregnant, 14-year old Marta wasn’t prepared. She had gone to the hut with her two younger brothers to put her family’s animals away, when…
The Healing Power of the World Cup
Haiti, which is still digging out from the catastrophic earthquake that struck in January, did not qualify for the 2010 World Cup. But the Haitian people badly need a team to root for to lift their spirits, and most are cheering for the powerful Brazilian team.
Questions about letter writing are the most common ones I hear in the contact center. Many sponsors call or write us because they are frustrated with the quality of the letters they receive from their sponsored children.
A few days ago, I spoke with Judy because she was upset that her sponsored child, Carlos, doesn’t…
One Step Further From the Grip of Poverty
Valdênia was 15 years old when she taught a little boy in the community to read and write.
“He was 7 and had difficulties learning at school. His mother asked me to help him.”
At that time, Valdênia was in high school, but had no hope to get into a university. Today, three years later, she…
Chilibulo is a parish located in the southern zone of Quito, the capital city of Ecuador. This area doesn’t have much economically because jobs are scarce. A walk along Chilibulo’s dusty and poorly paved streets highlights the lack of progress.
On the sides of the streets there are little houses made of bricks and cement. Some…
Many children enrolled at the child development center got their first contact with the Word of God at the center. They had never heard about God, Christ or stories such as the Garden of Eden, Noah’s Ark or Joseph in Egypt.
Transformation is the best word to define what happens with the children during the class.…
Our mandate as child advocates is to ensure that all children within our care and those we interact with every day enjoy a loving and safe environment.
We are committed to protecting children from all forms of abuse and exploitation. Our board policy communicates this clearly by stating that: “Concern for children is the cornerstone upon…
A Safe Harbor From Drugs and Violence
Recife is a beautiful city in northeastern Brazil. Known as the “Brazilian Venice,” it was founded in 1537 by the Portuguese and was greatly influenced by the Jews and Dutch. The Atlantic Ocean bathes its beautiful beaches, and the temperature can exceed 104 degrees Fahrenheit.
Foreigners and Brazilians go to Recife to travel and to…
After learning that his wife was expecting a second child, Giovanna’s father became angry and asked her to have an abortion. But the young mother decided to have her baby. She found out that her husband had another woman and already had children with her, so Giovanna’s mother kicked her husband out of the…
Overcoming Racism in Colombia … in Jesus’ Name
Africans were first brought to Colombia to work as slaves during the colonial period of the 1500s. Many of their descendants still live in communities around Colombia. Although slavery was abolished in 1851, the Afro-Colombian community still faces much discrimination.
Jailer is a descendent of those slaves. He’s from Buenaventura, a port city on the…
At only 5 years of age, Michelle had to say goodbye to one of the places she loves the most: her child development center.
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