Time to celebrate! It’s been a year that we’ve been sharing monthly letter-writing ideas, printable items, and crafts to send to your sponsored child on the Second Friday Letter Writing Club board. I’m excited about the ideas that many of you have been pinning for us, great ideas that can be mailed to our sponsored children around the world.
On that celebratory note, our theme this month is birthdays! For birthdays in our family, we usually decorate the house a bit and make special meals for the birthday person. But I wonder what kinds of things my sponsored children do on their special days? And then I see a list like this one:
- Clothes
- Shoes
- Food
- Underwear
- Shampoo
- Animals
- School supplies
- Mattress
Many people may not believe that this list represents items that many of our sponsored children will purchase with any birthday money they receive as gifts from their sponsors. Sure is humbling, isn’t it?
Over the next year, let’s make an effort to send a special mailing to our sponsored children for their birthdays.
In order for your birthday letter to arrive in time for your sponsored child’s birthday, you should mail the items approximately 2-3 months in advance.
I know there are birthday card tutorials and many other printable birthday items on Pinterest. Will you help us find a few this month?
Leave a comment below with your Pinterest profile link if you want to join us in finding birthday-related pins we can share with our sponsored children.
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that is so so so sad
This is perfect timing to be reading this as the child I am sponsoring has a birthday in a couple months. I am new to sponsorship and wanted to know what the process was for sending a card or gift. I read somewhere that we don’t actually send a physical gift, but just make a monetary donation. Is that correct? And if I choose to send a card where do I mail it to and what do I include? Thank you!
Hi Jill! Thank you for wishing to bless your child on his special day! You are welcome to send anywhere between $10 and $100 as a birthday gift. You can also send any flat, paper greeting card from the store or send a card through our website by logging into your account. When sending a physical card, please write Emmanuel’s name and child number on the card and send it to: Compassion International, Colorado Springs, CO 90997-0004. We will send the card on to Colombia for you.
I forgot about the huge delay from when I send my child a birthday card and when she’ll receive it! I can’t seem to figure out how to send a virtual birthday card via this website (I know it’s here somewhere…I’ve done it before..,) Please help!:)
Hi Crystal! Please send your birthday card two to three months before your child’s birthday (it will be much faster in the future – down to a month delay). However, I know that your child would love to know that you are thinking of her anytime! To send a virtual birthday card, please log into your account and click Write My Child. Then click the green box that says Write. Follow the steps to write, preview, and send your letter. You will even be able to select a birthday card template and send photos if you would like.
thank you for donating $$$
How do I send a letter to my child? I just Started to sponsor her today and I would love to write to her.
Welcome to the Compassion family, J.J! We are so excited for you to begin building a relationship with your child and encouraged that you’re so eager to send her loving letters of encouragement and hope :). There are a couple of ways you can write to her!
In about 15 days, you’ll receive a welcome packet from us with stationary to write to your kiddo. You can use this to send a letter to her. It will have instructions on your sponsorship and how to get started. However, I definitely understand wanting to write her immediately! So you can also use your own stationary to write her a letter. Please write your name, sponsor number, and child ID number on your letter so that we can send it to the right child and give you credit for the letter on your account. Please send your letter to the following address:
Compassion International
Colorado Springs, CO 80997
This is the full address and no street address is necessary.
You can also write a letter using our online writing tool. You do this by creating a My Account on https://www.compassion.com and selecting ‘Write My Child’ on the left side of the page. We also have a mobile app that you can write to your child right from the phone, wherever you are!
For both of these options, you need a sponsor number. Because you just began sponsoring your child today, you don’t yet have a sponsor number. When we create an account for you and add your child to your account, we’ll have a sponsor number we can provide you with! Did you sponsor a child online or at an event? It can take a few days to process an online sponsorship or up to four weeks for a sponsorship from an event. If it was online, I would encourage you to email us at [email protected] next week and we can provide you with your sponsor number so that you can get started!
Will I have to wait 6 months to get a letter from her?
Peggy, it does currently take 2-3 months for your letters and gifts to be delivered to your child and 2-3 months for her reply letter to arrive in your mailbox. That being said, it may be up to six months from the time you write a letter before you hear back from her. We know how hard it can be to develop a relationship with a child when there is such a long amount of time between letters. We are currently working on improving the letter experience for sponsors and children.
I just sponsored a little girl in Bolivia on 2-17-16. When will she fimd out she has a new sponsor? She lost her last sponsor in October 2015. Will I have to wait 6 months to get a letter from here?
Hi Peggy! Thank you so much for choosing to change the story for sweet Jackelin! I’m so excited that the wait is over for her and she now has you as a sponsor to love and encourage her! We appreciate your heart to see her released from poverty and chase after the dreams God’s put in her heart :).
Jackelin finds out that you’re her sponsor within the first month of you beginning your support. She likely already knows or will know here in the next week or so! You will actually receive an introduction letter from her within the first four months of sponsorship. But I would encourage you to write right away because I know she’ll be thrilled to hear from you and get to know you!
What kinds of gifts can we send? I understand sending money is great but my kids and I would enjoy sending coloring books, crayons, small books, maybe a small stuffed animal and such.
Hi Rachel! We love when our sponsors get creative with the letters they send to their children. Your family is making a huge difference in the life of your child and letters are so important!
You’re certainly welcome to send pages from coloring books and excerpts from books that you and your children think your child would enjoy! Although books can be difficult to send, it is possible if done correctly. Everything we send must be paper, 8 1/2″ by 11″ and no more than 1/4″ thick. Also, these items cannot look valuable or there will be a high risk of theft or high tariffs placed on those items. It could also hold up a shipment of letters. This is why, for most thicker covers we will tear the covers off of these books to help get them through the mail safely and efficiently. As long as your books match these slim guidelines and you tear the cover off before mailing it to us, we will be able to send them. I would encourage you to check out our Pinterest page for even more fun ideas!
In regards to sending larger items, although we certainly understand your heart in wanting to send tangible gifts to your kiddo such as a stuffed animal or crayons, care packages cannot be sent. Regrettably, the cost of shipping often exceeds the value of the gift you want to send. Because Compassion is committed to stewardship and integrity, we want to be able to ensure everything you send, reaches your child and we cannot do that with large items because of the risk of loss or theft through customs. Another reason is that the time that it took for our staff to deliver the package to your child and that delivery services are rarely operational as they are in the U.S. I want to encourage you however, that if you send coloring pages to your child, the project she attends has crayons and other coloring items that she can use to enjoy what you send :). I’m sure you will also be receiving several drawings from her as well in her letters to you as our kids love to draw!
I have been writing my sponsored child through the CI website. My child’s birthday is in April so I sent a monetary gift and note for his birthday and wrote him a long letter with photos today. Under “It’s your birthday and I’ll write if I want to” you mention there are things you can print and send to your child. How can I obtain these things if I do not belong to Pinterest and how can I send them to my child through CI? I would like to be able to send him little things more often if possible or at least something more for his birthday.
Hi Joanmarie! Many of the pins that sponsors have shared on our Second Friday Board are simply print out items that they found by searching the internet. You might try searching for things like free coloring pages or activities for kids. Sometimes I just print some out and send the paper in with a card or letter. 🙂
Hi Susan—- I have a bad habit of forgetting to get Christmas cards or any holiday cards in time to get them to my little girls in time and of course—- the stores don’t have them available 2 to 3 months ahead of the holiday. What do most sponsors do in this case? I’m not computer savvy so I can’t make them on the computer. Any ideas? Glenn
Hi Glenn! Many sponsors will purchase Christmas cards after Christmas. That way, they can purchase cards on sale and they will have them on hand for next year’s Christmas cards to their sponsored children.
Is it helpful to have my letter translated by a friend before I send it to my sponsored child? Or, is it preferred that the translation takes place through CI?
Hi Linda! You are more than welcome to translate or have a friend translate your letter for you. However, we will have a translator at our country office look over the letter to make sure that it makes sense in the local dialect before sending it on to your child.
Could you tell me the address we should be sending cards, letters, etc.? It would be nice if it was more readily available. I have searched for it and haven’t had any luck. Thank you!
Hi Tammy! I am so sorry if you were having a difficult time finding our address! I so appreciate you wanting to send your child sweet cards and letters! You can send handwritten letters to the following address:
Compassion International
[no street address necessary]
Colorado Springs, CO 80997-0004
Please make sure to write your child’s name, reference number, your name, and sponsor number on anything you send so that we can ensure it is processed correctly. For future reference, you may find our contact information on our website!
some posts say that the children receive the letters and online giving within 6 weeks. I am wondering if my child will get her Sept. birthday money in time. i sent it in June to India via online. Is there different timing for different countries? thanks
Hi Reva! It takes about two to three months for monetary gifts and letters to be sent. Online letters are printed out in our USA office and sent with other physical letters. This means that the turn around time is roughly the same for online letters as it is for physical letters. While the timing is not that different between countries per say, the timing differs depending on how far the student center is from the country office and how remote it is. It sounds like your child will receive her birthday money in time for her birthday! 🙂 Do you mind sharing where did you read that the letters and online giving will be received within six weeks so that we can correct this? Thank you!
How will I know if my child got his birthday card and money?
Hi Debbie! You will receive a thank you letter from your child for the card and money within six months of when they are sent.
Sorry, I forgot to check that I would like to receive your follow up comments via email.
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I just sent my child a letter online. It was a birthdy letter and I also opted to send some money for his birthday online. His birthday isin a month. Because I sent it online- will he get it sooner? Maybe even by his birthday?
Hi Tracy! Thank you for thinking of your sponsored child! I know that he will be so blessed by this letter and gift whenever he receives it! Regrettably, it takes two to three months for letters and gifts to be sent even if the transaction is done online. We print out online letters and send them in the mail. We also wire gifts all together at the end of each month to be more economical and make sure one-hundred percent goes towards your child. I’m so sorry he won’t get it on time, but as I mentioned I know that he will really appreciate that you though of him and were wanting to bless him in such a tangible way.
My sponsored child’s birthday is coming up in a month. I would love to let her know how much I care about her even though we have never met. what can i do to to show her how special she is?
Patty, you are already showing her that you care about her and think she is special because you are her sponsor. That means the world to her! But here are a couple of things you can do: 1. send a monetary gift. The Compassion staff will take her shopping, you will be surprised what these kids purchase with their birthday money. 2. send her a special birthday letter, telling her how special she is to you and to God. 3. continue to pray for her to know that God believes she is special.
You might also consider sending a few special paper items in your birthday letter, such as picture post cards, coloring pages, photos, etc.
And I agree about the monetary gift – it’s astonishing how much can be bought with even a modest gift.
I’m sponsoring a 15 year old boy whose birthday is in August. This is my first birthday with compassion. Any ideas on what would be special to do?
Hi Rachel! That’s so exciting! I usually get a birthday card at the store (or make one! 🙂 ) and I write a short note to my child. In the note, I like to wish them a happy birthday and maybe comment on how I felt when I got to be their age or something I was doing at their age. This is a great opportunity to share a testimony or advice for them as they grow older. Maybe enclose some stickers or a bible verse card with the greeting card. Then I like to send a monetary gift. You can send anywhere between $10 and $100 but we recommend sending $20 for birthdays.
I’m new sponsor and my little girl’s birthday is in August. How to you determine the timing for mailing a card so that it arrives on time?
Hi Mike! It’s a good idea to send a card two to three months prior to your child’s birthday to ensure arrival in time. Maybe send one this month in June to get it there for an August birthday.
I wish I had found our boy in time to get him something to him for his birthday. We sponsored a little girl, Emily, through church and I was on here today looking around. I decided to look at the children and found and fell in love with Edgar. His birthday is June 1. I did write him on the online form because I am too anxious to wait for our packet but I am saddened to know he won’t get it until after his birthday. He waited 497 days for a sponsor. What an amazing gift it would have been to know God found his sponsor in time for his big day 🙂
Leslee, what a precious gift you are giving to Edgar! It may take a bit for him to receive his first letter from you, but he will probably be notified pretty quickly that he has a new sponsor! Maybe even before his June 1st birthday!
I wrote to our sponsored daughter in Uganda of how we would have a cake for her and a special meal for her if she were here to celebrate her birthday. She wrote me back and said that “only rich people celebrate birthdays in her world”.
Yes, Bonnie. It sure is humbling when we hear things like this from our sponsored children.