Kenyan Resiliency: Wounded but Unbowed
In the aftermath of the al-Shabab terrorist attack on Garissa University College, Kenyans have displayed powerful love in tangible ways. Standing in long lines to give blood for the wounded, comforting the grieving, providing supplies for the impacted families and contributing money. One of the most loving and brave things the Kenyans are doing is not surrendering to fear, but choosing life instead.
The Power of Pity
Pity is a feeling many of us have when we come face-to-face with the misfortunes of others — with those whom we perceive to have less than us. We feel pity when we see things we don’t understand. We feel pity when we feel helpless to act. Many people, myself included, feel pity but that’s as far as it goes. Pity can sometimes stop action from happening.
World Day of Social Justice: To Save His People
Being born in America, eating every day all day any day, being able to read and write, going to university. If you can say yes to any of these you are the minority in this world. You have influence.
Microloans Provide Jobs in Haiti
Families who lost everything in the 2010 Haiti earthquake needed help starting over. That’s why we initiated a low-interest micro loan program to qualified recipients to help them start new businesses in their communities. The results have been spectacular!
Rebuilding Haiti: 5-Year Anniversary
In the months and years following the devastating 2010 Haiti earthquake, generous sponsors and donors around the world gave more than $31 million toward our Disaster Relief Fund for recovery efforts. It was the largest sum ever raised for one of our disaster relief campaigns. This fund enabled us not only to deliver provisions immediately following the disaster – such as food, water and temporary shelter – but also to establish long-term recovery efforts such as post-traumatic camps and counseling services, entrepreneurial training, low-interest loans for businesses, and the construction of new school buildings.
Surviving A Typhoon
In the Philippines, tropical cyclones come and go frequently. The country is battered by an average of 9 typhoons a year; some don’t make international news, and those that do will have caused devastating destruction. Typhoon Hagupit (Ruby) hit the islands on December 6. And currently, it has affected 70 of our church partners and over 4,000 Compassion assisted children and their families. Damage is still being assessed and we will provide updates as news from our staff there becomes available. But a typhoon like this isn’t new to them.
The Baby Elephant Rescuer
You’ve probably met Wass. Wass is the baby elephant who’s been in the news recently after he was rescued from a well in Northern Kenya. Unable to be reunited with his herd, he and two orphaned ostrich chicks were airlifted to safety by the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. Now meet Edwin. Edwin is the head elephant keeper at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Nairobi, Kenya. He’s also a Compassion graduate.
Fear, Ebola and Me
“Are you sure you want to travel there right now? Couldn’t you get… Ebola?” My friend hesitantly asked me this question before my recent trip to Uganda, in Eastern Africa. I found a map and showed my well-meaning friend the actual distance from the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak to Uganda. It’s about 4500 miles, which is well over the distance from California to New York.
The Nobel Peace Prize Went to a Child. And it’s About Time.
This morning, 17-year-old Malala Yousafzai became the youngest person to ever win the Nobel Peace Prize. Though Yousafzai’s name may not be familiar, you probably remember her face—the face of a pale teen, eyes rimmed with dark circles, her head shrouded in bandages, clutching a white teddy bear. Two years ago Yousafzai garnered the world’s attention when she was shot in the head by the Taliban for promoting education for girls in Pakistan. Since then, after recovering from surgery, she has taken her campaign global, most notable with a speech last year at the United Nations.
Ebola Outbreak in Africa: Our Response
With the recent outbreak of Ebola in West African countries, many sponsors have been asking if their children are safe. No Compassion children or staff have been directly affected. Still, we are taking precautionary measures to protect our children and staff should the outbreak spread into the countries where we work.
The Emerging Metrics of Doing Good
Despite conventional wisdom, the accurate headline is that investments to fight abject global poverty are showing incredible returns. While that’s good news in itself, the subhead indicates that we have a new ally in doing good: independent, empirically tested outcomes for charitable work.
Research Shows: Child Sponsorship Through Compassion Works
Research shows that children who participated in Compassion’s holistic child development through sponsorship program stayed in school longer, were more likely to have salaried or white-collar employment and were more likely to be leaders in their communities and churches than their peers who did not participate in our program.
