Congratulations and the very best of luck!!!!

Deeds like this make the world a better place.

KFC, can you do me a favor?

I'm very interested in organizations like this and finding out how effective they actually are in reaching the intended target. Can you keep us up on this?

I'm less than pleased with the 13% administrative costs at the surface, but will reradily admit it is better than the massive misappropriation when the money goes through the government.

Also, what is this organization doing to encourage self sufficiency? WIll they be attempting to fund college should that be a possibility? What are they doing to help ensure that they won't be necessary in these areas?

If you could give us updates in these areas, I would appreciate it.

A missionary just visited our church. He has adopt-a-child programs in Albania and Haiti (iirc) and is just starting a program to help widows in Egypt. ALL the missionaries are volunteer for that program. I don't know what the percentage turns out to be, but if you sponsor a child, he/she gets free medical care and evangelical training, as well as food and such. They have medical clinics and they feed the people there. So far, 3 villages in Haiti and a Moslem village in Albania have been 'converted.' So it seems to be working, by training the children to reach out to other children.

My in-laws participated in a similar program with the Caribbean Christian Center for the Deaf in Jamaica. They've done this for a number of years (to the point that the young lady that they started sponsoring at 6 years old is now a grown woman, with a 7 year old daughter of her own and is teaching at the school). My wife considers their adopted student as her sister. In fact, she's coming over here from Jamaica to visit ... next week? Something like that.

The school (CCCD) is a village that takes in the deaf children of the surrounding area (some of the kids come from Cockpit Country and others are from surrounding villages and as far away as Kingston) and houses, feeds, teaches them to read, support themselves as well as a vocation. Money used for the adoption of the children covers the cost of room, board and education, as well as clothing and other supplies and other necessities for the kids. Items made there in the various shops are then sold to supplement the donations. And part of the proceeds are used to give the students spending money.


Given how some of the rural Jamacan people can be really superstitious (yes, even today, some of the mountain and jungle villages see deaf kids as demon possessed and will abandon them), I see the school doing a much needed work, in a portion of the world that most people tend to ignore. And the change in the kids is fantastic. One little boy, who was abandoned by his mother at the aged of 2 when she discovered he had 100% hear loss was scared, timid, and almost paranoid that he was going to be abandoned again. Now, 10 years later, at the age of twelve, he is a jubilant boy so full of life. For a boy who was given up as a lost cause, he's now an apprentice carpenter who has the opportunity to be sufficient and actually live life.

I know, from what I've read, that World Vision's goal is to do something similar for the children of other disadvantaged areas.

Enjoy the little girl, KFC.

How wonderful for you KFC! I know you will be blessed. And how wonderful to hear about other organizations that help sponsor kids in need. Keep spreading the word.

It is true that we should do our homework to know exactly what our money is going to. I don't want to make a blanket judgment since I really believe it depends on what your priorities are. Some groups spend the money on large projects in the child's hometown. Some give most or all the money directly to the family. Some use the money to sponsor the child to go to a school that will also provide some basic needs. The important thing is that you know where your money is going and are content with it.

I sponsored a child through Compassion when I was a teen. She eventually moved and so was out of reach of the program. I have dreamed of the day when I could get another.





What beautiful thoughts! I look forward to the day that I can teach my children about compassion through projects such as this.

KFC, can you do me a favor?

Yes Gid, I'll keep up the info as I receive it. I thought 87 cents on the dollar was decent. They use the other money mostly for advertising all this. Like when I signed up they had all these kids, thousands of them, all with their pictures taken in little folders with the info about each one. I also had to sign up on pre-made up envelopes and with postage and what not, this all costs. They also put a disclosure on some of the paperwork saying they pay something to the artist who uses their platform to call attention to this. I'm not sure how that exactly works.

They also showed a video clip in the auditorium of the Woman of Faith all going to Kenya to meet one of the children. I can't remember his name but his mother Rebecca was raising many children and had recently buried two daughters due to AIDS. These same daughters had children so the mom had the care of these grandchildren as well in a small hut. They showed pictures of the WOF there in that little hut. Anyhow this little boy was going to have to be sold because the mom and family were so destitute. He was 10 and in good health so it made the most sense to sell him. The husband left the family prior because it was just too hard.

Before she managed to sell her little boy, she said Jesus sent someone to help her. She never really understood the whole God concept before World Vision came into her life. But they sponsored her little boy and she now believes in Jesus. She said Jesus knew where she lived and cared enough about her to send somebody to help her. That about said it all to me as I watched this all played out.

We as the hands and feet of Jesus need to move our feet into action and do all we can to help those who truly can't do anything to make their lives better. I'm very careful about who I give my money out to.

Enjoy the little girl, KFC.

Thanks Chaos. I'm looking forward to corresponding with her. I'll keep you all posted. I'll put Ellen's name in the heading when I do.

My son David and his girlfriend also sponsor a girl thru Compassion. They split the cost every month. It's so awesome to see two college students take the time to do this. They decided to do this when Michael W. Smith did a promotion on this at his concert they attended last Spring.

What beautiful thoughts! I look forward to the day that I can teach my children about compassion through projects such as this.

I think it's a worthwhile compassionate thing to do. I wish I had done this when my kids were younger. It would have been a great thing for them as well as the child they would have sponsored. I too had a child from Compassion years ago but lost track of him over the years.

David's girl is 8 years old and just recently sent him a coloring book picture along with her letter. This letter, written in her own hand was in Spanish. Many times that's what you get, a letter written in the child's hand and in their native language, but there's also a transcriber who transcribed these letters into English. So if you have children growing up reading this, it may spur them on to learn a language they may have never otherwise thought of learning.

I agree, KFC. That's why I want to know about the good and the bad. There are many wonderful charities out there, but unfortunately many scam artists as well (although I would imagine for a conference like this they would have been a little more scrupulous than usual in who they allowed to setup at the conference). There are, however, intangibles that only one who is involved can understand.

That's why the request. I figure you're probably a little more diligent than many, so it will be interesting to see what you report.

that is sooooooooo very cool, I Like gid, would like to know more.

The charities I donate to are disabled veterans and handicapped veterans. Yes there is a difference between the two. I also donate time and money to abused woman's shelters. I think having a kid at 61 would be very nice as long as the money is going directly to the child's welfare and not lining someones pocket. I tried working with the elderly but man they are just to damn needy, you try to drop food off and they want you to stay and talk, even though other people are waiting for their food, {I know they are lonely} But heck!

Congratulations on your daughter, and bless you as well!