Prayer Requests, Good Posts, and a Few Kids...

Between the rain in South America and the drought in East Africa, I'd like to remind you to please be praying for our sponsored kids in those regions! And if you comment with your child's name, I'll pray for your child in that region too.

As I mentioned before, I get my updated crisis information from Compassion Australia's page. This is what their page shares about Peru from March 30:

On 27 March the north part of Peru suffered another river overflow, this time affecting mainly Piura where we have several child development centres.

The Pedregal Grande district suffered flooding that reached the top of the houses. This area has significant damage and more children are impacted near PE-01585. During the time of the flooding Compassion staff received calls from 2 tutors with 14 children each that were stranded on roofs. They had to wait the whole night to be rescued because the river flow was very high and difficult to access the community. On 28 March the river flow decreased and the children, tutors and the families were successfully evacuated from the area and taken to a safe and dry location. Those families lost at least 80% of their belongings. The community is still flooded and uninhabitable.

Additionally, two more areas in Pozo De Los Ramos and Monte Sullon were flooded. Two annexes of PE-0331 and PE-0584 facilities have been flooded. The children and their families were all evacuated and all the children are alive and healthy. The primary location of PE-0331 was not flooded so they’ve been receiving children from affected areas.

No additional child development centres or children have been reported as affected yet.

Compassion Peru is continuing to provide emergency assistance to the affected families through disaster funding.

We thank God that all children are alive and healthy. Please continue to pray for the safety of our children in all affected areas.

Compassion Peru will keep us updated as more information becomes available.

And last night Compassion shared this blog post: Flooding in Peru...take a minute to learn more!

And about Colombia from April 4:

On 1 April, three rivers near Mocoa in southwest Colombia overflowed, causing flooding and a landslide. Many people are missing and 254 have died. The Colombian government is providing aid. Compassion does not have any partner churches in the affected area.

Please pray for those living in the affected area and for those responding to this emergency.

We also received an email from Compassion USA about the drought. I would appreciate if you would be praying for the kids in East Africa as well:

As you may have heard in the news, East Africa is in the grip of a crippling drought that has left 23 million people in need of aid. Lack of rainfall has sharply curbed harvests and driven up the price of grains and other staple foods to increasingly high levels, leaving the region’s poorest in danger of malnutrition.

Compassion is committed to the long-term care of each child registered in our program. In the coming months, our field staff will guide us as we provide food, water, drought-resistant seeds and support to the families we serve in East Africa.

We ask for your continued prayers in this season. Will you join us today in praying for:
a rainy season that would bring relief to crops and water sources
families who must make the difficult decision to uproot and move to find water
the health of the children we serve, particularly those who are malnourished

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I also recently read two wonderful blog posts and wanted to share them here! The first one is about Ecuador's recovery from the earthquakes last year. It is so encouraging to see the impact Compassion has on a community after a natural disaster, especially as we are watching other countries suffer this year.

Putting life back together after Ecuador's devastating earthquake

And the post Perspectives on India: One Compassion Graduate's Words was encouraging and heartbreaking all in the same moment. I at least encourage you to take 4 minutes to watch this video.


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Finally, Compassion has been adding a lot more children with disabilities, and these two kids caught my eye. I am praying for them to be sponsored soon, and just in case you might be on the search for a new child, please consider one of these two!

Zamary from Mexico just turned 6 on January 25. She lives with her mother and one sibling, and has a chronic illness listed as "other."

Zamary enjoys art/drawing, playing with dolls and learning about God! To sponsor Zamary, click here.

And Elias from Guatemala will be 14 on May 25. He lives with parents and two siblings, and struggles with epilepsy.

Elias enjoys group games, soccer and learning about God! To sponsor Elias, click here.

**All photos are courtesy of Compassion**

Bilingual Preschool: India & Pakistan

I am over at the Compassion Family blog today, sharing about our adventure learning about India and Pakistan!

To read the rest of the post, click here!

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Previous posts for the 2016-2017 preschool year:

Year plan

China

Spain

Tanzania

France

Colombia

Thanksgiving

Ghana

Italy

Thailand

Peru

What $60 Buys...

Last year we were able to send a number of larger family gifts thanks to the Blogger Rewards Program. Since we knew that gifts of $60 or over receive thank you letters and photos, we made sure to send gifts of at least $60. Recently the gift photos have been coming in! It's such a blessing that Compassion sends these with the thank-you's!

I wanted to share them in one place so you can get an idea of what $60 will get in various countries.

Mary in Bolivia: groceries of oil, milk, eggs, some other food, detergent, and dolls for the girls!

Jhomary in Bolivia: t-shirt, oil, noodles and rice!

Dinesh in India: t-shirts, jeans, sheets and a steel box!

Jose in Mexico: food pantry gifts.

Julissa in Nicaragua: shoes, pants, shirt, towel and underwear.

Ndikubwimana in Rwanda said, "Thank you for your gift. I used it to buy a goat and I expect to have more goats because it will reproduce and provides me with other goats."

Cissy in Uganda said she bought the dress she's wearing in the photo, 2 dresses for mum, a bag of rice, a shirt and trouser, sports shoes, open shoes, a bag for her brother and she had a little pocket money left!

Estela in Brazil: her gift photo was lost in a computer crash, but she said, "I am writing to thank you for the present that you sent to me. With the money my mom bought things in the market: rice, beans and pasta, meat, milk, coockies and fruits. I am very happy." And the project took an extra photo for us to see Estela's pretty face, although we weren't able to see the gifts.

Gizelle in Brazil: She said she bought books for school, "The book is thick and there are seven subjects - Math, Science, History, English, Geography, English, Arts and others. The other one is for handwriting practice."

Jadson in Brazil: Nike sandals and school supplies

Project Director's Letter: India (IN-951)

In the spring, Compassion sent us a bunch of project director letters! I'll be sharing them over the weeks! Enjoy!

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This letter is the project that Arun attends! And the photos are from Compassion's India Album.

Dear Eric and Hannah,

Greetings in the name of our God!

My name is S., and I am the Project Director of the CDC in Delhi, India where your sponsored child attends. I am very grateful for your support of Arun.

When the children arrive, they are given nutritious food. We spend time teaching them, and we play games with them. The children who struggle in school are given extra attention in the center. Each month we also give the children hygiene supplies. We try to identify each child's talents, and we spend time counseling and training them according to their abilities. We can enroll the children in various activities such as computer education, sports, music lessons, art and dance. During the summer season we conduct camps for the children in which they study the Scriptures, and they learn many songs, they play games, do skits and make painting and drawings.

We take them on field trips to historic and famous places, we go on retreats, and we conduct medical check-ups. Each child who is 12 years old or older can plan for their future and can talk about what they want to do when they grow up with the My Plan for Tomorrow tool.

Whenever children receive letters, they feel so great of themselves and happy to reply as soon as possible to the sponsor. They never had this kind of experience of letter writing or receiving from someone and especially not from someone who loves them and wants to hear from them.

Overall, after them come to the center we can see lots of changes among the children as well in their families and in the community where they live. I can tell you that. After coming to the center they start to think that they too are special. Now they do not have to end up like their parents who had no hope for a good future. They can dare to think big. Through this opportunity, they are able to help future generations, as well.

Please keep on praying for us, for these precious children and for their families. Pray that every child should experience God's love. I ask you to pray for us, especially for the construction of a kitchen and land to build a big place for the church. Also pray for the center.

From the bottom of my heart I would like to say thank you and God bless you for sponsoring Arun.

Blessings,

S.

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There are not children from India on the Compassion website at the moment, so I would like to take a moment to share a little guy from Honduras!

This little guy, Isai, has a personal connection... My friend Jessi, who blogs at Me and Mr. Jones, sponsors Isai's sister! And she just met Isai when she traveled to Honduras in October to meet Anahi! Here is a photo of Jessi with Anahi, and Anahi and Isai's mom:

And here is little Isai having a blast in the pool during the child visit day (which he attended with his sister and mom):

Isai is 4 and his birthday is May 25. Isai lives with his father and his mother. He is responsible for cleaning. His father is employed and his mother is sometimes employed. There are 2 children in the family. Isai is not attending school because he is too young. Art and listening to music are his favorite activities. He also attends church activities regularly.

I know that Jessi would love to share more photos with you, so if you decide to sponsor Isai, send me a message at berry31(at)gmail.com and I will forward it to Jessi! To sponsor Isai, click here.

Project Director's Letter: India (EI-221)

In the spring, Compassion sent us a bunch of project director letters! I'll be sharing them over the weeks! Enjoy!

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This letter is the project that Dinesh attends! And the photos are from Compassion's India Album.

Dear Eric and Hannah,

Greetings to you!

I am D., Project Manager of the Compassion-assisted CDC in the Jharkhand region of India where your sponsored child attends. I am thankful to you for sponsoring Dinesh. Our center is located in a remote village near the Munda tribal community. Addiction to alcohol, belief in superstition, and witchcraft are common here.

I am glad to share the story of one who has joined the engineering studies in Odisha this year. This is a success story not only for our center but also for the community. This is the first time in the history of this tribal community that a child has gone to study engineering. His parents are happy with the staff and development center. They are thankful to both Compassion and the boy's sponsor for the support because they have made it possible for him to have dreams and pursue them successfully.

I would also like to share another story. There is a girl who has joined a nursing school in another state of India with the support of Compassion and a government scholarship. Her mother, who works as a maid to support the family, couldn't have through of educating her daughter to this level. She is equally thankful of the girl's sponsor and to Compassion for being there when her daughter needed support and guidance.

In order to equip the parents with long-term income-generating skills that will not require them to travel outside their state in search of steady income opportunities, we gave one pair of piglets to some children and their families. After seven months, the piglets had grown and gave birth to nine more piglets. Most families now have been able to increase the count of their pigs and sell them. In this way, they have been able to provide for their families and even save their money. The interest generated from the bank on their deposit would help them meet their regular needs.

I'd like to mention a few things about the importance of letters. Whenever children receive letters from their sponsors they feel happy. It gives them a feeling of worth, knowing that there is someone to take care of them and to pray for them. Letter writing is a new thing for children in which they are slowly improving through practice. Children share with their parents everything about their sponsors, their country, and many other things that they learn from their sponsors. When sponsors send birthday greetings to their sponsored children, stickers, photos, and other gifts, it makes children happy.

I am inspired a lot to continue my work here because through children I can easily have an impact on the community.

Five children have joined the Industrial Training Institute in Odisha. Many children have passed their high school exam and taken admission into grade 11. I ask you to pray for them, that they would grow into responsible individuals. Also pray for our community, children, women, family members of our children, the CDC, our staff members and that the social evils such as superstition, alcoholism, child marriage, and extra-marital relationships would end.

Finally, I express my heartfelt thanks to you for providing for Dinesh. Our sponsors enable us to help the neediest tribal chidden to come up in life and be able to become a part of the mainstream society. Thanking you.

With regards,

D.

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If you would like to sponsor a child with Compassion, please consider 20-year-old Juan of Colombia. His birthday is July 10 and he has been waiting over 290 days for a sponsor.

Juan makes his home with his father and his mother. Washing clothes, helping in the kitchen and cleaning are his household duties. His father is employed as a seller in the market and his mother maintains the home. There are 3 children in the family.

For fun, Juan enjoys soccer, bicycling and listening to music. He attends church activities and Bible class regularly and is in college where his performance is average. To sponsor Juan, click here.

Aravind in India

We began corresponding with Aravind in February 2016 and corresponded until August 2016.

We received 1 letter and one partner's letter while corresponding with Aravind. His birthday is February 18. Aravind lives with his father and mother, and his father works as a daily wages laborer. And he has a brother named Ananthan!

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Project Info and Activities:

Aravind attends IN-732 in Ozhuvathadom, Cochin
* Home to approximately 16,300 residents
* Most common work is work is farming, day laboring, domestic services
* Average earning is $60 a month
* Regional Diet: bananas, beef, bread, fish, rice, potatoes & eggs
* Common Health Problems: asthma, diabetes, skin illnesses, measles, conjunctivitis, fevers, colds
* Typical Houses: cement floors, brick walls, AC sheet roofs

Center Activities: Bible teaching, indoor and outdoor games, health and hygiene education, nutritious food, music classes, field trips, vocational training and tutoring.

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Miscellaneous Info from Letters:

* Favorites: group games, soccer/football, play house walking, hide-and-seek, running, reading, art/drawing, other ball games

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Arvind departed from Compassion's program because he began attending a boarding school and was unable to continue to participate in project activities.

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To read the other posts in this series, click here.

Dinesh in India

I began sponsoring Dinesh in December 2008 and we are still sponsoring him! I will continue to update this post as we hear from him.

We received 55 letters while sponsoring Dinesh, three project director's letters (2013, 2014 and 2016) and one partner letter. His birthday is July 4. Dinesh lives with his parents, Mangal and Sobrani, and his dad works in agriculture. Dinesh has younger twin brothers, Ram and Lakham, and one younger sister, Reteeka.

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Project Info and Activities:

Dinesh attends EI-221 in Munda, Ranchi
* Home to approximately 40,000 residents
* Most commonly spoken language is Hindi
* Primary ethnic group is Munda
* Most common work is work is vending, but the majority are unemployed
* Average earning is $27 a month
* Regional Diet: maize, beans, fish, bread, rice & potatoes
* Common Health Problems: malaria, jaundice, waterborne diseases
* Typical Houses: dirt floors, mud walls, thatched roofs

Center activities: Bible teaching, medical exams, health and hygiene opportunities, recreational activities, cultural programs, social events, tuition, opportunities for community service, tutoring and developmental activities.

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Miscellaneous Info from Letters:

* Favorites: group games, soccer/football, play house, art/drawing, singing, sweets, orange & green, “Mundari”, Hindi language, David & Goliath, “Read Your Bible Every Day”, elephant, swimming, Matthew 7:7, Lotus flower, cake, cricket, Makendra Singh Dhoni, Hindi, parrots

* Dreams: become a guitar player, to visit a zoo, to be a teacher, to see a waterfall

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Letter Highlights...

"My favorite story is about David and Goliath. I play football and hockey with my friends."

"You have stated in your letter that you are unknown about this song "Jesus Slept in to the Boat." This song is made in the language of Sadri. Sadri is the local language. This song you can find in Mark 4:35-41 where JEsus was slept on the boat. this means that Jesus is in our heart and we have to wake him for our help."

"We have one school bus and one ambulance at the project. The patient reach to hospital by the ambulance."

"Recently I have learned about first-aid…I want to be a teacher to grow up. "

"My parents have received my name. Dinesh means The Sun."

"I play cricket. My favorite cricket player is Makendra Sinah Dhoni. Which cricket player do you like?"

"In our country also we have famous game. We called that football. In this game two teams play against each other and the players number in 11 each sides in this game. Whoever will goal more they win this game. This game is played with legs. The team who wins they get first prize. The man who play well he is called as Man of the Match and he is also given the prize. This is very interesting game. Do you like to watch the game?"

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Artwork

Dinesh is an incredible artist. It's been so neat to see his skills develop and I hope you enjoy this sample of his work!

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Visits & Gifts

Our friend Shelley brought a gift to India when she was visiting! We received these great photos from Dinesh with his gifts:

In his thank-you letter he said, "Many thanks to you for your precious gift and for your kindness."

We also sent Dinesh a family gift in 2015 and in 2016 we received a thank you letter! Dinesh said, "With your nice gift I bought t/shirt, t/shirt, jeans, shirt, steel box and shoe, etc." And we received a photo where Dinesh is smiling!

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To read the other posts in this series, click here.

Partner's Letter: India (IN-732)

I am continuing to share project director and pastor letters! Enjoy!

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This letter is from Aravind's project! And the photos are from Compassion's India Rural Region page.

Dear Eric and Hannah,

Greetings from India. I am A. G. P., a partner with Compassion International in the [IN-732] CDC. We minister to your sponsored child Aravind. Thank you for your sponsorship of Aravind. We are associated with SF Church.

This center started its function in 2004 with 93 children. Our center is 10 years old. Now we have 289 children. Our center has a pivotal role in the development and is a blessing.

I am very glad to extend my gratitude to all the sponsors, because this program brings many significant changes. Through this center the sponsored children of our community can get help with their school tuition and other education supplies. Also, they are getting nutritious food, medicines, and hygiene supplies.

Children are getting good awareness classes for good habits, aptitude tests, career guidance classes, and first aid. Also they are getting chance to relate to higher officials of society such as, politicians, panchayat authorities (local government body), forest department, police department, resource persons, etc.

Children attend Sunday school, prayer group, seminars, retreat programs, youth camps, worship services and spiritual books--these help in their spiritual growth. When a child gets a sponsor's letter, the child is very happy. This is beyond the expression of words. Without the support of sponsor like you we will not be able to carry out these programs. Please write a short letter as it makes the children so happy to get mail.

There are many problems faced by the community such as unemployment, alcohol consumption, illiteracy, and poverty. There are many broken families in this community. Some people do not have food, shelter and clothing.

Since we are in hill station, the people of this area have to fight against bad climatic conditions due to frequent changes in the weather, especially in the rainy season. Rainy season in this area lasts for 4 months, from June to September. During this season there are frequent landslides and earth's crust gets disturbed. So most of the people are living with fear during these times.

Our children were malnourished at the beginning of the center. Now they are physically fit. Now the parents are learning how to communicate effectively to others. The social standard of this community has improved.

Cultural stand of the community is also developed now. 5 parents abandoned their habit of alcoholism and leading a happy life. 15 parents are now earning extra income due to the income generating program organized by the center. Educational standards of the community are slowly progressing. The center is guiding the siblings of center children for higher courses. Staff prays for the children and their family and counsels them if need be.

Our vision is to liberate the oppressed, suppressed, and marginalized children. The center arranges awareness classes for the physical development, social, spiritual development, and cognitive development for the sponsored children. The center provides income-generating classes for the parents.

The children are always waiting for letters from their sponsors. Through the letters, sponsors and children can communicate about family, culture, country, spirituality etc. These children can become a party of your family. Children pray for their sponsors regularly. If you get time please write a few lines of encouragement.

Pray for improvement in the infrastructure of the center and pray for the people who are addicted to alcoholism. We thank God for giving us this opportunity and we thank you for your kind help. May God bless you.

Yours faithfully,
A. G. P.

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If you would like to sponsor a child from Asia, please consider 6-year-old Jordan of Bangladesh, who has been waiting over a year for a sponsor!

Jordan's birthday is January 20. In his home, Jordan helps by running errands and cleaning. He lives with his father and his mother. His father is sometimes employed as a laborer and his mother maintains the home. There are 3 children in the family.

For fun, Jordan enjoys soccer, singing and playing with marbles. He attends church activities regularly and is in kindergarten where his performance is average. To sponsor Jordan, click here.

Nisha in India

We were Nisha's correspondents from June 2009 to August 2009.

We received 3 letters while corresponding with Nisha. Her birthday is February 14. Nisha lived with her parents, her brother, Bernish, and her sister, Rite. Her father worked as a day laborer.

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Project Info and Activities:

Nisha attends EI-602 in Marhotalnai, Jabalpur
* Home to approximately 10,000 residents
* Primary ethnic groups are Gonds & Baigas
* Most commonly spoken language is Hindi
* Most common work is work is day laboring
* Average earning is $27 a month
* Regional Diet: bananas, rice & potatoes
* Common Health Problems: typhoid fever, water-borne illnesses, jaundice
* Typical Houses: dirt floors, mud walls, tile or thatched roofs

Center activities: Bible teaching, health checkups, vaccinations, hygiene education, recreational activities, picnics, birthday celebrations, opportunities for community involvement, tuition, field trips, and health and hygiene education for parents and guardians.

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Miscellaneous Info from Letters:

* Favorites: dolls, play house, dahl rice, chapatis, ice cream, red, Carrom game, rose

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Letter Highlights...

"I like to play games, do you like to play games? I like to eat ice cream, do you like to eat ice cream? In this season we have beautiful roses. do you like roses?"

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Artwork


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Nisha's father pulled her from the Compassion program and they moved out of the area, so we were unable to send her a final letter.

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To read the other posts in this series, click here.

Arun in India

Eric sponsored Arun in 2010. I was actually Arun's correspondent since May 2009, before Eric and I were married. When Arun lost his financial sponsor (and before Eric and I were actually dating!), Eric sponsored him. He had heard about Compassion at the Bible study we both attended and when he asked me about it, I shared I was looking for a sponsor for Arun. Needless to say, Arun was pretty excited when we got married! And then Juanito was born on Arun's birthday! Arun's project shut down in October 2016, which was quite sad. But thankfully Arun completed 10th grade and was participating in his church even when the project closed down.

We received 44 letters while corresponding with Arun, a pastor's letter, a partner letter and a project director's letter. His birthday is March 8. Arun lives with his grandmother and two sisters, Marisha and Anjali. Arun's grandmother works running a small shop.

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Project Info and Activities:

Arun attends IN-951 near Delhi
* Home to approximately 200,000 residents
* Most commonly spoken language is Hindi
* Most common work is work is manual laboring, although the majority is unemployed
* Average earning is $76 a month
* Regional Diet: maize, bananas, chicken, fish, bread, rice, potatoes & goat
* Common Health Problems: viral fevers, asthma, tuberculosis
* Typical Houses: cement or mud floors, brick walls, stone roofs

Center activities: Bible teaching, nutritious food, clothes, outdoor and indoor games, academic support, and meetings for the parents and guardians.

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Miscellaneous Info from Letters:

* Favorites: group games, walking, hide-and-seek, cricket, soccer/football; food: Lady’s Finger; math, oranges, ice-cream, mangoes, tiger, Deepawali Festival, summer season, walking, running, reading

* Dreams: to play cricket like Sachin Tendulkar, to go to college, to travel to other countries, math

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Letter Highlights...

"Sometimes me also eat fishes and I like fishes."

"Dear my favorite Eric and Hannah, praise the Lord and first of all Congratulations! for your wedding and your coming baby, wow! I liked your wedding pictures, hope I also presented there. Really I am happy about you."

"In India, we like to play cricket, cricket team has 11 players and we play to against other team, My favorite player is Sachin Tendulkar, I want to be like as Sachin when I will get older and also want to continue my studies in colleges."

"Recently he had dance program me in our project's function in that he weared beautiful coat pant, everyone praised me and appreciated my performance."

"Your baby is looking so nice and as he grows up I think he will be a handsome guy."

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Artwork

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Gifts

We received a letter from Arun where he shared: "I want to say something frankly, I like to bi-cycle and I want a bi-cycle please pray for my wish."

We were able to save up $60 for Arun's birthday and he was able to buy his bicycle!

And he sent this sweet response: "I bought a cycle as I don't have used to come to CDP center on foot which is very difficult for me to walk such a long distance from my house. Now, everyone is very happy at home because I'm going to school by cycle. I and everyone at home were thanking you for your kind help."

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Final Letter

Due to issues in India, Arun's project closed down in the fall. But it was really encouraging to read this part of the letter, written by the Partnership Facilitator.

"The Partner has a school and a church at the project location and will continue to support the children. We are very sorry that the Partnership had to end, but the opportunity that was provided to the child from your continued support and prayers, has been a turning point in the life of your sponsored child and the impact has been immense. Your sponsored child was regular in the activities of the project program, has experienced the love of Christ, and has been able to exhibit the love of Christ to the other members of the child's family. The Gospel of Christ was presented to the children in the project, and they were nurtured and groomed in the disciplines of physical, cognitive, socio-emotional and spiritual aspects."

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To read the other posts in this series, click here.