An Open Letter from Me to Other Sponsors...

Dear CCF Sponsors,

Just over one month ago, I arrived home from visiting one of "my" children. Asma is a 14 year old girl who lives in Bangalore, India. It was an amazing experience to meet her. She is a wonderful girl.

It was also very nice to meet many other children that are assisted by CCF. I visited the Sunder Nagri Development Project and St. Anthony's Orphanage in Delhi, and the Integrated Family Welfare Unit in Bangalore.

Often, when I met sponsored children, I would ask directly or through translation, "Does your sponsor write to you?" Much too often, the answer I heard was "no" or "one or twice a year." I was very disappointed, and I could see the disappointment in the faces many of the children, too. Each time, I promised that when I got home I would scold the sponsors who do not write to their children.

I have always believed that the letter-writing relationship between sponsor and child is very important. I am now a direct witness to this fact. Generally, all children in a sponsored child's community receive the same services. In my opinion, this is one of CCF's strengths. Children are not singled out to receive special services, while others continue to suffer. The money that we send is able to assist an entire community, not only one child. Essentially, the only difference between a sponsored child and an unsponsored child is the letters that we write and the monetary gifts that we send.

I do not want to minimize the value of monetary gifts, but I think that the tangible benefits of these gifts are easy to see. For example, it was wonderful to see Asma wearing beautiful dresses that were purchased with money that I sent. But, I also think that the benefits can be over emphasized. We need to do more than just write a check. Do we really want our sponsored children to view us simply as a "Santa Claus" from the Western world? Or, do we want them to see us as an individual (or a family of individuals or a group of individuals) who loves them? Our money is a valuable tool that can be used in many tangible ways. But, the intangible benefit of our sponsorship is the love we give and the relationship that we develop with "our" children.

I sponsor 3 children. Wellington (9) lives in Brazil; Alaso, (16) lives in Uganda; and you already know Asma. I am sure that all sponsors can relate to the love that I feel for these children. I am so grateful for the opportunity to have them in my life. Therefore, I try to let them know that very often by writing to them.

I want to tell you about my one of my experiences with letter writing. I have found that the older the children get, the more interested they are in writing, and the more interesting letters that I receive. Alaso was 13 when I began sponsoring her. From the very beginning, she has written very interesting and informative letters. I feel that we have been able to develop a very good relationship given the geographic and cultural distance between us. But, beginning last June, I became very wrapped up in my own life, working two jobs, and planning my trip to India. I didn't take the time to write regularly to my children. I am now paying the price. If you have noticed, the more letters that you write, the more letters that you will receive. I missed hearing from my children during the time that I was not writing regularly.

Now that I am writing more regularly again, I am beginning to again receive letters from my children. But, there is a difference, particularly in the letters from Alaso. Her letters are polite and loving, but they are short and generally uninteresting. I believe that Alaso depended upon my loving correspondence. I let her down, and she is disappointed. She doesn't not know enough about my life to ask me about my activities, and she doesn't really know what to tell me about hers. I have asked Alaso's forgiveness... I'm sure that I will receive it. Now is the time to rebuild our relationship.

With love from one sponsor to another,

Angie