My first welcome letter! :)

Finally... After days of waiting and walking to the postbox, I finally got what I was looking for. My first welcome letter from my first kid Suman :). For those who don't know Suman, he is my first sponsored kid via CI (Children International). It generally takes about 6 weeks to get the welcome letter. And bingo, on the 6th week I got my letter. I believe Yulissa's should be coming anytime soon too. In the first page they had a little fact about India (about Bharatnatyam). In the same page there were two questions to which Suman had answered. What he would like to do on holidays and What is his favorite season?
He likes to play (cricket I guess) and watch television during his holidays and winter is his favorite season. I can understand that as the summer can sometimes be unforgiving. In the second page you have the actual letter from the kid. This may have been written by the kid or by someone in the family or even with the help of a CI representative. But somehow I get the feeling it was written by the kid. You will know when you see it yourself :)

Of course it is the handwriting that made me think it might be from the kid though my hand writing can be worse than that :). Also that I cant read Bengali makes it easier for me to assume that the handwriting is kiddish :D. CI knows I don't understand a word of it and thankfully they also give the translation. Thanks to the benefit of photography, you can see the translation too :)

For those who can't read from the pic -
"Dear Name
I hope you all are well. We are all fine. I am very happy to write to you for the first time. I study in grade 2 and I like to study Bengali. I like to play cricket. There are 8 members in our family. My family and I are very happy to know that you are my new sponsor. I thank you for sponsoring me. I end with love and regards.
Yours
Suman"

One thing I definitely like about the letter is the drawing. A nice house near by the river with trees and flowers near by. Fishers are flowing in groups. A bright sun which is crossed by birds (and I hope clouds or more birds). And a wonderfully colored flower plant near by. This is such a happy drawing and I am so happy for him after seeing this.
As much as I am happy about the letter he had written (it sounds very sweet), I was worried to find out that there are 8 people in the house. He has a sister. The family income is only $66. I really wonder how they are managing. The facilities are also not that great. They use community faucets for water and they also have to use the community latrine. I am hoping something can be done about it. I will be inquiring with CI after a coupla months as I know I will be a little tight with two girls' b'day coming up shortly. I don't wanna end the blog on a sad note.
In the original letter he had written, there was an image of a girl which says "Namaste". He had colored that too wonderfully. Somehow I get a feeling that he is really good with colors. Coz I like them at least :) God bless this child and I pray their situation soon improves for the better.

Peace...

About Children International

Well I had been writing about my sponsored kids one after the other. But the immediate question that would come to everyone's mind is "From where is he gettin all the wonderful kids to sponsor" and so I thought I should write about Children International.

If you already knew about it, then great. If not, let me help you. Children International is a charity organisation that helps kids in almost 11 different countries of varying ages. It is from their site "www.children.org" that I added 2 of my four kids. It always feels good to be good right? And on top of it, imagine some kid in some part of the world thinks about you in his/her prayers for your good deed... That is what I call inner peace as Bo would say it...
It is very easy to sponsor a kid with this site. It just takes $22 to sponsor a wonderful kid. And if you are in US, it is a little lesser than what you would spend on coupla days of good lunch. You can search for kids in terms of age, area or gender or look up one of their many campaigns. And for the not so tech savy person, you can always call them up in their toll free number 1-800-888-3089 in the US. If you are wondering what this 22$ a month would fetch them, you would be amazed. With the sponsorship, they will be able to help in health, education, nutrition, family needs, community needs (if possible) and so on. They also have various projects from time to time to help the 335,000 odd kids they support. You get an updated picture every year. You can mail them or send packages to the local office set up in the country and they will send it to them. To your happiness and proof, you get photos on what they did with your gift. It is like you can see the child grow and the impact you have one their life from halfway around the world. The child also writes to you (if the child can or a representative does) at least once a quarter. This way you can start a new bond with the kid. For a long relationship, I would suggest you choose a young kid. All kids are in the program until they are 19 (unless they move out of the coverage area of CI or get better that they don't need the sponsor). At the same time I would also say that the older kids need more help for their immediate education needs and if you are a sucker for education like I am, then you can call them up and they will assign an older kid to you. The older ones are not listed on the site for a reason. So... There you have it. I would really urge all my friends and also who ever chances across this blog to go have a look at this site and see for yourself what they can do. Though I have been sponsoring only from the end of April, I have spoken to a coupla sponsors who have sponsored for years and I know for sure they are legit and they really help the kids.

Lets join hands to make this world a better place for the kids for they deserve it. We can help one child at a time. Imagine if everybody joins hands to help one child at a time, the world will soon be a better place. Though it is a little painful for them, they also support group sponsorship. I would encourage you have a look at their site or call them and give them a chance to help the kids. In case you have any doubts about the organisation, you can get the info from their website. Or always, feel free to ask me and I will sure get the answer for you.
God Bless you...
Peace...

Welcoming Kulsum!

Kulsum is my fourth kid. Technically she is added in my account, but unofficially she is sponsored by one my wonderful friends. The best thing you can do in these cases is spread the word and hope more ppl pitch in to help the kids in need. I was satisfied when my friend volunteered to sponsor a kid. But yeah, he is lazy to fill in the details and create a new account and said he will use my account instead. He also wanted to sponsor an older kid. When I pushed him to call CI himself, he kinda asked me to select from the website instead. I did like to add that he is a lazy goose yet again (for my satisfaction). And so I selected this charming young lady - Kulsum

Kulsum is 13 years old. Thankfully she is still attending school. Her favorite subject is language and she speaks Hindi. (I am ok with Hindi and hence I can communicate with her easily :)). Her favorite pass time is playing with dolls just like any other girl I guess. She is interested in drawing and she washes the dishes at home. She lives with her parents. The family income is a meager 132$ and that is so because both their parents work. Dad is a brick layer and mom is a daily worker. She has a beautiful sister Rukaiya, who is 11 years old. I have no idea if she is sponsored or not. Maybe in future I will sponsor her. She just has one multi-use room and a kitchen for a home. The house is of brick walls, tile roof and concrete floor. They have an earthen stove. There is only one bed and I believe Kulsum and her sister shares it. Though electricity is available, the water is from a public storage cistern and they only have a community latrine. I really hope the sponsorship could improve their living. I know my friend will do everything in his power to help. God Bless...
Peace...

Welcoming Sunandita!

Sunandita is my third sponsored kid. She was chosen with a purpose. While I chose Suman because I wanted to do something good and Yulissa because I liked her photo more than anything else, Sunandita was chosen entirely for a different reason. By the time I had added two kids, I was going thru the Lift One forum where all the CI donors discuss about a lot of things. One particular discussion caught my attention on how young kids get sponsored easily because they are cute and how the older ones are ignored. This kinda itched me as I just added Yulissa because she was cute. Also it was mentioned that the older kids would need more help as they would be nearing college and they are the ones in need of fund more to continue their education. That kinda got me on the chat with the wonderful Michelle from CI as they don't list the older kids on website (for a reason of course). And so you have it - Sunandita from India.

I asked for a girl from India as I know how bad women education is there. Sunandita is 17 yrs old. Luckily she is still attending school and her favorite subject is science. (Somehow I get the geeks and I like it ). Her favorite pass time is playing outdoor games (I wonder what game would that be) and she is interested in drawing. She is also a Bengali and at home she does general house work and also washes the clothes. She lives with her parents and her dad is a daily worker. She has a sweet sister, Mamata, aged 15 and wonderful brother, Subrata, aged 11. She has obviously been sponsored before as I see a lot of photos for her. Their house is pretty similar to Suman's. Two multi use rooms and a kitchen. Her house is made of brick walls. The roof is corrugated tile and it is mud floor. Luckily she sleeps in one of the three beds in her house. The saddest part is that their family income is just 38$ and the water source is community pump. The electricity is on a regulated use and thankfully atleast they have a latrine at home. I do not have more information on whether her sister and brother are sponsored. Her birthday just crossed by on May 1st and so I have sent her a SNG which is kinda belated b'day gift from me. I am hoping she can continue with her education and get better in life.
Peace...

Welcoming Yulissa!

Yulissa. What can I say? After selecting Suman, I was browsing online thru the CI website where I found this cutest kid on the planet, Yulissa. I didn't think about anything else. I just clicked on "Sponsor Me" button without thinking twice. Seeing her face brings peace to me easily. See her photo for yourself and you will know why...

Well, after sponsoring her, I was going thru the details. She has the same b'day as one of my very good friends. September 18th :). She is from Mexico. She is 8 years old and already at 4'2". (Fast growing). As any typical girl she loves playing with dolls and toys (guess she would also be a barbie fan). Her hobby interests me though doesn't surprise. She is interested in sports and that kinda explains her growth. Her favorite subject is mathematics (Another female scientist on the way). She speaks Spanish. I am just starting to learn Spanish by the way. She lives with her parents. Her dad is a carpenter. She has a handsome brother Calep who is also sponsored, I am told. He is 7 years old. Their income was $267last year but it is now $233 and they have 3 bedrooms, kitchen and bathroom. They are living better than the other kids I am sponsoring. But I don't know much about Mexico.Their house has Concrete floors, concrete walls and brick roof. Hope it protects them well.She has her own bed. They have running water in home and they have electricity. They also have a toilet at home. I am not surprised by the current condition of the family. This is mainly because her brother is sponsored and she has had two sponsors before. But I am sure it would have been very difficult for them to give up on such a beautiful kid. I am hoping to stick to them till the program ends. She will always be a li'l special to me as she is my first chosen kid. Suman will be equally special as he is my 'THE' first kid with CI. Bless CI.
Peace...

Welcoming Suman!

This is my first trial with children International in making a difference in a child's life. I am happy that I found that amazing volunteer who explained to me about this beautiful organisation. When I signed up, the only choice I made was the country. I wanted to sponsor a kid in India (India is where I am from). And a week later I got the information that I will be sponsoring this wonderful boy SUMAN from Kolkatta. He has the most amazing smile in this planet. Kinda reminds me of a photo when I was a kid. :)

He is 6 yrs old and attends school. his favorite subject is writing, (another blogger on the way folks) and his favorite past time is playing cricket. He is interested in drawing and he is a Bengali. Did I tell you that I started my education in Kolkatta? But I didn't learn any Bengali. He lives with his parents. His dad is a driver. He has one beautiful sister Soma (I am told she is also sponsored, thank the heavens). Their home is of brick walls, concrete floor and tile roof. They have two multi-use rooms. They have a gas stove to cook and the child sleeps on one of the two beds. They also have electricity. The sad part is they use community faucets for water and a community latrine. The whole family income is just $66. I hope I can make a difference in their life for the better. If I can touch one kid at a time, I am sure a change can be made. Suman's photo reminds me of myself. I sure would want him to grow better in life and make us all proud.
Peace...