Kulsum's Birthday SNG reply - 2014

I finally got the reply for Kulsum's birthday SNG. She celebrated her b'day in March. 
From the report - 
Child's / Family's comments - 
The child said, "We have purchased so many useful things with your donation. These items will meet many of our regular needs. Thank you my sponsor.
How will it benefit - 
On the request of her sponsor, the child was gifted a special cake in remembrance of her birthday. This was very well received by the child and her family. The child was also given a dress as her birthday gift from the sponsor. The family was provided with large supplies of rice, pulses, edible oil, health drinks and other essential grocery items of regular need. These will take care of their daily consumption needs for a while. 
This is my third letter from her since my visit. I am yet to reply to her though. :( I promise to get back to the reply sooner. 
And now for her letter. 
"Dear sponsor,
Hello! My family and I are doing well. I hope you too are well. All of us here thank you for providing us with the groceries, health drink and energizer, cake and chocolates. My mother is very happy to receive these useful items. I am also very happy to receive a new dress from you for my birthday. In your honor I will celebrate the occasion now and wear my new dress. I will cut the cake also to mark the occasion. All of us are happy with the gifts and thank you a lot for your generous support.
Your loving child
Kulsum"
She is such a sweet kid. I have been able to converse more and more with her after my initial visit. I will probably be seeing her much more once I move to India. 
~ChEeRs 

Maria replies - May 2014

I got a reply from Maria. It is what you would expect from a 16 yr old. She answered to all my questions and it was a great letter. There were no drawings on the back but I am not expecting drawings for sponsors from a grown up girl now :)
So here is the letter - 
"Hello Mani
I am very well and my family too, thanks God. How are you doing? Thanks for your contagious smile (comment). Yes, I enjoyed a lot in my mother's b'day. Thanks for your belated happy birthday, no problem. Yes, I go to college, I study bio analysis. I am glad you will get together with your family, have a nice time. I would be so happy you visit me. I would like to meet you. My mother thanks you for the congratulation. Thanks for everything you do for me!
Your sponsored child
Yokary Maria"
Like I said, it is what you would expect from an elder girl. I am glad that she is going to college. In her report, it didn't say anything about attending school and hence I was a bit concerned. I would love to meet her someday too. Hoping for the best
~ChEeRs

Kulsum replies - May 2014

After my wonderful India visit, I got replies from Suman and Kulsum. It was really great to meet them both and I was able to converse better with Kulsum's family because I would manage with some Hindi. So here is her letter :)
"Dear Sponsor,
Hello! I am fine here and hope you are also well. My sister and I were delighted to meet you when you came to my house to visit me.I thank you for providing me with health drink, chocolates and other groceries and a pair of sandals for myself. I really enjoyed to go shopping with you and have delicious food. I loved the biryani very much. We have also purchased a mixer-grinder that we really needed. I thank you for the useful gifts and for visiting us. My family and I send you lots of love. 
Your loving child
Kulsum"
She is growing into a beautiful lady now and can converse much freely than last time. Her sister too conversed freely and I had a great time with them.. Hopefully I will be able to see them again next year :)
~ChEeRs

Suman Replies - May 2014

I am actually on such a backlog that I have two mails from Suman unanswered. One before and one after the visit. I received this one along with Kulsum's reply. So without further a do, Suman's latest reply.
"Dear Sponsor,
I hope you and your family are well. My family and I are fine. It was a pleasure to meet you when you came to visit me. I keep remembering the day. It was your second visit to my house and I was delighted to meet you once again.  I liked all your gifts, but the toy car was the best. (I still remember his super cool smile with that car). I will use the color pencils to draw pictures that I like. I thank you for the gifts. I would love to meet you every year. I will study attentively. I thank you once again for taking your time off to visit me and for lending me all your support. I end with love and regards
Yours lovingly 
Suman"
I have made no secret of how much I am a fan of his drawings. And I got another great drawing from him. It always makes me happy :)

~ChEeRs

Suman Replies - April 2014

I am again late on updating letters. So I got a letter from Suman recently after the visit. It was great to get another letter from him... I couldn't talk much to him during the visit as I didn't know Bengali. It was a festive letter :)
Here goes the letter 
"Dear sponsor,
How are you? I hope you are well. We are all fine. I am studying in grade 5 and I am studying attentively. Soon we will celebrate Holi festival (festival of colors). My family and I play Holi and we all enjoy it. We all put colored powder and water on each other and play Holi. The weather is very nice at this time. Flowers like Simul and Palash bloom at this time. The sweet voice of the Koel is heard from the trees. If you come to our country at this time you will like it. The festival is celebrated throughout India. My family and I are very happy to receive all your support. We thank you for the same. I end with love and regards. 
Yours lovingly
Suman"
It was a very descriptive letter about the season and the festival and I can't wait to get back to India again. Hoping for it very soon. Waiting for more lovely letters

~CheErs

Yulissa replies March 2014

Another beautiful day and another beautiful letter from my sweet Yulissa. As always, she replied to all my questions which is the most wonderful part of the letters to me. So here is her sweet letter.

"Dear sponsor Mani,

I am very happy to be greeting you, I am fine and let me tell you a story about the picture (I had sent her a pic which I thought was super cute), I was 5 years old and I cut my bangs because I wanted to be a hair stylist. My parents and siblings are fine. My dad is getting better slowly. I hope I can get to middle school and keep studying so I can be a professional. Would you tell me about your culture? I would like you to send me more pictures of you. I say goodbye wanting to write another letter already (Isn't she the sweetest? :)).

Thank you for being in my life.

Yulissa"

I have always felt that she writes the best letters. She always knows what to say and she has this very nice way of seeing and putting things. I love that the best about her. She seems to be like one of those genuine kids who is really lovely from the heart. I have plans to see her next month and I can't wait for it.

~Cheers

Nicolle replies Feb 2014

Out of the three letters that I got, 2 were from Kulsum and one from my sweet Nicolle. As always she writes sweet letters and also answers all my questions. So here is the latest letter from her.
"Hello Dear sponsor,
I hope that when you get this letter, you be in good health along with you dear ones. I want to thank you for the letter you sent me. I want you to know that I am doing very good in my studies. I will be in sixth grade. And my next vacations period will be until April 2014. I spent a very good birthday along with my family and some friends. My mother is doing very good just like me and my siblings, we are in very good health thanks to God. I send you lots of greetings for you and your family. 
I say goodbye.
Nicolle"
As always another sweet letter with her trademark dark coloring. Her drawings and colors have really interested me a lot. Here is her latest from the letter.

~Cheers

Double joy from Kulsum!

And so I am back after a long vacation, and to my surprise there were three letters from CI. I always love the letters in bulk. Especially when they are from the same kid. I got two letters from Kulsum within a space of a month. Not sure how. But I am not complaining :)
So here are the two letters.
First one - 
"Dear Mr Sukumar,
Hello! My family and I are fine here. I hope you are also well. I thank you for fulfilling all my needs and my studies are going well. I hope to pass and get promoted from grade 8th to 9th. Our annual exams are now going on and I am doing preparation well for it. I hope to pass with your blessings. I went to my aunt's house in the winter season. I like winter season. I hope to pass to grade 9 with good marks. I hope to hear from you.
Your loving child
Kulsum"
I can clearly see from the above letter how scared she was about her exams. I did see her on my vacation and I can guarantee that she is really interested in studying. She really wants to do well. And that's good. Also got a good news in the very next letter that she did clear (Of course I knew that when I went to meet her :)). So here is the second letter too.
"Dear Mani dada
Hello! My family and I are fine here and I hope you are also well. I have passed my exams and have now been promoted from grade 8 to grade 9. I am able to study so far with your kind support. It is now winter season here and it is very cold in the morning. I went to the park for outings on new year's day. I like to go to my aunt's house in the winter also. I send you my love and wish you a happy new year. I hope to hear from you.
Your loving child
Kulsum"
I was very happy to see the letters. I am always happy to get letters from CI and it was double the joy to get two letters in quick succession. I will soon be updating about my visit too.
~Cheers

Yokary Maria's Birthday SNG reply

I somehow missed this reply in the midst of so many other letters from CI. I got the reply from Yokary Maria, on her B'day SNG along with lots of photos :). She celebrated her b'day in November.
So here are the details.

"Child/family comments on the SNG -
The child and her family are very happy with the gifts received. They thanked God and the program and they said that they are lucky to receive this donation. The young girl was very happy because she had the chance to go shopping with her mother and they had a lot of fun, She loved the pair of jeans and the groceries."
And now for the sweet letter with my fav pic :-)

"Hello dear Sponsor Mani.
Thank you so much for the donation you sent me. Thanks to you I could buy a gift for my mother's birthday. I also bought some groceries. I had a wonderful time with my mother. I had a lot of fun at the store. It was a very beautiful experience, going to the store and buying so many things. I like to eat cornflakes with milk. The pair of pants that I bought, I love it. Thank you so much for everything. May God bless you and your family. Thaks for all you do for me!
Your sponsored child,
Yokary."
She can be a model for Nesquik :-P

 She also had a little butterflies drawn at the back of the letter. :-)

 

 I have already replied to her letter and can't wait to get her next letter... Her smile is very contagious :)  Someday will have to plan a trip to DR too... ;)
 ~ChEeRs

Nicolle's update including new photo :) 2013

I am in a mood for updating profile details of my kids. So it's my sweet Nicolle this time. She celebrated her birthday last September and turned 11. So here are the details. 

She has grown to 4'6" (3 inches from last time) and weighs 72 pounds. That is a good growth for a 11 year old. Her fav. subject is still Grammer and her fav. pass times are playing soccer and playing with toys and cars. Her hobby is drawing/painting, and she does use bold and lovely colors in her drawings. I love those. She does sweep, mop and do some general chores in the house. 
Her monthly income still stays at $316. I believe it is still good, compared to Yulissa's where it had gone down. Given that she is just living with her mom, as her dad had abandoned the family, I am happy they are able to earn at least this much. I know being a single parent is tough and to raise 3 kids is no easy task. I wish I can help them more. Her living conditions are pretty much same as last time. 2 bedrooms, living room and kitchen. She sleeps in bed and all basic amenities are available at home. So overall, it is good. I plan to meet her too this year... Can't wait.. :)
~ChEeRs

Yulissa's yearly update 2013

After her B'day, as expected her profile details were updated. Her pics are updated in May and her profile is updated in September. So here are the details :)

My dear sweety is definitely growing. She is 4'9" now and weighs 117 pounds. Her weight is of a concern because, her health report from last year said she was having second level of obesity. But she is being treated for it. Her fav. subjects are history and science now. She has moved away from Mathematics. She has always done great in school. She is an excellent student. I will probably get another educational report after March, after her current school year probably. She does general housework and loves to draw.Her fav pass times are everything from playing with dolls, cars and toys and also riding the bicycle. 
The monthly income has come down to $167. That is understandable as her dad had to quit work because of some work accident. Her mom is also listed as Homemaker. Not sure who is contributing to the income. This is a bad break for them coz, her income jumped from $230+ to around $400 and now it has come down to less than $200. Her living conditions are pretty much the same as last time and she recently got a new bed too. So I am happy for her... And guess what, I will definitely be able to see her. Can't wait for it...
~ChEeRs

Yokary's updated profile and pic

After her b'day SNG, it was time to update her profile.. Her pic as well as details were updated. So here are the details. 

Yokary is 17 yrs old. She recently celebrated her b'day on 7th Nov. She is 5'4" which is odd, because they had her at 5'5" last time. I guess she is around the same height as last time. Her weight is same as last time too at 110 pounds. Her fav pass time hasn't changed. She still loves playing with dolls and her hobbies are still singing and dancing. But there was a disturbing update regarding her school. It says she is not attending school anymore. And they don't have any info at this time. I have to mail them back to check on that. 
Her family income still stays at $162. Her living conditions are pretty much the same as last time. So that's okay I guess. But it still worries me that she is not going to school anymore. She did write in her last mail that she will be going to college. Of course that is not school and I will be hoping it is a positive update unless otherwise. Fingers crossed...
~ChEeRs

Suman's Update including new photo :)

I got Suman's new pic and an update about him. He has definitely grown from when I saw him last time. 

So here is the latest update on him. He has grown 4 feet 1 inches. He still loves playing cricket. (All the kids always do :)). His hobby is drawing and I still remember his amazing drawings. He has got an amazing talent there. His fav. subject is writing. He actually started writing late. But good to know that it is his fav. subject. 
Now on to his family details. The family makes around $83 a month. That is down from $170 in the last update. But I totally believe it was a mistake then. They were earning $66 the year before and it suddenly jumped to $170 and now it is back to $83. It is still hard with 4 siblings to also look out for. The water source and the sanitary facility is still from the community sadly. They do have a bed but that is one big bed for the whole family and that takes more than half of their room. Got his recent reply from the b'day SNG I sent. So more updates to follow soon :)
~ChEeRs

Yulissa's second SNG after birthday :-)

After the confusion with Yulissa's SNG and Nicolle's donation, the good thing was that there were two donations made to Yulissa and that meant two letters from her.
The Birthday SNG is already updated. And this is the second letter that I got from her :)

The main reason for this SNG was the mattress that she had been needing for sometime. And thankfully she got it.

Yulissa's Comments - "I really thank you for all the support you have given me, me and my family always pray for your well being, I hope to meet you someday and give you a big hug for being so good with me"

And now for her sweet letter as always - 

"Dear donor,
I can't thank you enough for the mattress I received thanks to you because the one I used to have had the bedsprings coming out. Thanks to your donation I also got other things for me and a detail for my cousins and siblings, something little but they will love it. The greatest thing is that you care about me. Soon will be Christmas and I wish you the best. Happy holidays! Thanks and I say goodbye!
Thanks for being part of my life!
Yulissa"
As always she writes beautiful letters. She also had a nice drawing in the back of the letter. Have already replied to her. Can't wait for her letters again :)
~Cheers

Maria's latest reply Oct 2013

So the last of the mails from CI for this week :)
I got the latest reply from my latest kid Yokary Maria. She is 16 and soon to be 17th :) She answered all my questions as expected.. So here is the letter -  :)
"Hello Dear Mani!!
I am fine and how about you? My parents and siblings are fine. You can call me how you like the most. (I was not sure if I should call her Yokary or Maria :)). I am very happy because on September 28th is my graduation from high school. Next month I will register at college. How is your family? Sorry they are so far. I like to watch cartoons too and to read. My family is so big. My father has 8 brothers and a sister, my mother has 5 brothers and 4 sisters, all of them are very happy. Take care. 
Thanks for everything you do for me!.
You sponsored child,
Yokary Maria"

I will hold on before writing her a reply. She is celebrating her birthday tomorrow (Nov 7th). Will wait for that SNG reply and then write her a letter.
~ChEeRs

Yulissa's birthday SNG reply and more :-)

A good week it was and not all was as I feared before... Initially when I blogged about Nicolle's b'day SNG i mentioned that even Yulissa's b'day fund was put up with Nicolle. After mailing the CI team I found out that it was only wrongly updated in the site but it was divided correctly and Yulissa did get her b'day gifts on time :). That wasa huge relief. True to their word, I received the mails a week later. I got the b'day SNG reply and also a letter probably written before that :).
Also in all this fiasco, I sent her another SNG thinking she did not get her b'day gift. So looking fwd to one more letter next week ;)
So the SNG details first - 
"Child or family's comments on SNG - Yulissa says - 'Thank you sponsor for all the support that you give me, I did love to meet you someday and personally thank you for all this.'
Benefits to the family - It is of great help since the mother is only working twice a week so it's a great support for Yulissa and her family. (Yulissa father was paralysed due to some accident a year ago I believe)
And the exciting part - the actual letter - 
Dear Sponsor,
I want to thank you for all your support, it was very helpful. Thanks for caring for me; on my birthday, I had a cake and my aunt gave me a purse she made with raffia. With your donation I was able to get clothes and groceries for me and my family. Also some shampoo and some detail for my siblings. I say bye and thank you for all, goodbye for now.
Thanks for being part of my life.
Yulissa"

Also as always, there were photos too. :)

This is not the end of it... I also got another letter from her :)
"Dear Mani
I am glad to greet you. My dad is better. On vacations I had fun with my family. By the way, I loved seeing your pictures and your friends'. I did like you to come. My siblings and my mom are fine and my little brother is fine because he is starting kindergarten. Say hello to your friends, they seem to be good persons. Goodbye and thank you so much. See you soon. 
Yulissa"

Her drawings are a stark contrast to Nicolle.. She always prefers the light colors... I love both their drawings so much :). So here is a Yulissa's special ;)

~ChEeRs

Nicolle's latest letter Oct 2013

A good day again as I got a bunch of letters. I am also playing catch up with other letters... The first one is from Nicolle... She is such a sweetheart as always. This letter was actually written before her b'day SNG I believe. So here goes... 
"Greetings Dear Mani
I wish that when you get this letter, you are in good health. I am very happy that you like my letters and my drawings, that I did with so much affection. I tell you that my mother and my siblings, we are doing well thanks God. I will spend a happy birthday along with my family and friends. I am very happy that you sent me a photo along with your friends and that you visit your family to India, because that makes you happy. When you visit them, give my greetings to them, because I keep you in my heart too.
I say goodbye with so much affection. May God bless you today and forever.
Nicolle"
And another good part of the letter (apart from the actual letter itself :)) is that her drawings are back. I missed her drawing in the birthday SNG reply... As always, I lover her use of dark and bold colors... See for yourself :)...

~ChEeRs

Nicolle's SNG and Birthday reply - Sep 2013

A mixed day today... While I am super happy as I finally got Nicolle's SNG and b'day gifts reply, I also figured out that Yulissa did not get any gifts on her birthday because of a mixup :(. I have sent her a belated gift now. Hopefully I will get an update soon... 
Now for the happy part again... Nicolle sent another sweet letter as always. Also to note, I did not get any reply to the letter I sent. I either got this faster because I sent an SNG or this might be treated as a reply to my letter as well, I am not sure... Anyways, to the SNG reply and the sweet letter

But firdt up for one more time...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR NICOLLE :)
I had sent the SNG as well as extra for her b'day. (SNG Details)
They got the stuffs mentioned in the SNG and also a nice cake for Nicolle. The family was happy and that makes me happy :) And now to the super sweet reply :)
"Greetings Dear Mani,
I greet you cordially, wishing you are in good health along with your dear ones. I thank you for what you sent me. May God bless you and your family. I thank you for the cake, shoes, clothing, refrigerator, bed, fan. I loved all the stuffs. Thanks for all the blessings you give me, because I know that not all the children get this. I feel very lucky to have you as my sponsor. Thanks!
I say goodbye, who loves you so. 
Your sponsored Child,
Nicolle"


And for the super cool b'day pic. I loved this pic the best from the lot. She seems so happy :)

She sure is stylish, isn't she? ;)

And as always, her bold coloring. Ah, how I missed it :)

~ChEeRs

Suman's latest reply Sep - 2013

Got Suman's latest reply just last week. A letter from him has been due for sometime now. One of the first kids I decided to sponsor, he always has a special place in my heart :). Also he is celebrating his birthday later this month :) Here is the sweet letter he wrote..
"Dear Mr...
I am very happy to write to you after a long gap. Hope all of you are well. We are well. Now I study in grade 4. I like to go to school. Our school teachers are very  good. They love me. And I also like them. Please write me about your school (I did not tell him I am in a school :) and I am not :P) Thank you very much for your help.
Yours lovingly
Suman"
I didn't get any drawing this time around. But let me tell you that he is an amazing artist... When I saw him couple of years back, he had a note full of amazing drawings :)

~ChEeRs!

Kulsum's letter - August 2013

I received Kulsum's latest letter this weekend. She is one of those sweet kids whom I met and conversed comfortably as she knew Hindi :). Another sweet letter from her...
"Dear Mani,
Hello! My family and I are fine here and I hope you are also well. I thank you for helping me and for fulfilling my needs. I study in grade 8. My first unit test is now over and I will get good marks in all my subjects. Summer has ended here and rainy season has now started. I went to my aunt's house during the summer holidays and enjoyed there a lot. I am now preparing for my  second unit test. I am trying to promote from grade 8 to grade 9.
Yours loving child,
Kulsum"
She is studying real hard. Her mom really understand how hard it is to survive and how important education is for her daughters to get thru. I wish her all the best with her studies and wish her to get good grades. Cant wait to see her next year again :)
~ChEeRs