International Adoption
Sponsorship Opportunities Available for Children in Need
A child sits in the far corner of the living area in the orphanage where she has resided for as long as she can remember. Through a back window, she sees a car arrive at the orphanage with a couple inside. The couple, just like the many others that have arrived before, is smiling and laughing as they walk up to the orphanage door.
Their excitement is evident in the twinkle in their eye and the spring in their step. The other children see the couple approach too, and they flock to the door, hoping that it is their family that has finally come for them. But, in the far back corner of the orphanage, this little girl knows better.
She used to race to the door with the other children when families arrived to bring their children home, but not anymore. She learned that it was too hard to hope for an end to the loneliness that has been her constant companion.
Loneliness
Although surrounded by the ceaseless chatter of children, her life has been lonely. She’s never known the miracle cure of a mother’s kiss to a scraped knee, never been able to crawl into her mom and dad’s bed after a nightmare, and never had anyone to quiet her childish fears. Every wound has been unkissed, and all of her cries have been unheard.
She is completely alone. Whether she was abandoned or orphaned as a victim of civil war or disease, she shares her heritage with no one. It’s her against the world, and for an orphan in an impoverished third world country, what a harsh world it is!
Can You Imagine?
Looking back to your childhood, can you imagine not being connected to anyone, and being completely alone? It’s hard to imagine, but this is the tragic reality for nearly six million orphans living in Ethiopia and Nepal, two of the most impoverished countries in the world.
The global response to these children has not given them much to hope for, either. The world does not come close to meeting even their most basic needs for food, clothing, or shelter, let alone a loving family. Poor nutrition stunts their growth, any education is rare, and chronic illness is their constant companion.
The Statistics
The sad truth is that most of these six million orphans will not be adopted, and they will be left to survive in a third world society. Statistically, once children age out of the orphanage, most boys will turn to crime and most girls to prostitution just to survive.
How Can I Help?
Child sponsorship is a way to help children who would otherwise have no hope. AAI works with several orphanages in Ethiopia and Nepal. By sponsoring a child, you will be helping to save the lives of children and keep them from the streets by providing funds to shelter, clothe, and feed them. The education your donation will provide will give them a chance at a brighter and more hopeful future, a future in which the children can rely on an occupation to support them instead of a life of crime.
Choosing a Child
You will be able to choose the age and gender of the child you sponsor, as well as the country in which he or she lives. Both orphaned children (Ethiopia and Nepal) and impoverished children (Nepal only) are available for sponsorship.
Orphaned Children
The orphaned children available for sponsorship are ironically often considered to be the fortunate ones because they have a roof over their heads and the promise of food every day. However, the orphanages that house these children operate on very meager budgets. There is often just enough food for each child and the schooling these children receive is primitive. Through sponsorship, one child will be able to obtain an education that will allow him or her to have a much brighter future.
Impoverished Children
Although the impoverished children in Nepal have families, they live well below the poverty line, often supported by their parents’ meager earnings of a dollar a day. These children are the victims of circumstance and a social system in Nepal that has left them without educational opportunities for generations. Many of these children also come from families of traditional fishermen who lost their jobs, and with them their productivity and livelihood, when a monsoon hit their tribal village last summer. These families were relocated, and they now live in makeshift shelters, sometimes sleeping alongside poultry or livestock, with no hope for a brighter future. Through sponsorship, these children will be able to afford the schooling necessary to acquire a job that will lift them out of the abysmal poverty in which they have been living.
How Does it Work?
Once you choose the age, gender, and country of the child you would like to sponsor, AAI will send you a photo and information about this child who will most likely not be adopted. You will be encouraged to write to the child, and you will receive updates on the child’s progress twice a year.
What Does it Cost?
You can support a child for an entire year for only $300. You will have the option to pay monthly ($25/month), quarterly ($75/quarter), or annually ($300/year). A one year commitment is requested.
The Most Important Part
Although your donation will provide the child you sponsor with the material necessities that he or she needs to survive, this isn’t the most important part. “The biggest benefit of sponsorship is that the children will know that there is someone in the world who loves them, cares for them, and who helps take away their loneliness,” says Ethiopia Program Manager Kurt Ellis.
Imagine the joy for a lonely little girl when she hears the news that she will be sponsored, receives a picture of her sponsor or sponsoring group, and finally feels connected to others. Your sponsorship may be the closest experience she ever has to having a loving family or individual provide for her.
To Learn More
If you would like to learn more about child sponsorship, or to sponsor a child, please call 616.667.0921 or e-mail sponsorship@adoptionassociates.net.
