I've just gotta ask...

Annet Ikoju is almost 7 years old and is from central Uganda. Her birthday is on November 22, & it would be an awesome birthday gift to get a sponsor by then! If you would like to start a relationship with Annet or would like more information about her, about sponsorship, or Compassion in general, please send me an email message or post a comment. When you sponsor Annet, for $38 a month, you are caring for her education and health care, as well as giving her a Christian community to have healthy social interaction and to learn about God.  As her sponsor, you can write letters, send pictures, provide her with gifts for her birthday and Christmas, and show her that she can be more than her environment tells her she can be.  I have shared a lot about sponsorship before, but if you would like more information, please feel free to ask.  Our scanner if not working, so I am unable to give you a picture of her on my blog, but if you would like to see her picture, I have one.

I also have child survival packets for a program located in Lima, the city where I spent most of my time while I was visiting Peru. Child survival sponsorship only costs $20 a month.  It is not  a one-on-one relationship, so sponsors do not have to write letters, but sponsors are sent periodic letters from mothers who are in the program, with pictures of them and their babies, and from the pastor of the church where the program is located.  Child survival provides mothers and children with health care, counseling, nutrition, and Christian fellowship within their community and much more.

Since Child Survival is fairly new to many people who may already be familiar with Compassion, I have included pictures from one of the child survival programs we visited while in Lima.

This class occurs at the church during the week.  Mothers bring their children and sit in with them to learn the information that they are to go home and review with their children on the days they are not at the program.  This gives them fundamental learning experiences and age-appropriate social interaction.

This is Julie and Gabriel, a mother and baby who are in the program.  We met them during one of the CSP home visits, which is a regular part of the child survival program.

These are materials that have been provided to the families from the CSP.  The mothers are required to put these in an area of their home where they provide interaction and stimulation for their babies.

More materials.  This is to encourage the families to "make space" for their children to develop, even in their very tight quarters.

This is Julie's front room and where she and her husband and baby sleep.  I am in the corner of the room.

This is their backyard, where Julie's nephew, who also lives with Julie with his mom, plays.

The view from Julie's house.

The classroom at the church.

These little ones who are part of the child survival program dressed in costumes to represent their traditional dress.

Since this little girl is part of the CSP, she will have a better chance to stay healthy and get a great start.  And she will be able to enter the traditional child sponsorship program when she is old enough.