Our “African Child”
For nearly 15 years, my wife and I have been helping to support various children through monthly stipends we send to The Christian Children’s Fund. We traditionally have been assigned a child in a faraway place. The Fund then sends us an annual “report card” on the child’s education, health, family, community and general ways the funds might be applied.
But a new element in the process emerged once Harriet Buyewa, 9, from Zambia became our “adopted” child, and that is Harriet’s uncle, Kelvin Simangolwa. Uncle Kelvin writes us from time to time, in his own handwriting on lined notebook paper, about life in Shacele Village, the activities Harriet is involved in, how grateful the family is for these small stipends and often, how the money is applied. We are so moved by these letters. It has made us feel so good about the help we are providing and the value of The Christian Children Fund’s work. Also, it has brought us closer to Harriet and changed our perception about our donation from a stipend to an opportunity. Thus, I share our most recent letter from Uncle Kelvin:
Communications between Uncle Kelvin and us have opened a new door of understanding that is making what we read in the newspapers about tribal life in Africa less remote than just a story and something more tangible … something we can touch and that touches us.
Technorati Tags: The Christian Children’s Fund, Zambia, Africa, Goodwill, communications, public relations, business
But a new element in the process emerged once Harriet Buyewa, 9, from Zambia became our “adopted” child, and that is Harriet’s uncle, Kelvin Simangolwa. Uncle Kelvin writes us from time to time, in his own handwriting on lined notebook paper, about life in Shacele Village, the activities Harriet is involved in, how grateful the family is for these small stipends and often, how the money is applied. We are so moved by these letters. It has made us feel so good about the help we are providing and the value of The Christian Children Fund’s work. Also, it has brought us closer to Harriet and changed our perception about our donation from a stipend to an opportunity. Thus, I share our most recent letter from Uncle Kelvin:
Dear Mr. Ken Makovsky:
It’s with joy and gratitude to have this wonderful opportunity of writing you again. I am the usual Uncle to your sponsored child, Harriet. How are you in the U.S.A.? Here in Zambia, Harriet and our entire family are fine.
I would like to thank you greatly for the birthday gift you sent to this child. She received U.S. $25, which is equivalent to one hundred and seven thousand one hundred and twenty five Kwachain, our local currency, and this is what was bought:
Beddings K35,000
Rice K15,000
Sugar K10,000
Chickens K20,000
Flour K20,000
Cooking Oil K5,000
Sweets K2,000
Balloons K125
Special thanks once more from our family and Harriet is thanking you a million times. May the Almighty God abundantly bless all the works of your hands. Bye for now.
Yours sincerely,
Kelvin P. Simangolwa
(Uncle to Harriet)
Communications between Uncle Kelvin and us have opened a new door of understanding that is making what we read in the newspapers about tribal life in Africa less remote than just a story and something more tangible … something we can touch and that touches us.
Technorati Tags: The Christian Children’s Fund, Zambia, Africa, Goodwill, communications, public relations, business
posted by Ken Makovsky at 6:42 PM
1 Comments:
I was curious about how personal of a relationship you get with the sponsored child. In the commercial, The Christian Children's Fund shows a little girl sleeping beneath a picture of the husband and wife that sponsor her. I felt that this was a little ridiculous, but it is great to see that you do actually have a chance to see how the donations are helping out.
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