HOLD A HAND

Blogs are not my strong point as some of you may have noticed but I will do a big update on my children and the organisations I sponsor through.

I currently have 24 children with 7 different organisations.

Some of you may remember I started off with one boy from PLAN who was in Zambia.  I made a hard decission to relinquish this sponsorship for several reasons, one being that it was so expensive compared to the others, I didn't find it as personal as the smaller organisations and I had very little contact with the boy.  I decided I would rather sponsor 3 with Tibetan Sponsorship Scheme for the same price of this one.

I also have 2 children a brother and sister with His Hand 4 Haiti whose sponsorship I am going to hand over to another sponsor.  I have not bonded with these children at all and they are very young, 3 and 5, although I have paid for them until the end of this year I feel I cannot give enough of my time writing to them and sending gifts is a little complicated from Australia.  This is rather a religious group and I do not really feel I fit in with it.  The sponsorship is only cheap at $40 per year and I would still recommend it to others but have just found it is not for me. 

I am afraid to say I feel I have spread myself a little thinly taking on so many children and cannot do as much for them as I would like.    As children drop off for one reason or another I will not be replenishing them and would like to stick at about 10 children eventually.

I have one child with Children International and will continue sponsoring her with them but as soon as the sponsorship is finished I will not be sponsoring with them again.  Again being a larger organisation I feel it is not as personal, letters are rather brief and tell me little,  photos and updates are few and far between.  A lot of people love this organisation so don't be put off by my thoughts or experience.

As for all the other organisations, well I love them. 

Galilee is a constant barage or photos, each time I buy or send something to one of my girls I receive a photo, letters are plentiful, we receive about 4 mailings a year but often there will be 2 or 3 letters from each child in it.  Early in the piece I lost 2 of my girls but they were readily replaced with somone else just as in need.  It looks like I may have another one that has gone at the moment I am waiting to hear if she has returned to school.

From Dorisilla I have received 6 letters, Lilian has sent 5 as well as some xmas drawings. Little Eddah has sent 6 brief letters but always with drawings.  Veronicah has sent 8 very long detailed letters as well as christmas drawings while Scholastica, who I fear may have left has sent me 1.  My group girls Jackline and Catherine have sent me 2 and 5 respectivly.   Photos have been numerous and can be viewed in the girls albums.  I have been with Galilee just under a year in this time we have built classrooms, cemented floors, sent kids to choir and the list goes on.  The online store is fantastic we can buy what the children need without the added cost of postage.

Tibetan Sponsorship Scheme is another great organisation and run by a lovely lady in Adelaide, Australia.  Contact with the organisation is very personal as is with the girls I sponsor.  Sponsorship is organised through the monks that put forward family members in need, so I not only have correspondence from my children but also the monks if I desire.   My girls are just delightful and so far I have had 3+ letters from my origional girls in Tibet and India and one from each of the new girls.  A couple have also send me photos of themselves and their families.  The letters are very affectionate, appreciative and informative.  The children find translators to write them but in the children's words and they are sent direct to me.  I have been able to buy for my girls in India through an online Indian store and they are delivered free of charge.  Through this organisation you can sponsor Monks, Nuns, and Children both in India and Tibet.

OSI  I have 2 girls with in Sri Lanka at different orphanages, one is fantastic, contact is by email and great both from the girl and the liason officer who resides at the orphanage, the other is newer to the scheme and work is still being done on upping the contact with the girls.  I have heaps of photos of both girls esp the first one.  This is a little dearer than some of the other orgs $25US a month, but is well worth it for what the girls get.  If it is personal sponsorship with lots of contact and photos this may be the one for you.  I love it!

HSVC in Vietnam is another one I am enjoying sponsoring through, I have 2 girls here and have had 2 letters from each girls along with photos from one.  They write the letters in Vietnamese and then they are translated and typed up in english and both copies are sent to me.  Sponsorship covers schooling and I have added them to the  food program.  These 2 girls are delightful and I hope to have a long sponsorship with them.

Lastly but not leastly is  Himalayan Learning who I now have 5 girls with.  So far I have had no contact but them I have only written to 2 girls and that took me a while to do.  The group although not new is finding it's feet still.  At the present for 7  pound a year they have their schooling covered but the fees will be raised to probably 30 pound a year and this will cover all their school needs as well as other needs as clothing, shoes, hygiene products, meals, food for family etc etc.  Again a small organisation run almost single handedly by one young man but I am very excited to be with them at the moment with this growth about to happen and see these children flourish.