The support I give my child through letters is just as important as my financial contribution. Since many of the children in CHI’s program live in orphanages or less-than-adequate home situations, letters from sponsors help to remind them that they are unique, valued, and loved.
Q: How many people can sponsor each orphan?
Only one sponsor is assigned to each orphan. Sponsors, however, can sign up to support one, two, or more orphans as they wish. Outside of the Orphan Sponsorship program, some orphans may receive additional assistance from an individual within his or her own country.
Q: How do I write to my sponsored orphan?
I may begin communicating with my sponsored orphan at any time. The program is designed to be almost entirely web-based in order to keep administrative costs to an absolute minimum. I can send e-mails with scanned letters, photos, drawings, etc. as attachments to lettertochild@childrenshope.net. CHI will forward my correspondence to staff in my orphan’s country, where the letters will be translated and all information will be printed out and delivered to my child. Due to technological limitations overseas, CHI cannot guarantee that my child will receive images in color. Coming soon to my Personal Page: a Communication Tool that will allow me to send e-mails, photographs, and scanned images directly from my Personal Page.
Q: Can I send gifts to my sponsored orphan?
Sponsors are prohibited from sending packages or significant gifts of any kind, including cash, for their child. Shipping costs and delays, overall logistics, and the heartache of unsponsored orphans are just a few reasons why gifts cannot be allowed.
Q: How can I send a special monetary donation to my sponsored orphan?
If I wish to acknowledge special holidays, birthdays, etc. for my child, CHI can work with in-country caretakers to develop a special project exclusively on his or her behalf. Such projects may provide school supplies, additional clothing, improvements to his or her living space, music or art supplies, or other items as determined by the specific needs of my child. I will receive a report within six months of my donation that explains exactly how the money was used. Due to the expense of implementing such projects and reports, CHI will only accept gifts of $100 or more on behalf of a specific child.
Q: How frequently should I write to my sponsored orphan?
Letters may take several weeks to process because they must be translated and distributed through a complex, international system. CHI recommends that I send up to four letters per year to my child by e-mail. In order to ensure that sponsorship funds are used to best advantage for the children, rather than for administration, any letters beyond the four-letter limit may be subject to translation fees or other processing costs. I will be contacted for documented approval before any such fees are charged to my account.
Q: What should I write about to my sponsored orphan?
Like all children, my sponsored child is curious. He or she will enjoy learning about my life, my family, my pets, where I live, what kind of work I do, my hobbies and whatever else interests me. Children also love photos and, mine will appreciate receiving a photo of me and my family. However, since many sponsored children live in orphanages and have very few possessions, I should avoid sending photos that show expensive items that may make a child feel resentful or depressed. I should consider asking my child questions about his or her interests and daily life. Sponsored orphans will be pleased to discover that someone cares about them as individuals, and having specific questions to answer will make it easier for them to write a letter in response.
Click here to see actual letters sent from orphans to their sponsors.
Q: Can I write about God or my religion?
In some countries, it’s ok to mention God in my letters or to tell my child that I pray for him or her. However, in countries where my child’s religion may differ from mine, I should avoid using evangelistic language or making comparisons between religions. Such information may confuse or alienate my sponsored orphan and possibly even jeopardize CHI’s work in that country. Information about the primary religion or religions of my child’s home country can be found on this site under Sponsorship/country profiles.
Q: What response can I expect from my sponsored orphan?
I will receive a minimum of two messages each year from my sponsored orphan. The first will arrive within 90 days of my first payment. A second letter from my child will arrive in response to messages that I send. Please note that CHI cannot guarantee that my child will respond to each of my messages, but they can promise that I will receive no fewer than two messages per year from him or her.
If my child suffers from a speech/language disorder, mental disability, or other condition that prevents him or her from communicating, I will receive items such as photographs, his or her artwork, handprints, etc. that constitute communication to the best of his or her ability. In such cases I may also receive messages from my child’s caretaker, giving me a window into my child’s daily life and personality.
Q: Why does it take so long to communicate with my sponsored orphan?
There are several factors that can slow correspondence:
- Time needed to translate letters and replies.
- Extreme remoteness or technological limitations of some orphanages and villages.
- Each child’s age and ability to communicate - some children may need to wait for a staff member to help them write their letters.
If a reply is not received within six months after sending a message, sponsors should contact CHI at sponsorship@childrenshope.net so that staff can investigate the matter.
Q: How long will I be able to sponsor my orphan?
The goal of sponsorship is to help orphans become healthy and self-reliant to the best of their ability by supporting their emotional, physical, and educational needs. Sponsors are invited to continue their support of an orphan until the child reaches the age of emancipation, meaning that he or she is no longer being cared for by an orphanage, child services agency, or foster family. This is usually the age of 18, however, situations vary from child to child, and severely disabled or low-functioning children may benefit from extended sponsorship. CHI will inform sponsors when their orphans are ready to leave the program, and offer them an opportunity to choose another child to sponsor.
Q: Can I visit my sponsored orphan?
Starting in 2007: In most foreign countries, CHI can arrange for me to visit and meet my child face to face. However, I must contact CHI offices by e-mail at sponsorship@childrenshope.net or in writing at least six months in advance of a visit so they can conduct the necessary background checks and work with overseas staff to prepare me for my trip.
Q: Can I bring my sponsored orphan to the U.S. for a visit?
Children’s Hope does not permit sponsored children to visit their sponsors for a number of very important reasons: such trips could jeopardize a sponsored orphan’s safety and privacy, language barriers could cause a child to feel uncomfortable and confused, physical or mental disabilities may prevent a child from traveling, and a visit to the U.S. could cause severe culture shock and cause readjustment problems for a child when he or she returns to the orphanage.
Q: Can I adopt my sponsored orphan?
Sponsors (and any other individual or family) are prohibited from adopting any child posted on this CHI website: this would violate child-trafficking laws and may appear as though CHI is posting children online for the purpose of adoption, which is expressly not the case. Many of the children chosen for the sponsorship program are either not likely or not eligible to be adopted due to age, legal family status, disability, or other issues. CHI believes that, in lieu of a forever family, orphans may find great comfort in this alternative source of love and support.
Q: What else is there to know about Orphan Sponsorship?
- Orphans in this program range in age from infancy to 15 years old. Children will not be posted to the site once they have passed their 16th birthday, however sponsors may continue to support a child for several years after he or she has turned 16.
- Sponsorship helps the child, but also impacts the orphanage and community where the child lives. By bringing additional resources to the sponsored child – such as new educational materials, enhanced staff training, updated sanitation or water facilities within the community, etc. - sponsors are also improving the environment where that child lives, thus impacting the lives of many, many others.
- Some children in the Orphan Sponsorship program may live with their own families, other relatives, or foster families. These children are in the program because they are children without adequate parenting care. Their families or guardians are often struggling to stay together against devastating poverty, disease, or other issues, and sponsorship can directly help the child in a way that relieves pressure from parents and allows that family to remain intact. In these cases, funds are distributed to the orphanage or agency responsible for the child, which carefully monitors the use of those funds: most frequently paying medical bills and purchasing needed items directly rather than dispensing any cash to the family itself.
