Project Letter: BR-167

Here's a letter from our Patricia's project in Brazil! The photos come from Compassion's website. :)

My name is Sandra A. I am director at (BR-167) in Aldeota, in Northeastern Brazil, that assists your sponsored child. Thank you for sponsoring Patricia. I thank God for the privilege to be involved in the care of lives. Through you I am an instrument of love and assistance to sponsored children. Through sponsors' gesture of love, children have been very blessed.

In my time in the center, there are many experiences and life-changing testimonies. I want to share a few. The first is the story of a girl of 11 years who had her life transformed through sponsorship. She has six siblings and lives in an extremely difficult context of violence. Her father and older brother are drug-addicted and involved in trafficking. One of her brothers has even been murdered. This girl showed an uneasy and aggressive behavior. But hearing about Jesus and seeing the love of her sponsor radically changed her. Now she behaves well and is caring, loving, and very helpful. She shows peace even when surrounded by family problems.

I want to share about a 16 year old boy who was born in a very unstable home. His whole family had a poor perspective on life until he started to take a course at the center. Today he both works and studies. We already see this teen planning his future and talking about attending college. For these testimonies and many others we see daily, I am grateful to our sponsors and to God who has helped us to overcome the difficulties.

I would also mention a grace given to us recently. Thanks to God and the prayers of many, we recently received a donation and with it we bought a guitar, speakers, and two microphones. This came at a very good time.

I want you to know the joy of the children when they receive letters. They are delighted to know the news of their sponsors' life.

All these things motivate me deeply to continue working with these children. I see how much they learn about Jesus, and I realize the only way they will know him will be through the center. This encourages and challenges me to keep fighting for each one of them.

Thus, I count on your prayers so the Lord continues to give us strength to face the many adversities that arise daily. But love becomes bigger than the difficulties. We see many miracles every year, and this drives us every day to make a difference in the community we serve. This ensures the good reputation of being mirrors and followers of Jesus, announcing the gospel to children, young people, and their families. May the love of Jesus revealed in the cross be revealed in our lives in such a way that we love each other unconditionally.

Finally, I thank you again for your dedication in sponsoring Patricia. Your role is very important in this journey. So we pray for you every day that God makes you feel in your heart this desire to take care of lives, regardless of distance. This is my prayer, that you always overflow love and have your daily bread and your financial needs. May the Lord bless you and renew your strength, and remember us that our work in the Lord. So far the Lord has helped us.


If you're interested in sponsoring a child from Patricia's project, Andrey has been waiting over six months for a sponsor! He's so handsome! Read more about him here. 

Sweet Greetings from Brazil, Tanzania, and El Salvador

Happy Mail Call Monday!

This week we received four letters! The first two were from Patricia in Brazil! 

Patricia's letters are so sweet! She shared a little more about her family, saying that her family attends a Nazarene church, and that they sing the "Happy Birthday" song at family birthdays! She also said that she loves writing to me and getting my letters, so she wanted to send me a picture with all of the letters I have sent to her! It was so neat to see Patricia surrounded by the letters, cards, and gifts I have sent her over the past year or so! :) 

We also got our first letter from little Kaue in Brazil! 

Kaue's letter was an introductory form letter, because he recently got sponsored! He shared a bunch of his favorites, like studying Portuguese, dogs, beans, and the color white! It was nice to hear from him so quickly! He sent hugs to his new sponsor in his letter. What a sweetie! 

Then we heard from Elisha in Tanzania!

We got an "About Me" letter for Elisha, which is funny since we've been writing to him for two years. :) He said he's 115 centimeters tall, and he is a good reader. He also shared that he still wants to be a doctor. And he drew some great pictures! He drew a Tanzanian flag, a pretty lady, a soccer ball, a mango, and a few other random things! 

Lastly, we got our first and last letter from Cristobal! 

Cristobal recently graduated early from Compassion's program, and hadn't received any letters from his sponsor since he was a very small child. He still wrote a kind goodbye letter, though, saying that he enjoyed all the benefits from Compassion's program since being registered at age six. He talked about the medical and educational benefits he received, and the fun things like going on field trips and staying in hotels. We sent him a small gift before he graduated, and he bought food for his family (he lives with his mom) and we got a picture of him with his gifts! He also encouraged us (or his financial sponsor) to sponsor another child who needs their love and support after his graduation. What a kind young man! I wish him every success in life. 

Sweet Greetings from India, Kenya, Honduras and Brazil

It's the last Mail Call Monday in April!!

I was really happy to receive five letters this week! The first was from Jayid in India.

I'm looking forward to the day when Jayid writes his own letters again! His first two letters were written by him, but after that, we've been getting letters written by the child development workers. They write in English, which is nice. Jayid said that his dad is doing some better (he has been sick with TB off and on for years) but to please keep praying for his work. Jayid also likes to tell me when he makes new friends, and his new buddies are named Aman and Raman. He also likes playing cricket at the project!

Next, we heard from Anahi in Honduras. 

As usual, Anahi's momma wrote her letter! The letter was about her project. She said that there are 371 kids who come to her project!! Wow! Anahi goes to the project two days a week, and she likes to color there. And eat a "variety" of foods! She also got to go on a field trip to Lake Yojoa in Honduras, and she saw crocodiles there! She reports that the lake is very beautiful, she got to swim a lot and eat a lot. They said they are glad to share about their family, and they believe that "family is a gift from God." Anahi said her family is rejoicing that Brandon's uncle Dennis is out of the hospital and doing so much better, and asked that we pray for her family's health. 

Next, we got our first letter from Fatuma in Kenya! 

I think it's really endearing when our kids have cute handwriting. And Fatuma's is the cutest. She wrote in sweet, little-kid cursive. I love it. She filled out a form letter about her typical week, reporting that she wakes up early and eats porridge in the mornings. She shared the name of her school and said that she plays football in the afternoon and then does her homework. Fatuma's favorite day of the week is Sunday, because she likes to go to church. Her church is actually called Lighthouse Church, and they have a facebook page which is really neat to see. They post their worship playlists most Sundays, and it's neat to know what Fatuma might be singing at church!! I think their pastor also got married this weekend ("pastor" is what "Pr." stands for, right?) and they posted pictures of that, too. :) Fatuma wrote quite a bit of response to my other letters. She liked the "name meanings" letter I wrote, and said that she doesn't know the meaning of her name, but she will ask her mom. She liked reading about my grandparents, when I wrote about them after Christmas (and she even used their nicknames, Mimi and Pappaw!) 

We also heard from Gloria in Kenya. 

Gloria had the same form letter that Fatuma did- "My Typical Week." She must have missed letter writing day because her letter was filled out by a project worker, and in her first letter, I was really impressed with Gloria's writing for such a little person! That's ok. : ) Gloria's favorite day of the week is Sunday as well, because she likes to go to church. The project worker shared the name of her school and church, but they were a little hard to read. 

Finally, at the end of the week we heard from Patricia in Brazil! 

Patricia included several responses to past letters. She said that they do eat turkey in Brazil, and that for Christmas she spends time with her family, eating lunch with them after church. She reminded me that the real meaning of Christmas is Jesus. She responded to my letter about the drought in California (I thought it would make a good "what's going on in my country, please pray" sort of letter) and acknowledged that the world is running out of water and this is a serious problem. She also said in Brazil they eat lots of fish, and she's never seen a tapir but her favorite animal is a dog. : ) 

We also got three pastor's letters this week, which was pretty exciting. I'll be sharing those soon! 

Getting to Know You: Patricia

Here's another installment of my series sharing about my kids!

Name: Patricia
Age: 13
Birthday: February 7
Country: Brazil
Sponsored since: December 2013

How We Got Her: This was another one of those times that I was just kind of hanging out on the list of waiting correspondents! I remember being really happy when we got matched with Patricia, though, because I have a friend named Pat who likes to sing, and Patricia's information says she likes to sing, too!

About Her Family: I honestly don't know much about Patricia's family, other than she lives with her parents. I will tell you, though, that I am a little dumb- I save all of my kids' info packets, but I hadn't been reading them. When you become a sponsor or correspondent, you get a printed booklet that has info about your child, including photos, and tips on letter writing. Stuff like that. I hadn't really been reading them because I assumed that it was the same information I have online, describing their neighborhood and stuff. And while that info is in there, the booklets also have the same profile information that you would see before a child is sponsored- including who the child lives with and how many siblings they have. All of my booklets (save the last dozen or so) are in a storage box in a very messy spare bedroom. I am working on going through them, though, and making a spreadsheet with *all* the info for easier access! : )

Hobbies and Interests: Patricia's letters are very short. She writes pretty regularly, but she doesn't say much. Her letters are always very affectionate, though. They're not cold- I just think she is very busy hanging out with her friends, being a little social butterfly! Patricia usually signs her letters with kisses and little hearts or drawings of lips. She does like singing, and loves being with friends at school and the project. She also has access to computers and is taking some courses in foreign languages- including Russian! Her favorite subjects are art, math, and Portuguese.

Here are a few excerpts from Patricia's letters!

"I expect to get a letter from you. Kisses!"

Patricia's previous photo, which I requested when we received her as a correspondent

"I'm very well in school. I love going to school to study and meet with my friends. I also love being in the project. I have lots of cool things here."

"I am thankful for your letters, magazines, and stickers, and picture of you and your husband. I'm very happy because your family adopted a dog."

Our first picture of Patricia

"I do many things here, such as computer and other things."

"In Brazil on Christmas people like to do fireworks and the sky gets very beautiful and we stay with family and go to church."

"Hello! How are you? I'm so glad to write to you."

"We have classes of English, Spanish, French, and Russian at the project."

"May God keep you and make you very happy."

Patricia's updated photo!

Sweet Greetings from Kenya, Indonesia, Colombia, and Brazil

Happy Mail Call Monday, everyone!

We got quite a few letters this week- and are expecting even more to be on the way! Here's what we'e received since last Monday.

First, we started getting letters from our new Kenyan girls! The first one is from Rose, who is 11 years old.

Rose's letter, along with the other first letters, was a form letter describing some basics about her family and her favorite things. Rose lives with her mom and dad and SEVEN siblings. She listed them all and shared their ages! She also said her best friends are Mercy and Zawadi (Gift) who share a family name with her. I asked if they are cousins! Rose shared that she really likes drawing and playing in her free time, and she helps her family by washing utensils. She shared 139: 14a and asked that we pray for her studies.

Next, we got a letter from Christine in Kenya!

Christine lives with her mom and dad and four siblings- and she shared all their names and ages! She also really likes math and her favorite color is green. She said she likes going to church, and her favorite Bible story is the story of Daniel. She also said " I am very happy to have a best friend like you. My family members are also happy to have you as a new member of our family, which just melted my heart! Christine shared that she wants to be a doctor when she grows up so she can save people's lives, and asked that we pray for her parents to get good jobs, and that she will do well in school so she can become a doctor!

Then came a letter from Gloria in Kenya, on the same day!

If I had to guess which three Kenyan letters would arrive at the same time, Gloria's might be in there- but we also got two older girls at the same center, and it was so funny that their letters haven't arrived yet! Maybe the big kids write on a different day- Gloria is just 8 years old! She just has one brother, and lives with him and their parents. She shared that her best friend is named Yvonne, and Gloria wants to be a lawyer when she grows up. What a wonderful aspiration! And for her prayer request, she asked that we pray for Yvonne, who wants to be an engineer!!

Then, on the same day, we got a letter from Tasya in Indonesia!!

Tasya's letters have been few and far between over the past year, so I was extremely surprised to get another letter from her 5 or 6 weeks after the last one. She told us that in September they traveled to another area of Sulawesi for three days, and participated in competitions with kids from other Compassion centers! They have done many things like this in the past, which I think is really neat! Tasya took part in the choir competition and the tambourine dance competition, and she spent time with lots of friends!

Next up, we got a letter from Victor in Kenya!

I knew a letter from Victor would be arriving soon, since it was a little over two months since his last letter! Victor's letter was a little discouraging. It was the first time that he didn't fill both sides of the page, and his letter was full of concern for his country. Lately he has mentioned the terrorist attacks and other security issues more frequently in his letters, and this is basically all he wrote about in this one. It's so sad. He said that many schools have been closed but even though he's at home, he's still reading and going over his old tests and homework so he can get smarter.

We finished out the week with three letters in one day! The first was from Michel in Colombia.

Michel wrote that her favorite animals are cats, dogs, chickens, and rabbits. She would like to have a pet rabbit and she would name it Chiquitin. She also said she wants to learn to skate someday, and she likes going to the park and playing with her mom. She sent me a Bible verse (Psalms 31:24) and asked that I send her one. She said goodbye with a kiss and a hug!

Then we got a short letter from Patricia in Brazil!

Patricia's letter was special because it actually arrived on her birthday! As usual, it didn't say much, but it was very sweet. She said it's "too hot" in Brazil, and that she and her brothers were excited about Christmas coming up. She asked what we do for Christmas and shared that she has a dog named Baby. She signed her letter with kisses, and drew lots of big hearts!

Finally, we got a very special letter from Mary in Kenya!!

Mary's letters are always wonderful and long. This one was no exception! She shared her usual inspirational quotes with me, and told me that she is waiting on her citizenship card to arrive! She also shared the names of her favorite worship songs, and told me the different ways she is praying for us- for God to bless us, for healing for my brother, for my mom's eyesight to get better, and for my friend Pat, whom I mentioned as a random prayer request in one of my letters. :) She said that she doesn't do any crafts, but it's "great" that I've learned to crochet and am making scarves and blankets.

Then there was a second page! The first part of Mary's letter was written just a few days before my friend Shelley arrived in Kenya, carrying gifts for Victor and Mary. Mary must have received the gifts really quickly and written a quick thank you note to be attached with the other letter! I could tell she did it a little bit hurriedly because her handwriting wasn't quite as meticulous- and that's just fine by me! I'm hoping that she is able to send an extra photo with her next letter. I'd love to see her wearing the scarf or the necklace we sent! She listed each item by name, saying things like "the sweets were very sweet," "I am very happy for the scarf made by your own hands," "Thanks a lot for the Bible with even my name," and she said the "notebook" (photo album) was "just wow!) I'm so glad she liked everything, and I am abundantly thankful that I was able to send her this gift!!

Sweet Greetings from India and Brazil

Happy Mail Call Monday! It's the first one of 2015!

I was really happy to get two letters this week, especially since I haven't been feeling well! Letters always cheer me up. : )

First, we heard from my princess Kajal in India!

I haven't heard from Kajal since we sponsored her in September, so it was great to get a letter from her! It was full of information. The form portion of the letter was about her most recent doctor's visit. She said that she went to the doctor  with one of the workers from her project, and that she felt afraid! Poor Kajal! But the doctor checked her bloodwork and told her that she needs to eat more fruits and vegetables. I thought it was cute that her letter template included a small space for a drawing (she drew a flower) and also a tiny coloring picture- keeping on theme, the coloring picture was a little doctor's bag! In the rest of the letter, her helper at the project said that Kajal's dad is a farmer and her mom is a housewife. She has a brother named Abhishek and a little sister (one year younger) named Pranjal. She likes to eat dolls, and she likes to eat chapatis and vegetables. Kajal's helper also said she loves studying for school and learns Bible verses and action songs at the center, and "She is so cute and beautiful child." I agree wholeheartedly!

The second letter was from pretty Patricia in Brazil!

The translation for Patricia's letter was a little confusing, so I am going to ask my mom's coworker to take a look at it- he spent some time in Brazil growing up, and speaks Portuguese! From what I can gather, Patricia said thanks for the letters we've sent, and enjoyed seeing the pictures, too, because it was like sharing memories with her! She also liked one of the books we've sent (probably a notebook) and said that we "remembered her" by sending it. She also sent congratulations to Brandon- I think it's because I said he was working a lot more, but Brandon actually got a promotion recently, so that was pretty good timing! : ) And as usual, she signed her name with "kisses!" She is too precious.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for more letters next week!

Sweet Greetings from Brazil, Tanzania and India

Happy Mail Call Monday! Letters have been kind of slow lately, so I'm really happy to have something to share this week!

This week we received three letters! The first one came from Patricia in Brazil. 

As I've said before, I imagine that Patricia is a little social butterfly who cares about letters but may not feel the need to sit still long enough to write a long one! : ) Her letters are always friendly and cheerful, but I hope some day that she sends a few that have a little more info in them about her life and her feelings. In this letter, Patricia mentioned that she was glad I recently had a birthday, and wished me "many happinesses!" She mentioned my recent requests as to how I should pray for her, and she asked that I pray for her family. She also said that many foreign language classes are offered at the project, including English, French, and Russian! I was pretty surprised by that one! I think Patricia's project has a little more access to technology, being in a big city, and it's neat how many educational opportunities that opens up for her! As always, she signed her letter "Kisses! Patricia."

The next letter came from Elisha in Tanzania !

Elisha's letter was about his typical week. He says that he gets up at 6 in the morning and makes his bed. He goes to school Monday through Friday, and goes to the project on Saturdays. In the afternoons he plays football with his friends, and in the evenings he eats ugali with fish! He also says he goes to bed at 7 in the evening, which I have a hard time believing based on the sheer amount of energy contained in this little boy. : ) Elisha says that his favorite day of the week is Wednesday, because he gets to go home early! He also shared that "shikamoo" is a greeting from "a junior to a senior" and that I should say "marahaba" in response. Said actually told me this in his first letter three long years ago! He was so excited when I wrote "marahaba" in my response letter, so I was sure to do the same for Elisha! 

Lastly, we heard from Jayid in India!

Jayid said thanks for the goodies we have been able to send him lately, including activity books and stickers! He said that it is the rainy season where he lives, and they have been having monsoons in India. Jayid also responded to my recent push for prayer requests, and asked that we pray for his dad, who has TB. He said that his dad has not been able to work as well as he normally does because he is frequently sick. I will definitely be praying for his dad! If my information is correct, his dad's name is Sikkander (that was what was written in his first letter, long ago!) Jayid also talked about food in his letter, saying that he likes eating biryani and "sweets potatoes!" And as a side note, that little headshot up there is a new picture of our boy! I realized the copy I had saved in my computer was not the same dimensions as the others I've been posting, so I looked it up on a special webpage- I almost didn't catch that it was a new one since he's wearing the same shirt! But this photo has a different background and a hint of a smile- and in the full photo he's wearing new pants and shoes, and looks to be about two feet taller! : )

Sweet Greetings from Honduras, Brazil, India and Ecuador

Happy Mail Call Monday, everyone!

We were blessed to receive four letters this week- and two were first letters!

The first letter we received was from Eduardo in Honduras.

Eduardo's letter was a long time coming. By the time it arrived, we had been sponsoring him for six months, one week and a day. In some ways it was frustrating to wait that long, but I had a feeling that Eduardo might have some special challenges in his life that might keep him busy or distracted, based on some things in his profile. I was encouraged to see that Eduardo addressed me as his "dear friend"- I am glad to know that he thinks of me as a friend, and hopefully this means that he has enjoyed reading all my letters and feels encouraged by them. He says that his favorite hobbies are playing soccer and going out with his friends. He also watches TV- it's always nice to learn this because it means that our kids have at least some access to electricity. That's a good thing! He asked if I like animals, and said that he has a pretty dog named Jugueton. He also wanted to know my favorite Bible verses. Eduardo asked that we pray for his mom, as she is sick. He also mentioned the small birthday gift that we sent for him earlier this year- he bought jeans, a shirt, and hair gel! I was very happy to get an extra photo of Eduardo posing with his birthday gifts. I couldn't help but feel a little sad, though, because Eduardo look sad or stressed to me. He also looks thinner in this photo than he does in his "official" photo. Since we were able to send a gift to Eduardo when Kim visited Honduras back in May, I'm kind of hoping that we get another photo of him with that gift as well!

A few days later, two letters arrived on the same day. The first one I opened was from Patricia in Brazil. 

In my imagination, Patricia is a social butterfly. Her letters are usually pretty short, and so friendly. She always ends them really sweetly- "Kisses! Patricia", sometimes with butterflies, hearts, or little lips drawn around there. So cute. Patricia's letter was written in May, and she responded to some of my letters by saying she was sad to hear about Brandon's grandfather passing away but she was very excited that my family adopted a dog. She also said that at Christmastime in Brazil, people set off fireworks, and it makes the sky "very beautiful!" 

Then came a letter from Jayid in India! 

Jayid's letters are interesting to see- usually they just have what looks like four or five words written in Hindi on the front, and then a full page written by a child development worker on the back. The child development workers write on behalf of Jayid, since they know English, but I always wonder what those few scribbles on the front say! Jayid says that he is taking English lessons and is participating in martial arts lessons at the project. He is excited about learning English. He has been learning new songs and Bible verses, and made a new friend named Sahil. 

Lastly, we got our first letter from Erick in Ecuador!

We just got Erick as a correspondence child in June, about two weeks before he turned five. The letter must have been written right away, since he says in his letter that he is four years old! It was also an "about me" form letter usually reserved for financial sponsors, so it was exciting to get to know more about Erick so quickly! Erick says that he lives in Pulucate Centro. His favorite color is red, his favorite class in school is drawing, his favorite activity is playing, and his favorite sport is running. He says that his favorite food is "potato and guinea pig!" He describes himself as "robust, tall, playful and cheerful" and says that he lives "beside the stadium, the church and the trees." The letter was written by his mom Monica! 

Erick also drew this neat picture- I think it's really good considering it was drawn by an almost 5 year old! 

Sweet Greetings from Brazil and India

It's Mail Call Monday again!

Today I got two letters! And no bills! That's always exciting. : )

The first letter I opened was from Jayid in India.

Jayid's letter was called "How I Have Fun." It was all about what he likes to do in his free time! Jayid shared that he likes to play games at home. At the project, he enjoys games, stories, and drawing. He also likes cricket and carrom, which is a board game. I looked it up, and it's apparently a little like billiards or table shuffleboard. Jayid also said that during school holidays, he likes to play outside. He also enjoys Sunday school and music club at the project. Jayid's letters are always written by a project worker. This time they shared that he asks for prayer for his dad, and that he will be having annual exams this month.

I was also very excited to get my first letter from Patricia in Brazil!

Patricia was added to our account at the beginning of December. Early in April, I sent Compassion an email asking if they could look into whether or not a letter was on the way. In the process I also learned a little more about the letter-writing changes that Compassion has made over the past year and a half! Anyway, they said that Patricia had a letter on the way, and sure enough, here it is!

Patricia opened her letter with "Hello, dear Jessi Jones!" She says she's doing great, and she had a vacation at home with her family. She played with her friends, helped her mother, and went to church. Now she is back at school (in the 7th grade) and the project. She said that the project is very nice, and she is "in MQV2." I don't know what that means, though, and google wasn't much help! She closed the letter with, "I expect to get a letter from you. Kisses!" and she drew little hearts by her name. The translator then made a keyboard heart when they typed up the translation, which was a sweet touch that I appreciated. : )


Now that Patricia's first letter has arrived, I am going to ask for another correspondence child! I'd like to take on a few more, if Compassion will let me. I have been on a mission to get folks to write letters, and take on more correspondence kids, since I got back from my trip!

Compassion Joys: December

Hooray! Time for a Compassion Joys post! Here's some of the fun stuff that we've experienced with our sponsorships this month.

Letters!

This month we received letters from Jayid, Mishel, Carlos, and our first letter from Bonifas! It wasn't a big letter month for us, but I'm so thankful for every letter we receive! Hopefully as the holidays pass us by, we'll see an uptick in letters!  : )

Tanzania Trip Progress! 

The Haiti ornament fundraiser has ended, and I was able to sell 70 out of 150 ornaments! This means we raised $350 for the moms and dads in Haiti who are making crafts to earn a living, plus some for my trip. I also received a super amazing box of stuff from Compassion, including a trip guide and journal, some Compassion gear (like luggage tags, pens, a pouch, etc) and fun stuff like bubbles and stickers for when we get to play with the kids!

Surprise Present Update!

The package I sent to Mexico for Brenda arrived safe and sound! It didn't take too long to get there- I think about two weeks. I'm so thankful to my friend Mrs. K for accepting the package and getting it in the mail to Brenda. The field office in Mexico should have received it by now. Hopefully Brenda will get her dolly and Bible really soon! And Mrs K loved the purple Spanish Bible I sent for her, too, which made me happy.

New Kids!

Well, kid. : ) We now have a new correspondence child in Brazil! It's a lot of fun to get a child in a new country! I had fun reading all the picture books and cookbooks about Brazil from my library. Also, I think Patricia is super cute, and I like the fact that she has the same name as my friend Pat!