Sponsoring With CFCA

Once I decided it was time for our family to sponsor a child I set out to find a charity that was a good fit for us. The Christian Foundation for Children and Aging was founded in 1981 by a group of lay Catholics. CFCA truly lives the Catholic teachings on charity. It was founded on the Gospels that tell us we are all called to serve the poor. Everything is done in solidarity with others and to preserve human dignity. Almost 94% of money goes directly towards supporting the program. Charity Watch gave them an A+ rating and the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance says the CFCA meets all 20 of their rigorous standards. They are currently active in 22 countries and have more than 300,000 people being supported by sponsors. This is truly a charity I feel good about supporting.

There is more involved than writing a check each month and knowing it is going to help the life of a child, youth or aging adult. We learn about the person we are sponsoring and see photos of them. We can write to them and they can write back to us. This gives us the opportunity to learn about others and offer them support and encouragement in their lives. CFCA also has mission awareness trips so you can travel to the country where your sponsor lives and meet them.

I knew I wanted to make this a family experience. I thought we would sponsor one child, perhaps halfway between our children's ages of 4 and 9. But then I saw a profile for a girl who was just two months younger than my daughter. There was just something about her and she captured my heart. So I first signed up to sponsor Adriana. She lives in Ecuador with her mother and grandparents. Sadly her father abandoned his family and this makes it hard to make ends meet. I know what it is like to be not just a single parent but an only parent, as I was one when my son was born. His biological father also chose not to be involved. I will be writing to Adriana's mother to offer support and encouragment while my daughter writes to Adriana.

Adriana - My daughter's new friend

Then I saw a profile for a boy 6 months younger than my son. His name is Abdiel and he loves to play soccer just like my son does. And like my son, his favorite subject in school is math. I have a feeling they will make great pen pals. Abdiel has a beautiful smile and lives with his mother, father and siblings in Ecuador.


Abdiel - My son's new friend

Tomorrow my children will write to their new friends for the first time. It will take a long time for the letters to arrive in Ecuador and then they will have to be translated to Spanish before the children can read them. It may take a few months to hear replies, but we look forward to the day we receive letters from them.

Expanding My World

When I was younger I had many dreams and goals I wanted to accomplish in my life. I wanted to travel the world. I wanted to leave a mark by doing things to help others. I wanted to make a difference.

I'm 28 now and so many dreams have been shelved. Every day life seems to get in the way. When I graduated high school and started college I had my first child. After I graduated with a biology degree I had my second child. I have not had a chance to work much in my field of study yet because I became a stay at home mom. My days are spent caring for my husband and children, not making scientific discoveries or saving the world. There are days I don't even leave the house. My world has become very small.

It is an amazing gift to be able to raise children and I love being a mother. I feel very blessed in my son and daughter. This year after waiting 4 years and 2 months for a third child my husband and I discovered we were expecting again. We were suprised and overjoyed. Sadly I lost that baby on June 1st, 2012. A part of me has always wanted to have a big family. I sometimes think we are meant to only have the two we have now. We will keep hoping and trying of course, but in the meantime I feel my heart has a lot of love to give. I want to have other children in my life to love and care for.

As a young child I saw commercials for sponsoring children who lived in impoverished countries. Some of their faces and stories stuck with me through the years. I have always felt God had put it in my heart to sponsor a child someday. Lately I have felt Him speaking to me even more to do this. In recent years I have supported charity work in my own community, but this is a way to reach out to further and be part of the global community. This past week our family sponsored two children in South America. Suddenly my world doesn't seem so small anymore.