The Joy Of Giving
Once again, we release a Journal with great uncertainty of how the next week, month, or even year will unfold. At the end of 2019, we sat down as a team to choose our themes for each quarter of 2020 and before we ever heard the word Coronavirus, we chose the theme of Joy for our Fall edition. We had no idea how fitting it would be for this season.
This Fall, we challenge you to rediscover the joy that lives in everyday occurrences. Find it in the simplicity of a warm cup of coffee, the smile of a friend, in kind words to strangers, or the opportunity to help others. God is not only a good gift giver, but is a gift in Himself. Despite the darkness of the world, this ultimate gift brings us great joy that endures. When we choose to pursue it, we begin to see it everywhere.
Before our organization even existed, we knew how overwhelming the statistics and stories of child slavery can be. We’ve wondered, “How can we possibly make a dent in ending slavery for the millions of children who live it as their reality every single day?” We’ve felt our heart rates quicken, our eyes widen, and our brows furrow as we read heartbreaking stories and huge needs from our team in South Asia. We know that our supporters feel that as well.
Jesus tells the story of a shepherd who leaves 99 sheep to go searching for one, and this is where the concept for the For One sponsorship program came from. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when you look at the whole picture, but when you take that picture and zoom in on what you can do in the life of just one child, you change the world.
Through For One, you have the opportunity to sponsor a child who is currently in our care.
We have over 1,000 children to be added to this program in the future, but currently have around 60 children whose stories you can read before choosing who you’d like to sponsor for $33 a month. You’ll be updated throughout the year on what your support is doing in your sponsored child’s life.
Since we’ve never offered any sort of sponsorship program, this is an exciting adventure.
It’s an opportunity to make taking action against child slavery more accessible for everyone as well as provide a more personal experience for our donors. We asked long-time donor and 2016 American Ninja Warrior Finalist, Grant Clinton and his family how they felt about this new opportunity, and they jumped at the chance.
“Sponsoring a specific child gives me the opportunity to personalize my giving so that me and my family can pray for a child by name regarding their specific situation and needs,” Grant told us.
“My children can relate visually which is a fantastic tool so they can connect and help to build in them a heart for missions.”
This kind of excitement and support not only sows joy, but reaps it as well.
After our conversation with Grant, we matched he and his family with Santee, a little girl in the third grade who loves to read and wants to be a teacher one day. Our hope is that this new opportunity will give you a window into the lives of the rescued children in India and an accessible way to make a difference.
Mother Theresa once said, “We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less.because of that missing drop.”
We know what an ocean child slavery is, but with your help we’ll end it for good one child at a time.
Giving your time, talents, and energy to help others really does bring joy. We got to see this at our 2020 Child Freedom 5K in September where over 400 people gathered together to raise awareness and support to help end child slavery in India. Our participants raised over $11,000 which will provide food, medical care, and education for 100 rescued children through the end of this year.
FINDING JOY AGAIN
PALEM’S STORY
Palem used to live in a little hut with her mom, dad, and older sister. They didn’t have much, but Palem was always bubbly and happy. One day, her dad had a stroke that paralyzed half his body and he couldn’t work anymore. Her mom struggled to take care of her family and buy all of the medicine her father needed. That’s when a wealthy neighbor swooped in to exploit their situation by “hiring” Palem to work in their house for 18 hours a day.
Palem wanted to help her family, but she was so tired by the end of each day that she could barely stand. When our local team heard of her situation, they intervened, and spoke with Palem’s mother. She wanted Palem to have a bright future and to smile and laugh again, so she asked our team to take her to live at The Sylom Children’s Home.
Today, Palem is 7 years old and has a huge personality.
She’s a social butterfly at school and loves to listen to music. One of her teachers noticed that Palem was always doodling clothes on her scrap paper and told her that maybe one day she could learn to tailor in our vocational training program and then grow up to be a fashion designer. This teacher told us, “there was an unexplainable glow in her eyes,” and now Palem is absolutely set on becoming a fashion designer.
