Tag Archives: Sponsor Tour

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Compassion Thanks

Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and with so many things in my life for which to be thankful, I’ve decided to focus in this post only on those which are Compassion-related.

This has been a very busy year for me as a Compassion sponsor and advocate. It’s been filled with many blessings, opportunities to serve, new friendships and new experiences. I’ll try to sum it up in the following list of gratitude:

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Logan with our sponsor children: Osmar, Winston and Hania in Guatemala. Logan sponsors Osmar on his own.

Guatemala Sponsor Tour: In July, I had the incredible opportunity to travel with my son Logan to Guatemala for a sponsor tour. This was my second Compassion tour, and it was every bit as amazing and special as the first. There are so many aspects of this tour that stand out, but here are the parts for which I am most thankful: meeting my sponsor children in person; meeting other sponsors, including many who are Compassion staff here in the United States; meeting the Compassion staff in Guatemala; experiencing the sights and sounds of this beautiful country; and most of all, doing all of this with my son.

There are no words to fully describe meeting your sponsor children in person. It is an experience filled with emotion, and the opportunity to see their facial expressions and movements, to interact with them and to meet their parents and project workers, really adds so much to the relationship. It is definitely the highlight of a sponsor tour.

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Sponsors and translators in Guatemala.

A close second, though, is meeting the other sponsors on the tour. They are, in a word, amazing. While they share a love for children in poverty with you, they come from all over the country, with all kinds of unique experiences to share. And long bus rides and many meals offer lots of time for sharing. Sometimes you are lucky enough to meet members of Compassion’s U.S. staff on these tours, and they can give special insight into the ministry, and always confirm to me what a great organization Compassion is. These new friendships are invaluable.

Meeting the in-country staff is really fun as well. These very special people are dedicated and hard-working, and they are a wonderful source of information about Compassion and their country. They love their country and its children, and they love us sponsors. On our last night in Guatemala, one translator said to me, “Thank you for loving our children.” To be thanked after being blessed so greatly all week by her was quite humbling.

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Logan and Favian, our formerly sponsored child and Compassion graduate.

Making this trip with my son, who is 14 years old, is something neither of us will ever forget. To share so many wonderful experiences was priceless. I deeply enjoyed watching Logan make new friends, interact with the children at each project, and take in all of the new things going on around him. Since returning home, I have seen the ways the trip has changed him many times. He seems to have a deeper appreciation for the many blessings in his life.

Logan Becomes an Advocate: After returning from Guatemala, Logan was on fire for Compassion and its ministry. Within a week, he decided to become an advocate. He sponsors his own child in Guatemala, and he corresponds with another child in Kenya. He is passionate about helping children who are living in poverty, and I am proud of him.

Sponsoring Gladys: We did not sponsor a new child while on the sponsor tour in Guatemala, but we did sponsor a new child two months later from one of the centers we visited. I had requested child packets from centers we visited on the sponsor tour in hopes of connecting sponsors to children from the areas I had seen in person and photographed. One of the five packets I received was for a little girl who looked very familiar. After looking through my trip photos, I found a photo of her with Logan, so we welcomed Gladys into our sponsor family!

Continued Close Relationships with my Children in Nicaragua: After meeting my four boys in Nicaragua on a sponsor tour in 2014, we have continued our relationships with great letters filled with love. They are truly members of my family, and I know they feel the same. I can’t wait to visit them again.

Letters: Letters are our connection with our sponsor children, and this year, I continued to write monthly to each of my children, and to receive many letters in return. It can be a slow process, but it is worth it to build these relationships. Our letters are a blessing to our sponsor children, but their letters equally bless us.

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Logan with the Compassion Experience truck.

Compassion Experience: In May, Logan and I volunteered at Compassion Experience. I had been waiting for Compassion Experience to come to my city, and was so excited to have this opportunity. I was thrilled to see how accurately Compassion has recreated sponsor children’s homes and projects to tell their stories effectively. For more information about Compassion Experience, click here.

Concerts: Another great opportunity to be involved with Compassion is in volunteering at concerts. Compassion partners with musicians who sponsor children and promote the ministry by encouraging others to sponsor as well. We volunteered at concerts by For King and Country and Matthew West this year, and more than 100 children were sponsored at each event! It is a lot of fun to see new sponsors connected to waiting children.

Sponsorship Anniversary: Finally, this fall marked five years since I first became a sponsor. When I chose my first child, I never would have imagined that in just five years, our sponsor family would continue to grow, and I would leave the country not once, but twice, to visit my sponsor children. This has been a wonderful journey with Compassion, and I look forward to seeing where it leads in the future.

If you are interested in beginning your own Compassion journey, please click here to see the many children who are waiting for sponsors. Contact me if you have any questions.

Happy Thanksgiving and God’s Peace!

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Fuente de Vida

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Fuente de Vida church, in San Benito, Nicaragua, is partnered with Compassion project NI-176.

The sun hitting the tin roof of the church in San Benito begins to warm up worshippers as the service goes on, but we hardly notice as we are treated to so many children’s performances, songs, puppet shows, and even a skit.

Upon arrival earlier that morning, we were greeted by a barrage of popping balloons, a firecracker welcome, as the children gathered to greet us at the gate. Their little hands reached out to touch us as we walked past, and shy smiles welcomed us to their church, Fuente de Vida.

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The children of NI-176 welcome us to their church.

I was surprised when I saw the church name painted on a wall I passed on the way to my seat. Fuente de Vida, Fountain of Life, is the name of my church at home. The church where I was married 19 years ago, where all of my children have been baptized, where my family continues to attend today.

I’ve always heard God is in the details, so why am I surprised by this beautiful reminder of home as I am missing my own family this Sunday morning?

Two young girls stand at the pulpit now, ready to sing, as the opening notes to Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence” are played. They sing a worship song in Spanish to the tune of that 1960s hit, and despite a lack of comprehension on my part, the song is deeply moving to me.

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Girls singing a worship song in Spanish to the tune of Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence.”

It is ironic, as this church service has been anything but silent. This is a group full of energy and love. We have clapped energetically to the rhythm during most songs, and we can hear children playing, chairs moving, even full conversations all around us throughout the service.

After a short message by Pastor Jesús, the service winds down, and we are given cake, baked by the project’s own bakery students, and bracelets, made by the project’s jewelry-making students. We are treated with love and hospitality by our brothers and sisters in Christ at Fuente de Vida, and I suspect this is a service I’ll not soon forget.

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Two young children just before singing “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Feet” (yes feet, not toes).

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The children performed a Noah’s Ark puppet show.

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Pastor Jesús with Carlos translating.

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Children drinking juice after church.

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Preparing to Meet Esteban

Esteban, 8, lives in Nicaragua.

In less than three months, my son Aidan and I will travel to Nicaragua. It is a trip I have been dreaming of making since I first became a Compassion sponsor in 2010.

While there, we will have the opportunity to spend a day with Esteban, who is among some of the very first children I sponsored in 2010. For almost four years, Esteban and I have been exchanging letters, and very slowly building a relationship.

Through photos, I have watched Esteban grow from a chubby little 5-year-old, who looked just past being a toddler, to a taller, thinner 8-year-old boy.

I remember the day I chose to sponsor Esteban. While looking through the many faces of children available on the Compassion web site, his sweet little face stood out. When I clicked on the link to read his profile, I found out his favorite sport was baseball. I was sold. How could a life-long baseball fan pass up this boy?

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The first photo I saw of Esteban when I sponsored him in 2010.

In his first letter, he wrote that he wants to become a doctor when he grows up. So not only a baseball fan, but a boy who can dream!

He lives with three brothers, very close in age to him, and it seems he sometimes lives with his mother, and sometimes with his grandparents. We’re collecting some small items to bring for him to share with his brothers! They live in a rural area, about 6 miles east of the country’s capital, Managua, which is where our visit will take place.

As I re-read his letters in preparation for our upcoming meeting, my heart melts again each time I come across one of his requests for me to visit him. I am so thankful that it will happen soon!

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Nicaragua, Not Ireland

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I’ve wanted to travel to Ireland ever since I was a kid. Something about the green, rolling hills, stone castles and friendly people just seemed to call to me.

I knew my ancestors came from Ireland, and I was always told my red hair came from there, too. I knew that one day, I would go there.

So last month as I waited for passport photos with my sons, it occurred to me that my first trip out of the country would not in fact be to my beloved Ireland. Apparently God has other plans for me, and I’m perfectly fine with that.

In fact, I am so incredibly excited about the first time I will use this passport that I’m not sure how I will survive the wait.

This October, my 14-year-old son Aidan and I will travel to Nicaragua with Compassion International. We will visit Compassion’s main office in Managua the first day, then we’ll see some of Compassion’s projects during the next two days of our tour.

Finally, on the fourth day, we will meet our two sponsor children and spend the day with them. We’ll have a translator with us, so we can really get to know these boys in person.

By the time we meet them, we will have sponsored Esteban, 8, for almost four years, and Jose, 11, for one year.

I’m already collecting items to bring to my boys. I have teddy bears, Uno games and children’s Bibles in Spanish so far. And I have a list of other gift ideas that continues to grow.

So the countdown is on. In just seven months and a few days, I will hug my Nicaraguan boys tight, my son and I will shower them with love, and all of us will share wonderful memories of being together.

I may not be headed to Ireland yet, but I can’t think of any place besides Nicaragua that I’d rather visit this year.