The First Day of Christmas: Bugabo Village Child Sponsorship

The gift of an education is one that can never be stolen, lost, or destroyed...

Christie is from Alabama, but she lives in Bugabo, Uganda and is the HeadMaster of a school she raised funds for and helped build for 220 children there. She is working really, really hard to get them all a sponsor in time for them to start school in January.

As of Thursday, she had 62 sponsored.(I'm so excited to say that we are one of those 62!)

I have done a lot of research into sponsorship programs, and I have found that generally, it is about $30 a month or $300-$360 a year to sponsor a child, which means, in those cases, that you go through an aid organization and you can write letters back and forth. The money you donate is pooled to help provide resources to the entire village or town. I think these organizations do a good job of using their donations efficiently, but in most cases, children are not provided an education.

Christie's program differs in its approach. She actually lives in this village. She is with these kids all the time, and knows their families and their needs personally. She is in charge of their education.

Here's what you need to know about sponsoring a child in the Bugabo Village:

• Cost - $100 will cover tuition, uniform, shoes, school supplies, a meal during school, and medical/dental visits (as needed) for one year. I would prefer the payment in a lump sum. However, if you can only pay monthly, let me know so we can work out the details.
  

• Child - I will get pictures and profiles of the children when I get to the village and will post them in an album on Facebook. The profiles will tell you specifics about the child (name, sex, age, parent(s) names, favorite sport, how many brothers/sisters, what they want to be when they grow up, favorite color, favorite food(s), and favorite animal) and this info will be listed in the caption of each photo. You can then comment under the child you (or your family) chooses. If you are not friends with me on Facebook, add me by clicking on the badge in the right hand column :)
  

• Communication - I will be right there in the village, so communication with your child will be as often as you want to check in with him/her. This will be in addition to the normal communication - exchanging actual letters, and pictures with him/her when I come to visit the States. I also have a brand new laptop that some friends bought for my ministry that has a webcam on it, and have been daydreaming about the children using Skype to communicate with their sponsors. This is something I think your family would really enjoy, especially if you have little ones at home.
  

• Concerns - God has just recently revealed to me what my ministry is for Him. Due to this, I do not have a 501(3)c to make your donations tax deductible at this time, but I am praying about when I can do that. Until then, if you are more comfortable donating to an organization that will give you a tax deduction for your donation, please leave me a comment and I will give you suggestions. Please note that the Bugabo Village sponsorship is only $100/year and the other organizations are usually a monthly commitment of $30-40/month.

Instead of a giving your child's favorite teacher another stuffed animal, picture frame, or tin of cookies this year, sponsor a child in their name, and I guarantee it will be the best gift they receive all year!

You could be the rock star of the PTA !

Go to her blog to read more!

Compass in My Heart