“These people suffer in ways we can’t imagine.  Ninety percent of the population are subsistence farmers.  In this dry sub-Saharan climate, they live day to day, hoping to have rain during the very short rainy season to grow a crop of millet.  When the rains don’t come, the children die from malnutrition.  Families can’t imagine having the means to treat their children for the deadly and all-too-common Malaria much less the many other diseases.  A small 20% of the population is literate because they just don’t have the means to pay the $3 annual primary school tuition.  It’s just a seemingly hopeless place.”

We can literally help alter a child’s future by teaching them about Jesus Christ and educating them, but first we need to make sure they are fed and kept healthy.

The Child Sponsorship Program provides necessary aide to extended family members or single parents caring for orphaned children or those identified as vulnerable so that the child can be properly cared for.

Before a child becomes part of the Sponsorship Program, we conduct a home visit to verify the facts and understand the severity of the situation. A profile is completed, added to the website, and the child is now eligible for sponsorship.

Families benefiting from this program are less likely to abandon these children, which is very important because once a child is abandoned in Burkina Faso, they live on the streets, end up in an orphanage, or are passed from one family member to another.

On an ongoing basis, we are able to support about 150 children each year through the generosity of our sponsors.

Everything we do in the Child Sponsorship Program opens the door for us to share the Gospel and the love of Christ through a loving and caring relationship, while meeting the basic needs of food, medicine, and education.

Every quarter, Lynn or one of our caring staff members visit each child in his or her family courtyard simply to get to know each other, while making sure everyone is okay, and checking to see how the children are doing in school.

The family is also invited to a quarterly food distribution where they typically receive a 200 lb. bag of corn or millet, a couple bars of soap, some local condiments and often something special like a pair of shoes, a new sleeping mat, or a solar lamp, which is a necessity for children who have a difficult time keeping up with their studies and do not have electricity.

Although primary school tuition averages $5/year, it simply isn’t possible to send one or more children to school for those who are struggling just to feed their families. We are able to lift that burden for every sponsored child, assuring them that their school fees and supplies will be paid for every year.

In very real ways, the Child Sponsorship Program saves lives – it gives families a place to turn when illness hits, as it often does in this disease-ridden country. Living in close quarters with livestock, depending on stagnant water, and without the luxury of something as simple as soap, everyone is at risk of contracting Malaria, Typhoid Fever, Meningitis, Dysentery, Scabies, and many other diseases.

In addition to meeting the children’s basic needs, we also host many fun activities for the young children and older youth including the annual New Year’s Party, Movie Nights, Teen Camp, and more.