Child Sponsorship

While I could load this post with many faces of sad, dirty children to pull on your heartstrings, I won't. The truth is, these children are happy. They love Jesus. But they do have needs. We live in a world of abundance. God is a God of abundance.

"From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked." Luke 12:48

I have the privilege to be a voice not only for these children, but for all whose lives are affected by the new Children's Village.  We at Okipe have chosen not to do individual child sponsorship for a simple reason. What happens when 6 children in one pod are sponsored and the other 4 are not? Does this mean that 6 get to eat and go to school and get medical care while the other 4 do not? That 6 receive notes and gifts from their sponsor family while the others just watch? Our situation is a bit different. We are calling everyone to pray about something much bigger. 

If you decide to Join the Village, you will not only be supporting one child, but your dollar will reach each child as well as over 20 employees of the Village and their families, which in turn stimulates the local economy!  Also, we encourage you to visit! Come and see where your money is going. Meet Mme. Soliette and the children. If you and your family are not already sponsoring a child, would you consider Joining the Village today?? We are so close to meeting our monthly operational budget, but we're just not there. What does this mean?  This means that the kids are only getting two meals a day. This means that employees are not paid on time. One of the employees had twins two months ago and is struggling to feed her babies. Mme. Soliette is not taking a salary. The cooks are cooking with charcoal instead of on their new propane gas stoves. Not to mention, as the children grow, they eat more, outgrow clothes quickly and go through endless amounts of toothpaste and shampoo. 

Please know that 100% of every dollar given goes directly to the Children's Village operational expenses. Okipe is a co-op made up of volunteers. No money is taken for any transfer fees or "corporate expenses." 

So...

$5.00 a day? Isn't that a lot?! Well, when you think about how much you spent this morning at Starbucks...no, not really :) This literally covers every expense from education, food, medical needs and shelter to clothes, payroll for Haitian staff, transportation and government taxes and fees. So are you ready? Whatever you can give helps. If you can give $1 a day, FANTASTIC! If you can find it in your budget to give $10 a month, DO IT! Maybe you can even give more. Whatever amount fits your family, please consider signing up to JOIN THE VILLAGE today!!!