Josue’s story: from hunger to hope

Hunger already had the upper hand when Josue’s parents were diagnosed with HIV. Surviving in Rwanda with little income or food was hard enough — the added burden of disease only swept them deeper into poverty.

“We were eating only to survive. Our children suffered a lot,” recalls Josue’s dad, Alexandre. “They were very thin. They had continual diarrhea.” And Josue was showing the greatest signs of malnutrition. His hair was changing color and he was constantly nauseous.

“We did not have enough food. We would go to sleep without eating,” remembers Josue’s mom. “We were thinking that we were about to perish as a family.”

But they didn’t die — in part because someone like you reached out and sponsored Josue. Today, this 6-year-old boy is getting enough to eat and going to school, and both he and his parents are receiving medical care.

Learning how to farm effectively made the biggest difference. “World Vision taught us how to grow food and produce so we could have a good harvest,” says Alexandre, who was eventually hired by World Vision to teach others what he’d learned. “Life started to improve. My children benefited a lot.”

Thanks to child sponsorship, Josue’s entire family is alive and rejoicing. “It is amazing to learn that there are people who are compassionate enough to help people they don’t even know,” says Alexandre. “Another thing that gives us comfort is when the sponsor says, ‘I always pray for you.’ We too, we pray for our sponsor.”

Your generosity today could offer another child like Josue not only enough food, but also hope for the future. Please sponsor a child today!

Heavy lifting fills Sokkong's days.

He forms clay into blocks and then carries them to scorching furnaces. This 14-year-old boy dropped out of the third grade to work at a brick factory in Cambodia. He had to, because his family had no money for food.

And he's not the only one.

Of the 215 million children engaged in child labor, 115 million of them spend their days like Sokkong — trapped in the worst forms of child labor. Hauling bricks. Toiling in deep mines. Handling harmful chemicals and pesticides. Working with dangerous machinery. Children in poverty accept this type of work — with low to no wages — because they're frightened, easily manipulated, and have no other options.

But exploitation is only one of the threats to children growing up in poverty. Many suffer from hunger, which starves mind and body. Others are sickened by dirty water. And many never go to school — sentencing them to a lifetime of poverty.

But you can be part of the solution.

Sponsor a vulnerable child and you'll also help families and entire communities lift themselves out of poverty — lowering the overall risk of child exploitation and protecting kids from other dangers like hunger, sickness, and more. Please become a child sponsor today!

How do I sponsor a child?

First, choose a child to help. You can search by birth date, age, or country. Then in 10 days you’ll receive your sponsorship Welcome Kit. Your kit includes a photo, more information about your sponsored child, and an introductory DVD with inspiring videos.

In six to eight weeks be watching the mail for your first letter from your sponsored child. Plus, once a year you’ll receive an annual progress report that includes a new photo of your sponsored child.

How does child sponsorship work?

Sponsorship helps children living in extreme poverty by giving them sustainable access to life-saving basics. The benefits you help provide will extend to each child’s family, their community, and other children in need.

That's because World Vision plans and works alongside local leaders to help build healthy communities for children in the world’s most impoverished places. World Vision partners with a sponsored child’s community over the longterm to address critical needs — ultimately helping them lift themselves out of poverty.

Will I get to know my sponsored child?

You'll have the chance to build a one-to-one relationship with your sponsored child that could change both your lives through letters, photos, birthday cards, and more. “I know my sponsor,” says Solange, an 11-year-old sponsored girl from Rwanda. "She writes me letters. I love her very much. She sponsors me because she loves me . . . it's good to be sponsored."

What do I receive when I sponsor a child?

Every child sponsor receives:

• A welcome kit with a photo and information about your sponsored child plus an introductory DVD
• The opportunity to write and receive letters, send small packages and even email your child
• Annual progress reports
• Updated photos of your child

How can I know that my donations are effective?

On average, every dollar donated by World Vision sponsors results in more than one dollar in assistance to help children. That’s because our multiple funding sources — private cash gifts, government grants, and gifts-in-kind — allow us to leverage charitable donations effectively.