 |  |
 |
| |
|
| A Message From Bob Seiple, Former World Vision President
I know sponsorship works — I have witnessed and participated in it firsthand. A few years ago Margaret Ann and I traveled to Ethiopia to experience an extraordinary privilege: our first visit to one of our sponsored children, Wondimu Bekele, who was born at the height of the Horn of Africa’s great famine. It was a miracle he survived to age one — the first miracle among many for him. Because of the changes made possible by World Vision sponsorship, Wondi’s community has gained such strength that it not only weathered a recent regional famine but also gave its surplus food to neighboring villages. It has made itself a new community altogether. I learned through my sponsorship of Wondi that equally important as any large-scale transfor-mations are the changes of the heart. Getting to know a sponsored child is an education of a very special kind. A person’s life — the face of our sponsored child, Wondi — is indelibly attached to the gift we provide each month. This relationship is a powerful defense against those twin villains indifference and selfishness that often impoverish those of us who live in prosperity and security. Both Wondi and I have grown out of our poverty and into communion with each other and deeper relationship with God. This renewal is the unwavering goal of child sponsorship — to communicate through relationship with children, communities, and sponsors the gospel of Christ that fills every human need, replacing impoverishment with the hope found in the love of God. Searching always for the most effective use of funds and application of program, World Vision has steadily improved the way child sponsorship fulfills this goal. This document addresses World Vision’s move toward programs that consider the needs of entire communities, involve local leadership, require the on-location ministry of World Vision staff, and continue to rely upon the one-on-one relationship of child and sponsor. We believe with confidence that each of these progressions has moved us closer to our ultimate goal while we participate as fervent stewards in God’s ministry. What is the impact of all this on a child such as Wondi? Margaret Ann and I were delighted to discover a healthy, happy, growing boy. He and his classmates sang us a song: "God is big. God does big things." God is big in Wondi’s life! The grace of God has been at work ... and child sponsorship is one of its manifestations. When confronted with a world in need, we cannot do everything. But each of us can do something. I can attest that child sponsorship is a viable solution for a world where nearly 30,000 children die each day of preventable causes, including starvation. It reduces this staggering number to the face of one child, eager to enter into a caring sponsor relationship. A child like Wondi. Robert A. Seiple, Former President World Vision U.S. |  | 1-888-511-6548 : P.O. Box 9716 World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
© 2008 World Vision Inc. | Site Search : Sitemap : Privacy / Security : Contact Info : Careers : Spanish : Korean : FAQs : Links : Donor Service | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
