Among the joys of the holiday season are finding the perfect gifts for loved ones and having your mailbox filled with Christmas cards, letters, and photos as friends and family reconnect during this special time of year. As Christmas approaches, don’t forget to also connect with your sponsored child, blessing them with the knowledge that you’re thinking about them. Here’s how!
Email a letter.
The simplest way to write your sponsored child is by emailing them a letter through My World Vision. We’ve made it even easier for you to connect with our new My World Vision app, which you can use anywhere you go. Write your sponsored child a letter right in the app, and for the first time ever, track your message to see where it’s at in the process of being delivered. You’ll also get more frequent updates about the different trainings and programs your sponsored child’s family participates in, making this a great way to stay connected year-round!
When Janvie, 27, was a sponsored child in the Philippines, letters from his sponsor meant so much. He says, “[Up to] last year, I was still reading that letter. I can still remember the first line she wrote: ‘I am sorry that it took me a while to send you a letter, but please keep in mind that you are in my heart.’” She also promised she was praying for him. “If not for her praying for me and supporting me through the sponsorship program, I couldn’t imagine the kind of life I’d have right now,” Janvie says. He now works as a consultant for the World Economic Forum and credits World Vision child sponsorship for where he is today — and he sponsors a child himself now too!
Mail a package.
If you want to go a step further, create a Christmas package for your sponsored child. Gifts must fit in a small envelope, no larger than 9 by 12 inches, so some great options to include are stickers, balloons, coloring books, colored pencils, postcards of your home region, and photos of you or your family. You can get the mailing address in your My World Vision account. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, be sure to check with the post office about any mail restrictions to your child’s country. If there are restrictions, remember that you can still send an email!
Sponsored child Odness, pictured here at age 9, opens a package with small gifts from her sponsor that World Vision staff member Princess Moyo has delivered. Odness regularly prays for her sponsor and says, “I would tell him that I’m very grateful for the support you have given me, even the love that you have for me.”
Send a Special Gift.
Want to make a big impact ? Your Special Gift (minimum $100) will help your sponsored child and their family how they need it most, with a portion of the gift supporting projects for their whole community. When you give your gift, you won’t know what the family will receive, but you can pray and know that God is working through our staff to identify what will make the biggest impact (maybe a bicycle to get to school, or supplies to repair their roof). And after the gift is purchased, you’ll get a letter and photo showing how your Special Gift was used. You can even send a Special Gift using the new My World Vision app!
Rome and his mother, Hellen, stand outside the new house they were able to build thanks to a Special Gift they received from Rome’s sponsor. Rome’s family struggled to keep up with repairs on their old house, which constantly leaked when it rained and lacked a toilet, forcing them to use the bushes behind their house. The Special Gift allowed them to build a sturdier house as well as install a toilet. Hellen says, “When I got the news, I danced … and sang. I hugged my son so tight. … The money reached us at our critical time. We thanked God so much and prayed for Rome’s sponsor for blessing.”
In the new My World Vision app, you can email your sponsored child, track the journey your letter travels to be delivered, and get notified when your child writes back — all at your fingertips, wherever you are. Download the new My World Vision app today!
