Letter from Anjali

Dear Beverly Sykes,

Greetings to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.  I am fine.  I hope same from you.

I received 2 letters from you.  How are you?  How are your children and grandchildren?

We are in rainy season.  All the plants and grass are looking very green.  We have corn in this season.  Watermelon is not available in this season.

On the mothers day our church gave roses for children to give their mothers.  I gave my rose to my mother and I told wishes to my mother. 

I am studying well.

Photos are very nice and beautiful.  I am also playing with kite.  I am praying for you and your family members.  I thank you for your sponsorship.

Your loving child,
M.Anjali

A New Kiva Loan

I learned that I had a Kiva credit, enough to make a new loan, so I went searching for a loan in Kenya.  Not only do I sponsor two children in Kenya, but I just saw an interview about an upcoming PBS special, "Half the Sky" about the oppression of women in Kenya and so I wanted a new loan to be for a woman in that country.

When I saw this woman, I felt a kinship, of sorts, because of the size of her family and because she seems to be a devoted grandmother.  I also hurt for the pain on her face.

Mukombogo, 50, is a widow. She lives in her own house that has electricity but no piped water. Mukombogo has seven grown children, three of whom are still under her care.

She started raising and selling local poultry more than 15 years ago to earn income and support her family’s daily needs. It has been a profitable business, which sustained her even before her husband passed on. She is also thankful for her children's contribution to paying her expenses.

She has requested a 50,000 KES loan to buy chicks and chicken feeds. She hopes her sales will increase so that the business will grow. She enjoys this business because it is not too involved and gives her time to spend with her grandchildren.

Letter from Emmanuella

Written 8/19/2012

This is kind of a fill-in letter, where they give the child a topic and she writes about it.  I'm printing it here in letter form.

I thank you for your prayers and your love for me.

I and my parents are doing well, by the grace of God.  I am on vacation for three weeks.

I was the sixth person in this term promotional exams and I am happy I have been promoted to class six.

How is Lacie and her sister doing?

May the lord protect you and your family.

Pray for my parents' business to go on well.

Memory verse:  John 3:16.  For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.  Amen,

She included this drawing:

Letter from Somai

Written 6/30/2012

Dear Beverly,

Loving greetings to you in Jesus name.  How are you?  Thank you for your letter.  I am studying well.  My parents are OK.  Pray for good rain.

I love you

Your loving child
Somai

Letter from Fred

 Written 7/25/2012

I do miss the letters written by Fred's parents, which give a better picture of his life, but it's also fun to hear from Fred directly.  This is a form about his favorites, where he either circles his favorite things or draws a picture.  So I know his favorite game is hide and seek, his favorite animals are dogs and birds, his favorite cartoon character is Spiderman, and his favorite sport is basketball.

 

His letter reads:

Dear Auntie Sykes,

Christian greetings!  I am always praying for you.  How is Brianna?  Is she feeling well?  Please pray that I will not get sick.

Love, Fred

He also included another picture.  On the book is written "A friend loveth all the time."

 

Letter...sort of...from Henrique

One thing about Brasilian kids, they don't write much!  I got a letter, sort of, from Henrique today.  It is a check-off page telling about his house:

It's brick
The floor is cement
The roof is tile
They have electricity
They get water from the river
He sleeps in a hammock
His clothes are washed in a bowl

And he has a question for me:  What is your favorite animal?

That's it.  But he did include a drawing.

Meet Josephat

Michelle of Blogging from the Boonies is a shamelessly bad person!  I simply MUST stop reading her blog! Wainaina from Kenya is a result of one of her posts, Theresa from Ghana is a result of one of her posts, Kwagala from Uganda, with whom I share sponsorship (a whole bunch of us help sponsor her) is a result of one of her posts.  The other day she posted photos of orphans who are waiting for sponsors.  I was just going to look.  You know how that goes.  It's like going to the store for milk and coming home with nothing but milk.

I truly was NOT going to sponsor another child, but look at this face.

This is Josephat, who is 7 years old, an orphan being raised in a home with his sister and three others. I looked at the pain on that little face, with puffy dark circles under his eyes, and my heart melted.  So I am now sponsoring Josephat.  I don't have his information yet, other than his age, that he's from Kenya, and his picture, but I will be writing more about him in the coming months.

This is really the last.  I absolutely, positively cannot afford another child!