Assorted Template Letters from Little Boys

Yesterday I posted a bunch of letters from some of my wonderful girls. Today I was going to post letters from just boys, in general. However, I have so many boys that I am going to split the letters in half. Little boys today and older guys in a few days. I am certainly blessed with so many letters! I will be responding to all of these recent letters this week. It'll be a big, but fun undertaking!

Let's start this adventure with a little from little Hassan, who is writing to me on the template titled "My Friends." 

Hassan is 5 years old, lives in Tanzania, and wrote this letter on April 14th, 2018. 

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1. Some of my friends are: Samuel, Michael, and Samson

2. Activities I do with my friends are: Play football and drive toy cars

3. Do your friends go to school with you?: No 

4. My best friend is: Michael 

5. My best friend is special because: He teaches me how to ride a bicycle and he gives me toy cars to drive. 

6. Does your best friend go to the project with you?: No 

Hassan greets you so much and he and his family are doing well. He says he is quite happy to have a friend like you. He is now in the Kindergarten class and is learning to read and write. He says he is now able to pray and he prays for you. He says that at the project center they read Bible story. His favorite story is David and Goliath. He asks you, "Do you know any Bible stories?" He asks you to pray for him. 

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Next is a letter from little guy is his traditional colorful outfit; Jacque! In this letter, he telling me about his family. Love these letter templates. There is just something so special about learning my kids' family members' names.

Jacque is 4 years years old and is from Togo. His letter is dated April 13th, 2018.

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1. My siblings from oldest to youngest are: Souvenir, Josue, Assisse

2. In my family I spend the most time with: My mother

3. Extended family members that live with me are: Zougoudou & Amavi

4. My family lives in a: Rural region

5. My food is prepared by: My mother 

6. My favorite ways to help my family is: Washing dishes & sweeping the floor

7. Please pray for me for the following needs: Spiritual and financial 

Thank you for choosing me. Please pray for me to be healthy. 

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We're onto a letter from Cedrick, who is writing to me on the My Typical Week template. He seems like a busy little guy, doesn't he? :) 

Cedrick is 7 years old and lives in Rwanda. His letter is dated April 23rd, 2018. 

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1. I typically get up at: 6:00 a.m 

2. In the morning I typically: Drink porridge and take a shower 

3. In the evening I typically: Fetch water and go to bed 

4. I typically go to sleep at: 8:00 p.m 

5. My favorite day of the week is: Sunday because I go to church with my family 

Cedrick's family greets you in the name of Jesus Christ. We are thankful for the gift you sent to us. It made us happy and we were able to buy a goat. He was happy to read the story about the goats. He is happy every time they read it for him. In our country we are in the heavy rainy season and our crops are still healthy. We had a wonderful Easter. May God bless you. 

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Up next is a letter from Joseph, who is writing to me on the My Favorites template. He also sent a lovely picture of him with his mother, simply because I asked him to send a family photo, if he could. I always love asking for family photos. Usually, it doesn't pan out, but when it does, it's oh so wonderful!

Joseph is 6 years old, from Guatemala, and he wrote this letter on February 27th, 2018.

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1. My favorite food is: Beans, Eggs, Noodles

2. My favorite drink is: Milk, Water, Coffee 

3. My favorite color is: Blue & Yellow 

4. My favorite Bible character is: Noah & Jonah 

Dear Sponsor, 

Joseph sends his greetings. He hopes you are doing well. He has been doing well. He likes playing soccer. He had a great Christmas with lots of great food. He wishes you can pray for his relatives and for him so that God blesses them all. Hugs!

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The last letter for today comes from Rodrigo. He is telling me about his most recent dental checkup. Thank God that Compassion cares for our kids' medical care. I am so grateful to them for that. 

Rodrigo is 8 years old, lives in Bolivia, and he wrote this letter on March 22nd, 2018. 

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1. My last dental checkup was in: September 2017 

2. For my dental checkup I went to: A health center 

3. The following people went to my dental checkup with me: My mom 

4. At my dental checkup, I needed treatment in: 3 teeth 

5. At my dental checkup I learned: To brush my teeth after I eat and not eat too much candy 

Dear Kayla, 

In answer to your question, I am doing well. I am studying hard. I spent Christmas with my family. At the Compassion project I learned about Jesus and I'm doing well at memorizing Bible verses. My parents are Catholic. I will pray for you. I say goodbye with much affection. I ask you to pray for my parents, my uncles, and my aunts. Also for me that I will do well in my studies. 

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Assorted Letters from Precious Girls

I think I have been blessed with the opportunity to write to some of the best girls in the world. I don't take that privilege lightly. I love them each so much. 

This first letter is from Jhoyra. She is one of several of my kids who have mentioned the children's stories I've been sharing in my letters. I am so happy these stories are going over so well! She even shared her own story (one that is probably very familiar with all of us.) 

Jhoyra is 11 years old and lives in Peru. Her letter is dated April 4th 2018. 

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Dear Sponsor, 

I thank you for the letter you sent to me. I also want to thank you for the pictures and story you sent of Little Red Riding Hood. There is a story here that is called The Three Little Pigs. Once upon a time there were three little pigs that lived in the woods. Later, they decided to make their own houses. One of wood, another of straw, and a third of brick. One day a wolf came and blew them all down, but the house made of brick was safe. I ask you to pray for my family. I say goodbye with a kiss. 

Jhoyra

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This next letter is from sweet Zenebu. She is writing to me about some of the things she likes best. She really seems to have put thought into her answers. 

Zenebu is 6 years old, lives in Ethiopia, and she wrote this letter on December 26th, 2017 (a long time ago!)

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1. What I like best to do with my friends is: Play with toys 

2. The game I like best is: Playing ball 

3. What I like to do best at home is: Playing with my mother 

4. What I like best about the project is: Playing on the slide

5. The subject I like best at school is: Math 

6. The teacher I like best at school is: Mastawot, because she cares for me 

7. The place I like best to visit is: Schools other than mine

My prayer request is for my education. I have received the letter you wrote to me. Thank you for writing to me. God bless you. We celebrated Christmas. 

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I also received the very same letter from another sweet girl in Ethiopia. This time, from Tamire. I always find it fun to "compare" the same letters from kids in the same country. You can really seen distinct personalities come out, I think. 

Tamire is 7 years old. Her letter is dated January 16th, 2018. 

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1. What I like best to do with my friends is: Playing ball

2. The game I like best is: Children's group games

3. What I like to do best at home is: Doing things (hahaha)

4. What I like best about the project is: Praying, singing, and playing

5. The subject I like best at school is: Counting & Letters 

6. The teacher I like best at school is: Tshay because she teaches me

7. The place I like best to visit is: Bus station 

Pray for my health, family, and education. I like your pictures. Thank you for remembering me. Thank you for supporting me. 

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Onto a letter from Mariela. She wrote me a nice, detailed letter, answering many of my questions. She really is a treasure to get to know. 

Mariela is 13 years old and lives in El Salvador. She wrote this letter on April 16th, 2018. 

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Hello Dear Sponsor Kayla, 

Greetings with my best wishes, hoping you are well, healthy, and blessed. How have you been? I always pray for you so that God keeps you safe and blesses you. This time I want to tell you about my home. My house is made of concrete. I sleep in a bed. We get light from light bulbs and drinking water from a well. We cook on a gas stove. How is your house? Thank you so much for the letter you sent me. I really liked the story about the three goats. I really enjoy reading all your letters. May the Lord bless you fully. Please pray for me and my family. Goodbye with a big hug and much love. 

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This next letter is from sweet Mariza. I just received a photo update of her, which I will share the full version of soon. But for now, you just get to see her sweet face. :) This letter is written on the My School template. 

Mariza is 7 years old and is from Nicaragua. Her letter was written on March 15th, 2018. 

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1. I am in: 2nd Grade 

2. My school is 50 mf from my house (anybody know what "mf" is?)

3. I get to school by: Walking

4. My favorite thing about school is: Classes 

5. My favorite school subject is: Learning, Enterprise, & Prosper (sounds interesting!)

Hello Dear Sponsor Kayla, 

Greetings from your sponsored child Mariza. Your sponsored child is so happen to write to you. She wants to tell you that she likes to attend school. Her favorite things are playing with dolls, drawing, painting, doing homework, and watching television. Her mother's name is Elieth and her father's name is Eufenio. Her grandmother's name is Evania and her aunt is Charlotte. She lives in the Roger de Jon neighborhood. She says thank you so much for writing to her. She asks you to pray for her and her family. She says goodbye with much love. 

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Now I'll share a letter from Sandra, who is writing to me about the weather where she lives. 

Sandra is 6 years old, lives in Uganda, and she wrote her letter on April 14th, 2018. 

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1. We have a dry/rainy season: 2 times a year

2. Right now the weather is: Rainy

3. My favorite kind of weather is: Sunny

4. When the weather is sunny I like to: Wash utensils and play with friends

5. On my birthday the weather is usually: Dry 

6. Thank you for: The prayer and support of me

7. My prayer requests are: For God's protection, wisdom, and provision. 

Sandra sends you greetings in the name of Jesus Christ. She says that she is in primary one. She tells you that she helps her parents by washing utensils. She likes to listen to music and sing Sunday school songs. 

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From the Field Friday: IO-595

It's. Time. To. Read. Another. Pastor. Letter.

:)

This letter is from IO-595, which is the project my sweet boy Kelvin attends.

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Dear Kayla, 

My name is Augustien Alexander, the pastor of the Good News Anglican Church who is in charge of the Kabar Baik Child Development that ministers to your sponsored child, and which is located in the city of Medan, the province of North Sumatra, Indonesia. I would like to thank you for all your help for Kelvin at the Center. 

The people in the community around the church come from different ethnic groups: Batak, Karo, Nias, Javanese, Aceh, and Indian. The people are of low-middle economic level. They have low income and are striving for their daily lives. The challenge that we are facing in ministering to the children is the parents' lack of knowledge which made it difficult to achieve the goals of our ministries. The time that the children spend at the center is so little compared to the time they spend at home. 

We try to give the best in our ministry for them all and we pray that the Lord can help us succeed in what we do. The social impacts of the center can be seen in the lives of the teenagers that we are ministering to. They have developed to be teenagers who behave well, understand moral norms, stay away from narcotics and promiscuity, which have been endemic everywhere. The spiritual impacts of the center are made through the teaching of God's word that we do intensively. We realize that by teaching the word of God to the children, they will be closer to Lord Jesus. It will make the children aware of the Lord's presence in their lives, which can help them stay away from sins. We will also improve our ministries to the teenagers to make them closer to Christ, so that they will know God better and be children of the Lord, as we hope them to be. 

Ninety-five families of the children at the center attend our church services. Some of them are very active and supportive of our ministries. We pray for the families who are not very enthusiastic and not active, so that the Lord will change their hearts. The children who receive letters and gifts from their sponsors are more enthusiastic about their studies and are regular in their attendance. The letters are the most important for them. Hearing from their sponsors reminds the children that they are loved and have value. This isn't a message they receive at home in many cases. Even a small news from you, such as your health or job or weather update makes Kelvin know you care. The value is beyond knowing for us adults, who do not have the same perspective as the little children. I hope you will remember how important your words are and that you will write often. 

The children always pray for the sponsors, that the Lord gives you and your family health. They also pray for your work, that you will have success in what you do, and that the Lord Jesus Christ protects you. 

Please support us in prayers, too. We hope to be able to enlarge our church building to accommodate our ministry activities. Also, please pray for the parents of the children to have the same vision and mission with us. Please pray for Compassion and the sponsors in their efforts to bless underprivileged children at the center. Pray also for the mentors and tutors at the center, that they will be more faithful in serving at the center; for me as the person in charge and the commission members, that we can supervise the center well and give meaningful feedback for the development of the center. 

Once again, as the person in charge of the center. I thank you for blessing Kelvin. Lord Jesus will return all your kindness and bless you abundantly. 

Warm Regards, 

Pastor A. Alexander

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Letters to My Kids: April 2018

Continuing with my goal to share one traditional children's story with my kids each month, in April I shared the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears with my kids. This story proved quite a challenge for me to shorten enough to fit in the space allotted for one letter, but I think I managed to do it and still keep the integrity of the story.

I have really been getting great feedback from my kids about these fun children's stories, which makes it even more fun to keep writing them!

For some reason, no matter how many times I tried to rearrange the photos, they would just not post in order. So I gave up and sent them as you see below. I guess it'll be like a little puzzle for the kids to put the photos in order that they happen in the story. *Shrug*

First Sunday Advocate: May 2018

I have a new list of cute boys to share with you today. All of these boys are looking for a sponsor, to help support them and encourage them through letters. If you have space in your family to sponsor a child, maybe you'll consider one of these boys.

Under each photo is a link to each boy's profile page, where you can learn more information about them, their family, their education, and their community. You can also sponsor each boy on his profile page.

5 Year Old Carlos from Colombia. How great is his smile?!

Doesn't 4 year old David from Rwanda look so tall?

How sweet does 5 year old Julian look? 

Just look at 4 year old Kelly from Ghana. His poor big tummy.

5 year old Wood from Haiti is such a snazzy dresser!

13 year old Jhivens is such a handsome young man.

Gosh, I just think 6 year old Ashenafi from Ethiopia is so cute!

5 year old Waner from Dominican Republic likes to sing! 

5 year old Renaud from Burkina Faso is rocking his Jordan t-shirt!

5 year old Jordan from El Salvador has such a sweet demeanor.

6 year old Brighton from Tanzania looks like he's ready for a game of soccer!

From the Field Friday: PE-509

Another Friday another pastor letter. Short and sweet. Let's hear from the pastor at PE-509, which is the project my boy Lenin attends.

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Dear Kayla, 

My name is Sigifredo Chumaero Cordova and I am pastor of the Child Development Center Manantial de Esperanza (Spring of Hope) Center where your sponsored child attends. This center is located in Chiclayo, a region of Peru. 

Our deepest gratitude to you for your valuable economic support to Lenin. We can see the results to his comprehensive development. 

Allow me to share with you about the social environment in our region. Today, we are facing problems about anti-values, gang activity, alcoholism, and male chauvinism. Many children are growing up in the midst of all these problems, taking wrong examples for their development. Our male chauvinism culture is the reason why most fathers do not show their love, obtaining children with self-esteem and character problems. 

The development of the center in our community is a great blessing. Parents express their gratitude because they how their children are growing in an environment with values and their behavior is formed through God's word. Our children respect others, care about their homework, and have fun in a healthy way compared to other children in our community. We can also see a change in the parents' behavior towards their children and even towards others. They are not part of a school for parents where they learn moral and spiritual values. 

Regarding our volunteer staff, our church is grateful to God for the achievements we are obtaining in different areas of the ministry. It has helped our staff to be trained every day, pray for children and fast for them. In general, the church has encouraged them and made them realize the importance of children in our church and community. 

We can see very important achievements in the comprehensive development of our children. In the physical area, the health of each of our children has improved considerably. In the social area, children interact better and have a standard of values. In the cognitive area, they have been able to learn many lessons related to their life development. In the spiritual area, they are learning more about God's word every day, in an easy and didactic way, which is changing their behavior some of them have already surrendered their lives to Christ. 

Last year, our ministry received 600 sponsor letters from different places. Through letters, the sponsored children can share about the different activities carried out at the center; such as camps, Vacation Bible School, birthday celebrations, and field trips to recreational centers. In addition, our ministry organizes activities with parents where they learn God's word. It is a time of blessing because it is beautiful to see parents and children praising God and reciting Bible verses. 

We would like to emphasize how important you are to Lenin and the communication you have with him. We understand you are of great value because Lenin is encouraged in every letter you send. Thank you very much for setting aside time to communicate with Lenin. We encourage you to continue doing so because it brings wonderful results. 

Our church is praying for you that God may grant you all the means to continue supporting your sponsored child. We also encourage you to continue praying to God for Lenin, that he may have a personal encounter with God and surrender to Christ. I wish with all my heart that God may bless you. 

Sigifredo Chumacero Cordova

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End of April Letter Clean Out

It's the final day of April and I have SO MANY letters that I received in April that I have yet to post on my blog and/or respond to. I will not be posting every letter I have in this post, but am hoping to type up at least five of those letters before I get sick of typing. :) Let's start, shall we?

The post will being with a letter from Acram, which he wrote on the My Friends template.

Acram is 6 years old, from Tanzania, and he wrote this letter on April 10th, 2018.

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1. Some of my friends are: Aneth, Boaz, Stewart 

2. My friends who go to school with me are: Boaz & Stewart 

3. Activities I do with my friends are: Read, play soccer, run 

4. My best friend is: Stewart 

5. My best friend is special because: He studies at the same school and lives nearby. 

6. My best friend who goes to the same project as me: Boaz 

7. Message to sponsor: Acram is very happy to get your letter again. He and his family are doing well. He has good health. He draw for you on the back of this paper. He loves you very much. 

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Now a letter from Mulwa. He still has a tutor/project worker write for him and I can't help but wonder sometimes how much of the letter is actually his words. Sometimes the language seems so advanced that I doubt if an 11 year old boy is actually saying those things or not. Of course, he could just be super intelligent and everything on the paper actually came out of his mouth. Who am I to try to figure it out?

Mulwa is 11 years old, as I stated already, and he lives in Kenya. He wrote his letter on April 11th, 2018.

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Mulwa greets you warmly in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ. He hopes that you are fine as he is. He wishes to thank you so much for having you as his loving friend and sponsor. Mulwa informs you that he is doing well and is enjoying wonderful graces that God has showered on him. The story that he read in your letter was very interesting and relates closely to domains learnt in the project. The coloring pictures made him smile and engulfed him with unlimited joy. He shared the pictures with his best friends in the project. He wishes to be sent more and more photos. Mulwa attended the project over the Easter holiday and he learned lessons that are positively changing his life. During this season, his parents are actively involved in farming, since our land has received plenty of rain. He goes to church every Sunday and earnestly prays for you. He wishes to share with you a bible verse from 1 John 4:15. Be blessed, as well as your family and friends. Bye bye! 

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Next is a letter from the same country, but from another lovely child there. This letter is from Faith, who has been through so much in her young life, but seems to have emerged happy and healthy. Her confidence seems to build with each letter I receive from her. 

Faith is 12 years old and is from Kenya. Her letter is dated April 10th, 2018. 

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Hello My Dear Sponsor, 

How are you? How are your family members? I am fine and getting on well. I thank God for his care and protection. I am so happy to have you as my sponsor. I appreciate every part of your sponsorship to me. May the Lord bless you so much and increase your wealth. At school I am working hard. I putting forth more effort in my studies so that I can get good grades which can lead me to a good school. In the future I am hoping to become an important person in my community. At my church I attend Sunday school and participate in many activities. I also recite memory verses on different occasions. Bye bye. 

Faith 

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 Onto a letter on the Weather template from little Joshua. He is such a little guy and his tutor makes me sound like such a big boy. At the top of the page he was even listed as being in the "middle" of primary school. I'm pretty sure that isn't true, as my account says he's in preschool. He's only 4 years old, for Pete's sake! ;) 

4 year old Joshua lives in Uganda and this letter is dated March 30th, 2018. 

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1. We have a rainy/dry season 2 times per year. 

2. Right now the weather is: Sunny 

3. My favorite kind of weather is: Rainy 

4. When the weather is sunny I like to: Play with Abel 

5. On my birthday the weather is usually: Sunny 

6. Thank you for: All the support and care you extend to him through the project 

7. My prayer requests are: For my friends, for good health, for God's knowledge, for all the sick people. 

8. Answers to sponsor letter: Hello Kayla. Lovely greetings from Joshua. He says he is happy to be communicating with you. He says back at home they are fine and healthy. He says he goes to school and is working hard over there. He says he loves you and is wishing you the best. 

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Now I will share a letter from Veronika. This time, she is writing to me about her Hobbies & Pets. 

Veronika is 7 years old and is from Haiti. Her letter is dated January 31st, 2018. 

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1. Some of my hobbies are: Dancing and playing with my friends 

2. One hobby I would like to begin someday is: Writing 

3. Do you have a pet? Yes 

4. My pet is a: Sheep 

5. Does my pet have a name? No 

6. My favorite thing to do with my pet is: Running 

She is happy to write this letter to you and to greet you in the name of our Savior. How are you? How are your activities? She and her family are very good by the grace of God. She keeps praying for you that God will bless you. Pray for her so that she will have intelligence in school. How did you spend the Christmas time? She wants to share Isaiah 41:40 with you. May God bless you! 

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From the Field Friday: KE-500

I can't believe it's already the last week of April! Time sure does fly. I just have a couple more week of preschool and then it's summer vacay!

To celebrate the end of the month, let's read another letter from Kenya. This time, it's from KE-500, which is the project that my boy Hillary attends.

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Dear Kayla, 

My name is Eric Yugi and I am pastor of the Changamwe Child Development Center, which is attend by your sponsored child. May the almighty God bless you abundantly for sponsoring Hillary. 

Currently 212 children are registered at the center and we are enjoying sponsorship. We have nine children to be supported in university taking various degrees. 110 children are taking their high school studies and 65 are in primary and nursery education. 37 of them are doing Diploma, certificates and grade examinations. There is great need of more support for students in post-secondary education as their financial demand of college fees and supplies are high. Children are able to achieve their scholastic goals because of support from sponsors, who help them buy textbooks, uniforms, and other necessities. 

This year in the month of March, we celebrated the silver jubilee of the center. During the celebrations we launched an education fund through church donations to subsidize university fees of children admitted in various professions. We thank God for support we received from Compassion International representative especially our partnership facilitator who mobilized her colleagues in joining together to celebrate the achievements and support the university children. We had one student from our center graduating from the Leadership Development Program with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. Glory to God. The child's life has tremendously changed for the better. He is happy and blessed thanks to Compassion. 

We thank our government and local leaders who have always supported us. Our member of parliament and county representatives gave us moral support and donated finances during the launch of the center. The church has increased spiritually and numerically through this program. April this year 96 children confessed and accepted Christ as their personal Savior. The church is now expanding the sanctuary to seat 10,000 members. It is through your support that we have been able to minister to the children, caregivers and leading to the church expansion. 

Whenever children receive a letter they are always excited. The children enjoy letter writing sessions because this gives them time to interact with their beloved sponsor. It helps the children in building self-esteem and also in learning how to read and write English, since it is the language that they usually use. Letters also expose the child to what happens around the world as sponsors share personal information as well as the information about where you live. Receiving a letter is like receiving love from their sponsor, and children know that someone values them. For some children, this is the first time they know they are loved and valued, and it makes a big impact in their lives. I hope you will remember and write to Hillary often. 

In conclusion, thank you for the holistic child development program you are supporting in this church. It has been a blessing to the families supported to the church to the neighboring communities and the nation at large. God has used you as an ambassador of positive change and may He bless you abundantly. 

In Christ,
Pastor Eric Yugi

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