For $1 a Day

I sponsor a child through Compassion International. From its website:

In response to the Great Commission, Compassion International exists as an advocate for children, to release them from their spiritual, economic, social and physical poverty and enable them to become responsible and fulfilled Christian adults.

Founded by Rev. Everett Swanson in 1952, Compassion began providing Korean war orphans with food, shelter, education and health care, as well as Christian training.

Today, Compassion helps more than 900,000 children in 24 countries.

My little boy, Cristian, is celebrating his ninth birthday on Sunday. I’ve been his sponsor for two years (I previously sponsored another boy for several years who moved out of the program area), and I try to write him a letter at least every other month, and send him small paper gifts like bookmarks, sports cards and coloring pages. Cristian lives in Colombia, on the plains of Bosa, where the average monthly income is $166. And my donation of $32 per month allows the staff of CDI Vida de Naciones to provide Cristian with Bible teaching, nutritious food, medical exams, dental care, social events, recreational activities, academic support, counseling, hygienic instruction and moral lessons.

According to Charity Navigator, the nation’s largest and most-utilized evaluator of charities (and named one of TIME magazine’s “50 Coolest Websites” in 2006), Compassion International gets a 4-star rating – the highest rating possible. Compassion spends only 7.6% of their annual $200 million budget on administrative expenses, and only 8.4% on fundraising efforts. The rest, 83.8%, goes directly to program costs. In fact, Compassion grabbed that four-star rating for sound fiscal management for the sixth consecutive year. That puts Compassion in the top 1% of charities evaluated by Charity Navigator.

I’m not trying to sound like an infomercial here; I honestly feel this is an organization that should be supported, one that takes seriously the Biblical mandates of caring for widows, orphans, the poor, and who spreads the Gospel by taking care of children’s bodies, minds, and spirits. Plus, the organization is a faithful steward of the money donated to it. Visit Compassion’s site and see what its about.