Philippine-anthropy
For my birthday, I decided to share.
With all the horrible things going on in the countries hit by the tsunami, the one thing I couldn't stand is seeing the pictures of the poor children who lost their parents. I have to look away sometimes or else I would break out in tears.
I didn't donate money. My sister is donating money in my family's stead. But, on my birthday, I decided to sponsor a child from the Philippines through the Christian Children's Fund.
I'm agnostic so I had to make sure that non-profit wasn't pushing anything religious...
Anyhoo, my sponsored child is May, six years old, from Zamboanga del Norte. I will plan on sponsoring her until she is 16. It sounds lofty to me but I have to be honest. I spend more money on useless crap per month than a monthly sponsorship. So that just means I have to cut down on crap to help out another person in this world. I can't think of a better "means transfer" in the world.
Here's info on my sponsored child:
"Meet the special child you're sponsoring:
The Pasumala family lives in their own small house made of light materials, just enough to accommodate family members. They have electricity but they use firewood to cook their food. Water is fetch from a nearby pump. Father, a jeepney driver, earns a very low and irregular income ($85.00 a month), hardly enough to provide for the family's basic needs considering the very high pricesof prime commodities these days. Mother stays at home attending to the needs ofthe family and keeping their humble home neat and clean. She also plants vegetables and raises some chicken and hog in their small backyard for the family's consumption. Your kind sponsorship will enable the child and her family to avail of the various programs and services geared towards self-reliance. May is the fifth of six children. She is a very active, friendly and obedient little girl who at her young age can already identify some colors, shapes and objects and also sing simple songs. She says that she wants to become a teacher someday. At home, she runs light errands for her parents. A healthy girl, May loves playing with friends in their neighborhood."
