Most parents don’t think twice about taking care of their children. Without a second thought, we provide them with healthy snacks and meals throughout the day, we make sure they wear clean clothes, we buy new clothes when they’ve outgrown them, and we expose our children to all sorts of opportunities for their leisure time (such as sports, art, music lessons, theater and band), the list is endless. We also like to take our children on fun outings a couple of times a year; maybe even a vacation to Disneyland, SeaWorld, visits to Grandma and Grandpa, fun days in the park, the zoo… You get the point. While some of these things are necessities, like providing food, shelter and clothing, others are extra “luxuries”.
It’s easy to get caught up in our own little world of busyness, being pulled in all directions by expectations and demands. It’s not surprising that we sometimes forget that having even necessities is not the norm for every child around the world!
I’d like to invite you to take a look at some different parts of the world, where life is very much unlike our own.
India:
Let me introduce you to Malkaram, a slum in the outskirts of Hyderabad, home to beggars, street people, and stonecutters. An environment that breeds sickness, disease, alcohol and drug use. It’s a harsh existence of open sewage, exploitation, child labor and hopelessness.
ServeNow, in cooperation with a local pastor, is dedicated to reach children in Malkaram with nutritious meals, education, medical camps for those in need, and warm clothing in the winter.
Here are a few children who live in Malkaram slum, and who still need sponsors:
Grace Lighthouse Center is a place where children from destitute families can find a safe haven. These children come here because they have been deprived of parental care and education. Subhash, a local pastor, and his wife, have taken in 17 abandoned children. These children not only receive a home with a loving family, but also good educational opportunities.
Here are two new members at our Grace Lighthouse Center, Sree Vani and Sravanti:
ServeNow also has a home for HIV-positive children, providing a safe, loving home for them, and giving them an education. Below is a picture of all the children who live in our HIV home:
And here is a picture of Devi, our newest family member at the HIV home:
Uganda:
Uganda is country in Africa which has 2.5 million orphans. These orphans face numerous challenges such as lack of food, shelter, clothing, and education. They need help to break this cycle of poverty. ServeNow aids an orphan ministry, to reach out to those in desperate need. Currently, there are 8 schools, some of them in very remote areas, all of them reaching out to children from poverty stricken families. Much more help is needed to improve the dilapidating classrooms made of mud and bamboo. Some classrooms have already been rebuilt, but others are on the verge of collapse.
Here are some of the children who go to these schools and who still need sponsors;
While you are lovingly taking care of your own children, unfortunately, there are those whose life circumstances are quite different than ours. And while we can’t take on the burdens of the whole world, we can make a difference in one child’s life. You can make a way for a child to receive education, food, shelter, and basic medical care. For just $37 a month, you can truly make a world of difference in a child’s life! (Visit our Sponsorship Page or Contact us or Sponsor a Child).
Below are just a few excerpts from letters that children wrote to their sponsors. The letters speak volumes of how thankful they are and how their lives have changed.
