Colour Supplement

Articles by Christians around the world

Sunday February 4 2007

Sponsor a child: what do you get out of it?

By Tricia Anderson - Reader at St. Andrew's Church

It was back in 1989 when Geoff Clifford was so excited about sponsoring a child through Action Aid that David and I decided to do the same. We were 'given' a young boy in India. We were given details of the project which covered his village, the work that was being done and the long-term plan. We received regular reports on the project, as well as drawings and messages from Rajabhan, himself. We would send cards and letters back to him. In 1993 the Maharashtra area of India was hit by an earthquake, so we found the area in an atlas and made enquiries about 'our' little boy, then aged about 9. Fortunately, the project area, families and staff were not directly affected, but an earthquake many thousands of miles away had, indirectly, affected our lives.

In 1997, Action Aid's partnership with that particular project reached the stage when the charity was able to hand full management responsibility over to the people at village level, and our involvement with Rajabhan came to a close. But we took on another Indian boy, Uday Lal Khumana Ji, and the process continued. Uday lived in the Chittorgarh district of Rajasthan, so his background was different from Rajabhan's, and we learnt more about India and its people.

Then, in 2002, as Action Aid's work with Uday's community gathered real momentum, we were asked to join 'The Next Step'. This programme enables the charity to use our donations more flexibly throughout India, helping some of India's poorest and most vulnerable people for whom sponsorship isn't practical, such as street children who do not live in a stable community. We continue to receive regular reports, as well as messages from some of the people who have been helped by 'The Next Step'. Our latest message is from Rukshana, an 18 year old woman, living in Ahmedabad city of Gujarat. Here is part of her message:

"On 28th February 2002, my parents were not aware that communal riots had broken out between Hindus and Muslims. They had set out to attend the death ceremony of a relative in Visnagar, which is on the other side of Ahmedabad city. Coming home on the local bus, all the passengers were asked to get off. My parents were the only Muslims on the bus and the crowd circled around them and hit my father on the head. The police arrived and took my mother away. She pleaded with them to take my father also but they told her he would be taken to hospital. My mother was taken to the police station and then sent home. We heard later that my father was dumped into a pit in Gota Chokdi. After that many riots broke out and my father never came home."

Volunteers from Action Aid and Aman Samudaya, its project partner, went to the family and supported them daily for 3 months, with practical everyday essentials, counselling and registering a complaint at the police station. Rukshana was given a job as a peace volunteer. She not only earns money to support the family, but helps teach young children to read, write and paint. Her 2 younger sisters are doing well at school, and her older brother has been helped to start a small vegetable shop. They are so grateful for the help and support, not just for themselves, but for all poor and abused families throughout India.

That's what we get out of it.

Tricia Anderson

If you, like Tricia and David, could sponsor a child through Action Aid please click here to find out more

photo : © Kate Holt/Eyevine/ActionAid UK