Saying Goodbye to Yessica

One of the many pretty pictures that Yessica has drawn for me

Yessica and her family in front of their home

Yessica in the doorway of her home in Guatemala City

Yessica and her family. Her father was at work at the time of the photo.

Yessica with her 2008 Christmas package

The first photo I saw of Yessica on the CI website. I chose her because of her sweet smile & that her family of 6 was living on $76 a month!!

Yessica's 2009 sponsorship photo

Two of the many photos that Steve took of Yessica when he visited her earlier this year

Yessica and her mother

Steve (our Google Group angel that visited several sponsored children along with his own in Guatemala), Yessica, & Yessica's mother

I haven't heard from Yessica in a while. Her last letter was in May. This is what it said:

Dear Heather:

I thank you for the letter and three pictures that you sent me. I am very happy with all that you have sent me. I feel very happy that you work in the hospital, and I like the babies. I pray that God allows you to go on with your work. My family and I are fine, and so is my education. I am fine thanks to the support that you send me. I will have time off at school soon. I say goodbye with a strong hug.

Yessica

Yesterday, I went to my CI account to see what I owe & figure out how much I can pay. I found an exclamation point next to her name, and I followed the exclamation point to the bottom of my sponsorship list. This is what I found:

(!) Forming a friendship with your sponsored child can be one of the most rewarding experiences of sponsorship. Unfortunately, there are times when children leave the program earlier than expected.

We just learned that your child has left the program due to unforeseen circumstances. A letter with details about this is already on the way and should reach you soon.

For your consideration, we've also sent you a photograph and personal profile of another child who needs your assistance. Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or would like to choose a different child to sponsor. Your sponsorship means a great deal to us. but it means even more to the desperately poor children whose lives can drastically change with your support. You can reach us by calling 1-800-888-3089 or sending an email to children@children.org. Our Sponsor Services department is available from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Central time, Monday through Thursday and 7:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

For more information about why sponsored children leave the program, visit the Child Departures section of our website.

If I had to take a guess I would say that she left the program because the family doesn't need the services any more. When I first started sponsoring her, the family of six lived on $76 a month. More recently, they were making $234 a month. They turned out to be the family with the highest income of all of my sponsor kids.

I had just sent her a birthday package a couple of months ago for her birthday that is August 8th. Now, I am not sure if she will ever get it. I am not sure when exactly she left the program.

I hope this doesn't happen any time soon to any of my other kids!! I can't take too much heartbreak at one time!

Has anyone gotten any letters/photos?

Everyday when I go out to the mail box, I am hoping for a letter/photos from my sponsored children. I have some packages that I sent, so I should be getting photos any day now, and special needs requests that I am waiting on should be here soon. It seems like I don't get enough of them! Maybe I will get a letter & photos from all of them all at one time! I am waiting unpatiently...

Presents from Guatemala

I was surprised to see this new photo of Yessica in my account because I was expecting a new picture for another 6 months or so.

Yessica made me a card out of construction paper, stickers & markers

A long letter to me was written inside the card

a piggy bank

small pottery

a small decorative bowl... I am not sure what it is made out of

a cloth napkin (I am not sure if she made this or bought it???)

If you are a CI Google Grouper, you already know Steve. He went to Guatemala in April and offered to meet some of our children for us. He brought us pictures, video, and even souveneirs and moments from our kids!!!! I had told Yessica that he was coming about a month in advance, but everyone who has sponsored children knows how long it takes coorespondence to get back and forth... So, I am guessing that is how she got the impression that I was coming to visit her. It makes me feel bad, really, to read her card in which she welcomes me to Guatemala. The whole letter is filled with anticipation of my arrival and it hurts me even now to think about it because I don't know if she got my letter before she got to the field office. Or did she go to the field office expecting to see me? :0(

Anyway, I am still grateful for her thoughtful card and souveneirs. This is what her card said:

Dear Heather,

I welcome you during this visit. You are visiting me in Guatemala and I am very happy to meet you personally. You have come to know a lot of places of this country, Guatemala. I thank you for being my sponsor and supporting me in my studies. I went to a place named Baja Verapaz and I learned about the Quetzal,national bird, and La Monja Blanca, national flower. I send you some memories from Baja Verapaz: a guacalito, a small jug, a piggy bank, a napkin, some drawings. That is what I am going to send you. I hope that you like all those things. May God bless you, and I hope that you get back home safely.

Love,

Yessica

Letters from the kids

Yessica in Guatemala City wrote:
Dear Heather:
I thank you for the letter and three pictures that you sent me. I am very happy with all that you have sent me. I feel very happy that you work in the hospital, and I like the babies. I pray that God allows you to go on with your work. My family and I are fine, and so is my education. I am fine thanks to the support that you send me. I will have time off at school soon. I say goodbye with a strong hug.
Yessica

Henry in Cartagena, Colombia wrote:
Dear Heather
My family and I hope that you and your family are well. We are doing fine. We have one week of vacation for holy week (semana santa). I am playing a lot, watching t.v., and doing my homework.
Thank you for your letters and for always thinking of us. I wish you and your family a lot of blessings.
With nothing more, I say goodbye
with a lot of love,
Henry

Leydi from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic wrote:
Thank you for your pretty letter. I like that you write to me. I love you very much. I am doing very well in school. How great that you work in the hospital. Thank you for worrying about me. with a lot of affection, thank you for the stickers.
Leydi

Katherine is one of the children that I was looking for a sponsor for. Jim (Mack's father) is now her sponsor. She was in my account for about a week or so. I wasn't sure if I would find her a sponsor, so I sent her a letter in that time. Her mother responded with the longest most detailed letter I have ever seen. This letter is posted here for Jim to enjoy!:
Dear Mrs "(last name removed):
It is a big joy to be a part of the sponsorship program provided by Children International! Your sponsored child's name is (here she lists Katherine's name in its entirety). I will tell you some things about her so that you can know each other much better. Let me tell you that I am so proud that you have accepted my daughter as your sponsored child. She is a seven-year-old girl. She has brown eyes and brown hair. She is restless. She enjoys dancing, painting, playing and going to the park and coutryside in order to see the animals, especially the iguanas. Her favorite foods are: chicken soup, rice with beans and meat. She likes maracuya juice. She likes all kinds of fruits, especially watermelon. She is attending school now. She is in Pre-school (equivalent to 1st basic year in Ecuador), but she can't write yet. She has four older sisters and she sleeps with her sister because she is the last one. I say goodbye with affection,
Miriam, your sponsored child's mother

Regine from the Phillippines wrote to Efrain. Here is the letter Efrain wrote back to her,as well as the letter she wrote to him:
I just sent a letter to Regine. This is what I wrote to her, what I surround with parenthesis is not part of the actual letter:
May 14, 2009
Dear Regine,
Kumusta ka? Mabuti naman ako. (How are you? I'm very fine.)
I am extra happy to receive your letter. This was what you wrote:
“Dear Sr. Efrain Caro,“A blessed day to you and to your family. I have received a letter from you and I am happy writing to you once again. As you were asking, yes. I always wanted to write to you. I am fine and doing good in school. I am study my lesson very hard to got high grades in my reportcard. I am excited to be in grade next school year. I am sad that your workplace will closed but promise that I will pray hard for your upcoming business. Congratulation in advance. Regards and thank you for your letter. Hope to hear from you again.“Love,“Regine"
That’s your letter word by word. (I deleted her last name to protecther identity)
I’m happy to know that you are a good student. Continue to learn what they teach you. What you learn is what you will take with you from school when you graduate. That’s what matters.Maraming salamat (thank you very much) for your congratulations on my upcoming business and for your prayers. I am trying a few Filipino words in this letter. Nakakaintindi ako ngkonting Tagalog. (I can understand a little Tagalog.) I hope that sentence is well written. The course I’m taking teaches to talk Tagalog, but not to write it. I hope to go visit you somewhere this year or maybe next year. I’m not very good on speaking English; my native language is Spanish; so I hope that knowing a little Tagalog makes a difference. Take good care of yourself. Your loving sponsor, Efraín
That was my letter to Regine. In order to put her "yes" reply in context, this is what I have previously written to her:
"Would you like me to write more often? I remember that when I was a child, time seemed to pass much slower than now. I suppose it’s the same with you. Maybe by the time you get a new letter of mine, it seems centuries since the last time you wrote."

An Angel Named Steve...

Steve with my sponsored child Yessica and her mother

Yessica, age 10, in Guatemala City

Steve with Barbara's sponsored child Eloina, Eloina's older sister, and Eloina's mother

Eloina~ look at that smile! They must think Steve is Santa Claus!

Barbara's sponsored child Marelyn with her mother

For those of you who do not know Steve, you will need to check him out on Google Groups. He makes wonderful travel pages of all of his trips to see his sponsoered kids... I think he has 50 or so kids... or maybe a little less... Anyway, most recently, at the beginning of this month, he made a trek to Guatemala. He offered to meet with any of our kids, if we wanted him to. What a wonderful experience!!!! He brought back pictures for all of us, and somewhere there is, also, a video... As for my sponsored child Yessica, he took special care to wrap up the gifts that she gave him for me. Yes, you heard me right... Yessica gave Steve gifts to send to ME!!! Now, that Steve is back in the US, he is going to pack up her gifts and ship them to me... I will make sure to take pictures so that everyone can see the lovely things Yessica sent.

There are no words that can truly show how deeply his kindness has affected those for whom he took the extra time, care, and attention to visit... And how much the sponsors are grateful for the extra bridge he has added to the sponsor-sponsored child relationship. Thank you, Steve! You are an angel!

Heather