Unbound

At church on Sunday they had a representative from Unbound, which used to be known as the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging.  Unbound is a sponsorship organization that provides basic necessities such as food, education, clothing and access to medical care to children and elderly individuals in poor communities in some  19 countries.

I have sponsored two children in the past - one in Africa, and one in Central America. The boy in Africa, unfortunately, dropped out of school a few years into my sponsorship, and apparently began hanging around with an unsavory group, so he was dropped from the program. I then transferred my sponsorship to the girl. Sadly, after a couple of years the government of her country stopped supporting the the program with which Unbound had ties, and so that sponsorship ended back in 2015.

I was saddened by the loss of both of them. I had exchanged letters with both of them, and even sent the boy a soccer ball for Christmas one year. I was particularly upset with the way the sponsorship of the girl had ended. I felt a real loss, and worried about what had become of her. The whole situation left a bad tastes in my mouth, so I did not pick up another child at that time. 

But I was thinking lately it was time to sponsor another child - so the presence of the the representative Sunday was fortuitous.

Having sponsored children in Africa and Central America, I decided this time to sponsor a boy in the Philippines. He's 11. Barring unforeseen circumstances, we will be connected for at least the next seven years.

This time, I will do some things a little differently.

Although I had exchanged some letters with my previous sponsored children, I had not been as regular as I should have been. I will keep more in contact this time around.

Something hit me at morning Mass today as well: I did not pray for my previous sponsored children. That was a real failure on my part. I will pray for my new young man on a regular basis. I will also offer prayers for my previous sponsored children. I hope they are well.

Pax et bonum