Sponsor a Child and Change Their World
When you sponsor a child you are giving their entire family the opportunity to escape the bottomless pit called poverty. You will receive a card with your child's photo and will have the opportunity to write and receive letters as well as an open invitation to visit your child in Kenya. For only $40 per month your child will attend school and receive an excellent education, as well as a hot lunch and clean drinking water.
Get the facts about sponsorship Get the facts about Hope for Kenya
Moses Ochieng
Moses and his family live in a tin shack behind the Joy School. He is in a family of four. The mother was chased out of his home after being married for seven years. They rent a tin shack big enough for only one person. Moses and his family sleep on a mat on the floor. His guardian sells tomatoes by the roadside. She cannot afford education for the children and is requesting help for them so that the poverty cycle doesn’t continue. Thank you!
Pamela Shirati
Pamela is five years old and in preschool. Her father is a construction worker and her mother collects water for the construction sites.
Dago School
Goretty Anyango
Goretty is one of five children, four of which attend the Dago School. The parents grow food, just enough to feed their family, but do not grow enough to sell their food at market.
Dago School
Hamiltone Onyango
Hamiltone is six years old and in kindergarten. His mother is a house wife and his father is a day laborer in Nairobi.
Dago School
Esther Aoko
Esther is one of nine children, four of them attend the Dago School. Her father is one of the men who donated their own land so that the school could be built. Unfortunately, he has recently fallen ill and cannot continue to work.
Dago School
Whinnie
Whinnie’s mother has seven children and Whinnie is eleven years old. Her mother washes clothes for many many people and even when work is good, she can only make $1 a day to support seven children. Whinnie is caught up in a situation where her mother cannot afford a good education. If she boards at the Joy School then she will be able to grow as a young lady in a safe environment and receive an education that will change her future. Will you partner with Whinnie today and make a lasting change? Thank you!
Joy School
Ilijah Otieno
Ilijah’s mother, Susan is a widow. She prays that she does not loose her faith in God under this pressure. All of her older children have dropped out of school at 8th grade because of extreme poverty. She makes string to sell at the marketplace and makes about a dollar a day. This is a chance to break the cycle of poverty and hopelessness in this family. Ilijah wants to be a doctor.
Joy School
Lavance Levis Omondi
Lavance has lost his sponsorship and desperately needs a sponsor to stay in school. Can you help keep Lavance in school?
Joy School
Shadrack Ochien
Shadrack lives with his mother. His father has died a few years ago. He helps his mother at home grow a few crops around the house for food and his mother sometimes can find work hand washing other people’s clothes. She earns less than a dollar a day and it is certainly not enough to pay for Shadrack’s education. Unless someone steps in to sponsor him to board at the Joy School then he will be tied to his poverty. He is a very bright young boy but lives in extreme poverty. He still posses a joyful spark for life but poverty will consume any hope he has for the future. Please join with us to help Shadrack build his future and return to rescue his family. Thank you!
Lenox Odhiambo
Lenox is a total orphan. He lives with a guardian and worries he cannot continue his education without a sponsor.
Joy School
.jpg "Lucas Muga")
Lucas Muga
Lucas parents are extremely poor and both of them work at what ever jobs they can find on some of the local farms. Survival not education is their priority. Lucas has 2 siblings.
Joy School
Virgil Ouma Ongare
Virgil Ouma is a 10 year old boy in 5th grade. He lives with his grandmother who does the cooking at Dago school.
Dago School
Calvins Charles
Calvins lives with his uncle. His father has died and his mother is a teacher because his mother cannot care for him and work at the same time. His sister also is a sponsored student at the school. Please consider sponsoring Calvins and ensure he can stay in school.
Joy School
Felix Martin Osure
Felix Osure is a 12 year old boy in the 6th grade. His parents do peasant farming to support them but their harvests are never enough to pay for his fees.
Dago
Alfonse Otieno
Alfonse is 13-yrs-old. His father is dead and his mother sells what she can to help her family. Without a sponsor Alfonse will not be able to go to school.
Joy
Elijah Oloo
Elijah is in 9th grade and has begun his high school career without a sponsor. He lives with his mother and likes reading. He wants to study agriculture.
Nyatambe
Randy Omondi Okiki
Randy lives with both his parents. His father is able to work, but his mother is only able to find work sometimes. He has six siblings.
Joy School
Robine Pretty Odede
Robine is in 8th grade and is the older sister to John Bruno. Their mother has died and she lives with her father who does not have a job. Please sponsor Robine so she can go to high school.
Joy School
Edwin Onyango
Edwin is a day student at Odera Secondary School. He and his sister, Lorna are living in the Dago village with their mother who is HIV positive and their father who is elderly and cannot work. They depend mostly on their older brother who supports his siblings by doing taxi work with a motorcycle.
Odera
Felix Omondi Odiwuor
Felix lives with his father and three siblings. He is the oldest. The dad is a tailor and the mom does odd jobs. Felix only lives with his father and without sponsorship he will not be able to go to high school.
Odera
Ishmael Sheva Otieno
Sheva Ishmael is in class 9. His father is a Pastor who does not get paid and while he does odd jobs on the side he is unable to pay school fees. Sheva is a sweet boy and he has seven siblings.
Odera
.jpg "Rodgers Okoth Kota")
Rodgers Okoth Kota
When Rodgers mother died his father abandoned him after he remarried. He is now being raised by his aunt who has six children of her own and tries to provide what she can selling vegetables by the roadside.
Nyatambe
Rosemary Adhiambo Okoth
Rosemary is a younger sister to our sponsored student Edna. Their mother abandoned them when they were much younger, and their father only uses a handcart to sell small items. Sponsoring Rosemary would give her a chance to continue her education without fear of having to drop out due to lack of fees.
Odera
Scovia Achieng
Scovia was brought to us by a principal in our local secondary school. She scored well on her exit exam from primary school and would like to be a doctor one day. Her father is a fisherman and only brings in an income when he is able to catch fish and her mother tries to earn an income by selling firewood. Please help Scovia earn an education through sponsorship!
Nyatambe
Alfaxhard Ali Okellopa
Alfaxhard is a total orphan and lives with his two brothers, one in primary school and one in high school. His brother is a primary boarding student and he cares for him when he goes home. They have no parents and no other guardians to care for them.
Odera
.jpg "Clarence Kilwa")
Clarence Kilwa
Clarence has never know his father who abandoned his mother when she became pregnant with him. The mother survives by growing some food and some friends from the church help her as well. Clarence has missed a lot of school as he has had to help with the crops in order to survive.
Nyatambe High School
Thomas Onyango
Thomas recently lost his sponsor. He has extremely high marks for his age and is hoping to be a doctor. He comes from a family of six children and both his parents are gone. He lives with his relatives and has a strong determination to survive and excel in his education as a way out of his poverty. Please help him complete his journey and run this race with him today!
Nyatambe
How do I begin?
- Use Paypal (our preferred method of payment) by filling in the form below.
- Choose monthly or yearly donations from the drop down menu, entering the name of the child (by clicking "sponsor now" on the bottom tab of their picture) you would like to sponsor, and then clicking on "NEXT".
- You will then be taken to the Paypal website to complete your sponsorship. A PayPal account is required for recurring payments, but not for one time donations. Just click the link under the login button that says, "No PayPal account? Pay using your credit or debit card" and fill out the form.
- Paypal will show Hope for Kenya that this is a “child sponsor” donation and provide us with your address so we can send you pictures and letters from your child.
91% of the funds we receive go to caring for your child and go directly to Kenya. 9% is allocated to administration costs such as bank fees, supplies, and the costs related to sharing this work with others. We provide every new sponsor and donor the option to cover these administrative fees if should choose to. All your donations are tax deductible. If you have any questions please email us using the “contact” page.
Start Sponsoring Today!
Get the facts about sponsorship
Will I be the only person sponsoring the child I’m helping?
Yes. The child you’re helping has just one sponsor: you. That’s why your prayers, letters, and support mean so much to your sponsored child. Even if you choose to sponsor a child as a family or a group (for example, a youth group or a Sunday school class), the child you help will still be relating to your family or group as his or her only sponsor. No other group or individual will also sponsor the child you help.
How long should my child sponsorship last?
Hope for Kenya’s child sponsorship offers you the opportunity to stay with a child for a number of years, usually through the school year in which the child reaches the age of 18 to 22. While we hope that you will be able to continue in your support of your sponsored child until he or she completes High School or College, we recognize that sponsors’ circumstances sometimes change. You may discontinue your sponsorship at any time. We ask that you notify us if you are unable to continue your sponsorship.
Please understand that a sponsored child’s circumstances may change, too. We will inform you as quickly as possible if any such circumstance affects the child you sponsor, and we’ll transfer your support to another child in need of your help.
Hope for Kenya focuses on the full development of the child. Because of that, our goal is to release children from poverty, not merely sustain them through it.
Will I always be sponsoring the same child?
We work in real communities, with real families in, oftentimes, difficult situations. We strive to provide a safe environment for children to learn, grow and play, but sometimes situations change and children have to leave our programs – for example, because the family has moved to a new home in another community. If your child leaves our sponsorship program, your sponsorship will be moved to a new child, so that you can continue helping children in need. Your new sponsorship signifies an important part of our ongoing work and is a sign that we’re reaching even more children, families and communities in need with our sustainable programs. You’ll also have the opportunity to send a goodbye letter to your previously sponsored child. Saying goodbye can be hard, but a letter can help bring a sense of closure to your relationship and let your child know that your care doesn’t end with the program. We’ll make every effort to deliver your letter. We sincerely hope you’ll see this move as an opportunity to say hello and be a friend and champion to your new child. If you would prefer to sponsor a child other than the one we have chosen for you, you can email us at changinglives@hopeforkenya.org. The child we had assigned will become eligible for sponsorship by someone else as generous and kind-hearted as you
How can I send letters to my child?
Developing the relationship between a sponsor and a child is of utmost importance to Hope for Kenya. We greatly encourage you to write letters to your student and send photos of you and your family. You can email letters and pictures to changinglives@hopeforkenya.org. We will print those letters and photos for your student and bring them to Kenya on our next trip. If you'd like to send something handwritten to your student, please send it to Hope for Kenya, PO Box 300, Lake Luzerne, NY, 12846.
It is important for sponsors to note that in Kenya, it is culturally acceptable to ask for gifts from other people. While that is understandable, it is contrary to our goals in Kenya to create a generation of people dependant on the charity of westerners to survive. Longterm success in Kenya can only be achieved when Kenyans have the tools needed to provide for themselves and their society. For these reasons, we have instructed the students not to ask for specific gifts from their sponsors. Be assured that all of your sponsored student's basic needs are being met, and at a standard that far exceeds expectations for that area. We will constantly work to provide MORE items and opportunities to the students as Hope for Kenya grows.
Get the facts about Hope for Kenya
In Kenya
Peter Midodo and his wife Rachel created the Joy Schools International in 2004, to which they give nearly all their time. Their mission is to provide the poorest children of Kenya all they need to get a good education, including clean water, food, clothes, protection, and shelter. Hope For Kenya has expanded to helping a variety of schools, including secondary schools, college students, and students with disabilities.
In the US
A team of volunteers created Hope for Kenya in 2006, whose mission is to support missions work in rural Kenya started by Peter and Rachel Midodo and the surrounding schools they are involved with. Read more about Hope for Kenya, and how it all started...
Hope for Kenya focus on 3 essential ways to support the children and the work in Kenya:
Bi-annual visits on the ground
In February and June/July of every year, a group of sponsors, donors, and volunteers visits the schools in Kenya for 10-14 days. The goals are multiple:
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Help current projects in person: construction, renovation, training, etc.
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Connect with the children and the staff. Nothing is as powerful as meeting the children and teachers, talking to them, and, when possible, teaching some classes.
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See the reality, on the ground, with no filter. See what has been done, what still needs to be fixed or built. Measure the impact of the mission.
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Witness that the money is being spent effectively and appropriately. See that projects are happening the way they should. Understand what needs to be done next.
Project-based fundraising
Projects like building a classroom, a water well, or a dormitory is how Hope for Kenya has been raising most of its money since 2006. It remains an essential part of what the organization does.
The student sponsorship program
Since 2014, it is possible to sponsor a child directly. The team interviews children in need and posts short videos or stories on the website, describing briefly the situation of a child needing a sponsor. Sponsors can then choose a child to support in the long run, establishing a personal relationship, exchanging mail and photos. Sponsors are strongly encouraged to join a trip, and meet the student(s) they have chosen to support.
Where is the money going?
Your donation goes to the ministry work that is happening in Kenya, 9% goes towards operations and PayPal/bank payment and transfer fees.
Still have questions?
Contact us via email: changinglives@hopeforkenya.org.
