Yes, the child you are helping has just one sponsor: you. That’s why your prayers, letters, and support mean so much to your sponsored child. You can choose to sponsor a child as a family or a group (for example, a youth group or a class), but one person must be listed as the donor responsible for making monthly payments.
Hope for Kenya’s child sponsorship offers you the opportunity to stay with a child through their entire academic journey! Our sponsorship program includes students pre-K to 12th grade. When a child graduates high school, their sponsor will be given the option to continue supporting them through our college program. If the sponsor agrees, the monthly sponsorship fee of $40 will now contribute to a scholarship allotted to that specific student. While we hope that you can continue supporting 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 also change. While saying goodbye to a sponsored child can be difficult, oftentimes this goodbye is something to be celebrated as it usually means the child is no longer in need of support. We will inform you as quickly as possible if any such circumstance affects the child you sponsor. We will then transfer your support to another child in need of your help.
We try our best to ensure that the child you choose to support will remain your sponsored child for the as long as they are in our program. However, sometimes a child's circumstances change and they leave our program. This usually occurs when the child's family moves out of our school districts or their parents recieve better employment that allows them to now cover the child's school fees. While it can be difficult to say goodbye to a child you've been supporting, there is great reason to celebrate the new opportunities that lie ahead for that child.
If your child leaves our program, you will be notified and your sponsorship will be transferred to a new child waiting for sponsorship. 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 and our team will help you get connected with the child of your choice.
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. If your sponsored child expresses a concern or a need to you, please contact us and we would be happy to check in with that child personally to ensure that they are in good health and have what they need to excel.
91% of the funds we receive go directly to caring for your child. This care includes safe housing at one of our schools, three balanced meals a day, their uniforms, other clothing items as needed, school supplies, and school tuition. 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 they are willing. All your donations are tax deductible. If you have any questions please email us using the “contact” page.
In 2004, Peter Midodo and his wife Rachel opened the Joy Schools International in Ndhiwa, Kenya. Their mission was and still is to provide the vulnerable children in their community a quality education, clean water, food, clothes, and safe shelter. Not only do they have a heart to meet the basic needs of children in need, but the Midodos also seek to fill a parental role for many of these children who are without parents. In 2006, the Mididos invited a group of volunteers in the U.S. to join their mission and visit their school. Shortly after Hope For Kenya was formed from these orginal volunteers. Philip Coltart, our current Director from the United States, was one of these original volunteers. Since then, Hope for Kenya has expanded to helping multiple schools in Kenya and is currently working to build a high school of its own in Ndhiwa. We have dug several wells to provide access to clean water for the communities around our schools. We have also recently launched a college program that provides scholarships for our students who wish to continue their education. As our organization continues to grow, we seek to implement sustainable practices and programs to support the original vision of Peter Midodo, our Director in Kenya and his wife Rachel who serves beside him. Read more about Hope for Kenya, and how it all started...
Ways You Can Be a Part of Our Mission:
Come to Kenya with us!
Every February and October, we invite a team of sponsors, donors, and volunteers to visit our schools in Kenya for 10-14 days. On a trip, you will...
... help with current projects and initiatives, such as construction, renovations, teachers trainings, community support programs, etc.
... recieve opportunities to meet and get to know your sponsored child!
... build relationships with our students, school staff, and team members. We welcome you to bring an activity or game to share with the kids during free periods. You may also have the opportunity to teach a class if that is of interest to you.
... be given a chance to experience and be a part of Kenyan culture.
... visit the homes of current students and students eligible for sponsorship. You will travel with us to recruit vulnerable children in need of a sponsor and see firsthand some of the difficult circumstances that each of our students have faced. This segment of the trip is often the most impactful. While it can be challenging to witness children in need, it is this exposure that fuels us to continue the work we do.
... get a chance to see the beauty of Africa's landscape and wildlife at safari.
Participate in Fundraisers!
None of the money we recieve from sponsorship is used for projects such as building classrooms, water wells, and dormitories. These projects are completed through fundrasing efforts only. Every year we do several fundraisers of which you can be a part! Follow us on social media or subscribe to our newlsetter to recieve updates on what we're doing and details about how you can help.
Sponsor a Child!
You can commit to a reoccuring monthly payment of $40 that will fully provide for a childs education, food, and safe shelter. Our sponsorship program has been in action since 2014 and over 400 vulnerable children have been given a new hope by people like you! All of our children have been personally interviewed by our team members to assess their level of need and their stories can be found under their tab in our "Sponsor a Child" section. Make a difference in a childs life today. sponsors to join us on a trip to Kenya to meet the student(s) they have chosen to support.
Contact us via email: changinglives@hopeforkenya.org.