Our next sponsorship story is from the Dimora family!
When
I think of child sponsorship, I think of families and generations changed… How
communities are changed.
We
sponsor Gabi, a 21 year old young lady (who has been attending further schooling
to try and attend college), and Corine, a 3 year old girl, from the same family
group. The head of the family is Azucena. She leads a family of her own
children, who are adults and many grandchildren. Gabi is Azucena’s daughter and
Corine is Azucena’s granddaughter. Corine’s mom (Another of Azucena’s
daughter’s) died in child birth of Corine. Gabi has taken the responsibility to
raise Corine (her niece) as her daughter. Gabi and Corine, and many other
grandchildren, live with Azucena in Gerona, an area outside Guatemala City that
we work in. Many of the grandchildren also have sponsors.
I
look at this whole family and the influence sponsorship has had… Azucena was a
different woman when I met her 3 years ago. But over the last few years she has
blossomed int he knowledge that God has a purpose in her life and loves her dearly.
Through sponsorship relationships, many in her family has come to
know Jesus. Though sponsorship relationships, children are eating better. Through sponsorship relationships, our 21 year old sponsored young woman has
attended further education towards a dream of going to university. Because of multiple people sponsoring
children in this family and relationships built, Azucena attended an intensive
small business training Caroline’s Promise offered and through that God spoke
to her about her worth and abilities. Since then she has gone back to her
community and started a savings club and a large Bible Study in her home. We
had the honor to visit the group this
past fall and it was a moving time, filled with joy. The family is being
changed, the community is being influenced, and it started because of child
sponsorship.
On a
personal note, our family is deeply touched by our relationship with that
family. We go to Guatemala at least once per year, so we have been able to see
them often. We feel a part of them as family. I like to refer to Gabi as my
sponsored sister, seems to be a better fit for the lovely young lady- with so
much resilience to take on her sister’s child when she was barely an adult
herself. Corine cries almost every single time she sees me :) … But
she watches me across the room wanting me to look and the last time I saw her,
she didn’t cry and she let me hug her. The photo shows me excited because for
the first time she didn't cry! We love the long term relationship we have been
able to built. To truly invest in them,
to pray for their big dreams, to grieve at their losses, to celebrate their
triumphs, to learn from them. Child sponsorship has changed them and it has
changed us.
To find out more about sponsorship and to see children who need sponsored, click here
