Dec 11 2012

‘An amazing, emotional experience:’ Sponsors’ trip to Chile

Posted on December 11, 2012 by admin

By Mary and Douglas DeLong, CFCA sponsors

The DeLong family visited their sponsored child on a recent awareness trip to Chile.

The DeLong family visited their sponsored child on a recent CFCA awareness trip to Chile.

Our journey began 12 years ago when we sponsored a Chilean child through Christian Foundation for Children and Aging.

Little did we realize what a journey it would be, or the experiences we would have.

When we started sponsoring Jannier he was 2 years old, and his mother would write us letters.

As he got older, she would include drawings that he had colored. Once Jannier was able, he started writing the letters himself.

We would include pictures of our own family with our letters and, in turn, would receive pictures of him.

His pictures joined the other pictures of our family on the refrigerator, and our son and daughter called him their little brother in Chile.

Jannier and his mother, Miriam, became part of our extended family.

At the end of September my husband, Doug, and I traveled on CFCA’s trip to Valparaiso, Chile, to meet Jannier and his mother. Read more

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Nov 14 2012

Chile: A beacon of hope

Posted on November 14, 2012 by admin

Join us as we celebrate Geography Awareness Week with National Geographic and friends. This year’s theme is “Geography: Declare Your Interdependence.”

CFCA has worked in Chile since 1982, and currently works with almost 5,000 sponsored friends and their families.

Chile’s unusual proportions ó 2,700 miles long and 109 miles wide ó makes it the longest country in the world in terms of length-to-width ratio.

It is one of the most prosperous countries in South America, but extreme poverty still exists.

CFCAís project in Valparaiso works closely with families, empowering mothers, preserving the dignity of the aging and opening the doors of education for children and youth.

The Valparaiso project hosts a training program for mothers of sponsored children, teaching them income-generating skills to help them increase their household income and save money. Read more

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Jul 2 2012

Want to visit your sponsored child or aging friend in Chile?

Posted on July 2, 2012 by admin

Do you sponsor a child or aging friend in Chile? Or are you just interested in going to Chile with CFCA? If so, we’d love for you to consider coming on our Sep. 28-Oct. 7 mission awareness trip!

We need a minimum number of travelers to go on this trip in order for it to be cost-effective. If we do not meet this minimum requirement, we unfortunately have to cancel the trip.

(Quick note: A CFCA trip is not a traditional mission trip. You will not be building houses or working in CFCA projects. A mission awareness trip is an in-depth immersion experience that will bring you face to face with the realities of CFCA families. If you also sponsor there, you’ll have an opportunity to meet your sponsored friend.)

So far our trip this year is just one person away from our minimum requirement. A few sponsors who originally signed up have had to cancel because of other time and scheduling conflicts.

The trip cost is $475 per person. Food, lodging and most in-country transportation are included. Airfare is not included.

If you’re interested in going, you can always download a registration packet from our website. Complete one application form per participant, read and sign the code of conduct, and return them along with a non-refundable $100 deposit per person to: CFCA, 1 Elmwood Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66103, Attn: Trip Coordinator.

Other ways to sign up are to call our trip coordinators at 800-875-6564 or email trips@cfcausa.org.

We’d love to know before July 23 whether anyone else is interested in coming. Feel free to share this information with anyone else you know who may be interested.

Thanks so much!

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Jan 16 2012

8 games played by sponsored children in Chile

Posted on January 16, 2012 by admin

By Shanxi Omoniyi, CFCA web editor and writer

If you sponsor a child, have you ever wondered what kinds of games sponsored children play?

Despite the challenges of poverty, kids in developing countries often find joy in playing with whatever they have available. Many of these games don’t require a lot of items, but they keep children entertained for hours!

On a recent mission awareness trip to Chile, sponsors got to observe ñ and participate in ñ games popular among sponsored children. I was honored to be part of the trip.

We hope you enjoy learning and watching these games as much as we enjoyed playing them! Watch the games in action

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Oct 19 2011

A hard day’s work for those living in poverty

Posted on October 19, 2011 by admin

By Shanxi Omoniyi, CFCA web editor and writer

I recently had the privilege of traveling to Chile on a CFCA mission awareness trip, and while there I met a woman who put my idea of “a hard day’s work” to shame.

Luisa, mother of a CFCA sponsored child, works in the vineyards in Chile

Luisa, mother of a CFCA sponsored child, is a seasonal vineyard worker in Chile.

Her name is Luisa, and she’s the mother of Javier, a child sponsored through CFCA.

She’s a seasonal vineyard worker, needed only in times of pruning and harvesting.

She started work Oct. 10 and will finish in mid-April, leaving home at 7 a.m. and returning around 6 p.m.

It can take her 20-30 minutes to walk from one side of the vineyard to the other.

Payment for her pains depends on how many boxes she can pick during harvest time or the hours she works when pruning.

If she picks about 100 boxes (each box weighing about 25 pounds), she can make approximately 17,000 pesos ($30 US) a day. Read more

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Oct 12 2011

How to make porotos con riendas (Chile recipe)

Posted on October 12, 2011 by admin

porotos con riendas, or white beans with spaghetti, from Chile

Porotos con riendas, or white beans with spaghetti - a CFCA recipe from Chile!

CFCA serves more than 4,000 sponsored children and elderly in Chile. Our staff members in Valparaiso sent us this recipe for porotos con riendas, or white beans with spaghetti.

The poroto (white bean) dates back to the migrants who came to South America, crossing the Bering Strait, who brought the seed, planting it mostly in Mexico and Peru. This has been one of the greatest sources of protein for the Latin American people. Varieties include black, white, yellow, etc.

This recipe makes 4-5 plates; white beans need to soak overnight. See the full recipe

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