How can i sponsor a child

Child Sponsorship: Learn How Sponsorship Works

1. What is the child sponsorship program?

Child sponsorship is a program that connects children in need with compassionate sponsors like you! Becoming a sponsor means investing in a child’s life and empowering them to grow up healthy, educated and safe. When you join our sponsorship family, you can be sure you're joining a growing, global community dedicated to doing whatever it takes for children, transforming their lives and the future we share.

When you become a child sponsor, Save the Children does not give your donation directly to the child you sponsor, rather we combine your monthly contribution with the support of other sponsors to help aid projects in their community – creating a “ripple effect” of positive change.  

2. How much does it cost to sponsor a child with Save the Children?

Sponsoring a child with Save the Children is just $39 a month.

The most effective way to help children is by combining your contributions with those of other sponsors, rather than giving them directly to the child you sponsor.

Your generous monthly support will go towards helping empower the lives of children and families in your sponsorship community through our innovative programs. Your sponsorship is truly an investment in children’s lives and futures!

3. Is child sponsorship effective?

With an ambitious vision and over a century of leading expertise, Save the Children is one of the oldest and highly regarded charities in the world. We are consistently recognized for our proven program responsibility and fiscal accountability. We earn high ratings from independent services like Charity Navigator and Charity Watch, and we are accredited by the Better Business Bureau.

When you become a Save the Children sponsor, you can be sure you’re joining a growing, global community dedicated to doing whatever it takes for children, empowering their lives and the future we share.

4. Can I write or email my sponsored child?

Yes! Exchanging letters and emails with the child you sponsor helps build a caring connection that deepens the impact of our work.  

Writing a letter on behalf of your family, or even having your child/grandchild correspond, is a great way to get your family involved in the sponsorship experience, help them learn more about the world and share in the joy of connecting with others. Once you become a sponsor, you will be able to email your sponsored child through your online account. Your email will be printed, translated and delivered directly to your sponsored child by our country office staff. 

Please keep in mind that there may be delays or inability to deliver letters in a timely manner due to the Coronavirus pandemic. We will do everything in our power to deliver your message while keeping staff and children safe. 

We’ll also occasionally provide you with colorful greeting cards that you can personalize and send to the child you sponsor in recognition of special occasions, such as his or her birthday. Children love reading your messages, so please be on the lookout for these special mailings. 

5.

Save the Children offers 3 types of child sponsorship:

• Individual child sponsorship gives you the unique opportunity to develop a one-on-one relationship with the child who you sponsor, while benefiting children in their community as well. Individual sponsors have the opportunity to exchange messages with their sponsored child via email or postal mail. 
• Lifeline sponsorship is where you contribute monthly support to a sponsorship community and receive information and updates about a single child, but there is no one-on-one relationship or ability to communicate with the child. This is a great option if you’re interested in learning how an individual child participates in sponsorship, but you aren’t able to or interested in corresponding with a child. 
• Program sponsorship is where you contribute monthly support to our programs in a specific sponsorship country.  Program sponsors receive updates and success stories on our overall results in the country, but have no individual child communication or updates. This is a great option if you’re interested in supporting sponsorship programs, but you aren’t interested in corresponding with a child.

You can become an individual child sponsorship and lifeline sponsorship online. If you are interested in program sponsorship, please contact your Supporter Experience Center team at 1-800-728-3843, Monday-Friday 8am-5pm (EST).

How to Sponsor a Child in Need | Children International | Kid Sponsorship | Sponsoring A Child for Charity

In times of crisis, children in poverty are especially vulnerable and face uncertain futures. Your monthly gift of $39 will give your sponsored child access to life-changing benefits, like medical care, educational support, life skills and job training before graduation.

As a sponsor, you'll be able to see your impact firsthand through letters and photos from your child. You’ll learn about key programs specifically designed to address children's toughest issues in their fight to escape poverty.

Use the search tool to find a child waiting for a sponsor like you!

Questions? Call 1-800-888-3089, chat or send an email. Our team is ready to help.

"Sponsorship is something that melts my soul. You are never the same again..." 
Marily R., CI sponsor since 1993

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Child sponsorship connects two people — a sponsor with a generous heart and a child living in poverty.

From toddlerhood to young adulthood, our child sponsorship program equips kids with crucial life and job skills to break the cycle of poverty. For good.

Your $39 monthly gift supports

1. A safe place, like 67+ community centers around the world
2. A caring team of local staff and volunteers
3. A path out of poverty through life-changing programs and services

How Child Sponsorship Works

What does my child receive?

• Access to life-changing benefits through our innovative community centers, such as medical and dental care, empowerment initiatives and education programs focused on giving children the support and tools they need to be healthy, stay in school, graduate and create a lasting change in their community. (Our U.S. children are served through the University of Arkansas in Little Rock.)

• Support from our dedicated staff and volunteers who are embedded in the community and committed to helping your child succeed.  

• A personal connection with someone who cares (you!) and the invaluable knowledge that they are special and loved.

• A chance for a better life free from poverty.

What can I expect as a sponsor?

• A quick-start guide to child sponsorship along with more info about your child including a photo.

• Photos and updates about your child on a regular basis.

• Letters from your child, many of which contain hand-drawn pictures.

• Access to MyCI, your online account, where you can view photos and learn more about your child, read and write letters, manage your giving, and connect with other sponsors. 

• See your impact in action through updates and monthly emails. And the option to visit your child and tour our life-changing community centers.

• A unique and rewarding opportunity to make a difference. 

Sponsorship continues providing life-changing help to your child

Your support is especially critical right now. Disadvantaged families around the world are trying to recover from the economic and emotional toll caused by the ongoing effects of the pandemic. Due to sporadic closures from spiking infection rates in some of the areas we serve, as well as other related factors, your sponsorship experience may begin a bit differently than it normally would.

Read about some of the changes you can expect Read Less

What changes should I expect to the sponsorship experience due to the coronavirus?

• Photos – as a sponsor, you receive a photo of your child each year, which you will still receive in your welcome kit. However, due to occasional shutdowns and other ongoing interruptions and shortages beyond our control, a more recent photo of your child may be delayed. We continually assess our processes and adjust so we can provide sponsors with the latest possible updates.
• Letters – as a sponsor, you can expect to receive a welcome letter, and then one to two letters from your child each year. But we cannot guarantee that communities – or that all community centers – will not experience occasional shutdowns. For the health of children, parents, and staff, we will only collect letters when it is safe to do so. Significant delays of letters, including the welcome letter you would normally receive, are still possible. We appreciate your patience!
• Your letters – we encourage sponsors to write to their children, but for now, there still could be interruptions in delivering letters to sponsored children. Currently, the only letters we can process are ones written through MyCI. When you write a letter through MyCI, your letter will be transferred electronically to your child’s field office. If your child’s family has a phone, a staff member will either digitally forward it to your child’s family or call and read it to them.

Note: If the family is not able to communicate digitally, we will try to find a way to deliver it and keep the lines of communication open whenever possible. The use of digital communications enables agency staff to get your messages to families much more quickly, and vice-versa. There is also a cost-saving feature with virtual letters. Families save time and money (transportation to the center, taking time off from work or school to retrieve letters, etc.) and our staff processing time is significantly reduced by digital communications.

Sponsorship support is so important right now. It’s been a difficult time for everyone and finding a new friend can be a great source of hope and confidence, especially for children in poverty.

FAQs about Sponsorship

Where can I sponsor a child?

Children International is proud to support children, families and communities in India, the Philippines, Colombia, Ecuador, Zambia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and the United States.

How much of my $39 monthly gift actually goes to my sponsored child?

82% of Children International’s total operating expenses fund programs for children and youth. So, the majority of your donation dollars go toward exactly what you intended — supporting children in poverty.

How long will my sponsorship last?

Child sponsorship is a voluntary, ongoing contribution you can cancel at anytime — you’re in charge of how long you sponsor (and how many kids you sponsor).

What if I need to make a change to my sponsorship?

You can make changes to your monthly giving anytime. Please contact our Care Team to adjust, delay, or cancel. And because of our on-going commitment to our children from the time of sponsorship through graduation, your child will continue to receive benefits from the program, and we will work to find them another sponsor as soon as possible.

Who is Children International?

Children International is a global humanitarian organization connecting people in the fight to end poverty for good. Headquartered in Kansas City, we work in 10 countries, serving 200,000 children to create lasting change in their lives. We believe ending poverty starts with children, so we focus on programs and efforts for children and youth during the critical years.  We build community centers, send volunteers to staff those centers, create educational and healthcare programs, and fund empowerment initiatives to help break the cycle of generational poverty.

I received a special code from a concert recently. How can I use that code to start sponsoring?

If you recently attended a concert and received a child packet, you were provided with a code that you can use to begin sponsoring that child. Please click here to go to children.org/start and enter your code. 

Have questions or need some help? Good news: We’d love to talk with you!

Sorry we missed you!

Our live chat isn’t available right now (check out our hours below). But you can send us an email at [email protected]. Or you can check out our Frequently Asked Questions section to find a quick answer.

• Monday – Friday: 7:30 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. CT
• Saturday – Sunday: Closed

Support a Child - Food for Life Global

Sponsoring a child is one of the most beautiful and generous things a person can do. Through your sponsorship, we can give a child hope. We can help change the lives of these children and support their local community.

By sponsoring children, you will help them provide themselves with food, clothing, education, clean water, health care and, above all, the opportunity for a better life.