You can write online or by hand. You can use your own paper or download our stationery (PDF, 76 KB), which leaves room for translation by our language specialists.

If you choose to mail your letter, please remember to include your sponsor number and your sponsored child's name and number on each item you send.

Our mailing address is:

Compassion International
Colorado Springs, CO 80997

Our experience has shown that routing letters through the Compassion system is the most efficient way to handle correspondence.

• It allows us to secure the appropriate translation service you and your child need for effective communication.
• It allows us to obtain the quickest delivery method, which for children in remote or highly transient areas is hand-delivery.
• It allows us to protect your privacy.
• It allows us to protect the children.

You may write to your sponsored child as often as you like. You will receive a minimum of three letters a year from your child, and we encourage you to write at least as frequently, even if it's just a brief note or card. In fact, short, simple letters help with translation and are preferred because your child receives your letters sooner.

Certainly! We recommend you send a picture of yourself in the first letter and lots of pictures after that. You can send landscape photos, artistic pictures, pictures of your pets, the town you live in, your family and friends, etc.  

Please avoid sending pictures that may accentuate the economic differences between you and your child (e.g., homes, cars, etc.). Be aware of what is in the photo's background. 

If you happen to send a photo that our country staff considers inappropriate, we will return it to you.

Please remember to include your sponsor number and your sponsored child's name and number on each item you send.

No. But since photographs are not as common in the developing world as they are in the United States, they are particularly valued. A photograph of you, the caring person from another part of the world, adds another dimension to your relationship; it personalizes your correspondence and helps deepen the connection the child makes.

Regrettably packages cannot be sent. Because of strict mailing and customs regulations in our various countries, letters that are not flat, are not made of paper, or are larger than 8" x 11" and 1/8" thick can delay an entire shipment of sponsor correspondence in customs for weeks.

View a list of items you may send your child.

Please remember to include your sponsor number and your sponsored child's name and number on any item you send.

To help the center staff and translators recognize that you expect an answer to the questions, 

• Number your questions (1, 2, 3).
• Highlight the questions.
• Keep the questions brief and to the point.

Your cooperation by not including this type of information allows us to protect your privacy.

Your group can write the letter together, or can take turns writing, but it's best to have the same person consistently sign each letter. It's far less confusing for a child to talk with one person than to a group of people, and that same principle applies to letter writing.