Child Sponsorship FAQ

Our hearts break with the knowledge that some persons in the global Compassion family have succumbed to COVID-19. This pandemic has brought death to the doors of our frontline and supporting church partners, ministry partners, volunteers, and even our children and their loved ones. Please continue to pray for those who are impacted directly by this pandemic. Medical professionals predict the worst may be yet to come for the low-income world, which is far more underprepared for testing and caring for COVID-19 patients than we have been in higher-income nations. This means that tracking the full impact on our ministry, the children and their families will be increasingly difficult in the weeks and months to come. We are doing our best to keep you informed of the effect this crisis is having on our ministry, but always while respecting the privacy of those who serve alongside us. Thank you for your continued support and prayers.

This global pandemic has affected all of us in one way or another. Compassion staff and volunteers are doing everything they can to minimize the impact to the children in our program.

When the pandemic first began, Compassion had to temporarily close child development centers and halt group activities in all our field countries. Starting in October 2020, some centers have been able to reopen, and we are working to keep sponsors updated about the status of their sponsored children’s centers. Some centers remain closed. In some areas where restrictions have been eased, students are meeting in small groups at the centers. In some communities, centers have been able to reopen fully. (For more information about what each of these statuses means, see the first question on this page.) Regardless of status, staff are working with families to identify and meet their most urgent needs and help them rebuild from this time of crisis.

Because we are committed to protecting each child and maintaining their privacy, we do not disclose children’s health information. However, you can learn more about how COVID-19 is impacting your sponsored child’s country on our COVID-19 crisis page.

Compassion staff are taking every precaution to protect the children in our program. We have suspended all nonessential international travel to national offices and frontline church partners until travel restrictions have been lifted and it is safe to travel again. This means we will not be permitting any international visitors to meet sponsored children, visit Compassion child development centers or visit national offices.

As a regular part of our program, we continue to teach hygiene to registered children (and moms in our Survival Program), which reduces the spread of illness. Staff are also educating families about social distancing and mask wearing and, in many communities, are actively distributing masks and hand sanitizer to families.

Because of COVID-19, funds previously used at the child development centers can now be directed as needed to children and their families for necessities throughout the pandemic. During this time, your child sponsorship donation support provides:

• The stability and love of local church staff who know your child's story and unique poverty context.
• A caring team of people checking in on your child and their family.
• Additional help and supplies when local resources or support cannot be secured, including:
  • Food kits with nutritious essential items like rice, eggs, meat, milk, corn and other nonperishable dry goods.
  • Hygiene and sanitation supplies.
  • Personalized services like rent payment assistance, household items, emotional support and trauma counseling.
  • A watchful eye for child protection and prevention of abuse.
  • Opportunities to experience and learn about the love of Jesus.

Thank you for your heart and willingness to help. Our local church workers around the world are courageously coming alongside children and families, helping them face the ongoing challenges COVID-19 has created. You can help provide additional resources for physical, educational, and medical support. Make your donation on the Critical Program Needs page.

Each national office continues to receive letters, but for many, the translation and distribution process has slowed or completely paused. We hope you continue to write letters of encouragement and prayers to your child, but please know that it will take longer for your letters to be delivered, and your child will likely not be able to write back immediately if his or her center is still closed. Click here to see what the letter status is for your child’s country.

When a birthday or family gift is given, Compassion’s normal process is to have a local staff member consult with the family and then purchase and deliver your gift. During this time, however, that process creates additional burdens and dangers for our field staff.

Because of that, we are now encouraging field staff to disburse monetary gifts to an appropriate, verified caregiver (usually a parent or relative). This applies to family gifts and beneficiary gifts, including birthday and final gifts. Families may spend the gift on whatever they consider most important to meet family needs. The caregiver will be notified whether a gift has been designated as a beneficiary gift or family gift. The caregiver will decide the best use of the money, recognizing that sometimes purchasing food or paying rent is in the best interest of a child. In countries where there are fewer restrictions, some staff have been able to purchase and deliver gifts using the normal process. Click here to see what the gift status is for your child’s country.

Thank-you letters will be delayed until children can safely return to their centers, and photos of gifts will not be required during the crisis.

If you need to discontinue your child sponsorship, we will immediately look for a new sponsor for your child and continue the child's sponsorship support without interruption. You can discontinue your child sponsorship at any time.

When someone sponsors a child, it means a supporter within the United States has entered into a supportive relationship with a child. This child lives in extreme poverty, and the supporter provides financial and emotional support to help encourage healthy development as they grow.

When you sponsor a child with Compassion International, you help equip a child in extreme poverty with the skills and opportunities they need to succeed. Your sponsored child will be paired with a local church that will help encourage healthy development as they grow.

Through child sponsorship, that boy or girl will be given personal care and opportunities they would otherwise not have access to. Examples include medical checkups, healthy food, education assistance, and key life skills training.

And most importantly, sponsoring a child gives you and that child an opportunity to see the truth of the gospel in action.

A "Compassion Child" is a boy or girl living in extreme poverty who is enrolled in Compassion International’s Child Development Program. This child is between 0-22 years old and is being provided with unique opportunities through their local church to help equip them to become mature Christian adults.

This child lives in one of the 27 different countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America where Compassion currently serves. This child often only has one parent or guardian and is receiving adequate care not otherwise available for their physical, emotional, spiritual, cognitive and economic needs.

Our Child Sponsorship Program offers you the opportunity to stay with a child for a number of years, usually through the school year in which the child reaches the age of 18 to 22 (varies by country).

While we hope that you will be able to continue your support of your sponsored child until he or she completes the program, we recognize that circumstances sometimes change. You may discontinue your child sponsorship at any time.

Please understand that a sponsored child's circumstances may change, too. For example, sometimes families move beyond the reach of our program and children no longer have the opportunity to participate.

We will inform you as quickly as possible if any such circumstance affects the child you sponsor, and we'll offer you the opportunity to support another child in need of your help.

The cost to sponsor a child through Compassion's child sponsorship program is only $38 per month.

Yes. We encourage you to give additional monetary gifts for special occasions, to address specific needs, or simply as an act of love. These gifts are another effective way for you to reinforce your care and commitment to your sponsored child.

Local child development center workers purchase gifts on your behalf and make certain that these funds are used appropriately.

You may also send a gift to your sponsored child's family. With your monetary gift, the child development center staff will buy items your sponsored child's family needs, such as new beds, livestock and food supplies. We will work closely with the family to determine the greatest need and then purchase items accordingly.

• Frequently Asked Questions About Gift Giving

Yes. Each child has only one sponsor, which is why the sponsor's prayers, letters and support mean so much to a child. We believe that the relationship that develops between sponsors and children is instrumental in a child's growth and development. In addition, this one-to-one relationship provides children with the message that they matter, that they are valuable and that someone outside of their family cares about them and their future.

To inquire about canceling your child sponsorship, please call our contact center at (800) 336-7676. You may discontinue your sponsorship at any time.

We are a holistic child development ministry that focuses on the full development of the child. Because of that, we release children from poverty, not merely sustain them through it. Many organizations focus on only one aspect of poverty.   

• How does Compassion child sponsorship work?

We also recognize that the children we serve have unique needs and unique gifts. Therefore, we work at the grassroots level to identify and meet the specific needs of the world's poorest children through church partnership. In doing so, we address the spiritual, economic, social and physical aspects of poverty so that children may become responsible and fulfilled Christian adults.  

In addressing the many needs of children by partnering with the local church, we also rely heavily on the relational aspect of child sponsorship. We encourage you to have a close relationship with your sponsored children through consistent correspondence and communication, as well as personal visits. This separates us from other organizations.   

We are a Christian ministry that works in partnership with the local church, and therefore we do not accept government funds. This also distinguishes us from other child sponsorship organizations.  

Our holistic ministry is:

• Child focused – We are committed to making a difference in each child's life. Local staff is personally acquainted with each child to minister to his or her unique needs. We believe in ministering to individual children because they will be the ones to better their communities and nations in the future.
• Christ centered – We commit to honor Jesus Christ in all that we do. Every child who participates in a Compassion program is given the opportunity to learn about Jesus Christ and discover how to develop a lifelong relationship with God.
• Church based – We work exclusively through indigenous churches to create child development ministries so that church leaders and members around the world can become effective child advocates in their communities. Instead of throwing money at a problem, we believe in bringing long-term change.

By adhering to our core principles, we have become a leader among child development organizations and as such have often set the pace for other organizations to follow suit in raising their sponsorship rates.

The child you sponsor will receive opportunities and services that most of the world's poorest children never see. These opportunities and services include:

• The opportunity to receive an education:

  In some cases, this means providing the cost of school fees, clothing and supplies. In other cases, it means providing tutoring, help with homework, encouragement and, if necessary, participation in a literacy program outside the classroom. Your sponsorship will allow one special child to stay in school longer if formal schooling is an option and get the most out of his or her education.

• The opportunity to be healthy:

  The health of the child you sponsor will be monitored and care will be provided as needed. Children are taught about hygiene and how to maintain personal health. In addition, and according to their needs, many of the children we assist receive supplementary food.

• The opportunity to develop self-confidence and social skills:

  The child you sponsor will be part of a church-based program where Christian adults offer love, guidance, personal attention, guided recreation and safety.

• The opportunity to hear the gospel and learn about Jesus:

  Most important, your sponsorship provides the child you sponsor with regular Bible training and encouragement through a local church committed to Christ and the children in its community.

Prayer is a critical. Your sponsored child is in need and vulnerable.

Your prayers for the health, safety, education and spiritual development of your child are critical. Sponsored children are greatly encouraged when they hear that their sponsors are praying for them.

Remember that the child you sponsor will likely pray for you, too. Often, a sponsored child's family and church join in prayer with the child on behalf of a sponsor. As you share your own family and personal concerns with the child you support, you'll probably discover that he or she is consistently praying for you.

We do not require you to sign a statement of faith or a statement regarding your religious beliefs and practices. We do, however, seek sponsors who are aligned with our ministry approach and philosophy.

We are an evangelical Christian ministry dedicated to the holistic development of children in poverty. We carry out our programs by partnering with local Christian churches around the world who share our vision for ministry and conduct Christian outreach to local children and families. The partnerships we enter into with these local churches are based upon a universal statement of faith developed by the National Association of Evangelicals.

A sponsor is someone like you who has made the decision to personally invest in the life of a child in need. As a sponsor, you enable your sponsored child to participate in a church-based program that offers life-changing benefits including help with:

• education
• health care
• social skills development
• Christian training

And more than this, you can help your sponsored child develop a sense of confidence and self-worth with the love you express through letters and prayers.

As a sponsor, you are assured that there is a real connection between you and the specific child you support. The child you sponsor will know your name, write to you and benefit directly from your monthly sponsorship.

Your relationship with your sponsored child makes you a very important person who has a significant role in his or her development. You stand alongside parents, pastors, teachers, family and friends who are taking an active role in encouraging and developing the child.

In addition to letters from your sponsored child, we will send you periodic updates about your child's progress and newsletters about situations in your child's country that affect child development and our program there. You'll have a better understanding of your sponsored child's culture and life. It's quite likely that your vision of God's kingdom will expand. You may even decide to visit your child.

In addition to letters from your sponsored child, we will send you periodic updates about your child's progress and regular newsletters about your sponsored child's country and our program there. You'll have a better understanding of your sponsored child's culture and life and it's quite likely that your vision of God's kingdom will expand, too. You may even decide to visit the child you sponsor.

Once you've become a sponsor, we provide you with a special correspondence packet that includes stationery, an envelope and practical suggestions about writing the child you're helping.

We encourage you to send your sponsored child a personal or family photograph and a short letter of introduction. Our field staff will translate your letter and deliver it to the child you support. Sponsored children typically keep their sponsors' photos and letters in their homes as treasured possessions.

You may write to the child you sponsor as often as you like. When you write, your sponsored child will benefit from knowing that someone in addition to his or her family really cares. Your words of encouragement will make a big difference to your child.

Correspondence between sponsors and the children they support is truly developmental. The more you write the child you sponsor, the more he or she will reap the benefits of your relationship.

Your child will write to you at least twice a year — and up to six times per year depending on the frequency of your letters. A teacher or staff person will help children who have yet to learn how to read and write.

As you share your own family and personal concerns with the child you support, you'll probably discover that he or she is consistently praying for you.

As your exchange of letters with the child you sponsor grows over the years, you can build a scrapbook of letters and photos from your child. Your scrapbook will serve as a constant reminder of the relationship you've developed with the child you're helping and of how you've contributed to his or her growth.

You will also be receiving annual correspondence from local leaders, such as a church pastor or staff member, to help you learn even more about your sponsored child. 

As a sponsor, you have many opportunities to communicate with the child you sponsor and we encourage you to do so. When you communicate with him or her, however, we ask you to provide comments and materials consistent with the Christian values and philosophies we share with our partnering churches. We will not forward photographs and other materials depicting activities that:

• Might be considered inappropriate in another culture.
• Promote lifestyle choices that we view as unhealthy and inconsistent with biblically based lifestyles or otherwise inappropriate for sponsored children.
• Might threaten the safety of the sponsored children in any way.

For example, we will not forward materials that depict or describe the use of alcoholic beverages, tobacco, unlawful drugs and materials or activities that we regard as dangerous or unsafe. We will not forward materials or communications that advocate another religious worldview. In addition, we will not forward materials depicting persons dressed in immodest clothing or engaging in activities inconsistent with our ministry values and beliefs.

Yes. We encourage you to join a Compassion sponsor trip and meet your sponsored child in person. It will be an unforgettable experience for both of you! Check out our schedule of upcoming tours.

While we encourage each of our sponsors to write to their sponsored child, you are not required to send letters. Even if you don’t write your sponsored child, your child will write you at least twice per year.

Compassion understands letter writing can be a time-consuming process and strives to make your writing experience as easy as possible. We offer both printed and online letter templates for your convenience.

Jesus is the core of our ministry. His life and teachings shape our programs, reflect the spiritual commitments of our staff, and guide how we love people, respect communities and cooperate with nations.

Your sponsored child will have the opportunity to hear about Jesus Christ and be encouraged to develop a lifelong relationship with God. Therefore, each sponsored child receives regular Bible lessons from trained staff and encouragement through the local church partner operating the child development center.

The short answer…yes! Sponsoring a child really does help release children from poverty in Jesus’ name. Dr. Bruce Wydick, Professor of Economics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, set out to determine the impact of international child sponsorship.

Dr. Wydick found that children in Compassion’s child sponsorship program are:

• Up to 40% more likely to finish secondary education
• Up to 80% more likely to graduate college
• Up to 75% more likely to become leaders in their communities.

His study focused on 1,860 formerly sponsored children from 16 Compassion child development centers. These once sponsored children were compared against 3,704 of their unsponsored siblings. By the end of the study, data was collected on more than 10,000 individuals in six developing countries.

Compassion does not offer child sponsorship within the United States. Although we understand and believe there is need within the United States, our holistic child development program has been proven to work best in countries with the greatest need – where we can serve the poorest of the poor.

There is no age limit to sponsor a child. Whether you are 1 or 100, all are welcome!

More than 2.2 million children are sponsored in Compassion's Child Sponsorship Program. In total, Compassion's holistic child development programs is delivered to over 2.2 million babies, children and young adults.

• A focus on child development: Our program targets the needs of individual children first.
  
• Working exclusively through local churches: We want sponsored children to view the benefits of child sponsorship as an expression of God's love for them. We also want to equip the Body of Christ in the countries where we work with effective child development ministries so that church leaders and members around the world can become effective child advocates in their communities.
• A goal of child discipleship: We believe the most loving thing we can do for children is to introduce them to Jesus Christ. Here's why:

1. When children discover their worth to God, their self-esteem blossoms.
2. Children who recognize their roles as disciples are a strategic part of today's Church.
3. Children discipled in the Word and ways of God become our most potent weapon against tomorrow's poverty because they are tomorrow's Church.

Our goal, then, is to take a child from the brink of survival to abundant life as a disciple of Jesus Christ.

Currently we work in 27 countries, divided into four areas:

• Africa: Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Togo and Uganda.
• Central America and the Caribbean: the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico and Nicaragua.
• South America: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.
• Asia: Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
• Upcoming Countries: Malawi and Myanmar.

Yes, over the years we have partnered with many Christian musicians, speakers, promoters and ministries who share our heart for impoverished children around the world.

These spokespeople not only have a strong desire to serve as advocates for children in need but they are also sponsors of children themselves. In fact, the great majority have visited our child development centers and witnessed the life-changing effects that child sponsorship brings.

Our partnership many times includes financial assistance for these artists, speakers and ministries. This does not make their passion to help the poor any less significant. We want to honor the kingdom-building work that God has called these ministries to accomplish. These partnerships are relationships built on kingdom efforts, mutual respect and trust.

Our investment in this area has a twofold benefit: Tens of thousands of new child sponsorships are acquired while supporting other Christian ministries that are also building God's kingdom. Therefore, we feel these relationships are both fiscally and spiritually responsible.

Our history can be traced through more than 40 countries over 70 years.

In 1952, evangelist Rev. Everett Swanson was preaching in Korea. Moved by the plight of Korean War orphans, Swanson established a program through which caring people could provide food, shelter, education, medical care and Christian training for those orphans. Rev. Swanson's program became the basis for what is now Compassion International.

Compassion's Christian commitment has never wavered. We are keenly aware of the part we can play in fulfilling the Great Commission. All of our employees are committed followers of Jesus Christ, dedicated to developing children worldwide — and we are working exclusively through local churches.

We work with local church partners representing more than 65 denominations. Our statement of faith is the same as that of the National Association of Evangelicals.

We work exclusively through local churches to assist children. Because child development centers tend to average about 180 children, the local staff can become personally acquainted with each sponsored child and his or her unique needs.

We conduct regular audits to make sure funds are properly received, tracked and managed. Every financial process — from local child development centers to the Global Ministry Center in Colorado Springs — is regularly audited both internally and externally.

But it's not enough to ensure that funds are reaching your child's development center and being spent on planned activities. Like you, we want to be sure that real development is taking place in the life of every sponsored child. We work hard to monitor and evaluate each local center in terms of program effectiveness and long-term impact — right down to the individual child. Any time we see an irregularity, we take immediate and appropriate action.

Yes. Compassion is audited each year by an independent accounting firm. We publish the independent auditor report in its entirety and make it available on compassion.com. Accountability is a commitment and a value that drives our whole organization. We are committed to earning and keeping your trust.

If you have any questions about financial issues, please call us toll free at (800) 336-7676.

Yes. All contributions are tax-deductible in the United States. As a requirement of the 1993 Revenue Reconciliation Act, we verify that no goods or services of value are given to you for your contribution.

Compassion International has enjoyed 15 consecutive years of Charity Navigator's highest rating — with our last 4-star rating coming in April 2016. On June 1, 2016, Charity Navigator introduced a revised method of calculation for the charities they review. This revised system altered Compassion’s 4-star rating to a 3.

There are two changes that impacted Compassion’s rating. First, Charity Navigator’s updated criteria removed “revenue growth” as a measure they evaluate. Even during difficult financial times in the economy, God has blessed Compassion with dedicated sponsors and donors who care deeply about impacting children around the world, allowing our ministry to continue to grow year over year. Second, the revenue growth metric was replaced by a “debt to asset ratio.” This ratio measures the assets a charity holds on its financial statements. This change impacts Compassion’s rating negatively because we choose to send dollars to the Implementing Church Partners every month for our programs that impact children.

Since 1952, Compassion's ministry model has proved to provide immense stability in the face of various economic situations. We believe our sponsors and donors are best served when their dollars are quickly put to use releasing children from poverty, not sitting unnecessarily idle in an account.

Compassion’s strong commitment to financial transparency, integrity, and our core purpose of releasing children from poverty in Jesus’ name is and will continue to be unwavering. Our commitment to stewardship has not changed even though the calculations of Charity Navigator have undergone revisions.