Child Impact
International is an organization
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that gives hope
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and fosters
permanent, positive change
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in the lives of
disadvantaged children
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and their communities.
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Countries include Zambia,
India, Nepal, Bangladesh,
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Sri Lanka, and Myanmar.
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Child Impact's investment
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in the lives of
more than 3,500 children
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continues to
yield infinite returns.
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Outreach spans from
child rescue operations
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to providing an education
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and a home for deaf and
blind children and orphans.
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Above all, Child
Impact's sponsors
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give hope to the
ones who need it the most.
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The Immanuel English
School in Jeypore, India
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is a boarding school
that has over 700 students.
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This large school
facility was built in 2006
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largely to support and
educate poor tribal children
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from Adventist
backgrounds in this region.
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Eight-years-old Suraj Harijan
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is a second-grade
student at the school
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and a Arun Panda,
the school principal
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took us to the village
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where we met with
Suraj's mother Pramila.
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Her husband had
died two years ago,
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and soon after the family came
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to live with
Suraj's grandparents.
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Suraj father was
suffering from fits
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and he was
taking so many medicines
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but there are no cure.
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So one day he
went to a nearby pond,
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and he suddenly he
was attacked with fits,
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and he fell down
there, there was less water,
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but there was no one around,
and he was drowned in the pond.
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And that is how he expired
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and after that her mother
is staying with her brother
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in the nearby village.
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Fits is what epilepsy
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is commonly
referred to in India.
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Suraj's father
suffered a convulsion
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while he was
bathing in a village pond.
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Although the water
was only knee deep,
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there was no one around to help
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and he drowned
leaving Suraj's mother widowed
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at a young age.
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The life of a widow
in our Indian culture,
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especially those women
who are in a small village,
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a traditional village,
it is very, very difficult.
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Life becomes almost
like a curse we can say,
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where the widows
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they have to depend on
someone for any little help,
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they become helpless.
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And the more children they have,
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the more burden they have.
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And in some families,
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the in laws or
their brother-in-law,
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sister-in-law, they
never take care of them.
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And indeed, they try to put,
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you know, negative
allegations on the widow
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and every one since
there is no husband,
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they feel that
they can say anything
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because there is no
one to support them.
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So their life
becomes really tragedy.
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So being a woman, I
know how they undergo,
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what sigma they undergo
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in the Indian
traditional village.
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Although, they had a house
of their own, it was unlivable.
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Monsoon rains had destroyed
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a portion of their
tiny thatch roofed mud house
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and living in it was
impractical and insecure.
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Unable to repair the house
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and not having a
safe place to live
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Suraj's mother moved
into her brother's house.
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When husband dies,
the mother is not secure,
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and the main breadwinner
for the family is the husband.
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So after husband dies,
the mother was helpless.
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Suraj's uncle
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who has recently joined
as a staff in our school,
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he told us
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that his sister's
condition is pathetic,
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and especially the
children need help.
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And so he was the
one who contacted us
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and then we were
able to get Suraj
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to come to this institution,
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and we are happy
that he is sponsored.
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And now Suraj is
studying in this institution.
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Suraj's uncle Manoj Dayalu
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had just joined
as a teaching staff
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at the Immanuel
School during this time,
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and he requested the
school administration
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to help his nephew get
admission at the school.
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If Suraj did not come
to the school to study,
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he would have
spent his childhood
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roaming around in
the village and playing.
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After few years, he
would've helped his mother,
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he would have done some work,
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and he would have
spent his remaining life
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as a daily laborer.
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Suraj is small now,
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but I could see
how he is very active
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and clever child, studious child
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is doing very
good in his studies.
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And in near future,
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I know he will
stand on his feet,
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and he's going to
take care of his mother
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and the little
sister that he has.
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And the mother also need
not to depend on his brother
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or other
relatives and this boy is,
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I'm sure he's going to
take care of his mother
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and his little
sister when he grows up.
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Suraj is fortunate to
have received sponsorship
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through Child Impact.
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Sponsorship for boys like Suraj
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is like lighting a
candle in the darkness.
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And his sponsor
has lit this candle
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not only for him
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but for his
widowed mother as well.
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When we talk about
children and helping children
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and impacting on children,
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you know, Child
Impact is only the conduit.
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We help you, the
sponsor, connect with the child,
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and the two of
you are the people
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that transform this world.
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So we are here to
serve you as sponsors
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to do the best for you.
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Ensure that the
policies and the guidelines
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and the procedures are in place.
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So what you give
out of your generosity
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is used to the best effect.
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They impact the child
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in the most
profound way possible
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and create the
best opportunities.
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So to our sponsors,
you are on one side,
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the key player in
this whole picture,
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and the child is the other.
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We are just the canvas.
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You guys paint the picture.
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So thank you for
your sponsorship.
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It is making a brighter
picture for all these children.
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She says, "In these villages
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and everywhere widows
life is very difficult.
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And I was struggling
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but someone whom I don't know
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came forward to
help my son Suraj
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to get an
education in good school.
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So like me there are so
many in surrounding villages
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and everywhere and
they too are struggling.
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I wish more
people will come forward
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and give such help
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as they have given to my son.
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And I would like
to thank all of them."
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That is what she said.
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The growing
realization of the need
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to support many
such single parents
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and their children
can be overwhelming,
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but it is reassuring to
know that with sponsorship,
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we can go about making a
difference one day at a time.
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Today, Child Impact continues
to fulfill its commitment
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to the welfare of
children who are in need,
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providing them
education through sponsorship,
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giving them hope, and a
chance for a better life.
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Imagine with me for a moment
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that you were a small child
living on the streets of India.
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The sandals on your feet
lost their comfort weeks ago,
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your favorite shirt
just got another hole.
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It's sad, mummy died last year
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but what makes
you feel even worse
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is that your dad chose
not to be your dad anymore.
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Hey, I'm Shawn Boonstra,
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honorary ambassador for
Child Impact International,
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an organization that
is a supportive ministry
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of the
Seventh-Day Adventist Church.
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Something like 15 to 25 million
little girls and boys in India
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share similar stories
to the one I just told you.
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Many are orphaned at a young age
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with little food
to eat and no hope.
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Child Impact
serves to bridge the gap
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between hardship and education.
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It's a unique ministry
that serves children in poverty
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in Bangladesh, India,
Myanmar, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.
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Over 3,500 children
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are provided an
Adventist education
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and lives are changed
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through the numerous
development projects.
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Working in these countries,
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Child Impact has
come face to face
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with issues like
child slavery, poor,
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or no education,
child trafficking,
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abandoned babies,
lack of clean water,
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and a high number of orphans.
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This list is not
short on challenges,
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yet the needs are being met.
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You know, my
family sponsors Sheila,
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a young lady at the
Sunrise Orphanage in India.
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For the past couple of years.
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I'm proud of how my
family has been able
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to impact her
life for the better.
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Word has it, she
just started college.
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What I've come to understand
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is that the children
Child Impact supports
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are more than
just names or faces
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on a screen or a flyer.
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They're people with a story,
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a story whose ending
has not been written.
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Instead, another
chapter is being composed.
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It reminds me of
something that Jesus once said,
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"Whatever you do for the least
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of these brothers
and sisters of Mine,
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you do for Me."
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Join me and others like
me throughout the world,
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who are
sponsoring a child monthly
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to provide like Jesus
did, to support like Jesus did,
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to love like Jesus did.
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You too can make
a lifelong impact
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on the life of someone
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who is waiting
for you to say yes.
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Yes, today, you
will consider sponsorship
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right now with Child Impact,
or one of our other projects.
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Yes, to give hope to
a precious child today.
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Sponsoring
children in activities
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like these mission schools
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and opportunities
is a tremendous way
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to help form the
character of young people
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as they look to the future.
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They will never
forget their association
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in a Christian environment.
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And by God's grace,
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many of them will become
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members of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
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It is absolutely
a powerful witness
00:12:38.35\00:12:41.72
to sponsor a
child in Child Impact
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and so many other organizations
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that help young
people to find Jesus.
00:12:48.26\00:12:52.70
Sponsoring a child not
only has short-term effects,
00:12:52.73\00:12:57.27
but it has a long-term effect.
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Sponsoring a child is investing
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in the character of a
young person for eternity,
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that we're taping
this right here in Myanmar
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at the Myanmar
Union Adventist Seminary,
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and about
one-third of the students
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or one-quarter of the students
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are being
sponsored by Child Impact.
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People who become
workers in God's church,
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people who make an
impact in the community
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have been people
who have been sponsored.
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Your sponsorship is
absolutely an investment
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in the future of the church.
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