The holiday season is such an important time.
It’s the time we reflect on the year and dream about what the new year could bring. It’s the time we come together with family and friends to make lasting memories. It’s the time we celebrate the birth of Christ and His astounding love for us.
For many people, it’s also a season of generosity. If you are one of the compassionate people considering a year-end gift, here are 12 vital projects you can invest in to change the lives of vulnerable children in Africa and the Caribbean:
(To learn more about or give to any of these essential needs below, contact Director of Partner Engagement Fraser Ratzlaff at frazerratzlaff@cotni.org.)
1. Education in the Dominican Republic
Education is one of the key ways to lift a child out of poverty and open up doors of opportunity for their future. Your gift will help provide the salaries for quality teachers and staff and the school and classroom supplies needed to help students make the most of their education.
2. Physical Care in Malawi
When a child has the care they need to be physically healthy, they can rise up and become leaders and role models for the next generation. Your gift will help provide medication, nutritious food, medical and hygiene supplies, and health education to help keep children happy and strong.
3. Social Care in Sierra Leone
Raising children to be socially and emotionally healthy allows them to thrive as adults, give back to their community, and ultimately transform it. Your gift will help provide counseling, play therapy, talk therapy, mentorship, and education to address the emotional needs of the children in our program.
4. Spiritual Care in Uganda
True and lasting change starts with helping a child learn about the love of God. Your gift will provide opportunities for discipleship, mentorship, and evangelism such as Bible studies, camps, and community outreach, as well as passionate and hardworking spiritual care staff that will disciple the next generation of leaders.
5. Solar Power for the Malawi Campus
Our campus in Malawi doesn’t have reliable power. The local utilities provide inconsistent energy, and blackouts occur often. Your gift will help provide solar power that is safe, efficient, reliable, and able to meet the energy needs of the hundreds of children who use the campus.
6. Dominican Republic Medical Clinic
Our clinic in the Dominican Republic provides medical care to hundreds of children and their families—people who have nowhere else to turn. Because they are Haitian-Dominican, they aren’t considered citizens and can’t use public services. Your gift will help this vulnerable population and provide gynecology services for a year.
7. Provide Essential School Supplies
Imagine being a child in school and not having a pencil to write with or a notebook to write in. How could you ever fully engage in your classes? Your gift will help provide students with the essential supplies they need to succeed in school, including notebooks, pencils, pens, a ruler, glue sticks, and more.
8. Provide Vital Hygiene Supplies
No child should get sick from a disease that could have been prevented. That’s where these life-changing hygiene supplies come in. Your gift will help provide soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, bandages, shampoo, and more to help children grow up happy and healthy.
9. Spiritual Care in Haiti
The children who learn about God’s love today can become the Christ-centered leaders their nation needs. Your gift will help children grow closer to God through Bible studies, camps, community events, and the mentorship of caring adults pointing them toward Christ.
10. Physical Care in Sierra Leone
Without nutritious food and quality healthcare, children can’t reach their full potential. Your gift will help provide meals, medication, supplies and operating costs for our clinic, health education, and specialized care for children with disabilities.
11. Preschool in Haiti
Preschool plays an essential role in a child’s education—90% of a child’s brain development happens before the age of five. But many families living in poverty simply can’t afford to send their children to preschool. Your gift will help provide children in Haiti with this early childhood education and give them a strong foundation for their future.
12. University/Vocational School Scholarships
University and vocational school are life-changing opportunities for young men and women, yet they are opportunities that are out of reach for so many. There are young people in our program who have gone on to become teachers, business owners, doctors, lawyers, accountants, nurses, and more, all because they got the chance to further their education. Your gift will help provide the tuition, room and board, school supplies, and travel expenses these hardworking young people need to become the nation changers of tomorrow.
To learn more about how you can make a lasting impact with your year-end gift, contact Director of Partner Engagement Fraser Ratzlaff at frazerratzlaff@cotni.org.
By Kelly Flannery, Marketing Writer at Children of the Nations