10-11-2003, 06:19 PM
Before I decided to sponser a child through this organization I corresponded with KinderUSA and ask a million questions regarding where the money would go, how it would be spent, how much would acctually reach the orphans, etc.
This is what I was told:
Hi Michelle,
I completely understand your wish to know how the program
works.
You may contact your orphan and send things to him through
our affiliate office KinderPAL in Gaza. These families do not have mailing addresses so the social worker will deliver the letter or parcel to them. If you send any gift, the Gaza office will take a photo of your child receiving the gift to document that the family received it and so that the Sponsor can keep a picture of the child with the gift. We have had several Sponsors send presents or extra money to buy things like bikes or soccer balls, toys or
whatever and the system has worked really well so far.
We send out updates on the sponsored children every six
months and include an updated photo of the child as well. Our program began in January this year so our first updates were sent out in July. Now that I have your address, I will send you your orphan information card with a picture of Belal and his family and personal information. I will include our most recent newsletter and a welcome letter that will explain in
detail how the program works.
Our U.S. Office does not benefit monetarily in any way from
the orphan funds, however a small percentage (I believe less than $2.00 monthly) is taken to pay for the expenses of the office in Gaza. We keep all of our expenses as low as possible so that the money donated to fund our projects benefits the children first and foremost. I will include a copy of our 2002 Annual Report when I send your orphan information so that you can get a
better idea of how we all at KinderUSA always strive to put the needs of the children first.
To answer the second part of your question about how the
money is given, I will briefly explain how our voucher program operates. We are not allowed to distribute cash to the families, so we use a voucher system whereby the family receives the amount of the funds you send in vouchers which may be
used at local markets to purchase food, medicine, clothing or
school supplies at reduced prices from contracted merchants. The
families have a choice of what they need to buy and the Sponsor knows that their funds are
being used for the benefit of the child and his/her siblings. So far, this voucher system has worked extremely well for the families and in fact it has been adopted by other charities as well.You will receive more detailed information about this system in the orphan packet that I will send you.
If there is anything else you would like to know, I will be happy to help you in any way that I can. I have developed wonderful
relationships with all of our Sponsors and have met the most incredibly caring and generous people, albeit via email and telephone, since we launched this program. I look forward to hearing from you again soon Michelle and thanks again for your
interest in helping Belal.
For the children,
Karima Nasrallah