Living with Compassion - Sponsoring a Child

One of the most direct, effective ways to change someone's life is to sponsor a child. There are children locally and around the world who live in poverty, who are in dire need of food, clothing, health care, and education. A year and a half ago I decided to sponsor a child through Compassion Canada. His name is Joy and he lives in Bangladesh. He is seven years old and lives in Bangladesh with his mother, father, and three older sisters. His father is currently working as a cook, and his mother is at home. Joy lives on the plains of Satarkul, where about 100, 000 people live. Bengali is the primary ethnic group and language. Houses are typically made of cement with corrugated iron roofs. The diet there mostly consists of fish, rice, and pulse, which is a kind of seed. Most of the adults in the area are unemployed. Those who do work, typically work as day laborers and earn the equivalent of $20 per month. The community is in need of academic supplies, job opportunities, and social programs. My sponsorship is helping Joy get proper nutrition, medical care, educational support, hygiene, and spiritual support. I specifically wanted a child in Bangladesh because of a song that I grew up listening to, and continues to move me to this day when I recently was re-introduced to it. It is called the "Song of Bangladesh" by Joan Baez. Although it was written about the political situation there in the early 1970's, it is still a land affected by poverty and social problems.