Your Child Sponsorship is Transforming Families

Shraboni was a typical eight and a half year old in Char Borobila. That was, until she was sponsored by a Canadian through Food for the Hungry (FH).

Like most of the other families in Char Borobila, Shraboni's family experienced a lot of

Shajahan helping his daughter feed her mother's cows.

struggle because of the persistent poverty in their community. Her father, Shajahan, is a hard-working man who owns his own tailoring shop. As the only working member of the family, however, he was unable to earn enough to support them. The financial stress understandably put a strain on the marriage, making Shraboni's house a stressful home.

With so many other pressing needs, Shraboni's school attendance was sporadic, at best.

But a number of things started to change when a family in Canada chose to sponsor her.

Child sponsorship opened up a relationship between FH and Shraboni’s parents. Her mother, Sharmin, was persuaded to start making some bold changes. She joined a Savings and Loans group that also offered literacy classes. Sharmin learned to read and write, and as she did, her whole attitude toward her daughter's schooling began to change. She began to see the value of education, especially the value of a girl gaining access to the same knowledge that boys are offered.

Shraboni shows her little brother how to do her homework.

In addition to literacy classes, Sharmin also learned how to save and leverage capital. She borrowed 10,000 Taka ($163 CAD) from her savings group and invested a portion of it in agriculture, and used the rest to buy a cow. By selling milk from the cow in the local market Sharmin can now contribute income to her family - on average 800 Taka ($13 CAD) a month. Through saving a portion of her income every month, Sharmin has been able to buy an additional cow.

Sharmin shares, “FH transformed our family. Being involved with FH gives me a lot of benefits for my child and myself. I am now working hard to bring prosperity in my family.”

Perhaps the most significant investment Sharmin made was in Shajahan's tailoring business. She now works side-by-side with her husband in his shop, making a profit and supporting their children through their shared business.

Sharmin and Shajahan now run the tailoring business together.

At first, Shajahan wasn’t sure how Sharmin’s activities would impact their family. In time, however, he was delighted that the changes served to strengthen, not further fracture, their family. “Our family got many advantages from FH. From my children taking education and my wife learning many things in her group. My wife is also helping me in my work. Shraboni has learned many things from child club meeting. She goes to school regularly, studies attentively, and attends her classes on time.”

Child sponsorship relieved Shraboni's father of the impossible financial burden of being the sole provider for his family. Child sponsorship catalyzed Shraboni's mother into a whole new way of living through gaining literacy, money management skills, property ownership, work outside the home, and true partnership with her husband. Their marriage has dramatically improved - they now make plans together about how to improve their family’s income and their children’s education. They intend to expand their business and bring more prosperity to their family. Child sponsorship was the catalyst for this family to transform their lives and become a shining example of hope to other families in their community still trapped in poverty. 

And it was child sponsorship that got Shraboni back in school and made her home a place of peace, mutuality, and prosperity. 

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