MEET RAFATOU
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Rafatou from Togo	Rafatou, mom and brother

RAFATOU lived in Togo, a very poor area in West Africa. Our connection began in her early teens when I signed up as her foster mom and we continued a warm relationship for the next few years. The whole family gets involved when you sponsor a child and they love it when you mention each family member by name every time you write. Quite often the father is absent from home -- disappeared somewhere!

Recently, Rafatou left home to seek employment in Nigeria and is now cared for by her foster father. Normally, when your child reaches 18, 'graduation' from Childreach takes place and the sponsorship ends. Sometimes, however, you can find ways to continue writing to each other if you both desire it.

MEET LUCY
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Lucy from Kenya	Lucy and mom

LUCY from Kenya, Africa, was the child that so has far remained with me the longest -- about six years. She was Catholic and actually wrote to me in English so we got to know each other quite well and became friends. When Lucy turned 18, she graduated from Childreach and planned to become either a nurse or a teacher. I have no doubt that she is doing fine as I sensed in her a strong desire to help others.

MEET BABY BOUSY
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Baby Bousy from Egypt	Baby Bousy and mom

BABY BOUSY from the slums of Cairo, Egypt became my very first foster child and also the youngest, at 2 years old ... a chubby-faced little darlin' at that!

Various members of her family would write to me on her behalf, and as with all the other families, were most appreciative of the improvements that Childreach/Plan brought to their community.

This included better sanitation (beats having to pee and poop in the fields!), health clinics, education and much more. Yet, equally important, and perhaps in some ways more important, was the personal connection through letters and little gifts from their sponsors. Needless to say, the sponsor, in this case me, shared in the spirit of connecting in friendship with the unlikeliest people in the unlikeliest places. This is GOOD.

After a few years, the family living situation improved, largely due to the help received from Plan, whereupon the father found a higher paying job which necessitated a family move out of the Childreach area. Bousy was a Sweetie and by now must be in her early teens.