HEY FRIENDS!

HEY FRIENDS!

We hope you’re ready for exciting news.

CHANGE IS ON THE HORIZON

If you’re not a big fan of change, we totally get it. I mean – Daylight Savings Time…? Yuck. Mom messing with the classic mac-n-cheese recipe to make it “interesting?” No thanks. The process of switching over to natural deodorant? Eww. Change can be cringe. But not this change! We promise you’re going to love it!

A MOMENT OF GRATITUDE

First of all, let us take a moment to honor you! As a sponsor, you have signed up for a journey of pouring your prayers, time, resources, and love over a child living across the world from you. You’ve sown seeds of hope in their life, you’ve jumped in to meet their needs, and you’ve helped them pursue the dreams God has given them! For that, we honor you! There have been so many countless stories about how, because of you, a child’s entire future was changed for the better.

ALRIGHT, ARE YOU READY?

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introducing

For the last several months, God placed it on our hearts to reconsider and re-examine our approach to serving children around the world. We’ve shared with you how He has refreshed our vision, mission, purpose, and programs… and now we want to share how He’s leading us to refresh sponsorship.

Up until now, sponsors have been matched to a child one-on-one. However, we’ve observed that sometimes this model has left the children who have not yet been sponsored feeling left out. And that is NOT our heart or the heart of Jesus. While sponsorship has been a grand slam for the children who are chosen – it’s also, at times, been painful for ones who are left on the sidelines.

So we began asking God what we could do to ensure that every child experiences the love, acceptance, and belonging they deserve.

GOD ANSWERED WITH ONE MEANINGFUL WORD

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Instead of matching one child to one sponsor, we’ll now match a whole community with children to Children’s Cup Friends.

(YES, THAT’S YOU!)

🥳

Similar to sponsorship, Friends are invited to support, connect, and pour into the lives of children! But more than that, they’ll also be able to engage with the whole community of children – celebrating their wins, following their journeys, receiving updates about their lives, and watching them grow collectively.

Last week, we highlighted some of the ways we plan to expand our programs in order to help children thrive in every area of their lives - body, mind, and spirit. And, yes, it’s going to take all hands on deck!

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR YOU?

Current sponsors have automatically been transitioned to Children’s Cup Friends which means you are now matched with all of the children at the CarePoint where your sponsored child attends. (Congratulations!) However, in light of our ambitious new program goals, we ask you to prayerfully consider increasing your monthly pledge from $39 to $44. We let the numbers people do the math, and this $5 increase will substantially help cover costs and create more opportunities for more children.

As an official Friend, through our new CarePoint Community Pages, you’ll receive access to your specific Community Page that will allow you to view regular updates from your community and the children there, send encouraging messages to the kids and the CarePoint team, read their stories, swap prayer requests, and you’ll even be sent an official Friendship Bracelet – matching with the children you are helping to become world-changers!

 FAQs

  • All of the kids at the CarePoints know about the changes to sponsorship and what Friendship is all about. And they are thrilled! Many have already received their new friendship bracelets and they are so excited to know that not only is their current sponsor going to become a Friend to their whole community – but that more Friends will be on board, too! We have shared with the children that our heart is to ensure that no child feels left out, but instead, all are included and all are given even greater opportunities to grow, learn, pursue their dreams, and work together to change their community TOGETHER.

  • Yes! All current sponsors are now considered Friends and will receive all of the same benefits. We value your partnership and will honor your original donation amount.

  • Sending personal messages is a great way to connect with the children at your CarePoint to encourage them and remind them that someone is in their corner praying over them and cheering them on! You can even share YOUR prayer requests and the kids and our team will pray over your needs, too!

    When you send a message through your Friendship Dashboard Community Page, our team will make sure that the children receive it.

    We are even planning to create a Friendship wall at the CarePoint, where messages from Friends can be displayed and serve as a source of ongoing inspiration.

  • Easy peasy! Head to childrenscup.org to log into your dashboard. Select your Community Page where you can post your messages, photos, and more.

    While posting messages directly to your Community Page is the easiest way to go, we know sometimes there’s just nothing like good ole’ fashioned snail mail. You’re more than welcome to send physical letters to the kids at your CarePoint. Just send them to us at the address below and we’ll make sure they receive it.

    (Don’t forget to specify the name of the CarePoint you’re writing to.)

    Address letters to:
    Children’s Cup
    PO Box 1930
    Keller, TX 76244

  • You will not receive a specific response to your letters, but each month the children will participate in a letter-writing program and we will select a few to highlight on our community pages.

  • Yes! We would love to invite you to write one more personal letter to the child you have specifically sponsored before you jump in as a Friend to the whole community. We’ll be accepting final sponsorship letters through February 28th, 2023 and will ensure that you receive a direct reply.

    The children are already so excited about this new Friendship model – so in your letter, you can reflect that heart of celebration and excitement for the great things to come from this new adventure!

  • Great question! And the answer is YES! We have set up new CARE Funds for each country we serve in. As a Friend, you are invited to give at any time to this fund for our field teams to use at their discretion to help families in need. When you give towards the CARE Fund, you’ll receive updates on how your giving has made a difference.

  • By giving to our CARE Fund, you are enabling and empowering our local teams on the field to meet children and their family’s needs at their discretion. When you give towards your country’s CARE Fund, you’ll receive updates on how your giving has made a difference.

  • We will no longer facilitate individual birthday gifts, but, as a Children's Cup Friend, you are helping us host birthday parties to honor and celebrate each child as the treasure that they truly are!

  • As a Friend of Children’s Cup, you will now be invited to give towards your community’s Christmas at the CarePoint event! At these celebrations, each child will get to enjoy a fun experience, hear a message of hope, and receive a small Christmas gift!

  • We will no longer facilitate the mailing of gifts to the CarePoints. However, if you’d like to bring small gifts or items to bless all of the children at the CarePoint(s), the best way to do so is by participating in a mission team trip (or sending with a mission team.)

  • With our new CARE Funds in place, families who have immediate and urgent needs will be able to receive the support they need. Our team is communicating our new model and vision with families – especially those who may rely on the extra support sponsors have provided in the past. We are taking extra care to be sensitive and make sure families feel nothing but supported, cared for, confident in this transition, and full of hope for a bright future. Remember – with our program expansions, we’ll have even more opportunities to help families thrive in the long run.

  • When you travel with a mission team to visit your community, you will have a chance to meet all the children at the CarePoint. We will not facilitate individual home visits, but you will have the opportunity to spend time with the kids as you serve.

  • While we will not be giving gifts to individual children, we would love for you to bring small gifts for all of the kids at the CarePoint.