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The Children
Contact Us
Victorious Faith
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Sponsorship FAQ |
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Answers to Common Questions about an Esther's Hope Sponsorship |
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Q. How much of my $30 will actually go to the care of the child? A. Every dollar of your sponsorship (100%) goes directly to the needs of the children of Victorious Faith Refuge Home in Liberia. Of course, there are administrative costs, but because Esther’s Hope is a ministry of Victorious Faith Ministries, we cover the administrative costs out of our own operating budget and through special gifts given by caring people for that specific purpose. Sponsors who desire to give an additional gift toward administrative costs or special projects should include a short note explaining their intent with the gift so we can administer the funds properly. --- Back to Questions List ---
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A. We are looking into this option for the future, but it is not currently available. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. Esther’s Hope aims to provide the basic needs of food, clothing, shelter, healthcare and education for the children we support. This includes supporting the general expenses of the refuge home and its small staff.
--- Back to Questions List --- Q. Is my child sponsorship and donations to Esther’s Hope special projects tax-deductible? A. Yes. Victorious Faith Ministries, the parent organization of Esther’s Hope, has been designated a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Organization by the federal government. You will receive a receipt of your total tax-deductible giving at the end of each year. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. Our relationship with Pastor Andrew spans many years; long before the Refuge Home was established. We have partnered with him on two mission trips to train pastors in Liberia. We have been in his own home and spent time with the children and caregivers at the refuge home. We have seen first hand the work and the need there. Pastor Andrew is highly regarded in his own country, and we have found him to be a gifted and capable man who has consistently demonstrated the highest level of integrity. (A rarity in Liberia, even among pastors.) We also provide specific direction and oversight of how funds are used. We monitor the situation in Liberia closely with weekly phone calls and hold Pastor Andrew accountable for the funds we send. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. Every month, all sponsorship funds are transferred to Pastor Andrew by Western Union. All funds are given to him in U.S. dollars. Western Union transaction fees are expensive (in our opinion) but it’s the only reliable way we’ve found to get funds to Liberia. --- Back to Questions List --- A. Certainly. Your one time or occasional gifts may be applied to the administrative costs or special ongoing projects, such as digging or repairing a well, improving or expanding the home, Christmas gifts for the children, special medical needs (correcting deformities), etc. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. Certainly. (See the previous answer.) --- Back to Questions List --- A. Yes. We ask each sponsor to commit to consistently pray for the child they sponsor. We also ask you to remember the dedicated staff of caregivers, the other children and the general needs of the Refuge Home in your prayer time. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. We hope that you will decide to make a long-lasting commitment to the welfare of the child you sponsor. Most sponsors will continue to provide for their child until adulthood. We ask for a minimum commitment of one year. If you’re not ready or able to make a one year commitment, then consider giving toward the Esther’s Hope administrative costs or special projects. We understand situations can change and you may need to discontinue your support. If you must discontinue your support, we ask that you give us three months notice so that we can seek another sponsor for your child. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. To make child sponsorship affordable for nearly everyone, we’ve set the monthly sponsorship amount at $30. The true cost of supporting a child in Liberia is considerably higher. On our trips there, we noticed prices for food and other necessities seemed comparable, or slightly higher, than what we would pay in the United States. To meet their basic needs, our goal is to match each child with two sponsors. If you desire to be the sole sponsor of a child, you can certainly double your sponsorship and we will match you with an unsponsored child. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. No. This is one of the most frustrating aspects of our mission in Liberia. They have no reliable mail service. Other delivery options, such as DHL, are cost prohibitive. The only way we have found to reliably get items to the children is by personally taking it there ourselves. When we did attempt to send a letter, it took months to arrive and Pastor Andrew had to bribe the postal worker with $15 LD before they would release it to him. We can email Pastor Andrew, but to receive it he has to rent time on a computer at an internet café. Because they are in short supply and high demand, the internet cafés are always crowded and often he’s not able to get time on a computer. We hope, as Liberia slowly improves, one day we will be able to reasonably and reliably send letters and packages. That does not seem likely in the near future. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. Remember, communication with Liberia is limited, but we will do our best to provide progress reports on the child you sponsor when available and updated pictures when possible. Most of our updates, however, will refer to the entire group of children more than individuals at the Refuge Home. We will be notified of any serious problems with individual children (sickness, injury, etc), so we can notify you and others to pray about the specific issue. Otherwise, until communication capabilities improve, consider no news as good news. --- Back to Questions List ---
A. Victorious Faith Ministries is an non-denominational, independent church in Algoma, WI. The church was birthed in April of 2000 when Pastor Bill Pevlor and his family moved from northwest Missouri to Algoma to start VFM. (Learn more from our website: http://www.VictoriousFaith.com) In November of 2001 Pastor Andrew Gombay of Monrovia, Liberia contacted Pastor Bill and an internet relationship developed. In the spring of 2005, with help from VFM, Pastor Andrew built a small two-room addition on his church and opened the Victorious Faith Refuge Home. At Pastor Andrew’s urging, Pastor Bill and church member Jeff Lawrence traveled to Liberia in November of 2005 to lead a conference attended by over 1,000 pastors and church leaders. In January of 2007, Pastor Bill and deacon Brian Matthys returned to Liberia to host another pastor’s training conference. Although our main purpose of our trips to Liberia was to encourage and equip pastors and church leaders, we could not ignore the beautiful children and their heart-wrenching existence. Since its inception, we have provided financial support for the Refuge Home as we are able. However, being a small church, we have not been able to provide the kind of consistent support needed to fully meet the basic needs of so many children. Finding others who can help these children, through an Esther’s Hope child sponsorship, is one strategy we are employing to make up the monthly shortfall. --- Back to Questions List ---
If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
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