Dinah Tibukyaya

To the right is a picture of a little girl. She is 9 years old and lives in Uganda. As of a few days ago, my mom and I are her sponsors, responsible for funding her school fees, school lunch, school uniforms, medical care, and books and supplies.

The other day at work, I got a phone call from a woman named Christine. She told me she had found Africa Action's information online, and that she and her husband were interested in adopting a child, and perhaps their sibling, from sub-Saharan Africa. I told her that unfortunately Africa Action's work does not specialize in African orphans or the adoption process, so I could not provide her with any expert help. However, when we hung up, I started to look around and found a few websites that may have helped her, and then emailed them to her. In the process this search, I found AOET, an organization that aims to help empower the youth of Africa. They specialize in getting children sponsors. After some research I had found their organization was accredited and trusted by many important people in the field.

When I was in third grade, I asked my mom if we could sponsor a child. I begged and begged her to do it. And it wasn't that she didn't want to, but it was a new idea, and it was coming from an 8 year old. It's not something that not a lot of families do, not even really wealthy ones, so why would our family be able to?

A few days ago I asked my mom again. I said we could switch on and off with the monthly payments. I pay the $30 one month, and she pays the next. And she said OK.

After looking through the database I chose Dinah to sponsor. She has been waiting since June 2006 for someone to choose her.

Dinah doesn't have an easy life, as you can imagine. She was born on New Years Day 1999 and lost her father to AIDS a few years later. She is now living with her mother who is HIV+ in a house with six people. Her mom is unable to work, so she is unable to pay for Dinah's school fees, leaving Dinah constantly in and out of the classroom.

After I committed to sponsoring the child, the program director contacted me and told me now Dinah would be able to stay in school full time and have the chance to complete her education. Her and her mother's medical costs will also be covered. She told me that when the program notified Dinah and her mother about us, they both cried and smiled. Now it will be easier for her mother to get the AIDS treatment she needs.

I thought to myself, $30 a month can really do this for someone? I can give up buying a new shirt or drinking my daily soda so a little girl who deserves an education can get one? The money does add up to about $360 a year, which I could definitely use for school, but I see it as an easy sacrifice.

We will be updated with Dinah's school report card every other month. We will also be able to keep in contact with her through letters.

I strongly encourage you to consider sponsoring a child. If you can't afford it on your own, gather 12 friends together and each of you will only pay $30. Or you could do what my mom and I are doing, and find another person to switch off with. Imagine if everyone pitched in a little.

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