Romanian Children's Relief - Fundatia Inocenti




(FAQ's) REGARDING CHILD SPONORSHIP THROUGH ROMANIAN CHILDREN'S RELIEF Who is Romanian Children's Relief? The Mission of Romanian Children's Relief is to support Romanian children and families in order to prevent child abandonment. Along with our Romanian parenters, Fundatia Inocenti, we support 22 Romanian professional staff and more than 100 volunteers working in several programs helping hundreds of abandoned and at-risk children. We were founded in 1990, when a group of concerned New Englanders responded to a Boston Globe article by photographer Mike Carroll and Dr. Bill Griffo, New York Hospital - Cornell Medical Center , about the pediatric AIDS crisis in Romania . In 1994 we were incorporated as a Romanian Foundation, Fundatia Inocenti . Our Funders include: USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development); World Learning; LIFT THE CHILDREN Foundation; Fidelity Cares; Atria Corporation; Jaech-Breneman Foundation; The Dusky Foundation; Rotary International Foundation; Boston, MA Rotary; Mercer Island, WA Rotary; Paoli, PA Rotary; Worcester Rotary; Salt Lake City, Utah Rotary; International Women's Association; Rivers School; Noble & Greenough School; International School, Stuttgart; American Schools, London, Paris and Bucharest; and hundreds of individual donors. Our Awards include: "Best Practice in Foster Care," Romanian National Conference, 2003. Selected for the Catalogue for Philanthropy , 2004. “Best Practice Presentations in Volunteer Management and Collaboration,” LIFT Romania National Conference, 2001. Our Collaborators include: Boston College School of Social Work; UMass/Memorial Medical Center; Case Western Reserve University; Dept. of Social Services, Worcester, MA; Devereux Therapeutic Foster Care; Boston Children's Hospital; Littleton public schools; UCONN School of Social Work; Romanian Department of Child Protection, Bistrita; Romanian Institute for Mother and Child Care; U.S. Peace Corps; Chicago Medical School; professionals who mentor staff here and in Romania. Who are the children available for sponsorship and how does RCR select them? The 30 children in this Child Sponsorship Program all live in Bistrita-Nasaud County , where RCR has operated award winning foster care support programs for more than 5 years. All 30 children in the program have severe to profound special needs. Most are abandoned children who were moved out of the Camin Spital (Hospital for children with Special Needs) in 2004. Fourteen of the children were moved into foster families, and another 12 were moved into small group homes in the community. Another 4 children are living with their biological families. For the past year, (the first year of their de-institutionalization), these children received special needs services provided by RCR/FI staff supported through a grant from USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development) administered through World Learning. The funding for this grant will run out October 1, 2005 . Because we feel that all of the children in this program still need these extra support services, we are seeking to continue most of that support through child sponsorships. This is the first time Fundatia Inocenti has undertaken a child sponsorship program. At this time, these 30 children with severe and profound special needs are the only children available for sponsorship. What does my sponsored child get from the sponsorship program? The Romanian Children's Relief Child Sponsorship program includes: • Weekly visits by a trained Outreach Worker • Monthly Support Groups for Foster Families • Special Needs equipment, such as wheel chairs, feeding chairs, as needed • Therapy sessions with Psychologist and Physical Therapist as needed. How does Child Sponsorship work at Romanian Children's Relief / Fundatia Inocenti? There are two levels of Sponsorship: A “FULL SPONSOR” is the only sponsor a child will have. The cost for a full sponsorship is $800 paid annually, or $75 per month. A “SHARED SPONSOR” means two people will share sponsorship for a child. The cost for a shared sponsorship is $450 paid annually, or $45 per month. What does my child sponsorship include for me? As a full sponsor, you will receive an annual photo of your child, and a brief story of his or her life. You'll also receive quarterly updates from your child's Outreach Worker or notes from your child where possible. As a shared sponsor, you will receive an annual photo of your child, and a brief story of his or her life. You'll also receive twice yearly updates from your child's Outreach Worker. How do I correspond with my sponsored child? Airmail letters and photos can be sent directly to your child's Outreach Worker. Please note that because notes need to be translated, and the first priority of the Outreach Worker is to work with the child, reply times can be very slow. When possible, the Outreach worker will reply to you in her quarterly or semi-annual report.. (Please do not send emails, as our computer and printer are not able to handle the extra load). Translating letters and delivering them to the children takes time and energy away from the programs, so please consider photo post cards or greeting cards, which are short, but highly valued by the children. Our local staff will translate your letters from English. Here are some ideas for your post card and greeting card notes: Pleas feel free to send a picture of yourself or your family. This will be cherished by the child. Please send photos to your outreach worker via airmail, not email, as our computers are limited. Long letters are costly for us to translate, so please keep your notes short and please consider post cards or greeting cards. Please do not put your address in the letter, email or post card. If sending a post card, be sure to use an outer envelope for the return address. Your address could become a problem, as the extreme poverty in Romania might generate unwanted requests for money, or other requests. Please do not send gifts to your sponsored child . This can become a problem of “fairness” to the other children. In addition, there are often hefty duties and/or postal fees for items sent to Romania . We can't be responsible for any duties or paperwork required to get items of value through customs. Please be careful not to discuss your personal possessions, place of work or other personal information in your notes. How do I write to my Child? Once your child is assigned, you will also be assigned an Outreach Worker. When your child is assigned, we will mail you information on how to contact your child's Outreach Worker. What if I can't keep up my sponsorship commitment? Your sponsorship is not a contract, it is an agreement and a relationship. We hope it will continue for many years. However, circumstances change and sometimes the situation for a sponsored child might change. If you have a change in your situation, please contact us. If the situation for the child changes, we will be sure to contact you. Can I sponsor more than one child? Yes, please feel encouraged to do so! You can sponsor as many children as you would like. If we have more sponsors than children, we will start a waiting list. Is my sponsorship tax deductible? RCR is a 501c3 charity, so donations may be tax deductible. When you send your payment or payments, we will send you a thank you note stating the amount of the gift. Please keep this letter as your receipt of payment. Can I send a birthday or Holiday Gift to my Sponsored Child? Sending a birthday card is the best way to celebrate your sponsored child's birthday. Please do not send gifts of cash or other items to your child. This is really important. Although it feels nice to send a gift, it can create great sadness when one child receives a gift and others don't. If you'd like to make a financial gift in honor of your sponsored child's birthday, or other holiday, please contact us. We will be happy to add those funds to the overall holiday and birthday gift funds for the children each year. (These gifts are usually the material items that are needed by the child, such as a winter coat, boots or backpack.). Does my money go directly to the children? Yes. There are 30 abandoned children with special needs who will benefit from the sponsorship funds contributed under this program. The program budget is as follows: Special Needs Equipment $ 3,000 Program Supplies/Equipment/office $ 2,700 Romania utilities/phone $ 1,000 Romania Training/Transport/ $ 2,000 Family/Staff Training $ 1,000 Home visits/travel $ 2,200 US phone/mail/admin $ 2,100 Romania Staff: 4 Outreach Workers, Physical Therapist, Social Worker $ 12,000 TOTAL $26,000 (Divided by 30 children = $867yr per child) Can I adopt my sponsored child? We're sorry, but at this time, international adoptions are not available in Romania . Please note: Neither Romanian Children's Relief nor Fundatia Inocenti are adoption agencies, nor are we affiliated with an adoption agency. Additional Questions? Please don't hesitate to contact you have any questions we haven't been able to answer in this list. Thank you! -Eileen McHenry, Executive Director, Romanian Children's Relief, 508-303-6299 11 Latisquama Road , Southboro , MA 01772 www.RCR.org