Sponsorship explained – Mary Frances

Posted on August 18, 2020 by Angus Mccoll - member contributions

FHC was founded by Som Tamang in 2007. Since then it has grown, developed and provided for many vulnerable children in Batase Village, with the hostel now housing over 60 children. In addition to children living in the hostel, FHC also supports some children living with relatives at home, a teacher in the local school, students doing their Plus 2 education (equivalent to Year 11/12) in Kathmandu and several separate issues (a community member is in need of a prosthesis after losing his leg
in the 2015 earthquake, another child has congenital hip problems requiring on going help/surgery etc). Sponsorship is the key to providing for all parts of the charity.

When sponsoring a child, FHC endeavours to match all sponsors to a particular child in the hostel. Some sponsors thoroughly enjoy this connection and want to send messages to the children and create a relationship, while others are happy to make donations without this connection. In reality, all donations are pooled to collectively cover costs to support all branches of the charity. Recently all sponsors were sent an end of year statement showing their donations for the year. The email stated that the real cost of supporting a child in Batase is $50/month. Some sponsors contacted FHC to willingly and generously increase their donations to this amount.

If you haven’t done this and would like to increase your donation, please contact us. Conversely, if you are unable to financially cover this added cost, your existing donation of $30/month is still greatly appreciated. Students doing their Plus 2 in Kathmandu require approximately $150/month to cover all costs associated with their education, accommodation and food.

So, in reality, your name may be against one child but more than one sponsor may be required to cover all costs. Much of the administration of sponsorship takes place in Cairns with helpful support in Batase Village and The Banana House (the Plus 2 Hostel in Kathmandu). We try to keep connections between sponsors and children up to date. If you would like to send
a letter to your sponsored child, post to: The Banana House, PO Box 8303, Sundara, Kathmandu, NEPAL.

Some well-intentioned sponsors have suggested sending gifts. With over 60 children in the hostel in Batase alone, we ask that all donations be sent for all children. Separate gifts are not appropriate in this situation. Also, Christmas is not celebrated in Nepal. Christmas gifts are not a normal part of Nepalese life. If you have any questions regarding sponsorship and how funds are used, please feel free to contact us, Mary Frances de Jourdan or Tim Trehearn, at donations@f-hc.org.