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It was almost 25 years ago when Gordon Brookes started his journey with ChildFund Australia. At the time he was working as a chef at Wesley Mission in Sydney when he was approached about sponsoring a child. Since that time, he has sponsored 11 different children from countries across Asia and South America.

This is his experience as a sponsor with ChildFund Australia.

What 25 years as a child sponsor feels like

“Sponsorship is a wonderful thing. I think the fact that I have been sponsoring for 25 years and don’t plan to stop demonstrates that. I would encourage anyone to begin,” says Gordon.

“It’s beneficial for you as well as the child; it’s just a great journey.”

And what a journey life has been for Gordon. In 2000 his life was turned upside down when he suffered a stroke at the age of 40, which left him with brain damage. He was told by doctors that he would never work again and spent the next 11 years very ill. During this time he also went through a marriage breakup.

Despite his circumstances, he never considered ending his sponsorships

At the time of his stroke, he had been sponsoring 10-year-old Duong from Vietnam for two years. Despite his injuries, Gordon says he never considered stopping his sponsorships. True to his word, he continued to sponsor Duong until he graduated from the sponsorship program in 2008 when he turned 18.

“Because of the disability I was really sick. I have to admit it was a struggle to write [to my sponsored children]. I wrote most of the letters that I authored and I loved receiving them,” he says. “It was quite a discipline to write back but I knew it was important so I tried really hard.”

Sponsor and child reconnect

Today, life is coming full circle for Gordon. Miraculously, by 2011 Gordon had completely recuperated and has since remarried. After living in many places along the east coast of Australia, Gordon is also back in NSW working as a casual chef and disability support worker.

This year he had the chance to reconnect with a grown-up Duong through an update from ChildFund. Duong, who grew up in a poor, rural village in northern Vietnam, is now working for the Vietnamese Government’s Youth Union after having the opportunity to complete his education thanks to his sponsorship.

Child sponsorship is a gift for sponsor and child

“I believe the most valuable gift given to me [as part of my sponsorship] was that my study was maintained and continued thanks to the regular encouragement from my sponsor,” says Duong. “I want to send my sincere thanks to Gordon who sponsored me for such a long period. Thanks to you I‘ve got what I have today.”

“Often children move out of the area [that they grow up in] but for Duong he is making a difference for the next generation of his community. What an excellent result!” says Gordon. “He may even be one of the next leaders of his community.”

Is child sponsorship a journey for you?

Amidst our fast lifestyles, we’re often left searching for meaning in our life. Is child sponsorship a journey for you, one that could be a meaningful and enjoyable experience?

Find out more about the journey, or learn about the program here.

Earlier this month, I led ChildFund’s delegation to the United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan.

I was lucky enough to make a presentation on the “Ignite!” stage at the conference, which you can watch below. It’s a description of a project carried out by ChildFund, with the support of the Australian Government, that helped youth engage in disaster risk reduction (DRR) in the Philippines. As you’ll see, their efforts, and leadership, helped save lives and reduce damage when Typhoon Haiyan struck.

According to the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child, children and youth have the right to participate in matters that concern them. So involving kids in DRR activities, as leaders (within national frameworks, as we did in the Philippines, and keeping their safety uppermost in our work) is one way of realising their rights. So it’s a must.

But also, youth-led DRR activities worked! As you will hear in the presentation, when Haiyan hit the Philippines with terrible force in November of 2013, just 18 months after the project ended, communities were much better prepared.

Among commitments made by the world community in Sendai, there are three references to the participation of children and youth:

In paragraph 7 – “There has to be a broader and a more people-centred preventative approach to disaster risk. … governments should engage with relevant stakeholders, including women, children and youth… in the design and implementation of policies, plans and standards.”
In paragraph 19 (d) – “Disaster risk reduction requires an all-of-society engagement and partnership. … the promotion of women and youth leadership…”
In paragraph 36 (a) (ii) – “Children and youth are agents of change and should be given the space and modalities to contribute to disaster risk reduction…”

Youth-led DRR: it’s their right, it builds their resilience, it makes DRR efforts stronger, and the world community is now committed.

Let’s make it happen.

Gifts for Good

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