Sophie Ramsay
In the past few years, I’ve learned that I can do more than I may give myself credit for – the past four trips to Africa have proved it. This trip will be different, as I will challenge myself to help another child living in poverty – her name is Mercy, and I can’t wait to meet her!
My goal is the summit of Kilimanjaro – and to provide more than 10 years of support for Mercy so she can reach her full potential. I won’t be able to do it without my church, my coworkers, my friends, and my family. Thank you for joining me on this fantastic adventure!
Meet Mercy
Mercy lives with her parents and siblings in a crowded house made of mud-packed walls and a thatched-grass roof. They utilize a nearby dam for water, a wood fire for cooking and a simple, oil lamp for light. A sweet and active girl, Mercy finds her math class easy to comprehend and she is a delight to her teachers and classmates alike. After school, she enjoys helping her mother collect firewood, looking after the family’s sheep, and playing with her few toys. She prays that God would continue to bless her with good health.
The Heart Behind The Climb
For a child living in the developing world, poverty looms like a mountain: immense, impassable, immovable.
When a child is sponsored, however, all that changes. With a sponsor in their corner, obstacles can be overcome.
The 19 people who climb Kilimanjaro with us are doing so on behalf of a child they will sponsor for the next 10-12 years. That means each child's basic needs like nutrition and medical care are met, allowing the child to move forward with confidence and focus. Sponsorship also opens doors to a safe, inspiring environment to learn and grow. Our staff encourages each child, intentionally helping them develop into mature, self-sufficient young adults.
Children in our programs also have access to educational support and tutoring, which are vital resources in areas where classrooms are overcrowded and parents may not have had the chance to go to school themselves. Because of a sponsor's support, the child will also learn about how they are created in the image of the God who loves them dearly.
Sponsorship also serves as a tangible reminder that they are worthy of investment, even when their circumstances and surroundings say otherwise. A sponsor becomes a constant – a different sort of mountain – a landmark in their life, the point where their path in life changed for the better.
You can help our climbers help these children in Kenya begin their climb out of poverty!
For more information please visit onechildmattersclimb.org
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