Meet 3 children whose lives were changed through gifts in kind

If you ask a child about the best gift they’ve ever received, most will tell you about their favorite toys, video games or maybe something sentimental from a beloved friend or family member. For children in ChildFund’s programs, however, the most appreciated gifts don’t necessarily come in time for birthdays or holidays. Often, the most valuable gift is a gift in kind that comes at the right time. 

What is a gift-in-kind donation?

A gift-in-kind (GIK) is a donation that, instead of involving money, involves physical items. Through ChildFund’s GIK program, our corporate partners donate physical goods that are much-needed in the communities where we work – things like medicines, medical and school supplies, mattresses, water purifiers and wheelchairs. Then our supporters – people like you! – donate to our gifts-in-kind fund to help those physical items get into the hands of the children and families who need them most.

How can you be sure those delivered goods are really making a difference? Read on for three stories of real lives changed because of gift-in-kind donations from supporters like you.

Salamatu, Sierra Leone

Nine years ago, Isatu (center) almost lost her first daughter, Alice (right), during childbirth because she had no access to maternal health care. “When I was pregnant, there was no health practitioner to talk to me,” she remembers. “I did not have access to checkups or medicines to help me and my baby stay safe. I was just living life casually until it was time for delivery.” But when labor began, it turned out that Alice was in a breach (upside-down) position, causing Isatu to need an emergency C-section. “I bled massively,” she says. It was a miracle they both survived.

Their country of Sierra Leone has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, often because of a lack of adequate health care in rural communities. 1 in 20 women in Sierra Leone dies as a result of pregnancy or childbirth. In fact, Isatu herself lost a friend this way. “I lost my friend Mariama,” she says. “Like me, Mariama was not getting the treatment and medication she needed during her pregnancy. She encountered serious complications and died. That was the height of my fear. She did not deserve to die at the early age of 23.”

By the time Isatu found out she was pregnant with her second child several years later, however, “everything was different.” She was introduced to a nearby health clinic that had been built in her community. Agnes, the nurse in charge at the clinic, says that most of the medicines they use are donated by ChildFund through our GIK program. “We receive medical drugs such as prenatal supplements, paracetamol, amoxicillin, anti-malarial drugs, albendazole, gloves, bandages and many other items,” she says. “The prenatal drugs supplied are helping us a lot. It gives me great joy to see a pregnant woman deliver safely.”

When Isatu unexpectedly got sick with malaria during her second pregnancy, these donated medicines from ChildFund made it possible for her to get the treatment she needed. Much to her relief, the birth of her second daughter, Salamatu, was smooth and uncomplicated. 

“Salamatu is healthy and does not get sick very often. But even if she does, we know we are covered,” Isatu says. “What could make me happier than seeing my children in good health?”

Oscar, Honduras

Oscar (left), 10, and his friends in rural Honduras are breathing easier ever since in-kind donations of masks from ChildFund made it possible for them to go to school more safely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“COVID-19 affected our education because all the schools closed, and the kids had to do their classes virtually,” Oscar says.

When schools finally reopened this year, the government of Honduras mandated the use of masks. Not every family could afford to buy masks, however, which kept some children out of school even longer.

“Thank you for donating the masks,” Oscar says. “Now when a kid needs one, the teachers can give him one so he won’t get infected, and he can go to school without worrying.”

Oscar says he is also enjoying the anti-violence programs that ChildFund provides at his school.

Abdou, The Gambia

Where 10-year-old Abdou lives in rural The Gambia, most families don’t have electricity at home. That seriously limits the time that children have to study after school, especially considering that many kids have to walk long distances from school and finish their chores at home before the sun goes down.

“I could not study at night because we have no electricity, and my mother would not buy candles because she said they are not safe,” Abdou says. “They can cause fires in the house. My father had bought a small lamp that uses two batteries, but after every two days, the batteries would be exhausted. My parents don’t have money to buy new batteries every two days.”

Then ChildFund’s corporate partner Unite to Light donated a shipment of solar lamps to Abdou’s community – and our supporters donated the funds to help it get there. “I can now use the lamp to study at night,” Abdou says.

His mom tells us that it has dramatically transformed Abdou’s daily routine and has helped him study more often. “The lamp stays long with power after it is fully charged during the day. And the sun is free! No charging cost at all,” she laughs. “We are very happy with this lamp and would like to thank you for supporting our children’s education.”

Ready to give a gift in kind?

Today is a great day to give the best kind of gift: a gift in kind. Donate now and deliver the extra support a child needs to grow up healthy, educated and safe. You just might be reading their story here one day!