NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — For 11 years, Mary and Glenn Kiger have sponsored Dolce, a girl who lives with her family in Guatemala. What started as a simple act of giving has blossomed into a relationship filled with letters, photos and genuine love.
"We love her so much," Mary said.
The Nashville couple first learned about Dolce when she was 5 years old. Through photos and correspondence, they watched her grow up from thousands of miles away. A few months ago, they received a more recent picture that showed how much she had changed over the years.
The Kigers discovered the sponsorship opportunity through Woodmont Christian Church, which connected them with Unbound, a nonprofit organization that links sponsors with children around the world.
When the Kigers visited Dolce's village, they finally got to meet the girl behind all the letters and photos they had been sharing for years.
"And she always writes back, Oh, I love seeing, blah, blah, blah," Mary said.
The couple learned that many families in Dolce's community cannot afford to send their children to school for more than a few years. Living conditions are challenging, with families sleeping on platforms to stay dry.
"It's a whole family that sleeps on a platform to keep the water off of them when they're sleeping," Glenn said.
Despite the difficult circumstances, Mary noticed something remarkable about the families they met.
"There isn't a poor me. I'm having an unhappy life. They never knew anything different and there's joy," Mary said.
Unbound operates in countries around the world, educating children and supporting families through sponsorships. The program costs about $40 per month per child, but the impact extends far beyond the financial contribution.
The organization currently has 29,000 people on its waiting list for sponsorship opportunities.
Inspired by their experience with Dolce, the Kigers have expanded their giving. They now sponsor another child who lives in India.
Mary describes their decision to sponsor children as a commitment to help a child for a lifetime, creating connections that bring joy to both the sponsors and the families they support.
Have you considered sponsoring a child internationally? Watch our full video report to see the Kigers' emotional meeting with Dolce and learn more about how you can make a difference in a child's life. Share your thoughts or questions about international sponsorship programs with reporter Kim Rafferty at kim.rafferty@NewsChannel5.com.
In this article, we used artificial intelligence to help us convert a video news report originally written by Kim Rafferty. When using this tool, both Kim and the NewsChannel 5 editorial team verified all the facts in the article to make sure it is fair and accurate before we published it. We care about your trust in us and where you get your news, and using this tool allows us to convert our news coverage into different formats so we can quickly reach you where you like to consume information. It also lets our journalists spend more time looking into your story ideas, listening to you and digging into the stories that matter.
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