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We suggest writing your friend at least two times a year. They need to know that someone cares about their future.

And it’s a cool opportunity – you get to know someone your age who lives in a developing country – and they get to know you!

 

If you’re a group, one person should be the point person. Everyone in your group can write a letter – that’d be awesome – but, one person needs to be responsible for mailing them. And don’t forget to use the mailing labels we send you. This will make sure your student gets your letters.

 

Don’t forget to send your student photos of you or your group. You get to see their picture, and they really want to see yours, too.

 

• Tell them about you or your group.
• Let them know what a typical day is like for you and what you do for fun.
• Sports and music are always good things to talk about.
• Let them know what you’re looking forward to and the stuff you worry about.
• Ask them about their hopes and plans when they finish school.
• Ask them to tell you about their typical day and the things they think about.
• Invite them to ask you anything they want to know about your country and ask them the things you wonder about theirs.

 

We know you're aware that, for your safety, you’re not supposed to put personal contact information on your Facebook or other places on the Web. Well, CFCA takes child protection very seriously, too – both for our sponsored students and those who sponsor them. For this reason, neither you nor the student you sponsor are allowed to share personal contact information such as e-mail addresses, mailing addresses, phone numbers or anything like that in your letters.

Because of our commitment to protect the safety and privacy of our sponsored members and our sponsors, we monitor all correspondence. So thanks for helping us with this and for understanding.

 

• Use the labels we provide you – you can always ask for more – just contact us.
• Make sure you use enough postage. A 94-cent stamp is required for letters weighing up to one ounce for all countries where CFCA has projects, except Mexico, which requires a 72-cent stamp for letters up to one ounce.

Postage rates: Postage rates for letters 1 ounce--all countries $0.98 except Mexico $0.79 2 ounces--all countries $1.76 except Mexico $1.34 3 ounces--all countries $2.54 except Mexico $1.89 3.5 ounces--all countries $3.32 except Mexico $2.44

For large envelopes or letters over 3.5 ounces, please check with your local post office or the USPS Web site.

 

• We will translate letters from your sponsored friend to English and your letters to them will be translated into their language, too.
• But, if your sponsored friend is in a Spanish-speaking country, and you can speak Spanish or get someone from your group to write in Spanish, feel free to send your letters in Spanish. That saves time and then the projects don’t have to translate your letters. Just don’t use translation software on the Web – it’s not very accurate.
• If you don’t need your letters translated from Spanish to English, just let us know and we’ll tell the project just to send the letter to you in Spanish. This saves time and money, too.

 

• Your letters are the most important thing you can send your friend.
• We know it would be fun, but sending a package to your friend is not possible. Sending stuff overseas incurs high shipping costs and customs fees that our projects overseas have to pay, which takes money away from your sponsored friend. And a lot of the time, the package doesn’t even get there.
• Just send letters, photos and small things you can fit in an envelope. Your friend will appreciate it more than you know!

 

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