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[Bolivia bloggers] Day 2: I’ll fly away

Posted on July 31, 2011 by Elizabeth Esther in Child Sponsorship

Day 2 | Bolivia Bloggers | World Vision Blog

We’re just a few minutes away from boarding our plane to Bolivia. I’ve taken my high-altitude medication and am feeling slightly jittery. I also have to pee like every 15 minutes–which should be fun on the plane, yes? The funny thing about traveling is that, well, unexpected things happen. My carry-on was too full and I had to re-shuffle my suitcases at the last minute while standing next to the ticketing counter (oh, my poor little tidy Clothing Bundles!!)....

[Bolivia bloggers] Day 1: 3 airports down, 2 to go…

Posted on July 30, 2011 by Lindsey Talerico-Hedren in Child Sponsorship

#WVBB Day 1 | Bolivia Bloggers | World Vision Blog

My morning started at 3:50 am, that’s the time my first alarm went off. Three alarms later, I rushed to get up, panicking, thinking I was already late for my first flight. I quickly showered, finished throwing in last minute items into the suitcase, grabbed a bottle of water, then I was out the door. By 6:30 am, I was through the long, dreaded security line, took my trek to the gate, and boarded my first of two flights for the day — this one at Sea-Tac airport, the next in about four more hours at Dallas Fort Worth international airport. Dallas welcomed me with 92 degree heat. I was certainly not in Seattle anymore. And Miami must have known...

Debt ceiling debate: Why foreign aid is an issue of ‘right-wrong,’ not ‘right-left’

Posted on July 29, 2011 by Peter Warski in Advocacy

The International Affairs Budget provides life-saving assistance to children and families living in poverty. Photo: Jon Warren/WV

Consider what you’ve heard in the news over the past several weeks regarding the ongoing impasse over the nation’s debt ceiling. You’ve probably heard a great deal about spending cuts, versus tax increases, versus any combination thereof. You’ve likely heard about the August 2 deadline for raising the limit, lest the United States default on its debts and risk an economic meltdown. In the midst of this, you’ve almost certainly observed a soap opera of political posturing and bickering among members of both parties. But what you probably haven’t heard much about in the context of this debate is the group that stands to lose the most: the world’s poorest, who literally depend on U.S. foreign aid for their survival....

The next 9 days… headed to Bolivia

Posted on July 29, 2011 by Lindsey Talerico-Hedren in Child Sponsorship

I’ll soon be en route to Bolivia — along with a few of my favorite colleagues and seven new friends — so keeping multiple copies of my travel itinerary is absolutely necessary. I figure that this will help ensure that nobody accidentally boards the wrong plane(s). Of course, that’s the least of anyone’s worries at this point. I need to finish packing. (Elizabeth Esther and Nish Weiseth beat me with the packing competition days ago.) And for many of my teammates, leaving home and their children is something really worth fearing. To hopefully lighten the anxiety a bit, I’m posting a bird’s-eye view of our itinerary and agenda while we’re in Bolivia....

Ask a humanitarian… Tough questions answered!

Posted on July 28, 2011 by Carla Swanson Gawthrop in Child Sponsorship, Conversations

Ask a humanitarian... | World Vision Blog

At the end of last week, Rachel Held Evans, one of the fabulous bloggers headed with us to Bolivia, asked her readers what tough questions they had about child sponsorship, humanitarian work, and World Vision. I dug for answers to the questions they asked with the help of colleagues across our organization. Perhaps you or others you know have wondered what the answers are to these questions. And if you have any other questions for us, just ask! Writing next time from Bolivia, Carla Here’s a couple of my fave questions on Rachel’s blog… (The follow is an excerpt from Rachel Held Evans’ interview “Ask a humanitarian… (Carla responds)“) Question from Elizabeth: How does child sponsorship help the community at...