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Frequently Asked Questions
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Donation Information
Frequently asked questions
Activities with the Children
Ending your Sponsorship
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(1)How do I know this charity is valid? What is this organization all about?
Regina Pacis is run by Sisters of the Congregation of the Religious of Mary Immaculate, founded in Spain in 1876. The Regina Pacis school itself began in Mumbai (Bombay) in 1951, starting as St. Vicenta Maria Home for Destitute Girls, and growing into the well-known school/shelter/orphanage it is today. The school is fully accredited by the Indian government and donations are tax exempt as allowable by law. The Change A Life program was started out of need in 1998 by Sister Margaret Correa, the principal of the school at that time, assisted by a couple of non-affiliated American expatriots posted in Mumbai (that's the short version!). The program grew to become quite popular among expatriots in the Mumbai area because of its simplicity, its value, the opportunity to directly assist in the education of an impoverished child, and the opportunity to get directly involved with the children during school and extra-curricular activities. 100% of your sponsorship is applied to the educational expenses of impoverished children who attend and/or live at Regina Pacis. This is possible because you are a direct sponsor: you are not passing through administration or paying for brochures or advertising. So if 100% of the sponsorship applies only to the educational expenses of impoverished children, and there are still many impoverished children attending the school without sponsors, how does the school find resources to operate? There are children who attend the school from the community who have families able to pay their fees, and the school receives funding from outside resources such as Catholic Relief Services and others which help make it possible to pay teacher salaries and operating expenses such as electricity and water. Sponsorship helps provide the funds necessary for the purpose of the institution: education and support of as many impoverished young girls as possible. If you have questions you can email them to CAL@TheWorldNow.com and you are most welcome to contact Sister Margaret Fernandes, the current principal and head of the CAL Program, directly at the school in Mumbai at (9122)373-3275. Sr. Margaret Fernandes is involved in direct work from early morning to late at night, so best times to catch her in her office is usually between 8:30pm - 9:00pm, India time.
(2)What happens when sponsorship ends?
(3)Can I send gifts to my sponsored child/ren?
The program tries very hard to avoid materialistic competition among the girls. These girls live in a very non-materialistic world where they own virtually nothing of their own. Any possession that they do have will most likely be shared among friends and family. You must remember that even if your sponsored child has a place she calls home, the image of "home" to her will not be the same image "home" brings to your mind. She will not have a room, or a dresser, or closets, or cabinets, or bed table. She may not have electricity and definitely will not have running water. The roof and walls of her home might even be a simple plastic tarp. Her clothes and shoes will be few and may be shared among her friends and family. As harsh as it sounds, gifts will not elevate her level in life, it would only elevate her expectations of you.
(4)Can I send gifts for all the children?
(5)Why can't I include my return address inside my letter to my sponsored child?
(6)Do I really have to write to my sponsored child? How often? I never know what to say.
You don't have to write often, maybe once every six or eight weeks. You don't have to write a long letter! Even a short note acknowledging her last letter to you, asking her some questions about herself, her classes and her friends, then saying "do well in school, I am thinking of you!" will do. For more about writing letters, see:
(7)Can my friend and I split the cost and sponsor one child together?
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