Update: Since the time of this interview, Melodee Miller and her family are living out a great, new adventure! For the next ten months, they're traveling across the United States in an RV and taking time to build memories as a family and experience new places and friendships along the way! You can read about their adventures on their personal blog: milleradventure.blog/ Welcome to the blog, Melodee! Tell us a little about yourself! I live in Shoreline, WA. It’s just north of Seattle. I’ve lived here all my life. I’ve been married to my husband, Josh, for over 13 years. We have 4 kids, Caleb (11), Lydia (9), Asher (7), and Eva (5). I’m (mostly) a stay at home mom. My husband runs his own electrical company. We are very blessed to be able to have me stay home and not have to work. That being said, I do work part time with a local non-profit theatre group called Dandylyon Drama. We work in the local schools running after school theatre programs. I direct the school musical once a year at my kids school. It’s a lot of fun and a great way for me to get my creative outlet while getting to have a positive impact in kids lives that live in my community. How did God lead you to the Child Ambassador team? I’ve always had a heart for children and missions. When my youngest was a year old I was really crying out to God wanting to do more but not sure what I could do with 4 young kids. We were already sponsoring our little boy, Mubarek, in Ethiopia at the time. Then a postcard came in the mail asking for people to join the Child Ambassador Team. It was as if the heavens parted and God spoke. I knew this is what God had for me to be a part of even while in the midst of raising my kids. What are some of the ways that you've shared about sponsorship? I mostly share one on one with people or on Facebook. I have had a table at my church a couple times too. You've shared quite often at tables at the Farmer's Market. Do you have any favorite stories about ways the Lord worked and/or connections made? I love having a table at the local Farmers Market! I’ve had a few people sponsor at the market but it’s mostly a time of getting people familiar with who WV is and planting the seeds for sponsorship. I’ve had wonderful conversations with people not only from the community but with people from all over the world who have come to live in the Seattle area. One of my favorite stories is from the opening day at this last summer’s market. This lady was snapping pictures of her son’s booth across from mine. She was getting tired and saw I had chairs and asked to sit down. Of course I said yes and the instant she sat down she looked around my booth and said, “Oh! World Vision! Here all these other people are here to make money, my son included, and you’re here doing God’s work! Well sign me up!” I was so surprised! I asked her if she wanted to sponsor a child and she said yes and to just pick a child out for her. I was so excited to pick a little girl from Ethiopia that I had been praying for a sponsor for. The lady stayed for a while and I learned that her family were refugees from North Korea to South Korea when she was a little girl. Then when she moved to America with her husband he died while she was pregnant with their 3rd child. She kept saying how people in America just don’t get it and she was so happy to help others struggling around the world. I was in complete awe with how God orchestrated that whole interaction! How do you engage someone walking by your table? We (anyone who is a vendor) can’t call out to people as they go by. We just have to wait for people to come to us. So I try to make my booth look as inviting as possible with chairs and colorful displays. I have a table set up with coloring pictures and crayons. I have a little basket of candy from around the world too. I make sure to stand near the front of my booth, not behind anything, and smile and say hello to people as they walk by. Sometimes people come over to check out my booth and sometimes people just keep on walking. I pray a lot as I’m standing there for God to bring the people He wants me to talk to. As for tips for sharing in that setting, I’d say have your “elevator speech” down. Also listen for ways to engage with the person your speaking to based on what they share with you. Ask them questions and show you’re genuinely interested in them as a person and not just as a potential donor. They need to know they’re valued just as much as the children you are trying to get sponsored. Thanks so much for sharing with us, Mel!!! We are all so excited for you and your family as you step out into your newest adventure. May God grant you and your family His abiding peace, joy, and love as you develop new friendships and discover new landscapes. Interview & edits by Paula Hemphill
Sarah, you had a really unique start as a CA-- making this ministry totally your own and partnering with local small businesses! What inspired you to connect to your business owner friends? It all started when I partnered with my younger sister, Rachel, and her cupcake business that just started last year, called Sprinkle of Kindness Bakery in my home state of Maryland. Both of us have a strong passion for loving people well and giving hope and light to the people around us-- especially those who most people would consider the least of these. Looking back on it, I really feel that God ordained the year (2017) when I would be come an ambassador for World Vision, and my sister would start her cupcake business so that we could work together in a special way. It goes far beyond just giving people cupcakes but it's allowing people to be a part of something much bigger than themselves. You partnered with a few different businesses. How did you approach them? My first approach like I said before was with my sister Rachel. God had already been working in her spirit about using her small business for more than just pretty cakes and cupcakes. So when we actually spoke about partnering together we both were really excited to see how God would use us even though we are living in two different states. She ended up sponsoring a little boy from the Philippines through this! I'm hoping she will become a Child Ambassador one day! The second small business (Artean Creations) that I partnered with actually approached me and asked about the possibility of collaborating in order to get the children I had at the time sponsorsed. This collaboration was really cool, and looking back again was totally a God thing! At the time I ordered folders for only babies in Armenia for the simple fact that the Middle East has always had a special place in my heart. I'm not sure why but God has put a love and a compassion in my heart for the people in the Middle East that I can't explain. After talking to my friend who owns Artean Creations, she told me that she, too, is Armenian and would love to give back in this way. How cool is that?!? I had no clue that she was Armenian but her connection to the country made everything much more special. My most recent collaboration was with Little Miss Sassy Children's Boutique. The owner and I are friends so I asked her one day if she would be interested in partnering with me in order to get kids sponsored? I told her not only will it get her business out there to more people but it also changes the life of a child in need. She hopped right on board! She created angel earrings for those who chose to sponsor a child. She loves kids and has three little ones of her own. I know you had some really cool promotions during these partnerships. What did you do as promotions? My first promo was with Sprinkle of Kindness Bakery. To those who sponsor a child in the DC metro area they got a half a dozen cupcakes for FREE as our thank you for giving hope to a child in need. The second promo was with Artean Creations. She makes beautiful, luxurious handmade soaps and lotions. Whoever sponsorsed one of my Armenian babies would get samples of her handmade lotions and soap! My mother sponsorsed a little girl from Armenia and she got goodies from Artean Creations and she loved them! Little Miss Sassy Children's Boutique promo, I mentioned it above. She made beautiful handmade angel earrings for those who choose to sponsor. I thought it was a very fitting gift. Those are some really incredible partnerships you created! How did they help fill a void in your ministry and your friends' businesses? For my ministry, I want everyone to know that they are appreciated. Even though it's a small gift, I want people who sponsor a child to know how thankful I am that they would step up and be there for a child in need. The gifts offered by these businesses were a token of that appreciation. As for how it helped my friends businesses, you would have to ask them. But I certainly hope and trust that it was a blessing to each business and that God uses what they did and are doing to grow their businesses and to make them flourish! Throughout this journey as a CA you've also recruited at least two new CAs, your husband Andrew, and a friend, Keylee. I'd love to ask you some questions about how those connections happened, as well! How did your ministry impact Andrew's heart? And what made him choose to become a CA himself? Andrew said my care and love for the kids impacted his heart. We went to the CA conference together in October and what he saw and learned opened up his eyes to what we as the body of Christ need to be doing. He was truly inspired after the conference. You've also recruited a friend, what did that conversation look like and how did you know she might just be a CA in waiting? My friend Keylee is a student at our local college here in East Tennessee. She lived with Andrew and I over the summer. We spent a lot of time together and I would share my passions with her and I would listen to the passions God placed on her heart. She cares about people, and I know she will do a good job as she continues to grow as a CA! She was one of the first few people I was able to connect with a child. Shortly after she sponsorsed a child she became an ambassador. How does being CAs together impact your marriage? I really hoped Andrew would jump on board and become a child ambassador with me. I was stoked when he did! We started our relationship/marriage off very passionate about doing whatever God calls us to do. We hope to go overseas one day to do missions work. Being able to do this ministry here in the USA while he finishes serving in our military and as a civilian firefighter is great! It's given us more of a vision and purpose in our marriage. He also is everything I'm not. He's brave and funny and can light up any room he walks into. I'm thankful to be able to have him by my side. Is there anything else you'd like us to know? Feel free to share openly! I'm so so so thankful to be able to be apart of a group of like-minded people. You all inspire me daily! I can't wait to continue to grow with all of you! I would encourage everyone to ask friends and family members who have small businesses if they would be interested in partnering with you in changing the world! Not only are you helping them grow their businesses but you are also allowing them to be a part of something bigger than themselves! I believe every soul longs to make a difference and leave a lasting mark on this world and this would be a perfect way to do that together! Contributed by Laura Walls with Alicia Williams Child Ambassador Alicia Williams has the kind of vibrant, welcoming personality that makes everyone feel like they're her dear friend. Originally from Jamaica, Alicia has lived in Florida for the past 17 years with her husband and their three sons (ages 12, 8, and 4). She first learned about World Vision child sponsorship at a Women of Faith conference four years ago and knew she wanted to sponsor a child, but when she headed to the sponsorship table, she was overwhelmed. She returned to her hotel and prayed, "Lord, please. You will have to show me." The next morning, Alicia heard the Lord say the child's name, "Chikondi," loud and clear. She remembered seeing Chikondi's picture folder the day before and as she made her way to the sponsorship table, she knew the Lord had Chikondi's folder still there waiting. As Alicia filled out the sponsorship form, she could barely hold back her tears. The following year, Alicia chose two more children to sponsor - Alex from Romania and a little girl from India. Months later, another girl from Colombia joined their sponsorship family. Her son teased, "Are you going to leave any kids for anyone else?" That desire to see all children find sponsors was perhaps why, when Alicia received an email last year inviting her to join the Child Ambassador program, she knew it was going to be a perfect fit. She was already sharing about her four sponsored children with friends and family, loved doing missions work, and felt led to connect others to the joy of sponsorship, as well! She signed up as a child ambassador in March of 2017. Later that spring, as she and her husband, a pilot, were planning their family vacation, Alicia realized their destination was only a three hour flight from Romania, where Alex lived. "In the World Vision magazines I had read stories of other sponsors visiting their children and I have always been inspired by them. I never dreamed I would be able to travel so far to visit them. I had considered choosing children that live closer to the U.S. so that I would be able to visit them but ...God had other plans! He led me (through very unique and direct ways) to these special children even though they live thousands of miles away from us. Getting to travel so far to meet Alex just goes to show that we should never put God in our own little box because He is bigger than we can ever imagine." Alicia and her family knew meeting Alex would be the highlight of their vacation and they told everyone they knew about their upcoming visit - including their Uber driver, Mehmet, in Amsterdam. When they told him they were going to Romania next, he wondered why and, as they shared about Alex and World Vision's work there, Mehmet was moved. "This is a lovely story," he said. He went on to explain that he was supposed to have picked up someone else that morning but his coffee spilled and he had to stop and get cleaned up. He said, "I believe I was supposed to spill my coffee so I could hear this story!" He grew very excited and shared that he wanted to give 15 euros to Alex. When Alicia explained that she wasn't able to give Alex a cash gift, he smiled, "Then buy him something with it." "We will never forget Mehmet as long as we live!" Alicia continued. "God lined that up. That was in the works for him to give to a boy that he doesn't know and that we hadn't even met yet! We went and bought Alex a traditional knapsack with the euros." Once in Romania, Alicia and her family went to meet Alex and his mom. Alicia shared, "The visit took place in the city, not far from the village where Alex lives. As we saw them for the first time, I was overcome with emotion. Walking towards them, tears filled my eyes and I was practically speechless. We met Alex, his younger brother, and his mother. I was so touched as Alex approached me holding a lovely bouquet of flowers. I thought 'Am I really hugging Alex? Is this for real?' His mother was also very emotional and during the first half an hour of the visit, we both were wiping away tears of joy as we got to know each other." Language wasn't a barrier for the children. "Alex and his brother didn't know a word of English and yet the kids could still speak to each other and understand and laugh. It was so nice to see them interacting! They played soccer, laughed, raced, and even talked about who had bigger muscles! There was a splashing fountain in the square and soon they were laughing and playing, soaking wet in their clothes, while we watched. Alex, being the eldest of the group, decided not to get wet, but still enjoyed himself on the sidelines. Alex's mother kept saying that everything about the visit was so perfect, how grateful she was to be able to meet us, and how thankful she was for all the support we have given them." She was especially moved by the backpack from Mehmet. "Alex's mother started crying all over again at how a stranger had something to give to her son!" After spending over five hours together it was time to part. Of course there were more tears (even from one of Alicia's sons), as they exchanged lots of goodbye hugs. Alicia reflected, "Who would have thought we could make such an impact on the life of a family in a small village on the other side of the world? World Vision helps to make that happen and makes it so easy for us to make the connection! God continues to bless us and we continue to help them and we believe the impact will multiply many times over as kindness spreads. It's a wonderful cycle!" A Few More Thoughts from Alicia: On the hope that you may one day visit your own sponsored child: We should never put God in our own little box. He is bigger than we could ever imagine!!! On how poverty looks different in each country: Some people have said "Alex and his family don't look poor. Do they really need your help?" But I've learned that poverty looks different in different countries. Alex isn't barefoot and malnourished but poverty is such a deep-rooted thing. It can also be about not having a voice or knowing that children have value. Additionally, there is cold weather poverty where a family may struggle because of the added expenses of winter. I've learned (more now) about the root causes of poverty in Romania and the way that communism and oppression affected that nation. On sharing sponsorship with those who haven't heard of World Vision: I've started sharing the World Vision magazine with people who haven't heard about World Vision before and would like more information before making a decision. (Alicia then follows up with them about the stories they read.) On sharing with her church: Megan Caddell has been so helpful! She said, "Think about what's a big thing for your church. How can we link that with sponsorship?" My church is really big on ministry to kids. So in going to them, my thing was to say, "We have programs to help kids in our community, now how can we expand our reach to take that children's ministry around the world?!" |
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