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?!"
Carol Miranda
3/7/2018 06:38:50 am
Alicia, you're like the Jamaican Mother Theresa! God bless you and your huge heart! thank you for introducing me to this! such a heart warming story, I love it!
Alicia
10/24/2020 09:06:51 pm
Hi Carol, you are so kind, thank you, but I am FARRR from Mother Teresa. :-)
Elizabeth (Liz) Smith
12/1/2020 06:26:13 pm
This is such a beautiful story, it touched my heart! Alicia, you and your family have been such an inspiration not only to me but so many other folks who want to make a difference in this world and answer God's call. Wonderful to reach out and support others in need. God bless you always. Yes, once again I will support a child through World Vision a will follow through in doing so. ( For many years I supported a child in Ethiopia through World Vision and felt good about doing so) Comments are closed.
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