Jazmin E.

This is Jazmin. She's my sixth sponsored child. I sponsor Jazmin through Children International.

I feel like I was meant to sponsor Jazmin. Ever since I first saw her photo while idly browsing CI's website, I felt a connection with her. I first noticed her athletic appearance, and noted that her favorite pastime is playing soccer. I was/am an athlete, and I played soccer growing up (through my late teens) and still love the sport. It's pretty common for boys on the CI website to list their favorite pastime as soccer, but it seems to be rare for girls. So that made Jazmin stick in my mind even more. I'd check the website daily to see if she was still available, but at the time I couldn't afford to sponsor any more children. Right about the time that I was hired for a full-time position at my job, Jazmin disappeared from the site. I thought she'd been sponsored, and I was so happy for her. Turns out she had just been rotated off the site, which happens regularly. I explained in the last entry how I went about becoming Jazmin's sponsor, so I won't repeat myself. Instead, I want to tell you a little more about Jazmin!

Jazmin is 13 years old- she'll be 14 on January 15 of next year. I don't yet know what grade she's in, but I'll find out soon, as I've requested an education report. Jazmin lives in Guayaquil, Ecuador, with her mother, Nancy, a street vendor, and brother, Jesus Alberto, 19. Her father, Juan Pedro, does not live with the family. The monthly income for the family is $300, which is more than the incomes of my other sponsored children's families, although it's not really meaningful to compare incomes between Ecuador and, say, India.

Jazmin lives in a two-room home: one bedroom and one multipurpose room. She sleeps on a metal-frame bed. The walls of the house are brick, the roof is corrugated metal, and the floor is concrete. Cooking is done on a gas stove, there is running water in the home, and electricity is regulated. There is also a latrine. For chores Jazmin washes dishes and does general housework.

Jazmin's favorite school subject is grammar. She likes to draw as well as play soccer.