TOO MANY CHILDREN ARE AT RISK

The numbers speak for themselves. According to March 2008 statistics collected by the Children’s Defense Fund, every day in America:

• 4 children are killed by abuse or neglect
• 5 children or teens commit suicide
• 8 children or teens are killed by firearms
• 1,154 babies are born to teen mothers
• 2,467 high school students drop out
• 2,421 children are confirmed as abused or neglected
• 2,483 babies are born into poverty
• 3,477 children are arrested, 451 of them for violent crimes or drug abuse.

With statistics like these, it’s no wonder that 1 in 3 children in America is a year or more behind in school. And children who leave elementary school not being able to read at grade level are dramatically less likely to succeed.

Millions of our children are living in situations where their emotional and social needs are not being met, putting them at risk. Millions of children in America are searching for proof that someone cares. KIDS HOPE USA is here to give them that proof, one child, one hour at a time. 

When Kids Hope began:

Many church members wanted to make a difference in the life of a child but they did not know how. And their churches often lacked an organized system to prepare or sustain them for that involvement.

November 1994—The KIDS HOPE USA model was designed to teach churches how to give hope to at-risk public elementary schoolchildren through a relationship with a caring church member. Described as the KIDS HOPE USA Way, the model relies on the interplay of four integral parts:

• One child: an at-risk public elementary school child who needs a relationship with a caring adult;
•  One hour: sixty critical minutes each week when a trained mentor befriends a child and helps him or her acquire basic academic skills;
• One church: a committed congregation who owns the program with its neighborhood school and provides a trained mentor and a behind-the-scenes prayer partner for each child; and
• One school: a school that welcomes this proven intervention to increase the academic skills of at-risk children, at no cost to the school.

Today—KIDS HOPE USA has helped 530 Christian churches in 29 states engage their members in the lives of over 8,000 at-risk children. Located in urban, suburban and rural communities, these churches range in size from 40 to 5,000 members and represent over 30 different denominations.

When CGNL heard about this organization we jumped at the chance to help our churches and schools partner. So under the structure of CGNL we are mobilizing people in our community to make this impact in the public schools in Cary and Fox River Grove.

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