TAIPEI: A young mother in the central city of Taichung has become the sponsor for over 100 foreign orphans and children from poor families over the past year, a charity organization said. The woman began her charitable effort after giving birth to her own son. Now she and her husband pay NT$72,100 ($2,191) a month. That's NT$700 for every child she sponsors

The 29-year-old woman, surnamed Lin, sponsored her first foreign child in 2008 through the non-profit Taiwan Fund for Children and Families (TFCF) before having her own baby. Soon after the delivery, she went on to sponsor two more children from abroad, using her husband and son's names as sponsors, according to the foundation.

At the beginning of this year, Lin, saddened by the reality that orphans and children in poor countries might find themselves in even more difficult circumstances under the impact of the global economic crunch, decided to sponsor 100 more children abroad.

"Me and my husband decided to take care of 100 more children from abroad after we weighed our financial abilities," Lin said.

Lin and her husband now have 104 children scattered around the world, including the Gambia, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Indonesia and Mongolia, said Chiang Li-chuan, a foundation spokeswoman.

Chiang recalled that when the foundation received Lin's phone call early this year saying that she wanted to sponsor 100 more foreign children, her colleague was incredulous.

"It was an incredible bit of news, especially as the foundation has been receiving calls from sponsors who have had to cease their sponsorships as a result of the recession," Chiang said.

"I hope more good Samaritans will come forward to enable poor children to lead better lives," Lin said upon committing to the mass sponsorship.

The TFCF, which was established in the 1950s as an orphanage to help local needy children, launched its foreign sponsorship program in 1987 to allow the people of Taiwan to help children abroad.

So far, 42,924 foreign children have benefited from the program, while 45,941 others in Taiwan are currently receiving donations, according to Chiang.

China Daily/CNA

(HK Edition 07/21/2009 page2)