Because you cared, needy children and families from these communities received these gifts for Christmas last year:

Give a sponsored kid a kid!

Africa

When 13-year-old Thabani Ndlovu's father passed away from an illness in 2008, his mother struggled to provide for him. And when a drought that year affected their rural village in Africa, their problems increased.

Through World Vision's Gift Catalogue, World Vision purchased three goats for Thabani's family. A year after receiving the goats, they had multiplied to 12. These goats provided milk for Thabani and his mother.

The goats can be traded for grain or sold for money, so that Thabani's mother can buy essentials like new clothes for Thabani. Thabani, whose favourite subject in school is Math, says he would like to be a driver when he is an adult. He appreciates the goats and the help his family has received from World Vision.

"I am very thankful for the gifts," Thabani says.

Warm clothes for cold herders

Mongolia

Mongolia has been suffering from a heavy snowstorm that has swept many herders of their livestock. In Battur Gonchig's case, he started with over a 100 livestock, but the snowstorm left him with fewer than 15. In spite of his loss, he was more concerned about how he could protect his nine children from the shivering cold. His poverty situation took away his ability to buy new clothes for his children for over five years.

When World Vision provided Battur's family with a generous gift of clothes, his wife. Uranchimeg, smiled with gratefulness and said, "This will help us so much. I am left speechless." The gift included a warm robe, a pair of sneakers, a t-shirt, a long sleeve shirt and a sports outer wear.

"Now, I can finally take [these sneakers] off and put the new ones on," said Bat-Erdene, their 17-year-old high school boy. "I've been wearing the same pair of shoes for the last two years - winter and summer."