Compassion International
Is This Your Business?2.6
2.6
Author: Kaitlyn Short
LAST UPDATED: February 8th, 2026
Founded in 1952 and headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Compassion International is a child-sponsoring charitable organization that was originally known as the Everett Swanson Evangelistic Association. The sponsorship model was launched in 1953 and the organization officially became Compassion International in 1963.
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The Good
- Total income
- Administrative expenses
- Fundraising expenses
- Program percentage
- Accessible financial information
Total Income
Over the last several years, Compassion International has reported a steadily growing income. All totals are for the organization's fiscal year ending in June of the reported year.- 2015: $765,156,592
- 2014: $712,969,008
- 2013: $656,893,101
- 2012: $596,083,005
Administrative Expenses
Compassion International reports a lower percentage of its income going towards meeting its administrative expenses than fundraising activities, which is not the norm among most charitable organizations. For the fiscal year ending in June 2015, the organization reported that 7.4 percent of its income, or $57,323,669, was allocated to administrative support. Top executives received salaries which were less than those given by many other charitable organizations. Current president and CEO, Santiago H. Mellado, received 0.03 percent of total revenue, or $296,044, in 2014.Fundraising Expenses
Compassion International uses an average of 10 percent of its annual revenue for fundraising activities.Program Percentage
The percentage of an organization's revenue directed towards delivering its program is a very important measure of the quality of an organization's fiscal responsibility. Most charity watchdog organizations consider a percentage of above 80 percent as an indicator of effective program delivery. Compassion International states on its website that the organization works to keep its program percentage at or above 80 percent. For the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2015, Compassion International used 83.1 percent of its income for program delivery.Accessible Financial Information
Compassion International publishes its annual reports (2011-2015), auditor's reports (2011-2015) and IRS Form 990s (2009-2015) on its website. This information can be easily found and is comprehensive.The Bad
- Negative press
- Donor communication
- Awards
Negative Press
Legal Battles about "Compassion" Once in 1997 and once in 2015, Compassion International's legal representation sent threatening cease and desist letters to two organizations which used the word "Compassion" in the name of their organizations. Both entities were surprised at the demands and, without funds to fight a battle in court, changed the names of their organizations. These start-up organizations did not attempt to confuse or deceive, as they were accused; they simply chose a word to illustrate the mission of their organization. Support of "Son of God" Movie Compassion International voiced support for the 2014 movie Son of God, which depicted the life of Jesus Christ. However, many Christians found the film to be contrary to their beliefs in the Bible. As such, many have expressed concern about the Christianity of the mission of Compassion International.Donor Communication
Donors are promised that they will receive updates on the status of the child whom they have sponsored from the organization, as well as directly from the child or child's family. This seems to be highly variable; some donors report that they wait months or even years before receiving information directly from their sponsored child, while others report more frequent communication. However, donors can expect a high level of communication from Compassion International. In fact, many donors report receiving excessive fundraising requests via postal mail after they have begun to sponsor a child.Awards
Compassion International has been recognized for its workplace environment, as well as the quality of the organization's public relations. The awards that the organization has received are not spontaneously given; rather, the organization submitted information to another organization for entry into a field. The entrants were judged and awards were given out among the pool of eligible entries. While these awards do represent achievement, they are not weighted the same as recognitions that awarded spontaneously.The Bottom Line
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Anna H
I’m putting three stars only because I’m trying to give Compassion International the benefit of the doubt as I am sponsoring two children due to the fact one of the children’s sponsor couldn’t continue with commitment. The children are siblings according to Compassion International. I’m wording my review with doubt because I have the same issue as another person stated in their review. At the end of her letter I noticed her name was different from her name on the account. So I went back through previous letters the name change started with the previous letter before the one I received today. And the content of those letters are totally different from the many letters I’ve received before ( the last two are very vague). And the letters before were more personal and it asked questions and the responses were written according to questions from the letter I wrote to her. Something just doesn’t feel right!!
2 weeks ago
Kelsey Conner Wilmington, NC
My husband and I began sponsoring a child when we got married. Both coming from non-profit backgrounds, we realized that the point was not to make either of us feel good or like we were doing the "right thing," but rather that it was about making one single child feel more seen and loved. We also acknowledged how difficult it must be to run the largest global child sponsorship organization, so we didn't have major expectations for things to be done perfectly (e.g. letters to/from our child in a timely manner), but we have been blown away. Compassion does such a good job prioritizing the relationship with the child, and though it is not about us, we have been continually blessed by our relationship with our child. The option to send gifts for Christmas, birthdays, etc. is so special because every dime of that gift goes straight to the child (no other organization offers this). It's such a personal, precious thing to be a small part of. Cannot recommend enough. :)
2 years ago
funinthekeys St. Petersburg, FL
The low amount listed for administrative expenses plus percentage that typically goes directly to help the children is amazing! I’ve worked for a non-profit org. It’s HARD to have those statistics! We LOVE Compassion International ! Our grandkids send letters, drawings and photos! And we …. Grandmom and Grandpop,😆… support the finances and send Birthday and Christmas gifts! Our DREAM would be to one day MEET THE CHILDREN! ALL in Ecuador! Our grandchildren live in a rural small town in Florida. Our Compassion kids appear to live in similar surroundings! This benefits OUR FAMILY more I think than Compassion International ! THANK YOU for letting us participate! God Bless You!❤️
Barbara Mueller
3 years ago
charles bero
So, I just finished supporting my last of 4 children. I didn't really understand the supporting mechanism until I was able to contact 2 previous children, now adults, via Facebook. Those 2 young people found me there and made contact. It was wonderful! I was able to continue to help them financially through college and help their families. They are now both finished with college with degrees. One is working as a software analyst in the Philippines and the other is doing an apprentisship at a T.V. studio in Rwanda. I am actually trying to get the young man from Rwanda over to the U.S. for a visit. All that to say that I learned ALOT about how things work on the kids side when we were able to talk. Both speak English and are very smart. Compassion would NOT let me keep in touch with them when they finished. Their excuse was that I might be convinced to give money to the family and be swindled. THAT'S MY CHOICE! The kids did NOT receive some of the gidfts we sent them.The last "gig" of Compassion was when we just finished with our last child, they, without our knowledge,, signed us up for another child! They also put us on a permanent payment plan to the organization also without our knowledge. When I called to cancel everything, I ended up talking with a person in the Philippines, not the headquarters. And, after doing some research, I found out about the ENORMOUS SALARIES the admins are making!! They have lost their way at the expense of the children, and are using the kids to line their pockets! VERY SAD, VERY CORRUPT, COMPLETELY UNETHICAL!! NEVER AGAIN!,
7 months ago
Mark Henthorn
I rated them in the middle of the road. I love the idea. My wife andbI are sponsoring two children. We just received a letter from both of them. One lives in Mexico. The other in Togo. What a coincidence! To make things a little shadier, the letter from the child in Mexico used a different name than the name of the child on the account. We really thought we were actually helping to give these two children a better chance in life. Now I am thinking these two children may not even be real children in the program. If they are, how much of our money is actually even benefitting them? We are seriously considering ending our sponsorship.
9 months ago
Tereas Sadiq
I have sponsored 3 children and all have written letters and sent meaningful communications. It has been a great experience. When I send an individual gift to the child or family they ALWAYS write me back and detail what they used the money for and sometimes they have sent a picture of the times- such as a new dress or mattress or goat. So know that my gifts are directly being used as they intend.
1 year ago
J Mag Denver, CO
I've been sponsoring children for 10+ years. I recently signed up for my 4th child as two of them have graduated. I've always received updated pictures, letters, etc. I was a little surprised when I logged into my account and found that I was "auto assigned" a new child. It didn't bother me as that was my intent anyway, but I didn't know I had signed up for that. The website is easy to navigate, and I am grateful for the work the organization does to help children out of poverty.
3 years ago
L Hawthorne Chicago, IL
I have supported multiple Compassion children for over thirty years and have been 99% happy with the experience. Their decision to build a data system from scratch led to a few glitches recently, but I have always received letters and news. I went to El Salvador to visit the three children I was sponsoring and was impressed with all the children were learning at the centers and with the staff we met. We support many charities and I consider Compassion one of the best.
5 years ago
Vivienne
Compassion is the most effective charity I have ever seen. The children in the program are given such wonderful opportunities to grow up healthy, well educated and having hope for their future.
I love supporting my two sponsored children through Compassion. We write to each other and I know that they are receiving love and protection from their local church.
I have also visited Conpassion projects in Africa. The love that the staff show to the children is amazing and the joy on the faces of the children and their families is so evident.
6 years ago
Bryan Kim La Habra, CA
I Have been sponsoring my child from another mother in Togo, Afrika for past 3 years. My goal is to provide her education and faith to God that anything is possible, and Compassion is providing me with the opportunity to serve God and do God's work at the same time. I thank God for everything and I pray this company will last forever and spread the God's message over to the millions of people in the world.
7 years ago
Kristen Corona, CA
I have been a sponsor for 17 years. Compassion is an incredible organization, and I am happy to have seen first-hand what an amazing job it is doing in the poorest of areas. In my many encounters with Compassion staff both here in the US and abroad, everyone is passionate about the mission of Compassion. I am continuously amazed by the work they do and the lives they transform.
7 years ago
Sam Ahia Lahaina, HI
I have been a sponsor of children for several years. I have found Compassion International to be above reproach in every way. Yes they do consistently ask for help but I never felt like they were doing a "sales job" on me or my wife.
We are able to answer letters that we receive from our sponsored children and get to know them a little. Compassion International has been a shining light in making people aware of the tremendous need little children have in poor countries.
8 years ago
Kate Miller
We’ve sponsored two children since they were young around 5. I really enjoyed getting the cards, pics and letters. This is not the same compassion when we started. First thing to know if you give them a Christmas gift and don’t mark it as for the child they will split it between other children that you are not sponsoring. I don’t mind that but they aren’t transparent. Something else happened this year the young lady we were sponsoring turned 16 and her parents took her out of the program for reasons that were told to me that she could make more money by working or they simply do not align with the programs values? That’s ok. Never did get a final letter explaining that as compassion told me I would. The next part was astounding. They would send me pics of a child that they wanted me to sponsor to take our girl’s place. We didn’t want to sponsor another except the one we currently had. They took money out of our bank account to sponsor another child we did not give them permission to do that. I called in the young man advised me that it stated on the letter that if I didn’t call them I would automatically be given another child which they did. We couldn’t believe they had the nerve to do this. Don’t get me wrong we love these kiddos but what a sneaky, underhanded way to do it. The young man said on the phone we are trying to get children out of poverty. Yes. We are too but be transparent. My goodness we were shocked. Now we feel bad for getting a child’s hopes up with their deceitful ways. I feel bad saying this but after our boy is 18 we won’t be doing this anymore.
1 year ago
Skeet Doss Midland, TX
We have sponsored three kids for years since they were 1 to 2 years old. I have nothing but wonderful things to say. I love their monthly letters, art work and appreciation.
Compassion needs to roll back their constant barrage of requests from people that are already supporting them. It is VERY aggravating.
2 years ago
Peggy Broady
I have sponsored a child for 6 years. I don't even know how I have managed it for that long because in America, I am below the poverty line. I really wanted to do this for the longest time, so I signed up when my church had a Compassion Sunday. From the beginning, I had problems with the billing, because they promised to not withdraw the money from my account until after my disability check had been deposited. That was their first lie to me. That and the fact that I couldn't send gifts to my sponsored child. I endured many overdrafts to my checking account because of CI. Over time as I sent stickers and bookmarks/coloring pages, I never received ANY confirmation that she had received any of them! I was constantly solicited to send money for more gifts, and when I did, there was no acknowledgement that she had received anything. I don't want to feel as though I am abandoning her, if I cancel my sponsorship. But I lost my disability income when I recently married, and they just hiked up the monthly donor amount again. We will see how it goes, but even though I sent pictures of my wedding, the person who writes her letters is still calling me "Miss Peggy". No acknowledgement of my prayer request. (I have stage 3 throat cancer.)
2 years ago
Sky Brooke Decatur, GA
Oct 2021
I have been supporting two girls from Africa for 7 years. I rarely get photos of the children and when I do it's the same old sad poor looking photo I was given initially. 1x they sent me an updated photo and then the very next time I heard from them they were back to the old original photo where the girls were young and poor looking. I've written online and complained about photos w 200 likes. 1 reply from a woman compassion rep. said I needed to find another charity if I thought I was going to get updated photos on a regular basis.!! . Needless to say I was floored with that response. Also their accounting is wrong. And the last 4 years I have been paying annually. But yet I keep finding out at the end of the year that I have a balance. Although that's impossible I have paid that so-called balance twice and guess what yes it is back again. Received a progress report from the president and they were off by over $300 of what I have contributed. That is a lot of money, so I wrote a letter to the president explaining the problem end of October 2021. It's almost Christmas and I still have not heard back from anyone. Compassion hold off some of those beg letters and please send out a How am I doing annual survey and please be sure to read them. It's a great program...I hate to pull the rug from under my girls after so many years, one is 19 now and will be graduating out of the program very soon. Kudos to the donors who have had an opportunity to visit their children, I plan to do that too I think it would make me feel much better. Oh and I just thought about it while there I can take my own darn photos. LOL
4 years ago
Jennyne Johnson Augusta, GA
I attended a Christan concert and they were handing out sponsor packets. I sponsored a little girl but the picture was of a boy. It took awhile to get a photograph of the little girl. I sent a $100 for her birthday and it took me asking and writing Compassion before I ever heard if this child received the $. Something happened to her mom but I never heard. I sent stickers (the ONLY allowed item us sponsors can mail) and frequently sent coloring sheets. I NEVER heard if she got these items. I found out her family moved right before her birthday and Christmas. If I had not called asking that the $ I contributed to both of these occassions be refunded I never would have received it. Compassion sent me another packet for a new child to sponsor. My husband was just laid off from his job so it wasn't a good time to commit to this again. Compassion AUTOMATICALLY enrolled me. I got letter from family saying how happy they were and pictures of their new baby. It was heartbreaking to call Compassion and terminate this sponsorship. Compassion should never just enroll people without consent and deduct $. I really wish it was possible to mail gifts to these children along with monthly contributions. I disagree with Compassions reasoning behind this policy. I miss the girl I sponsored. It was on my bucket list to fly and meet her. I might try again at a later date
6 years ago
Melinda Fidler Spokane, WA
I have been sponsoring 2 Compassion children, one has graduated from the program. Her sister contacted me on FB and asked if I would be a friend of hers and of her sister whom I supported for at 10 years. I accepted the request. Nobody has asked me for help with money or anything else, however, much gratitude has been shown via my former Compassion child. I still have another child I'm supporting and have been supporting him for 12 years.. since he was 4 years old... Recently, he has sounded very down in his letters to me and has asked for prayer for him and his family.. I felt very sad for him and told him that my other now former Compassion child had contacted me on FB... Mind you, I did not encourage him to contact me on FB.. The Compassion staff deleted my letter and called me on the phone saying this was strictly prohibited. Why is that? It would be my choice to live with the consequences of whatever happened.. I'm still sponsoring my child and likely will until he's graduated out of the program... but this disturbed me a lot. So don't tell your current child about any of your former children that you were contacted on FB... or the hand of the law will come down and everything good you have done will come into question... and for what... That's what I don't understand... We have freedom of speech... and a need to be ethical... that's for sure... I've tried to write encouraging and uplifting letters to my child and comfort both children during times of need... Anyway, that's all.. I lost a little respect for the ministry... when I know that people meet their children and even have connections to where they live... I don't get it...
7 years ago
June Powell Oviedo, FL
So far we have been very impressed with this ministry and hope to be able to continue to sponsor the child we have chosen. It costs money in anything you do these days but just knowing that a part of our donation is helping a child is enough for us!
7 years ago
Luz rios
After reading the reviews, I’ve come to realize that I am not the only one with the same issues. The letters I receive are copies of a picture that the child has apparently drew. I have sponsored two girls, and my oldest one from Ghana just sent me a letter saying something totally different. The girl that I was sponsoring was studying to be a seamstress and today, I get a letter saying that she’s in the kitchen trying recipes something does not sound right I’ve had a feeling that child probably left the program.
10 months ago
Magdalena Cogbill Roswell, GA
I have been sponsoring a girl in Ethiopia for over 2 years. Since she was 17 at that time, I thought we could have a good communication and I could learn something about her life and life in Ethiopia in general. I wrote letters, attached pictures ... her responses were always about Lord and God being great but really nothing personal nor any response to my detailed letters. That got me thinking if she was even receiving my letters! I really wanted to help a child and make a difference. What I sent her a Christmas gift to her and her family in the amount of $155 and few months later I got her letter being thankful for the $13.93 she received, I was furious!!!
When I called the headquarters, they pretended to be looking things up and were full of excuses and information that just didn't add up! I am heartbroken that there are children and families in the world suffering and I wanted to help at least one. But I have a family of my own and don't want to be taken advantage of! I wish there was a company that was honest and transparent as we have no idea how some of these people have it and every little helps!
4 years ago
Mark Kowitz Hudsonville, MI
I have always been a big fan of Compassion International! Things have changed—let me explain.
We became Compassion International sponsors in 1997, sponsoring a young boy named John from India. It was joy to write and receive letters, as our kids were about the same age. We sponsored him until Compassion had to pull out of India, and our sponsorship was transferred to Nuttapong in Thailand. In 2002 our sponsorship again was transferred, this time to a young girl, Nelly, from Bolivia. Nelly was a joy to sponsor, and when my wife left me in 2008, Compassion was very helpful in how I should inform her via letters. I was actually able to sponsor her from age 5 until she had to leave the program at 18 years old, in 2015.
Compassion gave me the choice to replace my sponsorship with another little girl named Jhuliana, again from Boliva. I have been enjoying sponsoring her, supporting her monetarily, and writing and receiving letters.
However, all things changed two weeks ago, when I received a letter from Rick Management of Compassion International (I don’t know what his position is there), informing me that my sponsorship of Jhuliana had been cancelled due to “updated child protection policies,” which includes (from their website: “We immediately terminate the child sponsorship of anyone found on a sex offender registry. We also terminate the sponsorships of anyone living at the same address as a registered sex offender.”
My story is this: about 10 years ago, I was approached by a person I used to work with, who explained his son had gotten into trouble, and needed a place to live. I immediately thought of the Bible,
Matthew 25: ‘For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, "I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ I offered him a room at my house (please note that this same passage is the reason that I acted on to sponsor children from Compassion International!).
I personally don’t understand how the fact that I have a sexual offender living at my address, affects my relationship with Jhuliana in Bolivia.
I am curious what Compassion will be telling Jhuliana about why her sponsor is not in her life anymore, they would not answer that question, when I asked.
5 years ago
ERO Washington, DC
I have been a sponsor to 18 years. It break my heart to write a review like this but I have been so deeply disappointed in the past few years, I feel obligated to say something.
My last sponsored child was missing from the program's center for a while before they told me. I pushed to know if he was still attending because the picture had not been updated in years and in it he still looked like a child of 8 or 9 while he was supposed to be 14. Also, the letters I received were the same formula despite writing to him. Having worked with children in extreme poverty, I know what stunting looks like and this was not it. After pushing for a follow up for months, I received a letter stating he had left the program months before. I suspected that this was not the truth and that he had been out of the program for a while. I told Compassion that I wanted to end my sponsorship and did not take on another child.
Three weeks later, I receive a packet and a welcome letter. I did not authorize this nor did I want to be a sponsor. When I called to cancel, they pressured me into staying. I stayed for a few months and then called back saying I could not afford to continue. This is true. I am in financial hardship at the moment. I believed that my sponsorship had been cancelled and so I stopped paying.
Now, my account says I owe $200 of sponsorship fees and it is affecting my credit score. Currently, I am still a sponsor even though I no longer want to, or have the ability, to work with this organization any more.
6 years ago
EV Glendora, CA
I started sponsoring 2 little girls : one from Mexico and one from Africa . I was receiving regular letters from the little girl from Mexico and I had no received any correspondence from the little girl from Africa.
I had sent an additional Birthday gift donation to the little girl from Mexico .
When I sent her a letter asking her how she liked her gift , I received a letter from
Compassion stating they had disenrolled from the program because her parents did not comply with the program requirements.
I’m very disappointed that a Christian organization would do this . I know question their program .
6 years ago
Viktors Konters Prior Lake, MN
We were having a nice time with compassion and the child we sponsored until one day received letter from child stating it was last letter. I called Compassion and they said they were suppose to call me first before we received the letter. I mailed a last letter to our sponsor child. I got a call from Compassion stating that my address could not be in the letter. I told them to redact it, they said they destroyed the letter and I would have to write another one. I took quite a bit of time writing and putting pics in it.
Then to top it off, we received a letter about two weeks later from Compassion thanking us for our new sponsorship, WHAT? We never approved any new sponsor ship and particularly after the disorganization at the end of the term of the first one. What is going on there? I went into our account, and there is no way to cancel your account or payment method.
7 years ago
Disappointed Catholic Donor
I have found this charity to be disingenuous in translations of our handwritten letters; her questions and mine were not properly communicated. Whenever I have called or emailed they have not been completely truthful about my concerns. My sponsored teen no longer writes me, and I believe she has aged out. My payment receipts for 2024 went into the General Fund and only $8 per month for my sponsored teen. I stopped all auto-payments today.
I'm done with phony charities who are dishonest in their dealings with sincere folks who are giving of their time and resources.
9 months ago Edited May 1, 2025
Review Source
Vy Price
I started to sponsor a child through my church. After a few months, each letter I received was the same. You could see where they would white out a name and put in another (mine or her signature). The signatures were different. She never wrote of anything I sent, thanked me for what I sent, or even acknowledged me. The letters were canned and things she wrote about would have been from an older child not one her age. Very deceptive. I cancelled. There are other organizations that have better accountability. OR better yet, sponsor someone in your neighborhood where you know where you money is going to. Going out into the world could be around your block.
They may have been good at one time but... My child didn't exist or had graduated and they continue using the same pictures.
There are a lot of wolves in sheep's clothing. Pray about it before you consider this company.
1 year ago
Katie Burmeister
We have been long time supporters of Compassion International and had loved them for over 20 years, but recently we have been very disappointed. The child we were sponsoring left the program over a year ago, but we were never notified and Compassion continued to withdraw money from our account. When we called to talk to Compassion about this (because we found out through a Facebook message from our sponsored child that he was no longer receiving services) they claim they sent us a letter of notification and in that letter let us know we would be assigned to another child. Even though it is possible that letter could have been lost in the mail, what makes no sense is that for over a year we continued to get communication from Compassion using our original sponsored child's name AND I sent Compassion an email 6 months ago asking when our child was due to age out the system and was told he still had 1 year left. When we brought this all up to the person on the phone there was still no admittance that a mistake had been made.
1 year ago
Suzanne McKenzie
We sponsored two children, each the age of our children, from a young age. At first I was disappointed that the letters from them were obviously written by adults, but they were young and one can’t expected a young child to write. I waited patiently for years to have my adopted children write in their own voice, but years and years went by and this never happened. Finally, around age 17, I got a sense my child was writing to me. However, the communication was still very simple and formulaic. So honestly, after writing for more than 10 years, I barely knew anything about them, let alone their feelings. I grew suspicious, and my suspicions grew more when I’d send a big annual gift to the family, in a poor country, none less, where the exchange rate must be beneficial to them, and I’d see a lot of school supplies and clothes and comforters being purchased by them, but nothing worth the money I sent. By the time they turned 18, I cancelled my support, not wanting to leave earlier for their sake, but not crying over the end either. The whole experience left me jaded.
1 year ago
Sue B
I used to sponsor a child. I sponsored him until he turned 21 and was no longer eligible for the program. I got letters back and forth. That was good. But in the last several years, I see a totally different Compassion International then the one that I sponsored 10 years ago. The current organization spends a lot of money on fundraising and getting people to sign up at Christian concerts. I spent $75 for a ticket. The show started at 7:00. There was a long intermission and then it was followed by a scripted sermonette by a young man that claimed to be from Africa but had really really good English and sounded like he came from down the street. He went on for a good 20 minutes about how everybody should sponsor a child in India. I was unconvinced that he was telling the truth about anything that he was saying. It all seemed very much like an infomercial. I can't believe how disappointing that it was to have this time taken up by this infomercial at a concert I had paid to see. The most telling thing was that at the end of the infomercial in a crowd of 15,000 people that no hands went up to sponsor a child. This is a Christian concert. This is a room filled with Christians. We have compassion on children living in poverty. But we don't understand why we have to pay for a concert and then be bombarded by an infomercial for a company that is paying its Administration millions of dollars every year in salaries. My $39 a month is padding pockets and not really benefiting children overseas. Back when I sponsored those two kids one in Africa and one in South America I received letters and I know that that they were being helped. But the Compassion International I saw at that concert is a different company. More concerned about fundraising than about children. No one in that crowd raised their hand. I think it's time to stop fundraising for Compassion International at concerts. People pay good money to hear the music and are forced to sit through an infomercial because Compassion International has most likely paid for the advertising time. They're most likely paying for the people who are passing out the cards. The radio stations were handing out free gifts. But compassion was definitely just shamelessly begging for us to pay those large salaries. It was really disappointing to have to sit through it. I no longer have confidence in Compassion International.
1 year ago
Shelley Mutrie Downers Grove, IL
My family has been sponsoring a girl in Peru since 2015. We have been consistently writing her and donating extra money where we could. I was a little upset when we wanted to send her a bike and the CI said that the bike would be given to another needy family based on the CI decisions. So we just gave our sponsored girl money instead. Pictures came back of this girl holding up items that the letter said she purchased with the money we gave.
Over time and as we sent more letters to her, it became clear that the letters appeared very "canned". There was never any mention of comments from our previous letters and I really could not tell if she was receiving our letters at all. I was really hoping to hear about her life in Peru and learn something about her life and life in Peru in general. I wrote letters, attached pictures ... her responses were always about Lord and God being great but really nothing personal nor any response to my detailed letters. That got me thinking if she was even receiving my letters!
When I called the headquarters, they pretended to be looking things up and were full of excuses and information that were not logical.
I looked up salaries of the management 990 (this site wont let me post a url so google to see site shows the amount of salaries these people make and I am horrified. I have also posted the last one that is showing from 2019 (2020 and 2021 say unavailable to download. I'm sure they are making a lot more money than 2019.
My family is very sad that they are taking advantage of people and we will be stopping our donations to this company.
3 years ago Edited August 30, 2022
Steve Tracht Chelsea, MI
I had been contributing to Compassion for decades. Over my time with them, I sponsored four children. In the beginning, it was fine. Then, I noticed that they constantly sent packets of ways to give more money. That is a red flag that an organization is too focused on collecting money. When your child times out, they automatically assign you another child and keep taking your money. I called to make them switch that on my account, and it worked for a while, but then when my last child timed out, it happened again. All of my previous children timed out at 18, but my last child timed out at 22. I don't remember being informed of this upfront. Their marketing is slick to pull on your heartstrings, better than most secular organizations. It gave me a suspicion of the organization overall. You cannot close your account on the website and must speak to a "representative". Once they have you, they don't want to let you go and employ guileful tactics to keep you.
3 years ago
Elizabeth New Preston, CT
Signed up to sponsor at a Christian concert it was a little girl and we sponsored her until after years they sent a letter stating that her family moved and she could no longer be in the program. They sent another photo of a different girl and without asking just kept taking money from the credit card. This continued but raised a red flag as to how you would cancel if they don’t even give you the option of if you want to continue your sponsorship with. So fast forward more time goes by and no way to contact anyone. This year my husband suffered a severe debilitating stroke and isn’t able to work anymore and if someone hadn’t made a false charge on his credit card that I had to dispute and cancel the card Compassion International would still be making decisions about my finances without my approval!
5 years ago
Adam Independence, KY
Sponsored a girl for many years when we were informed that she had left the program. We thought that was the end of it and were not going to sponsor another child as we were turning towards another charity that works here in the United States. I received a letter 3 weeks after being told of our sponsorship ending stating that we had agreed to sponsor another girl. At no point did we authorize this payment to Compassion.
When you call them they act like they don't know how it happened. They make it impossible to cancel, act like you are a bad guy for canceling a sponsorship for a child in need you never signed up for, and generally giving you the run around so you get tired and give up. This is not a good Christian organization. They refuse to help in any way when you have an issue. Stay away and spend your money elsewhere. They will try to hoodwink you and your charitable giving.
6 years ago
Gina Morgan Sturgeon Bay, WI
I donated to this organization for 11 years. My child grew out of the program and it wasn't until I received her letter saying goodbye that I realized she hadn't been receiving my uploaded letters over more than a year due to a malfunction in their website. The website would confirm receipt of my letters but never produce them to send to the child. The expiration date of her leaving hadn't happened yet but they purged her and my membership log in area where the letters I wrote her had been stored. Since my log in was purged, so were my letters. Then they asked me to give them a waiver that they could give her my address to stay in touch since she was out of the program and invited me to write a nice final letter which they would pass on to her. I wrote her the letter promptly and sent them two copies of the waiver (emailed where they told me to send it the day they requested it) and sent a copy of the waiver with my final letter in the mail. Well they sent her part of my letter but left out the parts about how to contact me and my heartfelt comments in that section because they said they didn't have my waiver. ? It was attached to my letter. They couldn't confirm what part of my final letter they gave her because they didn't have a copy any longer, so no one could say what was translated for her. This was all within a week of their receiving everything. Needless to say I was heart broken that they washed their hands of all of it, refused to help me over their mistakes of a malfunctioning website that confirmed they got my letters but never sent them to her AND botching up my final letter to Maria. I requested that they please resend (translate) my heartfelt letter and send it to make sure she understands I wish to stay in touch. They refused to try to do anything . How is this called "Compassion"? They are not interested in relationships.....only wanted me to sponsor another child and wash hands of years of writing to this girl in South America. I could sign up to send them money for another child. Sorry, not breaking my heart again. Management here has no desire to solve their own errors - very poorly run.
7 years ago
Lisa Shackelford Columbia, MS
I believe they are scamming people, my mother gave 140$ a month for years. Upon her death all accounts were closed. When they couldn’t charge her card, they sent bills with late fees. After the phone call to them notifying them we owe them nothing, this is a charitable organization and that my mother passed away, they threatened to send the bills to collection’s.
2 years ago
Jayson Lewis
We began sponsoring a child after a Casting Crowns concert. We randomly picked a child and a young boy was selected. We received a picture and a single name and everything seemed good. We recently received a letter that the child had moved and Compassion International no longer served this child. In the letter was a photo of our child but the name was different. I was so very suspicious. I called in and they tried to explain the reason but it still did not make sense so we cancelled our sponsorship and are going back to World Vision.
2 years ago
Cody Parker Staunton, VA
I have four children I give to in compassion but then I noticed one letter was clearly not the girl I'd been writing for years the handwriting was not hers the communication style she actually reintroduce herself like we had never talked before ! and the drawing was clearly not like all her other letters something's wrong and I tend to find out who's forging the kids letters!
3 years ago
Liv Columbus, GA
Felt like for personal reasons my family is being discriminated against because of our past. Felt like they were marketing to me. Advocate told me that I "wrote too much and that can beoverwhelming for the families" even though that goes agaisnt what all of their marketing to me stands for. I would not reccomend the heartbreak of ending the sponsorships and taking the photos off of the wall to anyone.
6 years ago
Kristi Mooresville, NC
It was with great sadness I couldn't sponsor a child because of financial issues that I had hoped would be resolved. But I asked if I could send the child anything because it really bothered me and the response was no or I dont understand your question. I felt horrible enough, really.
7 years ago
BOB H Carrollton, TX
My wife and daughter each have been sponsoring an individual child for the past 8 years. My wife went on line to provide additional donations to her child for christmas. Discovered her sponsorship, and my daughters were cancelled due to an offense I COMMITTED 20 years ago.
So much for Christian values and forgiveness.
2 kids, 8 years, 75.00 a month. Over 7000.00 donated.
SPCA will be pleased.
7 years ago
Becky Hopkins Andover, KS
Great ministry! We have been sponsoring a child for a few years, and we love getting updates to see how she is doing.
5 years ago Edited September 14, 2021
Crystal Commerce, GA
I’m so heart broke, I had signed up to sponsor a child. 1st I kept having them say a boy then things saying they were a girl. 2nd my sponorship was abruptly cancelled b/c they didn’t think I gave enough. $ 3rd This has let me down also the child and their family. I can’t even say good by and it wasn’t my choice to leave.
7 years ago
MLB Denver, CO
Being on the inside and also a past sponsor, please do not support this ministry financially. There is a lot of deception and darkness in this place. Money is spent outrageously and sponsors are lied to (with employees even encouraged to not be fully transparent) just to name a couple of things. Please pray heavily for this ministry.
8 years ago
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Allie Powell Long Beach, MS
This was a great experience. I loved learning children’s stories. However, it was very expensive to keep sponsoring a child.
6 years ago
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Teela Harris Detroit, MI
I have yet to receive anything from my sponsored child . I stopped all payments. I even sent a late birthday gift. I have no idea of she got it or not.
4 years ago
