About Us

Children of Cameroon started in 2018. Founding a charity has always been an ambition of mine - I wanted to make a tangible difference and help young people to achieve their dreams. 

 

I have sponsored children with various other great organisations, but what always struck me was that I wanted to know more about the children and their lives. I also wanted to know how my money was being spent. With some of the larger (albeit wonderful) charitable organisations, I found that neither of these things were possible. I wanted the charity I founded to be different. 

 

I first became familiar with the African country of Cameroon about 12 years ago. I was studying for my first Creative Writing degree in Bath, and I wanted to do some volunteering, preferably for an African charity. My daughter was only two years old at the time and so going out to volunteer in person wasn’t an option.

 

I registered with some online volunteering sites and my first project was with Goodness and Mercy Missions in Cameroon. I worked on a child sponsorship program project with Francis Teh and a team of volunteers from around the world. I enjoyed this more than anything I’d ever done, and I loved meeting and working with so many different, passionate people.

 

A couple of years later I went out to Cameroon for the first time. While I was there, I saw how much different sponsorship was making for the children there. Children from poor families who previously had been at home, unable to attend school, were now sitting with their friends in the classroom, happy and learning. I made many great, lifelong friends on that visit, including Janet, who is now Children of Cameroon’s field worker in Yaounde. 

 

I also met Larissa. She was four years old at the time, just like my daughter, Tamsin. Larissa’s mother was unable to pay for Larissa to start school and also struggled to buy food and other basics for her. Because Larissa and Tamsin were the same age, it was even more apparent to me how different their lives were at this point. Of course, Larissa wasn’t the only child who could benefit from help to access education - this was exactly the same for many, many children in Cameroon.

 

Over the years after my first visit, I continued to support GMM and sponsor Larissa. Then, in 2018 I decided to set up my own organisation so that I could spread the word more easily in the UK and around the world. Children of Cameroon was born! 

 

My main aims when setting up Children of Cameroon were:

 

1. To connect sponsors with children who needed support to access education

2. To allow sponsors and supporters the opportunity to get to know the child they sponsored, as well as learn about Cameroon and its culture 

3. To prioritise keeping in touch with each child and each sponsor, sending out detailed reports each month

 

Over the past few years, Children of Cameroon has grown steadily. We now have a great team of volunteers and are going through the process of becoming a registered charity. Our social media presence is increasing by the day, and we are reaching and helping many more children in Cameroon, both in the Boyo region and in Yaounde, the capital city. 

 

Plans for the future? To spread out across the whole country, finding sponsors for children in every part. Looking even further ahead, I’d like to set up in other countries, both in Africa and other continents - watch this space!

To learn more about sponsoring a child, please visit www.childrenofcameroon.co.uk