Aunt Gretch

Exciting news of the week: I'm gonna be an aunt! That's right, DM and Em are gonna have a baby around the end of November. How exciting it is to think that we'll soon have a new addition to the Nickson clan! Just when we thought the dogs were enough to keep up with... Please keep the new little one in your prayers, as well as the proud parents.

We fail to realize sometimes how blessed we are to be able to raise a child in a good Christian home. To know that God-willing that child will be able to grow up healthy, eat three meals a day, go to school, have the support of both parents, be able to go to the doctor when needed, and live in a safe house. But what about the children who aren't priveleged to those things? Some food for thought....

28% of children under 18 in the US live in a single-parent household
Number of children in the world: 2.2 billion
Number in poverty: 1 billion (every second child)
30,000 children die each day due to poverty

For the 1.9 billion children from the developing world, there are:
640 million without adequate shelter (1 in 3)
400 million with no access to safe water (1 in 5)
270 million with no access to health services (1 in 7)
Children out of education worldwide: 121 million

Also found this of interest...
Global Priority in $U.S. Billions
Cosmetics in the United States:8
Ice cream in Europe:11
Perfumes in Europe and the United States:12
Pet foods in Europe and the United States:17
Business entertainment in Japan:35
Cigarettes in Europe:50
Alcoholic drinks in Europe:105
Narcotics drugs in the world:400
Military spending in the world:780

And compare that to what was estimated as additional costs to achieve universal access to basic social services in all developing countries:
Global Priority in $U.S. Billions
Basic education for all:6
Water and sanitation for all:9
Reproductive health for all women:12
Basic health and nutrition:13

Hmmm......