Foire Aux Questions

Orphans to be sponsored are children or teenagers under the age of 18 who have lost either their father or both parents and are in need.

Absolutely. The names of the sponsors are never disclosed to any third party, whether it is the family receiving the assistance or the partner associations.

The sponsor may contact the orphan's guardian. Also, the sponsor may visit the family of the orphan with the agreement of SDO who will then act as facilitator of the said visit. It should be noted that SDO sends its members to the field for courtesy and control visits. The sponsor also receives a report by email on the family situation, material situation and school results of the orphan.

Funds can be sent via the secure Paypall website (click on "Donate") or by check to SDO's address or by direct deposit to SDO's account. Regardless of the method of payment, it is strongly recommended that you indicate whether the money being deposited is for a specific orphan or for an unidentified donation. In the case of direct deposit to SDO's bank account, please send an email to soleildesorphelins@gmail.com to notify the person in charge of your deposit and update your file.

SDO's operating expenses are covered solely by the donations received, which are not earmarked. However, all sponsorship deposits are sent to the orphans. The percentage of these costs is only about 6% of the annual budget.

The sponsor may contact the orphan he/she is sponsoring, either by phone or by email, after approval by SDO. The sponsor will then agree not to disclose any confidential information that he/she may obtain from the orphan he/she is sponsoring. To initiate the process, please send an email to soleildesorphelins@gmail.com.

The money is forwarded to the orphan's guardian via partner associations that are in direct and continuous contact with the orphans. These partners are located close to where the orphans live. SDO ensures that the money is delivered to the beneficiaries.

SDO carries out direct and indirect monitoring. Indeed, the partners working in the field continuously monitor the material and moral situation of the orphan and send periodic reports to SDO. Also, SDO occasionally sends one of its members to the field for monitoring and courtesy visits.

It is desirable that the sponsor keep his or her promise to contribute to the sponsored orphan. Commitments are generally for a minimum of one year. However, if the sponsor should stop payment for a few months due to financial difficulties or other reasons, he/she can notify us in advance and SDO will then take care of the orphan during this period until the sponsor resumes payments.

SDO is a registered charity with the Canada Revenue Agency under number 81865 6514 RR0001. You will receive a tax receipt for each contribution.

In order to keep administrative costs low, the SDO Executive has decided in the past not to incur rental fees. Meetings were held in community centers or by conference call. Today the SDO has reached a certain critical size and we now have an office at 400 Curé Label Suite 411, Laval.

The members of the Executive Board are all volunteers who receive no material compensation whatsoever.

SDO welcomes anyone who wishes to become an active member or volunteer. Based on the profiles of the volunteers, SDO will select members to serve on its management committee.

Participation in the elections is open to all members of the association. However, in order to be a candidate for election, a minimum of 2 years of experience in the management committee is required.