Believe Together
Investing in Children. Strengthening Families. Creating Opportunities. Sharing the Hope of Christ.
Student sponsorshipOur Story
A calling in Creston, Iowa
Believe Together began in Creston, Iowa, through a calling placed on the hearts of Wayne and Michelle Hanson: to become a bridge of opportunity between people who want to make a difference and children, families, and communities facing the realities of poverty.
From the beginning, that calling has been rooted in a simple belief: that when people come together in faith, generosity, and relationship, God can use those connections to transform lives and open doors that once seemed impossible.
Walking alongside Guatemala
Rather than trying to do this work alone, we seek to serve as a bridge, connecting people in the United States with trusted organizations, churches, schools, ministries, and local leaders who are already serving their communities every day.
Our story in Guatemala began among communities surrounding the Guatemala City landfill, where generations of families have faced significant economic and social challenges. Believe Together came alongside local ministries and community leaders to help meet both immediate needs and create opportunities for a different future.
A shared calling with El Faro
Over the years, that work has included feeding programs, educational sponsorships, community outreach, relationships with families, and support for local ministries. What began as a calling to help has grown into a continuing commitment to walk alongside communities, invest in the next generation, and help local partners expand the work God has entrusted to them.
Believe Together is a Christian nonprofit organization with 501(c)(3) status in the United States. As its vision and calling grew, Believe Together's path joined with El Faro's shared desire to serve the people of Guatemala, wherever the need and opportunity to serve might be. Together, the two organizations embraced a broader calling to walk alongside individuals, families, and communities facing poverty and limited opportunities, building relationships, creating pathways toward education and a brighter future, and, above all, sharing the hope and love found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
A Partnership for Education
Education has become an important part of the Believe Together story because it provides children with opportunities that can influence not only their own future, but also the future of their families and communities.
Today, one important expression of that mission is Believe Together's partnership with Colegio Vida, a Christian school in Guatemala City founded by the late Eduardo Marroquín as an outreach to children and families facing difficult economic and social circumstances.
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More than academics
Colegio Vida was founded on the belief that education can be a powerful instrument of transformation. Its vision extends beyond academics to the development of the whole child, providing students with quality educational opportunities while surrounding them with biblical values, caring educators, spiritual encouragement, and the hope found in Jesus Christ.
Room to grow
Today, Colegio Vida continues that mission through dedicated teachers and staff who invest in their students and families. The school provides a place where children can learn, grow in faith and character, discover their God-given potential, and pursue opportunities for a brighter future.
Stronger together
Believe Together comes alongside Colegio Vida to strengthen this work and connect it with a larger community of people who want to invest in the next generation.
Building a Bridge
Believe Together is about more than connecting a sponsor with a student. It is about building a bridge.
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- A bridge between generosity and opportunity.
- A bridge between people who feel called to help and local leaders who understand the needs of their communities.
- A bridge that allows children to receive an education, families to experience encouragement and support, local ministries to grow stronger, and relationships to develop across borders.
We believe sustainable impact happens when we listen to and support those who are already serving on the ground. That is why Believe Together seeks to work alongside local organizations and leaders rather than replace them, helping provide resources, relationships, and opportunities that strengthen the work they are already doing.
Our Mission
To invest in children, strengthen families, and create opportunities by building bridges between people of faith and trusted local partners, sharing the transformative hope and love of Jesus Christ.
Our purpose is simple:
- Invest in children.
- Strengthen families.
- Create opportunities.
- Share the hope and love of Christ.
Through education, sponsorship, community outreach, and partnership, Believe Together seeks to help children and families overcome barriers associated with poverty while supporting local organizations that are working every day to transform their communities.
Our Vision
We envision communities where children have opportunities to learn, families are strengthened, local ministries are equipped, and people experience the hope of Jesus Christ.
We believe lasting transformation is built through relationships.
Investing in the next generation
When children, families, educators, local leaders, ministries, sponsors, and supporters work together, opportunities begin to multiply. By investing in education while nurturing faith, character, dignity, and hope, Believe Together seeks to help a new generation become all that God has created them to be.
Wherever God opens doors
Our vision extends beyond any single program, school, or community. Believe Together exists to continue building bridges wherever God opens doors, connecting resources and relationships with trusted partners who are serving people and sharing Christ in their own communities.
Believe Together Student Sponsorship
One of the most personal ways to become part of the Believe Together story is through student sponsorship.
A personal connection
For $30 a month, a sponsor is personally paired with a Believe Together student, creating an opportunity to know, encourage, pray for, and celebrate that student's journey. Sponsors receive 3-4 personal updates throughout the year, helping create a meaningful connection that goes beyond a financial contribution.
But sponsorship is about more than supporting one child.
Each contribution strengthens the broader Believe Together program and helps support Colegio Vida and its dedicated educators as they serve children and families throughout their community.
Through sponsorship, individuals and families become part of the bridge, connecting their generosity with education, encouragement, faith, and opportunity in Guatemala.
A monthly gift can help create an opportunity.
A relationship can provide encouragement.
An education can help change a future.
And through it all, we have an opportunity to share the hope and love of Jesus Christ.
Learning, Growing, Believing Together
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Together, We Believe
What began with a calling in Creston, Iowa, has grown into relationships that cross borders and connect communities.
From feeding children and serving families in communities surrounding the Guatemala City landfill, to helping students receive an education at Colegio Vida, the heart of Believe Together remains the same:
- To go where God opens doors.
- To come alongside those already doing the work.
- To build bridges that create opportunities.
- And to share the hope of Christ through everything we do.
Because transformation does not happen alone.
Together, we believe.
Together, we invest.
Together, we create opportunities.
Together, we build brighter futures.
Student sponsorship