Andrea and Nova: Watch the Emotional Moment this Mum Meets Her Child’s Sponsor

Bonded through motherhood and a deep love for their children—watch the beautiful meeting that will unite two families from different worlds forever.

03 May, 2020

United in prayer and hope, Andrea and Nova have formed a beautiful bond that transcends physical borders. Although the families live in very different worlds, child sponsorship has offered a connection far greater than their differences.

We were so blessed to be able to capture their beautiful meeting a few months ago. We hope you enjoy meeting them too!

Let's Meet the Mums!

Andrea

Andrea's family is from Perth, Western Australia. Since sponsoring a child at a conference at the age of 18, Andrea has been passionate about releasing children from poverty in Jesus' name.

At only 5 years old, Andrea's son Micah has effortlessly formed a sweet friendship with the family's sponsored child—5-year-old Gavvin from Indonesia. The family regularly prays for Gavvin and his family, and Micah puts money aside to help support him.

"Andrea's family are so delightful!" says film director and producer, Kym Basoka. "When we filmed in Perth for the first time, we ended up having a little dance party with Micah and baby Peyton in their lounge room."

Nova

Gavvin's mother, Nova, lives in a rural community in East Indonesia, where poverty makes daily life a struggle.

While sponsorship has eased the financial burden on her family, for Nova, being able to connect with Andrea through letter-writing has been life-changing in so many ways.

Sharing their prayers for one another's children has not only enriched Nova's life with joy—their shared experience of motherhood has created a lifelong friendship.

"Despite the language differences, I could tell Nova had a beautiful soft heart for her family and a sweet willingness to give all she had," says Kym. "She was a little bit cheeky and loved to laugh."

Behind the Scenes

Capturing a beautiful moment like this doesn't happen overnight—orchestrating the meeting of Andrea and Nova was months in the making. But from phone calls, email threads and visa approvals galore—grew an incredible story that came together in a God-ordained way.

Capturing the Moment

For a film crew, capturing the moment a supporter meets their sponsored child is an incredibly rewarding experience. But with only one chance to get it right, it's also quite nerve-wracking.

For this story, capturing beautiful footage was important, but making the meeting as natural as possible was crucial—after all, both families would remember it for a lifetime.

Striking the perfect balance was difficult, but it didn't take long for the crew to find a solution.

"While [Compassion Australia videographer] Daniel filmed Andrea and her family walking towards Nova's home from a distance, I was hiding in the banana palms to try and capture Nova's expression," says Kym.

The moment was even more special than they could've imagined.

"We all cried!" says Kym. "It was so special and we were all blessed to be there."

A True Blessing

Pictured (from back left, clockwise): Ella, Nick, Andrea, Peyton, Gavvin, Noviyanti (Nova), Gladys, Arnie, Daniel, Kym, Willy, Vera, Micah and Jeremy

Getting to see the impact that child sponsorship can have in the lives of families living in poverty was an amazing experience for everyone involved.

"It was really special for me in a lot of ways," says Kym. "It showed me that if you trust God with a project, He will fill in the gaps and bring it together for His glory. He knows our hearts so well before we even breathe."

We are so thankful for the incredible bond that sponsorship has given these beautiful families. A special thank you to Andrea and Nova for allowing us to join them on their journey!

If you'd like to bring hope to a child living in poverty, check out our sponsorship page for more information.

For more beautiful Compassion Stories like this one, subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Words by Claire Ince and Kym Basoka

Photos by Jeremy Tan

Directed and produced by Kym Basoka

Filmed and edited by Daniel Bracken