Unbound, formerly the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging, is a nonprofit sponsorship organization headquartered in Kansas City, Kansas. Unbound was founded by lay Catholic workers acting on the Gospel call to serve the poor. Its sponsorship program provides basic necessities such as food, education, clothing and access to medical care to children and elderly in some of the world's poorest communities. Unbound sponsors support more than 280,000 children, youth and aging persons in 19 countries. History The Christian Foundation for Children and Aging was founded on November 20, 1981, by siblings Bob Hentzen, Bud Hentzen, Jim Hentzen, Nadine Pearce and their friend Jerry Tolle. The siblings wanted to start a nonprofit to honor their late parents. Bob and Jerry were both missionaries who had witnessed firsthand the effects of poverty in developing countries, so they formed a sponsorship organization based on Catholic social teaching. The first headquarters was in Hentzen's basement in Kansas City, Missouri. More than 800,000 children, youth and aging persons and their families have been served through the sponsorship program. There are more than 280,000 sponsored children and aging persons. The committed partners with the organization have included groups with no Catholic affiliation. On January 1, 2014, the name of the organization was changed. To explain the planned name change, Hentzen said in 2013, "We walk side-by-side with people who dream of freeing themselves from poverty, as they strive to achieve self-sufficiency and build strong communities. Our new name sums up our work." The current president and CEO, Scott Wasserman, said that rather than a bunch of initials, what "Bob wanted was a single word capturing the essence of Catholic social teaching and empowering the poor." Hentzen died in October 2013 at the age of 77, and the National Catholic Reporter eulogized his work. Programs Sponsorship program Unbound uses a sponsorship model of direct support. Its Hope for a Family sponsorship program aims to help families living in extreme poverty by connecting them with sponsors in the U.S. Sponsorship requires a $40 monthly commitment to help fund basic necessities and, in many instances, livelihood programs to help families become self-sustaining. Sponsors have the opportunity to offer encouragement and support for their sponsored friends through the exchange of letters and photos. They also may choose to travel on Unbound awareness trips to meet their sponsored friends, learn about their lives and see how contributions are used. Benefits