Tiana Pongs is World Vision’s newest ambassador

In 2008, Tiana was the model for a TV commercial for World Vision. Back then the film was shot in Düsseldorf and Tanzania and now, more than ten years later, the circle is complete. Tiana started her first trip for World Vision in December 2019 – this time as an ambassador. Her goal: Tanzania to meet her godchild personally. Tiana has been supporting sponsored children since her teenage years and is actively committed to children and their protection.

Here are a few personal lines from Tiana about her press trip with World Vision to Tanzania:

Currently, the new Coronavirus still determines our everyday life and I can hardly believe that I was in Tanzania six months ago. What did I do there? I am an ambassador for the children’s aid organization World Vision, and I support a sponsored child there. It has always been my dream to help children abroad. They are especially important to me, and I have always traveled a lot with my job. At the end of November 2019, it was time – I traveled together with World Vision employees via Dar es Salaam to Bukoba, a small region in the north of the huge East African country, far from any tourism. As the jeep continued down unpaved roads, I was able to view various World Vision projects. I visited Reading Camps, which are facilities where children under the age of 5 who are not yet in school are taught to read and write. Because the parents must work in the fields during the day, the children are often left to their own devices and are often exposed to danger. At these facilities, they learn the basics of play and they are well looked after during the day. I spent an afternoon with these children and improved my Kiswahili in the process. I was very impressed with my visit to a health center that was built by World Vision. It’s hard to imagine that a single health center is responsible for the whole region. People sometimes have to walk very far to access it. I looked at the treatment rooms and talked to the doctors and nurses. Malaria remains the leading cause of death in Africa, but HIV is also a big issue. Here is a maternity ward where a little boy has just seen the light of day. The station is also equipped to perform cesarean sections and to manage complicated births. There are also educational talks about preventing the spread of disease. I was very impressed.

The most important reason for my trip was to visit my godchild, Aganyira. She is 4 years old and lives with her family in a small village in a clay house, which consists of 2 rooms. They sleep in one and eat and live in the other. I was very excited before this meeting and I asked myself many questions. How do we communicate? Does she even understand why I am here? Will she be happy? The family welcomed us very warmly, with singing and traditional dancing. I was getting to know my godchild better and it was wonderful. A World Vision employee translated into English for us, and I brought some gifts for the little one and her family. Aganyira and I had the whole afternoon to get to know each other, play, and eat together. She was incredibly open-minded and curious. We immediately had a very strong connection with each other. Through this sponsorship, I am able to help Aganyira go to school and help her family receive the important nutrition, basic medical care, and access to clean drinking water that they need. These are easily accessible for us, but unfortunately not in Africa. I will never forget this visit. It was particularly important to me that I was able to be on-site personally so that I could see that my help was well received.