Ann Satterfield’s phone lit up with a familiar name. It was Beth Guckenberger, Co-Executive Director of Back2Back Ministries, and a close friend. Since 2004, Ann has led women’s trips alongside others in her community to Back2Back sites, and she serves on the Back2Back Board of Directors. She co-leads women from all over the country, and the objective is simple – assist the staff women on-site and expose new people to the ministry. She picked up her phone, happy to hear from her friend, then was surprised by why Beth was calling.
“Ann, we have identical quads that just arrived at a partner children’s home in Nigeria, and they need sponsors. Will you pray about sponsoring one of them?” Beth’s voice was elated on the phone line. “I didn’t even really have to think about it, honestly,” shared Ann. “I am the mother of triplets, and I immediately felt called to step into this story with all four of the quads.”
That was in 2016, and eight years later, Ann still faithfully sponsors the boys. “My triplets wanted to be seen as individuals when they were growing up, and I wanted the quads to feel the same kind of respect.” So she writes four individual letters quarterly and does it with joy. “I feel God led me to do this, and I have a unique understanding of what they might need to feel known and loved.”
In 2024, after years of financial partnership and letter writing, she finally met them! “It felt like Christmas morning the entire trip,” shared Ann. “I was so excited to meet and talk with them; it was such a happy day.” Ann stood beneath a covered outdoor area at Back2Back’s school while music pumped through the speakers, echoing into the sky. She spotted the four young men she’d fervently prayed over and loved from afar making their way to her. Their eyes connected, and she felt a surge of excited emotion. “They all walked up to me, hugged me individually, and I just kept thinking, ‘I am so thankful to be in their lives, to pray for them, and now to know them in person,'” she shared.
Ann admits that for every season she has cheered them on through, the quads have done the same for her. She started sponsoring them at the same time her triplets went to college. “Going from a table of five to a table of two was a huge adjustment,” she recalls. “Knowing I had four new faces and hearts to pray over and come alongside gave me a lot of peace.” Sponsorship is most often marketed as a program that profoundly affects the children who are being sponsored, and that is true. The story that doesn’t always get told is the benefit received by the sponsor. Often, sponsors set out to be the difference, and their lives are transformed, too.
“Sponsorship has expanded my prayer life,” shared Ann. “I pray to understand what they are walking through and am grateful for the front-row seat I have to their transformation. I’ve seen both their handwriting change, and their interests.” When the four of them finally connected, it was clear they knew her; they asked about her family and her interests. “The impact of exchanging letters is dramatic. You don’t have to travel to the sites – the boys knew me even before they met me. Sponsorship is the most powerful part of my partnership with Back2Back. I am making a difference for the one.”
Ann’s first trip to Nigeria ended, and she said “See you later” to the four boys, but she has every intention of returning. “This is the gift that keeps on giving. You think you’re making the difference, when you sponsor, but it’s more than that. You’re investing in a child and building a relationship. You’re communicating, ‘I see you. I notice you. And I am for you.'”
