Sponsoring a lost child
Question

                Is it possible to sponsor a child whose
    father is missing under a program for sponsoring orphans, or should this sponsorship
    program be only for orphans?
Praise be to Allah.The orphan is a child whose father has died, as was
    stated by the scholars in Lisaan al-‘Arab [an Arabic-language dictionary] and
    elsewhere. Such a child is regarded as an orphan until he reaches the age of puberty,
    i.e., the age of fifteen or earlier if the signs of puberty appear. These signs are: the
    emission of gushing water (ejaculation) during intercourse or a wet-dream, the growth of
    coarse hair around the private parts, and, in the case of females, the onset of
    menstruation. (See Al-Mughni by Ibn Qudaamah, 6/591)
    As for the child whose father is missing, he is not
    considered to be an orphan unless it is proven that his father is dead, or a period of
    time passes beyond which it is impossible that his father would still be alive; this
    should be left to the discretion of the judge, as stated by the majority of the fuqaha’
    on the topic of the inheritance of one who is missing.
If this child is poor or comes from a poor family, then money can be
    spent on him from the Zakaah or general charity funds, but orphan sponsorship does not
    apply in his case.