Cambodia Passes New Adoption Law

On October 23, the Cambodia National Assembly passed a law regarding intercountry adoption of the nation's children.  In the article, "Assembly passes bill on foreign adoptions," In the Phnom Penh Post, it states the new law will require prospective adoptive parents age 30- 45 to "undergo a rigorous screening before any adoption gets approval."  According to addtional news reports the law includes provisions to prevent fraud and coersion and will bring Cambodia in line with the Hague Convention on intercountry adoption guidelines.  Adoptions from Cambodia into the United States have been suspended since 2001 because of allegations of corruption and child trafficking.  To read the articles, visit
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/
From Adoption Today magazine:  http://www.bluetoad.com/publication/?i=27850&p=

Two Local Families Need Help this Christmas

The Foster Parent Association has two local families who don't have anything for Christmas.  Can you help? 
One family has a 7 year-old boy, 10 year-old twins (boy and girl), and a 12 year-old girl. 
The other family has an 11 year-old boy, 14 year-old girl, 14 year-old boy, and a 15 year-old girl.
If you would like to help in any way, please contact Debbie Titus:  gstddt@mac.com

Stop Sex Trafficking Now!

From Childrens'HopeChest:

As you read this letter there are over 2 million children forced into prostitution and sex slavery.
This can be prevented and we can do something about it. These girls need our help and there isn’t time to waste.
Right now, pimps and prostitution rings are targeting our precious, young girls. They wait for them to leave the protection of the orphanage, and then offer them a "job."
Many of the girls simply disappear: never heard from again by their friends. But sometimes you glimpse this horror.
Like the girl who was flung from the cab of a truck once her "client" was finished with her. She was paralyzed, never to walk again.

Or the young woman the police found in a ditch on the side of a busy road. Killed at the truck stop where she worked as a prostitute.

These were kids that could have been helped by our programs.

One of these stories is too many...2 million children is unfathomable. This is a direct result of evil having its way on the earth.
As Peter tells us, “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” I Peter 5:8
We can’t let him continue to destroy lives. You can stop this, and help reclaim a child's future.
HopeChest stops sex trafficking before it starts. In Russia, we are taking girls into residential living centers and community centers to actively protect them from the commercial sex trade. We identify girls early, while still in the orphanage.

Our staff form meaningful relationships to role model what successful living looks like. And when that girl leaves the orphanage, she knows exactly where to go for help--to HopeChest. She is not alone.
Amongst our girls, there is no sex trafficking. In fact, our transitional living homes have a 90%+ rate of helping girls find true independent life. This is the reality of God’s Kingdom in action.
Right now these girls need you. Please go to http://www.hopechestpartners.org/
 and click the GIVE button to make a gift today.

You can make a gift in honor of a special person this Christmas. Perhaps you will honor someone who mentored you as we are helping these young women?

Help us stop sex trafficking now by reaching more girls in Russia today and into 2010.
 

http://tomdavis.typepad.com/tom_daviss_blog/2009/12/urgent-stop-sex-trafficking-now.html

Looking for last minute Christmas gifts that give back?

Here's a link to Adoptive Families' gift giving guide -
http://view.exacttarget.com/?j=fe5d167271670d7b7215&m=feef16767c6c03&ls=fdeb15777d6c067b7c107476&l=fec11375776c027f&s=fe2410767463027b701173&jb=ffcf14&ju=fe2616757063077a721772
There you will find adoption-related gifts as well as gifts that support childrens' charities.

Half the Sky Foundation also has a gift guide -
http://halfthesky.org/help/holidaycatalog.php?tr=y&auid=5711212

ABC sensationalizes adoption

In the most exploitive and disparaging-of-adoption media effort yet, ABC will air a sneak peak' of their new series Find My Family on Monday, November 23rd. With a sensationalized and soap-opera style, ABC will take viewers into the lives of adoptees and birth families in their Search to be reunited.

With the tagline " Some people have spent their whole lives searching for the one thing that matters most... Their wish will now come true. Let's find your family, producers completely discount any worth of the adoptive families who have loved and raised these children. Instead the show emphasizes the loss of a child's Real family' as the one-and-only central issue of all adopted children's lives.


The entire premise of this show is upsetting on so many levels. I encourage every family of an adopted child to prepare mentally for the public reaction, and the reaction of their children who may find themselves the sudden center of assumptions about their needs, desires, and personal feelings on their adoption.

This new series is being heavily promoted on ABC. Created by the producer of Extreme Makeover, Find My Family is laden with emotional angst and tearful moments meant to increase ratings and viewership. Unfortunately, the general public's opinion and understanding of adoption is largely shaped by the media. ABC's exploitive new series will focus on the most extreme issues in adoption, and is sure to have an effect on how our children's teachers, extended family, and friends view and accept adoption.


For years, the adoptive community has sought to rectify the past vilification of birth-parents as people who gave away their children. Birth parents are now widely recognized as the First Parents of children, deserving of love, respect, and understanding. It is in no one's best interest to turn the tables and begin to portray adoptive families as second-class, or less-than' a family created biologically. This new series is a step back for everyone.

Search and reunion of adoptees and birth families is part of adoption, and always will be. All adoptive families and birth families are connected through our children, whether we accept that idea or not. Our children bind us. It is a precious, priceless connection. This show cheapens and sensationalizes what is sacred. ABC, your show is an insult, and hopefully a flop.

To continue this article:  http://www.rainbowkids.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=684
The article also has tips on how to discuss this issue with your adopted child.

Adoption for Life Conference

Russell D. Moore, author of Adopted for Life, will be hosting the "Adopted for Life" Conference in Louisville, KY Feb. 26 & 27, 2010.
For a list of speakers, schedule, and registration information:  http://events.sbts.edu/adopting-for-life/


Description of Moore's book:
The gospel of Jesus Christ — the good news that through Jesus we have been adopted as sons and daughters into God’s family — means that Christians ought to be at the forefront of the adoption of orphans in North America and around the world.

Russell D. Moore does not shy away from this call in Adopted for Life, a popular-level, practical manifesto for Christians to adopt children and to help equip other Christian families to do the same. He shows that adoption is not just about couples who want children — or who want more children. It is about an entire culture within the church, a culture that sees adoption as part of the Great Commission mandate and as a sign of the gospel itself.

Moore, who adopted two boys from Russia and has spoken widely on the subject, writes for couples considering adoption, families who have adopted children, and pastors who wish to encourage adoption.

Steven Curtis and Mary Beth Chapman are making overseas adoption more affordable

An article from Christianity Today:

Beauty Will Rise by
Mark Moring

When Steven Curtis and Mary Beth Chapman returned from China in 2000 with their first adopted daughter, Shaohannah, friends greeted them at the Nashville airport, congratulating them on the precious addition to their family. Several of them said, "We dream of doing what you've done. We just can't afford it."

Mary Beth stopped in her tracks. "Are you telling me that the only thing between you and rescuing one of these orphaned babies is money? If you're serious, start filling out the paperwork. We'll pay for it."

Steven laughs upon retelling the story, remembering his wait a minute, honey reaction. International adoptions cost between $10,000 and $45,000 per child.

At first Mary Beth opposed adding to their family through adoption. The couple already had three teenagers, and as a Grammy-winning musician, Steven was frequently on tour. Given their lifestyle and life stage—both were almost 40—adoption seemed impossible. But the Chapman kids, especially Emily, had left letters on their parents' pillows with comments like, "Please listen for God speaking to you about this." Steven got on board first, and Mary Beth eventually came around.

Since Mary Beth's airport offer, her brother and Steven's brother have each adopted two children from China. Other close friends have followed suit.

The Chapmans started exploring further adoption support efforts by asking Bethany Christian Services, the adoption agency they had worked with, if it had funding set aside to help people with the hefty costs. Bethany didn't. The couple researched starting their own program to help underwrite adoptions, and two years later, they founded Shaohannah's Hope.

Since 2003, the ministry—now called Show Hope—has assisted more than 2,000 families, with grants totaling over $6 million and an average grant of $3,000. They rarely fund an adoption entirely. "We don't want to take the place of seeing God provide," said Mary Beth. "We just give them enough to get the roller coaster going." Families have adopted from China, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Russia, and the U.S.

The Chapmans have donated a substantial sum to Show Hope, said Charley Redmond, director of operations and development. In addition, Mary Beth serves as president, Steven is vice president, and two of their children, Emily and Caleb, are on staff. (Show Hope is a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.)

Among Show Hope's grant recipients are Dan and Jori Susanka of Shakopee, Minnesota. Combined with a grant from Target (Jori's employer) and funds from a home equity loan, the Susankas adopted Emmy Ruth Yeye from China in 2005. Jori, a longtime Chapman fan, said, "It's amazing that Steven and Mary Beth put their money where their mouths are, and not only talk about adoption but also live it."

Despite growing from a $250,000 budget in 2003 to nearly $2 million this year, Show Hope can help only a fraction of those who ask for assistance. Of about 150 monthly applications for grants, only 20 to 30 applicants receive money.

From Tragedy to Legacy

The Chapmans themselves adopted two more Chinese girls, Stevey Joy in 2003 and Maria Sue in 2004. In May 2008, 5-year-old Maria was killed when her brother accidentally struck her with an suv in the family driveway.

"Maria is very missed," said Mary Beth. "[But] we can definitely see God's work through [the tragedy]. People's lives have been touched and changed because of her short life."

Show Hope rarely funds an adoption entirely. 'We just give them enough to get the roller coaster going,' said Mary Beth.Maria left a legacy. Gifts to Maria's Miracle Fund are approaching $1 million. Earlier this year, Maria's Big House of Hope, a Show Hope facility for 700 orphans, opened in Luoyang in Henan, China's most populous province.

Show Hope partners with New Hope Foundation, which oversees Maria's Big House and focuses on caring for abandoned babies. Founded by Robin and Joyce Hill in 2002, New Hope works with local government leaders and the Children's Welfare Institute to care for such children, many of whom have surgically correctable deformities.

"The goal," said Show Hope director Scott Hasenbalg, "is for these children to be placed into permanent family settings." Hasenbalg said Show Hope has "ongoing communication with our operational partners … to ensure monies are being invested wisely. Our relationship with the local authorities is healthy and strong."

In early July 2009, the entire Chapman family travelled to China for the grand opening of Maria's Big House. During their visit, they traveled to Sichuan Province, the site of a May 2008 earthquake that killed more than 70,000 and left more than 5 million homeless. Steven said that because of Maria's death, his family was better able to comfort the afflicted.

"I can really understand their pain now," he said. "They've lost sons and daughters. We lost a Chinese daughter. We can comfort with the comfort that Scripture talks about."

This month, Steven will release his latest album, aptly titled Beauty Will Rise. While the songs are mostly about how Maria's death has affected his family, the title could just as well describe the Chapmans' and Show Hope's good work on behalf of orphans around the world.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2009/november/22.36.html?start=2

Time is running out for a 15-year old Ukranian girl who desparately wants to be adopted

Can you please help save this child by circulating this request:

Slusarchuk Alyona, DOB: Dec. 4, 1993 - turning 16 VERY soon - wants a
family very much. Calm, well balanced girl, pleasant, shy, gentle, very
nice, studies very well, performs tasks of adults with pleasure, takes
part in orphanage activities, obedient - all best characteristics from
orphanage director and staff. Really wants a family and agrees to be
adopted abroad, not afraid. The orphanage where she comes from is
involved in LOTS of social activities - singing, dancing, performing at
city concerts and competitions, sports events - a very joyful and
loving place. An interested family will receive more photos of
orphanage activities to see the environment Alyona was growing in.
Please, help save Alyona from orphanage graduation - only 6 days left
before somebody has to start applying for her!!!

If interested in adopting Slusarchuk contact:

Sundy Goodnight

SCTNow National Campaign Director
212-333-7286
www.SCTNow.org
or
Teresa Fillmon, Executive Director
His Kids, Too! - www.hiskidstoo.org
Cornerstone Adoption Services, Inc. - www.cornerstoneadoption.com

Please forward this to anyone you know who might be interested in adopting an older child.

Adoptive Families Magazine's list of the Top Adoption-Friendly Companies

Making It Work: Top Adoption-Friendly Companies

Let's hear it for companies that get the message:
Adoption benefits are vital in today's workplace.

Adoption support at work is moving into the mainstream. Reimbursement of adoption expenses up to $10,000, paid adoption leave up to three months (in addition to Family and Medical Leave Act time), and flexible work arrangements are some of the benefits now on the table.
If your company's adoption benefits aren't up to snuff, do something! Make an appointment with a big cheese at your company and recommend that adoption benefits be introduced or expanded. Or send a persuasive letter stating the case (download Adoptive Families' Instant Letter here).
Adoptive Families applauds the forward-thinking companies that go the extra mile to help their employees build families—and set an example for the rest of the nation.

see the list here

National Adoption Day

On National Adoption Day, this year on November 21, communities in all 50 states will hold courtroom celebrations to finalize more than 4,000 adoptions of children from foster care. Hundreds of judges, attorneys, agencies, adoption professionals, and child advocates volunteer their time to complete the adoptions.

The National Adoption Day Coalition named Nia Vardalos as its 2009 National Adoption Day spokesperson. The writer and actress is an advocate for U.S. foster care adoption. She and her husband, Ian Gomez, adopted their daughter from foster care in 2008.
Read her story here: http://cgcministry.blogspot.com/2009/11/nia-vardalos-writes-about-adopting-from.html