America World Adoption News

Memorial Day Closing

2013-05-23T13:06:08-04:00

Our offices will be closed from Friday, May 24 at 1:00 pm ET through Monday, May 27. We'll be back the following Tuesday. Enjoy the long weekend!

Webinar: Can We Talk? When Kids Start Asking About Adoption

2013-05-23T10:10:28-04:00

Join Adoption Learning Partners for a webinar that will discuss the common questions kids start to ask about adoption and how to answer tough questions.

The webinar is on Thursday, July 18, 2013 at 7:00PM Central with a Q&A at 8:00PM.

Learn more and register here.

Ethiopia Family Day

2013-05-22T17:05:13-04:00

AW Staff with the pastor and his wife

Last Saturday, we had the pleasure of joining a local Ethiopian church to celebrate adoptive families and the Ethiopian culture. Families from as far as North Carolina and Pittsburgh came to Springfield, VA to fellowship together.

We enjoyed a delicious traditional meal consisting of Ethiopia's national dish, wat (a thick stew), injera (a thin, spongy bread used to pick up your food), and other dishes containing lentils, greens, beets, and more delicious flavors.

Traditional meal - very colorful

Injera

After the meal, the church put on a fashion show, with most of their members wearing traditional dress. Each outfit was explained, and features of the clothing were pointed out, such as the hand-embroidered crosses on many fabrics. We saw a large variety of clothing- casual, formal, for young and for old.

Beautiful traditional dresses

Colorful head wrap

One of the most definitive parts of Ethiopian culture is the coffee ceremony. Ethiopia is believed to be the birthplace of coffee! Families, neighbors, and friends can spend hours together during the ceremony. Raw coffee beans are roasted, creating a delicious aroma, and then ground and boiled over water.

Let us have coffee!

There were also stations for learning how to write your name in Amharic, a hair braiding room, traditional Ethiopian games for the kids, crafts, and a mini museum of Ethiopian artifacts and items from the church member's homes.

Colors of the Ethiopian flag

The Ethiopian ladies braided the girls' hair and offered haircare tips

Traditional game, similar to "human tug of war"

We are truly grateful to Grace Ethiopian Church and their kindness to our staff and each of the adoptive families that attended this wonderful event.

Senate Hearing on U.S. Foreign Assistance for Children

2013-05-22T15:25:28-04:00

The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee held a hearing yesterday for a Review of U.S. Foreign Assistance for Children in Adversity. Here is the recording of the hearing. It is long, but definitely very interesting. We appreciated Jedd Medefind of the Christian Alliance For Orphans and his report (toward the end of the hearing). We are also grateful that Senator Mary Landrieu asked questions of UNICEF regarding how they spend their money pertaining to seeking permanent families for children (beginning at about 1:33:00 in this hearing). Senator Landrieu has shown a commitment to finding ways for the U.S. government to work cooperatively with foreign countries to help reduce the number of parentless children.

National Reunion Hotel Discounts

2013-05-22T11:47:40-04:00

Here in McLean, the warm, sunny temperatures are becoming consistent and it's starting to "feel" more like summer! As school winds down, you may be anticipating the fun summer plans you've made with your family. If you do not have plans for July 20- please join us for an adoptive family reunion! We have a lot of fun activities planned, and the best part is the fellowship with other adoptive families.

We have reserved a block of rooms at two local hotels at great rates. Check them out here. The rates are good through June 20. We recognize that it isn't possible for all out of town families to come, but we want to help make your trip easier in any way we can. Washington DC always makes for a great vacation- there are a multitude of free museums, frequent cultural events, and you can visit your congressperson!

As our staff looks forward to the reunion, we sincerely hope you can join us. Please see the details at the link above and email nationalreunion@awaa.org with any questions.

America World's Work In Ethiopia

2013-05-21T16:59:30-04:00

Last week our agency’s Ethiopia Program was inundated with emails and phone calls, many of which were from families in our program, asking more about our agency’s work in Ethiopia. The questions followed a blog post by Jen Hatmaker, a prominent Christian author, whose original blog post on this issue can be found here. She followed her blog post with a second posting providing, among other things, prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) suggested questions to ask agencies about their program. Our Ethiopia Team will be updating our FAQ page to include each of these questions and our agency’s answer to these questions – please bear with us as we seek to have these up on our site next week. We are grateful for the opportunity to tell you more about our work. Ms. Hatmaker has promised a forthcoming post that focuses on orphan care outside of adoption – an issue we know many of you (like us) care deeply about.

We have done our best this past week to respond to each of your requests as they’ve come in, but we know that for each family that writes or calls us, there may be many who have the same questions but don’t reach out. This post is designed to give you more information about our work in Ethiopia, including some of the safeguards we put in place to protect children and families.

Family Reunification

Many, though certainly not all, of the children who we place from Ethiopia have living birthparents or family members. Often, this might be a loving parent or extended family member who, for many reasons, may not have chosen to, or been able to, continue parenting their children. In these circumstances, Ethiopia’s process requires that these birthfamilies participate in the adoption process, both by being present for a court hearing as well as being interviewed by the U.S. Embassy. Additionally, our agency interviews birthparents to verify the information we were provided regarding how the child came to live outside parental care, what the birthparent’s understanding of adoption is and if the birthparent was coerced, bribed or lied to as part of seeking to have the child placed for adoption.

Although it’s not common, America World Adoption has been part of cases in which birthparents have changed their mind regarding adoption following the child being given as a referral. In these cases, we’ve been supportive of the birthfamilies’ desires to reunite with and parent their children. We have successfully seen families reunified following our involvement in interviewing and informing them about adoption. We rejoice in these circumstances and believe that our small roles in those processes are part of God’s plan for those families.

Some of the humanitarian projects we do directly supports family preservation. Our efforts in this regard are important, but just a drop in the bucket compared to what is needed in Ethiopia and other countries to assist families. We are grateful for the many child and family focused organizations that have taken a lead in serving in this capacity, including other adoption agencies. We thank God for organizations such as World Vision, Compassion, International Justice Mission, Bethany Christian Services and other Christian organizations who serve families and children faithfully and compassionately.

Ethiopian Adoption

We are very proud of our agency’s work in Ethiopia to help Ethiopian families interested in adoption. As an agency, we offer Ethiopian families free assistance in adopting children and these families are prioritized in the adoption process above the American families we serve. Although the number of placements we do in this capacity is relatively small, we believe that by prioritizing Ethiopian families ahead of our American families, it demonstrates our commitment to allowing children to stay in their country of origin. We also believe that most of our “fee-for-service clients” are glad to know that the work and agency you support allows Ethiopian families the free opportunity to adopt from their country.

One of our agency’s Board Members recently told us that while in Ethiopia she saw AWAA’s billboard in Addis promoting domestic adoption. She kindly chided us that she wished we kept her updated more often so she didn’t have to travel across the world to learn about what AWAA is doing. Although lighthearted, her criticism was valid – the better job we do of letting you know about our work, the better you’ll understand what we do and how we do it.

Working with Birthfamilies

All children (including all children placed for adoption) have two birthparents. What makes Ethiopia’s process different than many other countries is that: 1) these birthparents are often known; and 2) these birthparents have often chosen to relinquish their parental rights (as opposed to having their parental rights terminated). This adds complex dynamics into the role of adoption service providers, orphanages, the Ethiopian and US governments, as well as the adoptive family in terms of how we interact with these birthparents.

It’s important that whenever we work with birthfamilies, we do so respectfully, compassionately and mindful of their circumstances and the difficult decision they face in choosing to parent or relinquish a child. At America World Adoption, we believe that it is possible to both ensure birthfamilies are well counseled/informed while ensuring they’re respected, not harassed and not made to feel guilty for whatever decision they’ve made.

If it’s possible for birthfamilies to reunify, and it’s in the best interest of the child, we believe this should be supported ahead of adoption.

Fraud & Coercion

We are often asked “What do you do to prevent against fraud and coercion?”

The answer, in part, is about what we don’t do:

We don’t interact with birthparents prior to an orphanage referring a child to be placed for adoption.
We don’t pay any of our staff (in Ethiopia or the U.S.) on a “per child/per adoption” basis. (We also don’t pay non-staff intermediaries/facilitators or orphanages on a “per child/per adoption” basis.)
We don’t assume whatever information we’re provided about a particular case is accurate. We know mistakes, errors as well as unethical practices can lead to inaccurate child referral information. We seek to mitigate this by doing “orphan status investigations” to confirm the information we’re provided by orphanages is accurate.

What do we do to prevent fraud and coercion:

As mentioned above, we do independent investigations to see if the information we find is consistent with the information we’re provided. When this information is not consistent – we ensure that Ethiopian governmental authorities are informed and we suspend the processing of a case until the situation and circumstances are clarified.
We train our staff in Ethiopia about the importance of following ethical practices regarding interacting with birthparents, orphanages, adoptive parents and children.
We work with orphanages that comply with Ethiopian law. We don’t continue partnerships with orphanages if we find we are not able to trust the information they provide us.
We work with child welfare authorities, in situations of child abandonment, to place ads seeking information on locating the child’s birthfamily (placing these ads is required – and something we are glad to comply with). We also interview the individual who is listed as having found the abandoned child.

One of the challenges we, and all other agencies, face in Ethiopia and other countries where we work is the limitation of our role in the adoption process. In Ethiopia, we operate in an existing child welfare system that (appropriately) limits the role of adoption service providers from portions of the process that have to do with identifying children and “clearing” them for adoption. No country has a perfect system for this and Ethiopia is not an exception. While there is room for improvements, we also think it’s important to recognize that Ethiopia has shown a willingness to get involved in the complex and challenging process of seeking the best interests of their children. We wish that more countries were willing to take on these challenges for the sake of their children. We hope that any criticism of Ethiopia’s governmental process is tempered with the recognition of the difficulty of this task and a recognition of the many admirable aspects of Ethiopia’s process. We believe that Ethiopians care as much (or more!) for their children as we do and that (though individual exceptions may apply) this is true of Ethiopia’s government workers, judges, orphanage caregivers and the society in general. We know that Ethiopian government authorities have expressed a desire to continue to improve their services and we are supportive of this desire. We have been privileged to help facilitate communication between Ethiopia’s child welfare authorities with other country adoption authorities to enable them to discuss their practices.

For obvious reasons, we know our own agency better than we know other agencies, but we believe that many of the practices and values we listed above are shared with other agencies working in Ethiopia. Unfortunately, we also know that some agencies either by choice or lack of resources, do not take the same precautions that most agencies take. It is our hope that the proper legal authorities in Ethiopia and the United States are aware and take action to ensure that appropriate placements happen.

We know we have likely not answered all of your questions or responded to every facet possible. We welcome your additional questions and feedback as it helps us know how we can better serve you. Our goal is to reflect this verse: “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” -Micah 6:8

Finally – we wanted to share a really thoughtful statement that was written by John Piper of Desiring God Ministries; this statement is helpful in that it links many principles in ethical adoption to biblical passages which we affirm.

Again, we know this isn’t exhaustive, but we do hope it answers many of your questions and that you’ll continue to let us know of additional questions you have.

Sincerely,

AWAA’s “state-side” Ethiopia Team (Anna, Caitlin, Lauren, Elise, & Kelsey)

China Waiting Children Program- April Referral Overview

2013-05-21T11:08:15-04:00

The China program staff is excited to announce that throughout the month of April, 9 children were matched with their forever families through the Waiting Children Program. These referrals were for girls and boys ages 16 months to 38 months with various medical needs. The referral wait time will always vary for each family depending on what gender, age, and special needs a family is requesting as well as the number of children released each month by the CCCWA and types of special needs represented. We know many families are waiting for their referrals and we continue to pray for all families throughout the adoption process.

If you would like to learn more about the program and referral opportunities, please contact China Program staff.

CEO Note

2013-05-20T18:03:14-04:00

My apologies for Friday’s quick blog post trying to tackle a big issue in a quick blog on a Friday afternoon. I had a lot of things to say and didn’t get across everything I wanted to. If it came across as defensive or lacking details/specifics – that was not intentional but my fault and I’m sorry. Instead of writing specifically about Ethiopia, I wrote in general trying to make it more relevant to all our programs. I have asked our Ethiopia team to separately put out a posting this week (look for this tomorrow) about ways that we seek to work ethically in Ethiopia.

I do mean what I wrote in Friday’s blog: It’s a truly wonderful thing to know that so many families are concerned about the ethics of international adoption. The blog, written by Jen Hatmaker, is here. Even if I don’t agree with everything, I do think these discussions will only make for more informed families, better performing agencies and will help all of us be more thoughtful as we seek the same purpose of ensuring children grow up with a family.

Look for more this week about our work in Ethiopia and other countries.

-Brian

Adopting a Deaf Child: Meet Levi

2013-05-20T16:39:12-04:00

If you see my family, three things stand out immediately:

We are a bi-racial family. (My husband is Caucasian, I am Mexican, and our kids are Ethiopian.)
My husband and I are in our mid-twenties and have a teenager and a nine-year old.
My 14-year old son is profoundly deaf and we use American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate.

My son Levi is Deaf. And he's also a normal teen. He's growing like a weed (soon he will be eye level with me *sigh*), he eats like a horse, and he loves basketball, soccer, movies, pizza, his friends, and cell phones. He has a smile that lights up everything around him, and a love for Jesus that shines right through him. He talks (signs) non-stop.

And six months ago, he had a vocabulary of 25 signs.

Levi grew up in Ethiopia with no education and no formal language. I mean, NONE. Can you imagine being locked inside yourself in a world of silence? Not being able to communicate with others? Not being able to tell them how you feel or what you want? Not understanding what people want of you? Not understanding when people laugh at a joke? Not knowing your siblings' names? That's just part of what Levi lived with for 14 years. And it's a wonder he didn't lose his mind and become a frustrated, violent mess. And probably why he signs 24/7 now.

When we met Levi on our court trip, he had about 25 "home signs", which are signs he had invented as a system of communicating with his caretakers and friends. He had just started going to a deaf school in Addis, and was learning some Ethiopian sign language. Between learning Levi's home signs, teaching him some of ours (I am an ASL-English interpreter), and gesturing, the three of us were able to communicate at a basic level immediately.

When Levi and Zahria (his biological sister) came home in November, 2012, they could not communicate with each other at all. Six months later, I couldn't get them to stop talking (signing) if I tried. Zahria actually said the other day: "Mommy, before in Ethiopia, me and Levi no can talk. None. Me don't know him. Now us talk all da time!!!" Here is a video of them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RDNx47pXv8

By the world's standards, Levi is "disabled." “Disabled” implies that something is wrong with him. I don't consider him disabled; he just can't hear. He functions as a normal teenager and basically the only differences are that we use ASL to communicate, and we need interpreters for public events, appointments, etc. Minor adjustments are also that instead of calling Levi's name to get his attention, we wave, or tap him on the shoulder, or flash a light switch so that he turns to face us.

Maybe right about now you're thinking, "Hey Marissa, that's cool that you know ASL and have a Deaf son, but I don't know any sign language and that's scary!"

It's totally scary! But it's okay! Not knowing sign language should NOT stop you from considering a deaf child. While both parents knowing ASL would be ideal, it's not the only option. If you are truly willing to learn to sign and communicate with your deaf child, and provide them the resources where THEY can learn to sign or communicate with their mode of preference (sign, sign and speech, oral only, etc.), then perfection doesn't matter. Effort and willingness are the keys. 90% of deaf children are born to hearing parents and those parents didn't know sign when their kids were born. You can do this!

Not all deaf people are the same. That seems obvious, but what I mean is that deaf people do not all identify themselves the same, and they use different modes of communication, depending on their personal preference. The two main categories are: Deaf (viewing themselves as a cultural minority and using American Sign Language to communicate), and hard-of-hearing or hearing impaired (using spoken English and or a mixture of spoken and signed English or ASL). People with a cultural view use a capital "D" to define themselves as Deaf. Deaf/hard-of-hearing people also have a range of hearing loss. Levi is 80 and 90db. Basically, a rock concert sounds like a whisper to him.

There are lots of resources for families with deaf children, although they vary depending on the area. Each state typically has one school for the deaf, and that would be the best place to get resources in your specific area. Schools for the deaf typically provide sign language classes, a schedule of deaf events in their area, audiology and speech therapy, hearing aid repairs and resources, sports/recreation, as well as education in a signed environment. Example: www.rsdeaf.org

Another resource for communication between Deaf and hearing individuals is a videophone. If I am away from the house, I could call Levi on my phone, using a video relay service with interpreters. www.sorensonvrs.com

There are also multiple online stores that sell devices such as flashing doorbells and vibrating alarm clocks, and other devices designed for deaf/hard-of-hearing people. http://store.hdscenter.org/

Language resources are available too, with websites showing videos of single signs and concepts in ASL (although they do not teach sentence structure, syntax, or grammar). I also have a YouTube page where I post videos of specific signs to help our family communicate with Levi.

ASL Dictionary: www.aslpro.com

ASL Dictionary: www.lifeprint.com

My YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/user/SignLanguageBasics

If you are considering a deaf child, or just want to ask questions, please feel free to email me at marissa.fiddle@gmail.com. I would love to talk with you!

-Marissa Ruper

On Ethical Adoptions

2013-05-17T14:27:36-04:00

There is a popular blog whose Christian author recently posted about ethics in adoption. The author is an adoptive parent who adopted internationally. I will not name the blog or author, but it was impressive to see how wide-ranging her impact was – our agency was inundated with emails shortly after this blog was posted. There is something to rejoice in here: It’s a truly wonderful thing to know that so many families are concerned about the ethics of international adoption. The blog didn’t mention our agency or address us, but since so many families wrote to us following the blog post we thought it would be helpful to respond.

First, there are a lot of things this blog post got right. The author was absolutely right in noting that adoption processes should not be about adoptive parents’ rights to a child. She is absolutely right to grieve over the abuses, coercions and broken families that have resulted from fraud, lies and corruption. And she is absolutely right to say that adoption should not be motivated by a desire to provide children with a wealthier family. Although there are points on this blog post that we certainly didn’t agree with and wouldn’t endorse, on these issues she is right, and ought to be commended.

At America World Adoption, we don’t believe our agency, our staff or the adoption systems we work in are perfect. We’re not naïve enough to believe that there are not children and families who have been very hurt by fraud, abuses or corruption. We know this has happened to some families and we grieve with you. If there are cases of adoption abuses, our agency stands with other adoption professionals asking for the abuses to be prosecuted. But we don’t want to paint a picture of international adoption as a system that is primarily composed of fraudulent cases. We don’t believe that. We also believe that most of the adoptive families we work with care first and foremost about children. We believe they deeply and compassionately care about those children’s birth families. We also believe that children living in orphanages should have an opportunity to grow up with parents: if birth parent reunification isn’t possible, kinship placements should be sought; if this isn’t possible, domestic adoption should be considered; when this isn’t a possibility, international adoption can be a great, appropriate and God-ordained way of ensuring that children grow up with families. Finally, we want to say, loud and clear, that we unapologetically don’t believe international adoption is a “last resort”. Abusive families, orphanages, foster care, group homes, or growing up as a street child are worse options for a child.

The topic of corruption and fraud in international adoption truly is helpful and hopefully will result in more informed and prepared parents. We hope and pray that this “trendy topic” leads to true changes and doesn’t result in fewer children growing up with parents. It’s possible to continue to improve our imperfect systems and continue to serve children and families at the same time. That’s our commitment and we hope if you have feedback on this subject for how we can do this better that you’ll share it with us.

-Brian Luwis, founder and CEO