Adopted by Design

CEO Notes

2012-01-27T11:48:56-05:00

We’ve had a busy few weeks here in the office! January always seems to be a time when we have more applicants than normal, perhaps because things slow down with the holidays, or families are starting the new year with resolutions on beginning the adoption process they’ve been considering for years.

We’re excited for those families who have recently received referrals or clearances for their ability to travel. We are also glad that we have three families registered with India’s new adoption process. We continue to pray each morning at our staff devotions for those families who are experiencing difficulties or long waits with their process.

As many of you know, China just celebrated their new year and they’ve ushered in the “Year of the Dragon”. My family is celebrating Chinese New Year this coming weekend – we’re inviting our Chinese American friends over for good Chinese food, fellowship, and an opportunity to highlight for our children born in China that we value the culture of their country of origin.

Phones and Internet

2012-01-26T12:39:25-05:00

We are having some issues with our internet and phone service. Our provider is working on the problem, but you may experience disruptions. Thanks for your patience during our technical difficulties.

Wednesday - Use Alternate Fax Number

2012-01-25T15:14:58-05:00

We are experiencing difficulty with our toll-free fax number and are working to resolve the issue. Please use the number 703-356-8973 to send faxes this afternoon. If you sent a fax since yesterday morning, please resend to the above number. Thanks for your patience.

The Song That Changed My Life

2012-01-25T11:58:54-05:00

We are excited to share an America World family will be featured on a new GMC channel show The Song That Changed My Life this Tuesday, January 31st at 11:30 pm ET. Tune in or set your DVR to watch this family’s journey to adoption, and how God used Steven Curtis Chapman’s song “When Love Takes You In” to change their lives.

Watch a preview of the program here.

America World is sponsoring Steven Curtis Chapman's spring "Songs & Stories" tour. Check out his website for concert dates and locations. We would love to meet you at our promotional table on the tour!

Infant Incubators Given to Chinese Orphanages

2012-01-23T13:20:42-05:00

We are excited to announce that through the support & donations from America World families, we were recently able to provide some additional donations to several orphanages in China. It is always wonderful to see how God lays a certain desire on the hearts of churches or families and we are able to join with them in helping to provide additional resources where needed. Most recently, funds were able to be used to help provide infant incubators for two small orphanages, one in the Hei Long Jiang Province and another in the Chongqing area. Both orphanages were in need of these items, and were thankful for the infant incubators and enclosed a few pictures. As always, we feel blessed to have the opportunity to give additional equipment and resources to orphanages in need, which is made possible through the generous giving of our families. Please join our staff in praising the Lord for His provision and care for orphanages and children in China and throughout the world.

Welcoming Angels: Reverse Hosting Trip to Haiti

2012-01-23T12:15:08-05:00

Come join America World as we travel to Haiti, March 25-30, 2012. The purpose of this Reverse Hosting Trip is to meet some of the spiritual and physical needs of the children living at one of our partner orphanages in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. This orphanage is the home of 80+ children ranging in age from 6 months to 16 years. Many of the children are over the age of 4.

As a team, we hope to build relationships with the children and gain a better understanding of their way of life and every day experiences. Trip participants will have the opportunity to bring donations, plan activities and spend time giving individual attention to the children currently living at the orphanage. While many of the children at this orphanage are currently available for adoption, we will plan special activities to reach the older children that may not have the opportunity to join forever families. AWAA staff will assist trip participants with travel paperwork and travel arrangements. While in Haiti, the team will be accompanied by AWAA staff and local guides/translators.

The trip is limited to the first 20 individuals that apply.

Trip Costs = $2,100 per person. Costs Include:

International airfare
Airport transfers
In-country transportation
Translators to accompany the team
Accommodations for 5 nights
Breakfast and dinner at Guest House
Bag lunch for the day
Free WiFi and phone calls to the U. S.

*For a trip application or more information please contact Michelle.Reed@awaa.org.

“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” Matthew 25:40

Monday Delayed Opening

2012-01-22T21:35:50-05:00

The America World offices will be on a delayed opening on Monday, January 23rd due to icy conditions. We will open between 10-11 a.m. and will resume operations at that time.

From Travel Group to Family

2012-01-20T13:46:09-05:00

The cover of the America World calendar this year is a photo of eight girls, all from China. They are all from the same province in China, and the families of these girls met during travel. This travel group has a fun and unique story of the close bond they have formed since returning from China. Please enjoy their story and pictures below, written and submitted by several of the moms. Thanks to Cindy Martens for organizing.

There were 11 families who received their babies one day in Guangdong, and we all really feel like we became one big family. We have a single mom, one family who had adopted previously, some who were first time parents and some who had older biological children, and yet when we're all together, our diversity only seems to bring us closer. Our girls are uniquely all within six months of age of each other and will all be in the same grade. They call each other their China sisters and, no matter how long they've been apart, they fall back into a beautiful familiarity with each other.

We regularly email each other, we visit as much as we can, and we arrange mini- and entire group reunions whenever possible. We've had mini reunions everywhere from St. Louis to Washington, D.C., to Pennsylvania! Our families, though we are from all different backgrounds and places in parenting and live all across the country, we couldn't be closer in our hearts. We all say we truly formed a family on that hot day in a crowded conference room in Guangzhou, China. What a blessing it is to all of us!

I still marvel at this “red couch” photo, where we were able to get seven of our eleven sitting beautifully without crying!

This is a photo of their birthday party that we threw for them while in China. Most of us missed their first birthdays, so we gave the girls a party together! Finding a cake proved to be pretty challenging, so we bought them each individual cakes from the hotel's restaurant.

Here is our first Guangdong Girls reunion when our girls were just two. This time we had TEN of eleven there. As you can see, they weren't quite as cooperative that time around! We are still waiting for that elusive photo of all eleven.

While we were anxious to meet other families in our adoption group, we never dreamed that we'd grow to love these families as our own. We realize that ours is a special connection, and its greatest value is the gift it is for our girls to be able to remain close and maintain their own connection to their beginnings. My personal prayer is that it will give them a sense of belonging beyond their own families and purpose in where they are now.

Giving Praise for the Russia Program in 2011!

2012-01-17T14:43:20-05:00

Despite a tough U.S. economy, America World saw an increase in the number of children placed from Russia in 2011.

Here’s how the numbers break down:

Children Adopted – 17

Adoptions Finalized – 14

Referrals received – 7

Average Referral wait time – 7 months (for one child)

We are incredibly thankful to a gracious and merciful God for helping so many parents bring these children into their forever families. We are praying that 2012 will see an even higher number of children matched with families.

Our Russia Program offers different options for families seeking an adoption. The Moscow region has a referral wait time of 2-4 months and our Waiting Children list has children who are ready to be matched right away. These options are in addition to the standard process. More information can be found on our Russia Program Page.

China Program- Overview of January Matching & Time Frames

2012-01-17T09:45:43-05:00

The following information is our review for the month of January. During January, the CCCWA matched families whose log in dates were August 11th , 2006- August 15th, 2006. AWAA did not have any families registered on these dates; therefore, we did not receive healthy referrals this month.

Next AWAA Group To Receive a Referral

America World’s next referral groups are logged in on August 16, 2006. We do not know how many log in dates (LID) the CCCWA will process in their upcoming next group of referrals, but anticipate to receive referrals next month. The average trend of processing, at present, is generally 5-10 LID dates each month. Please note that while August 16, 2006 represents AWAA’s next group waiting for a referral, there are still other agencies around the world with various LID’s waiting to be matched. The CCCWA matches families with referrals in a systematic manner and in order of the next date(s) on the calendar to be processed. An agency that doesn’t have any families LID on the upcoming dates being matched will not receive referrals until the CCCWA reaches their next Log in Date. This ensures that every family who has the same log in date, will receive referrals at the same time. (unless there is an issue in question regarding the family’s dossier- in which case a family would be notified) Log in dates vary throughout the calendar year for every agency’s families.

Current Wait Time

The current wait time from LID to referral is 65-66 months with a trend of increasing approximately a full month each month. This wait time represents how long families who just received referrals waited for their referral and how long the next group anticipating their referral will most likely wait if matched in next month’s referral group. Families should read the China Program Newsletter emailed on 3/2/2011 to understand the variety of factors contributing to the wait time and the reasons why it is impossible to predict the referral wait time for each family. Families should continue to anticipate a long wait for a referral. The wait time estimates apply to all families who have an LID, is participating in the traditional (non-waiting child program) and continues to increase for all families currently logged in at the CCCWA.

Chinese Expedite Wait Time

Families who are of Chinese heritage and who have dossiers submitted as Chinese expedites, can anticipate a slightly shorter wait time. The CCCWA is currently matching Chinese expedite families who have a dossier logged in August of 2007 as they are now matching August 2006 LID’s. The CCCWA’s desire is to keep one year apart between the regular matching process and the Chinese expedite matching process. This will mean that the Chinese expedite wait time will generally be 12 months shorter than the current estimated wait time you will see listed each month.

Dossier Review

The CCCWA has not yet changed the date of dossier review as it has remained the same for the last several months. At present, the CCCWA continues to confirm that they have completed the review of dossiers that were registered with their office through November 30, 2010. This means that families who were LID through November 30, 2010 have had their dossiers reviewed. The timeframe for the dossier review process will vary as it is based upon the number of dossiers that are logged in during the particular month(s) that is(are) currently under review. We will post any updates to dossier review once it is confirmed by the CCCWA.