A CALL TO ACTION!

YOU CAN HELP HAND IN HAND ADVOCATE FOR WAITING CHILDREN!

Social media, twitter, blogs, email, websites, and other internet channels are excellent methods of communicating important information to people across the globe quickly. Hand In Hand is requesting YOUR help! Will you please be a part of our team by advocating for waiting children?

We are asking everyone to feature Hand In Hand on their many media outlets…Facebook, twitter, family blogs, emails to friends and family, etc… It’s super simple! You can just cut and paste the statement below (or write your own!) and email it to friends and family, put it as your Facebook status, or as a blog entry. Please take 3 minutes and share this now!! So many children are waiting!

We would love a link to your Facebook or blog or a copy of your email when you respond to this call to action so we can watch the power of our Hand In Hand village impact the lives of waiting children!! Email us the link or copy us on your email at coloradohih@msn.com.

THANK YOU FOR JOINING HAND IN HAND IN OUR ENDEAVOUR TO FIND A FAMILY FOR EVERY CHILD!

 

Here is a sample statement to share:

As you know, adoption is important to our family. At this moment there are thousands of children around the world waiting for a family of their own. Hand In Hand International Adoptions is looking for people who would like to provide a family to these many waiting children. Please visit: http://www.handinhandinternationaladoptions.org/ to learn more!

CHILDREN WHO WAIT

The China Special Focus program and the Philippines Special Home Find program are each country’s effort to find good families for children who can thrive if only given the opportunity. You can find information about each program from any Hand In Hand office or at Hand In Hand Facebook Page and our blog www.kidswait.org . Please see listings of currently waiting children on Facebook, our blog or website… or email us at hihiadopt@frontier.com and we will send you the most current listings.

WE CAN DO YOUR HOME STUDY

Are you using another agency for your adoption but wondering how you will be able to get your home study, pre-adoption education, and post adoption services completed in a way that is compliant with the Hague Convention or the Universal Accreditation Act?

If you live in a state where we have an office (Colorado, Florida, Indiana or Minnesota) we can help! Since we are licensed in each state where we have an office and we are Hague-accredited, we are most likely able to provide home studies, adoption training, and post placement services that will meet the requirements of the placing agency and whichever foreign country you are adopting from. Contact any of our offices for more details.

COUNTRY UPDATES

Bulgaria – Our Bulgaria program is open and we are eager to receive new applications.  Please contact your local Hand In Hand office or Karin Link in the Minnesota Office. Children are of a rich, ethnic background: Bulgarian, Turkish and Roma. Children ages 1-15 years old, with the majority being over three years old; there is a great need for families open to children between four and eight years old, as well as for families open to children with special needs. Male and female children and sibling groups are available. Most children have mild to moderate medical conditions; the wait for the referral of a healthy child is currently very long.

Brazil – We are awaiting accreditation in Brazil and hope to get good news in January. To learn more about this program, contact Camilla Turquia Gomes, Director of Development, Brazil Program Director. My email address is camillaturquia@hihiadopt.org. I appreciate your interest in adopting from my beloved country, and I look forward to starting this journey with you!

China – The China Center of Adoption Affairs has most recently matched families with log-in dates of December 14, 2006. If your dossier is logged in for a regular match and you are getting discouraged with the wait, please know that you can consider the match of a special needs child without removing your dossier from your “place in line” at CCAA. If you know you want to do this, please contact us at hihiadopt@frontier.com and submit an updated Type of Child form so that our staff in China can know which child may be a possibility for you.

China/Special Needs – We can assist families with adoption of children with special needs from China in three ways, including being matched from the Shared List, being matched to a child who has been designated “Special Focus” because he or she has waited over a month to be matched, or by adopting a child from a province where Hand In Hand has a direct relationship to help match waiting children.

China and Single Applicants – Single females may adopt a child through China’s Special Focus program. The specific requirements the applicant has to meet can be found on the US State Department website at:

http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/country_specific_alerts_notices.php?alert_notice_type=notices&alert_notice_file=china_1 Persons interested in this option can contact any Hand In Hand office for information on which Special Focus children are currently waiting for families. Brief information on the children is also posted on Hand In Hand’s Facebook page and blog www.kidswait.org .

China – Two children - It is possible for a married couple to adopt two children from China at once or successively in the same year, if at least one of them is a Special Focus child.

Haiti –After working in Haiti since 1990, Hand In Hand is committed to continuing our work in Haiti with the utmost integrity, and we look forward to future opportunities in this country. IBESR (Haiti's adoption authority) has placed a priority on the receipt of new applications for adoption from Haitian-American families.  They have asked Hand In Hand to focus on such applications at this time.  Applications to Hand In Hand from families without Haitian heritage are therefore on hold at this time.  Meanwhile, families with Haitian heritage who are interested in adopting from Haiti are encouraged to contact Karin at minnesota@hihiadopt.org to learn more about the process and requirements.

Philippines – Applicants for Philippine adoption should have at least a high school diploma, a minimum annual income of $40,000 and no more than two divorces. Only a very few applications can be submitted each year for young, healthy children. However, there is a great need for applicants open to children with special needs, children over age 6, and large sibling groups.

Philippines Single Parent Adoption – Single applicants for adoption from the Philippines must be open to the adoption of children 9 years old or older. The parent must be at least 16 years older than the child but not more than 45 years older than the child.

Philippines Special Home Find - There are many Filipino children who are older than six or who have special needs or who are a part of a sibling group who need families. They are listed on a Special Home Find list and families can review the list and apply to adopt a child they think could fit well into their family. Contact the Indiana office to have the list emailed to you or look for it on our website or blog.

 

Philippines Summer Hosting Program – If you are considering the adoption of a child between 7 and 15 years old, then the hosting program might interest you. Many children in Philippine orphanages will never be considered for adoption, simply because of their age. One way that the Philippine government has found to be effective to find these children families is to allow them to make a one month visit to the US to stay with potential adoptive families. The families can spend time getting to know the children whom they host, and then later decide if adoption of the host child seems right for them. Even if the children do not end up being adopted, the hope is that they will at least have had a respite from orphanage life for a while and had a chance to visit America. Thus far though, we have a 98% success rate for adoption of children who have participated in our hosting programs! Contact Indiana@hihadopt.org for more information or to be put on the list for our next host program.