Urgent--Gina Needs A Family Now!!!!

Please help us find Gina a family. She turns 14 in May, which means she will no longer have the opportunity to experience the love and security that a forever family provides. This is an urgent situation, so we are taking urgent measures to try to help her. We need a family who is either dossiered already or who is very close to having a dossier ready. If you have any interest, even if you don't meet all of the requirements, please contact me right away: marcisk@asiadopt.org Please spread the word to your friends, families and communities to help find Gina a family!

Help Support the Adoption Tax Credit!

The Federal Adoption Tax credit is set to expire in December 2010 if it is not renewed before then. Please contact your senators and encourage them to renew the bill so the children of the world will continue to find the forever families that they deserve during this time of economic hardship. Please click on this graphic or on the link in the sidebar of the blog to find your senator and make the contact.



Thank you!

A Plea for George and possibly Gina

We are getting towards the end of our Hope Journey program and have yet to find the family that will make George's dream come true. George turns 14 in August, so this is his last chance to find a family. George speaks conversational English already, so he would be a perfect match for an American family! He is well mannered, polite and smart. He won a typing contest at his school and went onto compete at the District level. George gets along well with others and is very helpful with younger children. Isn't there a family out there for George?

It was noted in an earlier post that we had a family for Gina, and that may still be true, but Gina turns 14 in May and the family may not make the deadline to adopt her so we can't stop advocating for her. If there are any families who already have a dossier in China, or are close to that and might be interested in sweet Gina, please contact me: marcisk@asiadopt.org

Gina is a good student who is quiet and studies hard. She knows the English alphabet and 7 to 8 poems. She knows addition, subtraction and multiplication. She is a nice, sweet, independent girl who gets along well with others and desperately wants a family to adopt her.

Even if you don't quite meet the guidelines to adopt from China, please contact us anyway! These children need forever families.

About Older Child Adoption

Many families ask me for information about Older Child Adoption, since we are working so hard to find families for so many older children. There is a fairly new website that posts family stories and there are some great older child adoption stories, as well as many special needs family stories. Please see this link to read some of those stories and find out more about older child adoption: http://www.nohandsbutours.com/
Another great resource for readings on older child adoption is www.rainbowkids.com I can't recommend enough readings before jumping into to such a big lifetime commitment. As many of these families will tell you, if you are well prepared, it is a challenging, but rewarding experience.
Marci

What is Family?

Lin:

Gregory:

George:

JOhn:
Nate:

The importance of family really hit me this holiday season as I experienced a tremendous amount of pain from a herniated disk in my neck. I was unable to care for my daughter and was very limited in what I could do for myself. My husband took care of both me and my daughter and my mom flew up from out of state at a moment's notice to help me through the surgery. It's so humbling to be so helpless and yet have so many caring people wishing me well and willing to help if I need anything. That made me think of George and Gregory who may never have that feeling. They may never know what it's like to have family come to your aid whenever you need it, no matter what. It saddens me to think of any child that will not know that kind of love or security. How scary would it be to step out into the world without a safety net to fall back on? There are so many older children in China that are so close to losing that opportunity to experience unconditional love. I've said this many times and I'll say it again, older child adoption is not for everyone, but if you think you may be a family who could open their hearts and home to an older child, or you know a family with that capacity, please have them contact me to find out more. We have several older children on our current waiting child lists, including sweet twin 12 year old boys. At least they will always have each other, but George and Gregory may not have anyone. Please become a follower of our blog and encourage anyone you know who is interested in waiting children to do so as well to help find these children forever families. You can find the follower gadget on the lower left hand side of our blog. Thank you for caring about the waiting children of the world. It is people like you who make the difference for these children. Above is a reminder of who still needs a family in the Hope Journey program:

Penelope and Nate

Penelope has a family! Congratulations to Penelope's family for finding their child!

We hope now someone will come forward for Nate, who is a sweet, almost six-year-old boy with hip displacia, which doesn't seem to affect his daily life. He is in a foster home with other children and gets along well with other kids. Please email me for more information on Nate: marcisk@asiadopt.org we have lots of pictures and videos to share!

Good News for the Holidays!

We have more happy news to report--Scotty and Quinn have families pursuing them!!!! We are thrilled to report that we have found families for 80% of the Hope Journey children so far. That only leaves a few more left to work our little hearts out in order to find their families. We don't want to leave Jillian, George, Gregory, Nate, Lin and John without families of their own. Let's spread the word and make their dreams come true as well.
Happy Holidays to all!
Marci

A special holiday video

We have a special holiday video of the children at Guangzhou Social Welfare institute that has apparently been made public on other sites, so I thought I would share it here in the hopes that it will inspire others to purse a child: http://innews.dayoo.com/node_32742/2007-12/04/content_3167680.htm

Enjoy! Please feel free to contact me if you would like to consider any of the children in the video who are in our Hope Journey Program.
Marci
marcisk@asiadopt.org

Children

Our time is running out to try to place these special children. Many of you may have noticed that we received a new list of 10 additional waiting children that are designated for ASIA. This list includes 12 year old twin boys that I just have to mention here. Boys are always harder to place, but twin boys that are close to aging out will be even more difficult. They sound so sweet--one wants to be a police officer and one a doctor because of the positive expeirences they have had with those helping professionals. New lists always bring new attention, and I hope this one will continue to bring attention to those waiting children whom we have not found families for yet.

Children still waiting in the HOpe Journey Program include Jillian, George, Gregory, Scotty, Quinn, Penelope, John, Lin and Nate. It's a possibility that Sherry may have found a home with another agency:-) Meanwhile these little faces continue to stare back at me from the screen.....if their families are out there, please come forward soon!

Sincerely,

Marci

Holidays

The holidays bring to many a feeling of gratitude. I certainly felt that as I sat at the Thanksgiving table this holiday. It's hard not to want to take all of these waiting children home, yet I know that would not be best for them. What I did feel thankful for is all of the incredible families we have found so far who truly do want to bring these children into their homes and families. These families are willing to work their tails off to to bring these children home as quickly as possible. They are engaged in the education process, as they know having that knowledge will make the difference for their family and their new child when he or she comes home. I am so impressed with each interaction I have with these families. They come from far and wide and yet each have a true heart for these children. We have found families like this for 20 of the children and I have sent out the files of at least 5 other children. I can't help but keep my fingers crossed that these are matches meant to be....if there are more families out there hesitating to take this step, please feel free to contact me about your hesitation. Adoption is an incredible leap of faith and I'm always truly amazed and inspired by all of those I meet on this journey.
--Marci

Skyler

Sensitive Skyler will have a family! We definitely need the stars to align so everything can be completed before he turns 14, but we've done it before and plan to do it again with the help of our government and China! Please keep good thoughts for everything to work out! Congratulations to Skyler and his new family:-)

ASIA has now found families for 70% of the Hope Journey children! We still have 30% left to make their dreams come true, so keep spreading the word! While we all have much to be thankful for this holiday season, a piece of my heart will be thinking of the children still left without families.

Marci

Gentle John

John's superman shirt tells his story. He is a lost boy who is in a different world and needs a family to adopt him to teach him the ways of the world. John is a sweet, kind, gentle and resilient child. He remembers his abandonment, which is a story that can only be shared with a family wanting to consider this gentle boy to be a part of their family. As much sadness as his abandonment brought to him at an older age, John is very sweet and caring with others, even younger children. He believes all things have life, even plants, and shouldn't be hurt. You can see by the genuine smile on his face and his bright and cheery artwork how optimistic he is in life. John would make a loving addition to the right family. Won't someone consider him? No one is currently looking at his file. Please contact me if you would like to consider him: marcisk@asiadopt.org

Dreams

Have you ever had a dream? A dream of something that felt so strong inside you that it hurt when you saw others accomplishing it? The children in the Hope Journey program each have a dream of having a family of their very own. Parents that will come to their high school and college graduations. Grandparents for their children. A support network that will always be there for them, no matter what. They see other children getting adopted into families and feel that pain and wonder...where is my family? Well, it's ASIA's job to find that family for each and every one of them. We have to find where their red thread ends. We have to find the families that will help them soar to new heights. We have been able to match 18 of the 30 children so far. We have 12 more who are still waiting. Could you be a parent to one of those children? Could their dream of having a family be shared by your dream of having a child? Were you meant to see this site and find your child? Find out...contact me for more information on the children, or view them on the ASIA website: http://www.asiadopt.org/waiting-children/current-waiting-children

marcisk@asiadopt.org

Urgent Matters!!!

When children in the orphanage system turn 14 in China, they are no longer eligible for adoption. This can leave them in pretty diar straights regarding their futures. We have several children in our Hope Journey program that are in danger of this happening to them. Sweet Sherry turns 14 in August. Sensitive Skyler turns 14 in June! Gregarious George turns 14 in August as well. These children deserve to have families to call their own, to love, to always be there for them, and to give them the opportunities they won't have if they age out of the system in China. Please help us find the families for these children that I know must be out there somewhere. Someone must be willing to fight to bring these kids home before they turn 14! There must be families out there who feel these children would bring them happiness. Please feel free to pass on this information and anyone interested is welcome to contact me: marcisk@asiadopt.org

Puppy Dog Eyes

Look at those puppy dog eyes! Can you believe that no one is considering him? Find out who else is available by visiting ASIA's website: http://www.asiadopt.org/

Happy News!

I have more incredibly happy news to report! Families have come forward for many more of the Hope Journey children! Clarke, Hannah, Shirley, Julia, Wendy and Misty will all have families! Congratulations to those families! If only we could see their faces light up with this news...their dreams of having a family will be realized! Thank you to everyone who has helped to advocate for these children! Your work is immeasurable. Thank you also to the families coming forward to take a chance on these children.
--Marci

Need I Say More?

These are the faces we're trying not to disappoint:

These are the faces of the children that keep us motivated to try to find them families. They each want a family of their own and we're trying not to disappoint.

Do you see a child that could be yours in one of these pictures? Let me know and we will try with all of our hearts to help you connect your red thread!

-Marci

marcisk@asiadopt.org

Could You Love One of These Children?

Could you love one of these children or do you know someone who could? These children are all running out of time because they are 13 years old. They will no longer be eligible for adoption once they turn 14. These children deserve loving families who will believe in them and help them blossom. Please contact ASIA right away if you could be one of those families. Help us fulfill their dreams!

-Marci

Waiting Child Advocates

ASIA has completed our powerpoint presentation on waiting children for all of those families who would like to help advocate. You can present it to any community you're a member of, or anyone you know who may be interested. If you would like to be one of those families, please send Marci an email with your mailing address, and we will send you out a packet: marcisk@asiadopt.org
Thanks for helping to find the waiting children of China their families!
Marci