The Avilla Family's own....
Adoption Adventure
An Opportunity to "Do Good and Share"
If a man is truly fortunate, he finds one or two dreams during his life that spark his imagination and drive him to stretch to accomplish something noble and good. I've been pursuing just such a dream for the last two and a half years as Kerry and I have worked toward uniting our Lise with her brother and three sisters. It is now early April and we are living out our dream as we return with our three new daughters from the Russian Far East.
I
am writing to you here to ask for your help. You see, along the way to
bringing these five wonderful children into my family, my dream got bigger!
Now my children's caregivers and orphanage officials are my dear friends.
(We have hosted one of the orphanage directors and the adoption agency
coordinator in our home for several days, and stayed in the home of another
orphanage director while in Khabarovsk.) And the recent trip to visit
our three older girls and appear in court has resulted in forming deep
concerns for the needs of their close friends that will remain behind.
We saw so clearly how the kids in the children's home are very much like
a big family and our older daughter especially will miss her constant
companions. Now Khabarovsk, so far to the west that it's considered the
East, doesn't seem so far away. In fact, I believe because we have such
a close relationship with these people, that we have truly become their
"neighbors".
Is there real "need" here? Economic conditions are bleak in
Khabarovsk. Once a military industrial center, the region now struggles
in the post-Cold War era. The children suffer, with about 600 orphans
in a city of 600,000 people. That's a big need! Kerry and I personally
know two of the orphanage directors in Khabarovsk and the director of
the children's home where our girls have lived the last four years, about
70 miles away. I believe in a relationship-based response to the needs
and want to focus on assisting these three women charged with managing
the three orphanages and the 160 children in their care. The orphanages
receive government funding for worker salaries, medical supplies, utilities,
and food (about $ .60 per day per child!). The remaining needs, which
don't get much exposure, are met by community donations. The result: clothes
are worn until worn-out, toys that promote brain development and muscle
dexterity are scarce, and "extras" like craft supplies and sports
equipment aren't available for the older children. I have personally observed
the love and care the directors and workers shower on the children. They
are truly doing a wonderful job with the resources they have.
Most
of the children in an orphanage or children's home are not adoptable.
Their parents' rights may not be terminated or they may not have been
relinquished yet for adoption. Sometimes kids are in the home because
the parents just can't provide for them, but visit them occasionally.
If there are adult siblings in the country, the child cannot be adopted
outside of Russia. One particularly sad situation is one of our daughter's
friends who is a charming girl that can't be adopted by a family outside
of Russia because she has an older brother (who happens to currently be
in prison). Another of Elena's best friends has two older sisters, ages
14 and 16, also in the children's home. The government provides a way
to attend higher education if the children want to pursue training. Otherwise,
the orphanage staff tries to help find jobs for them when they reach sixteen
years old.
Kerry and I just returned from visits to the orphanage facilities and
discussed the specific needs with the three directors. I have confidence
and trust in their care and stewardship. And you have a relationship with
me and have seen my own stewardship displayed over the years. Would you
please consider these friends of mine to be your friends too, and respond
to the needs of the children they care for?
Click
here to see information on Specific Needs
Click
here for an Update and Account of Donation Activities
The Adventure of a Lifetime with consequences for eternity starts
with one step for your family, too!...
for information about Adoption Adventure Network's
visitation and hosting programs!