Adopted by Design

AWAA Families and Staff Meet at 2011 CAFO Summit

It was a great blessing to meet with families last week at the Christian Alliance for Orphans Summit in Louisville, KY.  Lots of families stopped to say hi to us at the AWAA booth during the two-day event—some still in-process, and others who have completed their adoptions shared photos of their beautiful children.                                     (click to enlarge)
On Friday evening, families and several of our America World corporate staff met for dinner at a local restaurant along with the America World Kentucky Board of Directors, who arranged a great time of fellowship.  A special thank you to the KY Board for your work in making this happen!   

AW Accredited by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability

 
America World Adoption was recently accredited by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, an organization that provides the public with the financial integrity of Christian nonprofits. To become accredited, an organization must meet the Seven Standards of Responsible Stewardship™, which includes financial accountability, transparency, sound board governance and ethical fundraising.

We are grateful to be recognized for our willingness to adhere to biblical principles in the area of finance. God has blessed us with the financial resources to provide services for families with a heart for the fatherless, and it is our objective to remain ethical and transparent in our transactions. For giving opportunities, please see our Orphan's Ticket Home campaign.

Welcoming Angels in the Baltimore Sun

Thank you for praying for our Welcoming Angels program as it came together over the last several months. We were excited to welcome five Ethiopian children to the Baltimore area on April 18th, and said farewell this morning as they returned to Ethiopia (read previous updates here).

The Baltimore Sun featured a great article on the hosting program in their weekend paper, which can be read here or by clicking the photo. Much was written about the children's adaptability and resilience as they faced language and cultural differences. However, with the help of a translator, a lot of patience and a lot of love, both the children and the host families shared a wonderful experience.

Learn more about this program on the Welcoming Angels page on our website.

2012 Calendar Contest

The 2012 Calendar Photo Contest is underway! An email was sent today containing the guidelines to all America World families in referral stage through closed. If you did not recieve it, please email media@awaa.org and we will send this to you. Details about the contest can also be found anytime on the Photo Contest page on the website. Please read these guidelines carefully, as some things have changed since last year. We are looking forward to seeing your pictures and putting next year's calendar together!

China Program May Update- Referral Overview

April 29th Referrals
The CCCWA confirmed that they have matched families whose LID’s were from June 16^th -June 20^th for the end of April. Families who were LID on these dates, have received their referrals.  America World’s LID group of  June 19, 2006 received referrals on April 29^th. The CCCWA processed 5 days of LID’s.

Next AWAA Group To Receive a Referral
America World’s next referral groups are logged in on June 26 and 27, 2006.  We do not know how many log in dates the CCCWA will process in their upcoming next group of referrals. The average trend of processing is generally 3-8 LID dates each month. Please note that while June 26 & 27, 2006 represents AWAA’s next groups waiting for a referral, there are still other agencies around the world with various LID’s waiting to be matched prior to June 26, 2006. 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 59-60 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 and continue to increase for all families currently logged in at the CCCWA.

Chinese Expedite Wait Time

Families who are 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 June of 2007.  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 confirmed that they have completed the review of dossiers that were registered with their office through September 2010. This means that families who were LID through September 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.

Overview of Options While you Wait

Concurrent Family Building
Any family interested in pursuing a concurrent adoption or pregnancy during the wait time, should contact their Family Coordinator for more information. There are many concurrent adoption options that are available while a family’s dossier is waiting to be matched.  Please note that a family cannot participate in a Concurrent family building plan and be a part of the China Waiting Children Program due to the expedited nature of receiving a referral through the Waiting Children Program.

Waiting Children Program
America World’s Waiting Children Program (WCP) is also an excellent option for families who are interested in an older child who is healthy, or a baby/toddler/older boy or girl with a medical need, a developmental/growth delay, or a repaired condition. Families who are interested in learning more about this exciting program and the children that are currently available, should contact their Family Coordinator for more information.

Special Focus Program
The Waiting Child Special Focus Children (SFC) program is also another option families may consider within the waiting children program, if desiring to add two children to their home on one dossier. Families interested in this option should contact their Family Coordinator to request more information on the details of this program.

China Waiting Children Program: Discussions, Encouragement and Support from the AWAA Family Community

The China Program Team would like to invite families who have adopted or are in process of adopting through the waiting children program to participate in discussions regarding medical needs research, support and your adoption testimony. We recognize that families who participate in the yahoo group will be in various life phases- from those who are first considering adopting a waiting child, those who are waiting for their referral and those who are home with their child.  Current and previous clients who have not joined the group can apply to join here. Some examples of discussion topics are:

Research/Education

What research and training were most helpful to you in preparing to adopt a child through the waiting children program? Please share specific resources books and links to help others. One example of an educational resource is from the non-profit Love Without Boundaries)and their educational videos and manual of special needs created to help educate families considering the adoption of a waiting child.

Support

What community and family support do you have for your adoption, were there any challenges and stigmas that you have to work through in preparing those around you for your adoption? Does your family have special hospitals or doctors in your area that have assisted you? Does your church have an orphan care or adoption ministry? For orphan ministry ideas and to connect with others involved in orphan care or other adoptive families, visit resources from the Christian Alliance for the Orphans.

Testimony

How did God lead you and call you into your adoption process, specifically the adoption of a waiting child? Each story is unique and special and we love hearing how God works on behalf of each family. Should you want to further share your story on our blog to encourage other families please feel free to email us.

Thank you to all those families who have already contributed to the discussions and we look forward to hearing from more families over the coming days. We hope and pray that these discussions will be a source of support and encouragement to families.

Visiting Orphans: Honduras Trip

 

America World Adoption is a proud partner with Visiting Orphans, a Christian Ministry that organizes mission trips around the world.  Will you consider joining Visiting Orphans in sharing God’s love with children that need a glimpse of hope? They still have spots open on their June Honduras team. Visiting Orphans is partnering with Providence Ministries and Good Shepherd Children's Home to serve the least of these in Honduras. The team will minister to orphans by simply loving them and giving them the attention they deserve. They will spend their time doing crafts, telling Bible Stories, playing sports, etc.

Date: June 10-17, 2011

Location: Siguatepeque, Honduras

For more information and to join this team, please visit the Visiting Orphans website.

Welcome Home!

We are excited to continue to welcome many forever families home. Pictured are some of the  families who have recently returned from Ethiopia and China with their children. The families spent time in their children's countries completing adoption paperwork and learning more about their children's homeland and culture. Please join us in rejoicing with these families and welcoming them home.

 

 

 

 
 

China Waiting Children Program April Referrals

The China Program team is excited to announce that throughout the month of April, 10 referrals were accepted by their forever families through the Waiting Children (WC) Program.  These referrals were for boys and girls of all ages and medical needs. The referral wait time continues to vary depending on the age request, gender and special needs a family is open to considering. We know many families are waiting for their referrals and we continue to pray for all families throughout their process. Families who would like to learn more about the program and referral opportunities can contact China Program staff.

China Program –Referrals Arrived on Friday

AWAA received referrals on Friday, April 29, 2011. Families from AWAA receiving a referral were logged in at the CCCWA on June 19, 2006. The CCCWA has not yet announced the referral match cut off dates, so the number of days processed for this referral group is still unknown.

We will post a full referral update on the blog once the CCCWA confirms the official cut off dates.  Families receiving a referral this month waited 58 months from Log in Date (LID) for their referral. America World’s next LID group to be matched is June 26, 2006.

Please join us in congratulating and praying for these families as they prepare for travel!