US adoptions rise sharply, so does related graft

Alex's note: Yes, this isnt about Chinese adoption, but it is good for informative purposes

---------------------------------------------

The Peninsula
Web posted at: 8/27/2007 1:15:0
Source ::: AFP

WASHINGTON • A raid on a Guatemalan orphanage has thrown the spotlight on overseas adoptions which have tripled in the United States in 15 years despite many perils, corrupt officials and exorbitant fees.

"There are tremendous stresses that come with building a family through adoption," Sandra Hanks Benoiton, the mother of two adopted children from Cambodia, told AFP.

"Situations like the present one in Guatemala make things much worse," she added, after police earlier this month seized a children's home run by an American in the tourist area of Old Guatemala, where officials said nearly 50 boys and girls were victims of an illegal adoption ring.

"Imagine the horror that comes when a parent learns that their child-and these children are as much theirs as any gestating infant-has been removed at gunpoint from what they have come to accept as a safe environment (and) transported to who-knows-where," Benoiton said, an American who lives in the Seychelles.

"Add to that the possibility that all this could be happening for nothing more than political maneuvering, and you're beginning to get the picture." International adoptions by US families have more than tripled since 1992, when 6,472 children were brought into the United States, according to data compiled by the State Department.

Of just over 20,000 international adoptions by US families last year, 4,000 were from Guatemala, which was ranked second behind China.

The State Department has described the adoption situation in Guatemala as "volatile and unpredictable" and has called repeatedly on Guatemala to tighten regulations on adoption, which critics say has now crossed the line into outright baby-selling. On its website, the US embassy in Guatemala warns adoptive families of several pitfalls including an imposter claiming to be the biological mother of the child or the real parents of a child having never relinquished their custodial rights.

Other obstacles to international adoption are the huge financial burden and bogus agencies.

Lauren Gold was told to expect to pay around $20,000 (14,000 euros) to adopt a child from Ukraine.

"I haven't gone through my papers to work out the final cost, but it was more than that," said Gold. Ann Spurbeck and her husband, Andrew, from Minnesota paid $25,000 over nearly two years after they set their sights on adopting a girl from Ukraine.

"We took out a loan against our home to pay for the adoption," said Spurbeck, who also has three biological children.

But after numerous battles with corrupt officials, both in Ukraine and the United States, the Spurbecks abandoned their dream.

"Some countries have systems in place that cause these little ones to stumble on the road to being adopted. They make so many roadblocks and hindrances, and the price is exorbitant," Spurbeck told AFP.

Most of the Spurbecks' money went to the Minnesota-based Reaching Arms agency, which had its licence revoked in March and is currently being investigated by US authorities.

"Using children as a commodity is shameful," Spurbeck told AFP.

"If I had a soapbox and could stand up and say something to the world, that's what I would say," she said, adding the high cost of her failed bid to adopt has ruled out any further attempts.

Gold, who also went through Reaching Arms, was able to adopt a brother and sister from Ukraine.

But the process required Gold and her husband to spend seven weeks in Ukraine and pay out tens of thousands of dollars in fees and kickbacks.

"We spent a lot of time dealing with bribes, which we were told by Reaching Arms we wouldn't have to do," said Gold.

"It was harrowing because we were never sure we would actually get the kids," said Gold, who eventually returned home to Florida with nine-year-old Nastia and her four-year-old brother, Sasha. The Spurbecks and Golds have been asked many times why they did not adopt domestically. "Our first thought was to adopt in the US," Gold stressed. "But we have family ties to eastern Europe, and we had friends who had successfully adopted in Ukraine.

"And a course we had to take, before we began the domestic adoption process, made it sound as if we would be part of a system and would spend all our time working within that system, not being parents. It painted a very grim picture."

Steve Nash and Yao Ming, Making Something Happen

ESPN
August 31, 2007 5:14 PM


On March 12, 2007 the Houston Rockets played in Phoenix (Leandro Barbosa went insane, making 12-18 shots, and Phoenix won by a country mile).

Steve Nash had something on his mind. After the game, he went to talk to Yao Ming about it, in the tunnel under the stands.

The topic? Orphans.

Specifically, Chinese orphans.

Steve Nash is that kind of thoughtful.

And Yao Ming is receptive to that kind of thought. The two decided that night to try to do something to make the world a bit of a better place.

They share the same agency, BDA Sports, so Nash and Yao put the BDA people to work figuring out how best to undertake an ambitious charity project. Many long days of work later, BDA President Bill Duffy, Vice President of Marketing Bill Sanders, Team Yao leader Erik Zhang, and many others have cleared all of the necessary hurdles to create something special.

It's going to happen in a couple of weeks. And here's what it is: On September 14, in Beijing, Steve Nash, Carmelo Anthony, Greg Oden, Bonzi Wells, Derek Fisher, Baron Davis, Chuck Hayes, and Leandro Barbosa (all BDA clients, except Davis and Fisher) will play in a charity game against Yao Ming and the Chinese National team.

It will be televised on China's CCTV, and the stadium is expected to be sold out. The hope is to raise in the neighborhood of a million dollars to be distributed to the charities of choice: Chi Heng, a privately funded non-profit that works with children with AIDS; the Special Olympics (with World Summer Games next month in Shanghai); and the China Youth Development Foundation.

Well done, everyone involved. This seems like a pretty amazing project.



Yao Ming wipes tears from the face of Chinese AIDS orphan Zhang Yun during a July 2005 HIV/AIDS awareness event that was part in the NBA's Basketball Without Borders program in Beijing. (Photo: REUTERS/Alfred Cheng Jin)

Coming full circle

Source: www.hometownannapolis.com

Minna Pauly, 12, of Annapolis, and her mother, Kristin, look at pictures from their recent trip to China.




Minna and her mother travel to China to trace her roots



By THERESA WINSLOW, Staff Writer
Published August 30, 2007
She was found by a gate to the entrance of a police station. Abandoned by her parents, the baby girl wound up in a nearby orphanage.
And there she might have remained if Kristin Pauly, a then-51-year-old single woman, hadn't traveled more than 8,000 miles to Changzhou, China, to adopt her. "It was one of those instant inspirations I felt drawn to do," said Ms. Pauly, an Annapolis resident who is managing director for a charitable family trust in Washington, D.C.

Fast forward 11 years, and her daughter, Minna, is about to start seventh grade at The Key School. Minna, now 12, takes private Chinese language classes and her mother has made it a priority to teach her about her birthplace. The real lessons, though, came this summer, when the Paulys returned to China. They spent three weeks investigating life there and tracing Minna's roots, even returning to the police station and the orphanage.

It's impossible to track down her birth parents, according to Ms. Pauly, and Minna said she's not particularly interested in that, but they both called the trip a profound experience.

Minna, who describes herself as Chinese American, said she left feeling "lucky" to have the life she has. After observing poor people labor in the heat on the streets of Changzhou, she said she realized that could have been her fate if she hadn't been adopted. "It made me think of how privileged I am here," Minna said earlier this week, sitting at a table filled with pictures and souvenirs from the trip.

Still, she didn't find the experience shocking or disturbing. "It felt very normal," she said. "I don't know why; like I was meant to see it. That is where I started my life."

Her favorite part of the trip took place in another part of China, where she got to play with baby giant pandas at a preserve.

Minna said she was too shy to use the Chinese she's learned in class, and didn't know quite enough to respond to some questions anyway. "They'd go (too) fast," she said.

Regardless, Minna said she was treated like she was Chinese even though most of time "I still felt like a tourist."

The Paulys went with five other American families who have adopted Chinese children. They're part of a group of 11 that used the same adoption agency and originally traveled to China together in 1995 to pick up their children.

The families kept in touch through the years and scheduled the return trip together. They dubbed the journey "Coming Full Circle."

"We made a pact we'd do it together," said Janet Bass of Bethesda, who went on the July trip with her husband and adopted daughter. "We've all been together. We've all been through this journey for 12 years."

Ms. Bass called the Paulys "an incredible family," and said mother and daughter were "meant for each other."

Circle of life

In a sense, the entire adoption experience was a way for Ms. Pauly's life to come full circle.

She has a grown son with three children of his own, but she gave him up for adoption when she 19. Ms. Pauly was a college student at the time - too young, she said, to be a mother and unsure about the state of her relationship with the boy's father. She reconnected with her son, now 44, two decades ago.

Ms. Pauly said being an older parent has had its challenges, but not anything she hasn't been able to handle. She said she relies on friends for help and support.

For her, the return journey to China was emotional. It was also more physically taxing than she initially thought, since the group covered a lot of ground between July 7 and July 21.

Ms. Pauly said it was moving to return to the orphanage, which is now a home for the elderly, and see some of the same people from nearly a dozen years ago. But the part of the trip that had the most impact was simply arriving at the hotel in Minna's hometown. Ms. Pauly said she wept tears of joy.

"It was about all of us having made the effort to get back," she said. "I feel like there's a completeness now, like I've done my job."

Where is that thing buried??

If you happen to see a post here that you really like, and feel it would serve others, by all means please comment on the post, so we can set up permanent links in the menu to it.

Best,

Your China-Babies Team

First Day of School!!!

Great Story of Hope. Our kids really do grow up and come so far, through so much, it is amazing to see examples like this. I admire our son Kai, because he is a total trooper.

Source: 4emma

------------------------------------------



I read this blog entry from Amy Eldridge the other day and it really struck me how far these children of mine have come. Even knowing the many details of the inner workings of the Chinese orphanage system, I know that I can't even begin to understand how my children spent the first years of their lives - the confusion and sorrow that must have been their daily companions. I think about these beautiful souls in these sturdy little bodies marching off to their first day of school today. The journey they have made is truly amazing. I think about the journey we have made together - 4 times now - to become a family and I am totally blown away by the twists and turns of fate or the hand of a higher power that brought us all together. What started out as a tiny little ad in the Tri-Cities newspaper for an adoption seminar has sprung into a family. I look at them all fresh and eager for the new year - I'm sure we will face trials and tribulations in the year ahead. I also know they make me proud and I love them with every last fiber of my being.

You've Come a Long Way Baby

Another terribly cute post.
Source: The Story of Us



A round of applause please!

Today I took Zoe to Eric's school for a visit. The teachers were all so amazed at how different Zoe is now from when they first saw her when we came home in June. It got me thinking about everything this amazing little girl has accomplished in the 2.5 months she's been home. She went from a (dr. diagnosed) malnourished little peanut, to a chubby cheeked, well...she's still a little peanut. She may be rear facing in the carseat for a long time as she quickly got to 18 pounds but now her appetite has really slowed down.

When we first saw Zoe she could only sit unassisted for probably 10 seconds. Now she cruises around the furniture, stoops to pick something up, gets back up and continues on. She's standing alone for longer periods of time (when motivated) and the other day shuffled between the coffee table and couch without holding on. She would bring nothing to her mouth and now she self-feeds finger foods (when motivated). She had no idea of midline, and now she claps her hands. Zoe was so quiet at first I thought she may be deaf...now she babbles with inflection (particularly at Herman when he goes for her toys) and has said the word "up" appropriately. Her receptive language and grasp of English has truly amazed me. She developed the one finger pointing a couple weeks ago and now points at everything and seems to want it labeled for her. She also likes to point out all the trees and lights :) Most importantly, she went from complete apathy towards Eric and I, to loving us as her parents. In China Zoe often reached out for the other Chinese women (on the airplane, in restaurants, etc.) as they looked like her nannies in the orphanage. She and I were shopping at the outlets the other day and a very friendly Chinese couple came up to her and the woman reached out for her. Zoe grabbed on to me and buried her face in my chest. I'd always read about how quickly the girls develop once they got home, but Zoe has really exceeded my expectations, particularly lately. It's also been so nice to get updates from her China orphanage sisters and know that they too are doing beautifully.

In other Zoe news..she's cutting two bottom teeth. She had one rough night after 10 nights of blissfully sleeping through the night and we were afraid her ear infection was back until we saw the tiny tops of her new teeth poking through. Thank goodness for baby Tylenol! We're expecting some regression when daycare starts but hopefully it will just be for a little bit. I guess my next post will have pictures from her birthday. I can't believe she's 1 already!

Were Here!

Very Cute Post From A Family In China
Source: China-Calling Blog


---------------------
First of all, my sincere apologies to anyone who requested my travel blog password and didn't get it- I could not log-in to Blogger from either Nanjing or Beijing, and although I could read it using "anonymouse", I also could not access the Comments section of the blog. I'll e-mail you all the link later today from my DH's account (still having probs at home with my e-mail), so you can get the "retrospective" view of our trip if you're still interested.

Things here are going swimmingly!! We've been back since early Friday morning and the jet lag is pretty much over. Actually, the whole trip was fantastic for us, and our little guy is a dream child so far! Once we met him, he was quiet for the first 2 days, and then he started to come to life. And come to life he did! He's a real character- all-boy, terrific sense of humour, loves to sing and dance, happy most the time, loves to eat, and has been sleeping well. I'm pretty sure his smooth adjustment has nothing to do with anything we're doing right- I think he just has an easy-going, fun-loving temperament, and I also believe that he was probably well-prepared by his SWI for the adoption.

I also believe that because of his cleft issue, he probably received a lot of individual attention and care, especially during feedings when he was an infant. This early attention is so important to healthy emotional development in children. So, although his medical need was most likely the reason his birth family could not raise him, it may also be part of the reason why he's adjusting so well to his new life with us.

I'm not really into posting a lot of pictures here, but I have to share one of my favorite "at home" photos. Is he cute or what?

How to Post to your Blogger Blog While In China

To set up email to your blogspot you need to:

Sign into your blogspot and go to customize;

then to Settings under settings chose the email tab;

The first thing you need to enter is the email address you will be using to email to your blog;

The second spot you can just add your first name in the blank and this is then the email address to which you send your email when you are wanting to send something to be posted to your blog.

Always do a test run to see that it is working plus than you have the information in your sent mail if you forget what you did when you get to China.

a sign?

Thought this was a great post about the current state of things. This gal sums it up in a few short paragraphs.

For those of you in the waiting part, dont give up or lose hope, the little ones depend on us not giving up.

Source: http://www.gardenvarietyfamily.com/2007/08/a-sign.html

------------------

I have been away for nearly a month! The Adirondak Mountains don't emit wireless signals, campgrounds lack DSL hook-ups --imagine that! The rest of the locales on our vacation docket weren't much better but also I was having fun and enjoying my vacation. Lots of thoughts have been knocking around in my head for some time now. They seemed so eloquent while canoing a still lake but can I convey them now?


The China Adoption Pipeline is clogged. Everyone keeps asking how things are going. I keep telling them they aren't--we are just waiting. Countless Yahoo Groups, support groups, list serves and blogs are devoted to the subject of Chinese adoption-- from support to predictions to bashing the system as well as the Chinese government. I feel like I have been swept into a cult. I don't necessarily mean that to be negative--not all negative.

Lots of the groups I am a part of are into gift swaps, 100 Wishes Quilts, learning gems of Chinese culture, discussing the wait. I am doing it all, this is my first child I am waiting for and I want to immerse myself in the experience--the unique experience of adopting a child--my distinctive route to motherhood. The wait though is something I choose not to get wrapped up in analyzing or discussing.

My sister is pregnant right now and I rub her belly and everyone asks when she is due and how the pregnancy is going...and before you know it everyone is clucking about how their pregnancies are alike or different, what symptoms she is having, how this pregnancy is different...you get the picture. I don't have that I have no one to compare notes with, gosh I really don't have any notes. I actually try not to think about it too much and I am caught up in my life and I am hoping that one day I'll be pleasantly surprised with a referral. On one hand I am rather removed from the whole thing.

On the other hand...


Ladybugs are supposed to be some kind of a good luck symbol in adoption. I think it is something that someone made up to give them something to talk about during these unpredictable waits in China adoption. Expecting parents post cute notes about ladybug sightings and how they hope the wait is going to get shorter. I don't really get into that stuff and I admit it seems to be the product of people with too much time on their hands. And of course they have time on their hands--they are waiting! For my own sanity, I am trying to be focused on living my life that is here now while I am waiting so that the actual wait doesn't consume me. I suppose I am trying not to wait. I just want to be here when our little one is ready for us. I must admit it is going well. Nearly 5 months have passed in the blink of an eye and I am not going too crazy...yet.

While on vacation I had a ladybug land on me and I must admit I thought about my little girl at that very moment and about 3 minutes later my sister found this pendant and brought it straight to me. Of course it had to be mine. It may or may not be lucky but they are reminders of my daughter who lingers, sweetly haunting me, just beyond my reality.

Does anyone out there know what this character means?

For me these are just wonderful reminders that my daughter is there. I don't have a growing belly or strange cravings but my daughter is affecting me. My hair keeps getting longer and unplanned signs are the confirmations of her existence in my life however distant.

These are signs to me, not necessarily luck but signs of a life that will persist despite the odds against her. Signs that she will be here and that my husband and I have taken steps to align that remarkable life with ours. I feel like I am teetering between the bustle and excitement of expectant parenthood and the seriousness of being aligned with a faraway soul who's fate hangs in a balance. Does anyone out there relate?

War with China?

Complete Post: War with China?
08/30/07
Posted By: grant in the China Adoption Blog at 06:34 AM.


War with China?
As if a person who has become intimately involved with China (as adoptive parents and parents-to-be do), the drums are continuing to rise in volume somewhere in the background. "Is China preparing for war with the U.S.?" the articles ask (and more often than not, the answer is yes - and, in fact, in the case of the one behind that link, the war has already started, just not with guns).

This, needless to say, bodes ill for, say, those planning to travel to China, or, even moreso, those who get singled out on the schoolyard for being from China. Because kids do pick up on these things. It's become quite popular to see the words "China" and "war" used together in news stories.

China has declared war on tainted food products (one wonders if the food products are putting up much of a defense), and on gender imbalance (which is definitely an issue to watch, since, well, our families include the "lost daughters").

There's also a war on religion (and not only as far as the Vatican and the Dalai Lama are concerned, but also on things like Bible camps) and on, um, U.S. soy beans (which again seems a little silly, except inasmuch as it fits into the big picture of diplomacy/trade relations/why is my visa taking so long to process).

It's easier to get behind the war on pollution and, for those of us who know Runescape and fear its effects on our domestic GPAs (parents of net-savvy teenagers, you hear me, don't you?), the war on videogame addiction. (And by the way, that turns out to be another interesting story about the unintended consequences of the One-Child Policy.)

But why is it always a "war" or, at best, a "crackdown"? Why is the news from this one country always told in military terms? What are we bracing for?