Genesis' new family's FSP (family sponsorship profile) is up on Reece's Rainbow! If your heart has been touched by this little girl, please donate to them--they will need the funds. They also commented on my first post about Genesis, if you want a little more information about them.
This family is perfect for Genesis. They are already parents to a special little boy who they believe has the same eye condition that she does. They are also already parents through international adoption. Genesis' dad is a pastor so they can really use financial help to bring her home.
God is good. I am so glad this little girl I fell in love with has a family.
My husband and I were on the phone with them for half an hour this morning... I know their life story now :)
Genesis' mom's blog is here. They will be naming her Sarah Joy.
Showing posts with label deafblindness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label deafblindness. Show all posts
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Facing transfer or transferred
These children do not have forever to wait for their families. Some will age out of the system and be locked away in institutions forever. Most won't make it that long; they will probably die, like Warner and Dakota did.
Today I wanted to point out some of the kids who I've posted here before who are in danger of being sent to institutions soon. (All of the girls at that link--except Teri Lynn, who has been adopted--are also institutionalized or in danger of it).
Kyle is one of those boys who looks a little like my son.
Kyle is 5 years old and has Down Syndrome. He'll be in a mental institution soon. His fifth birthday is this month. He has a $2700 grant.
Sergey was due to be transferred in September, but I haven't heard any updates.
(Actually it looks like I haven't blogged about him before--now I am!) Sergey is 4 and has HIV. He gets along well with other children; he's never aggressive; physically and developmentally on track, cognitively normal. There's no reason why Sergey shouldn't have a family. It's not known whether he was/will be sent to a mental institution or a boarding school for older children.
Last but not least, remember Sasha, age 7 but so tiny.
Sasha has Down Syndrome, cerebral palsy, and possibly autism. No one pays attention to him or works with him. No one loves him. He lies in his crib and he chews on his tongue. At his age he must already have been transferred... he desperately needs a family. It is a wonder he has held on all these years. Sasha will need a lot of attention and care, but surely God has a reason for keeping him alive this long... perhaps because he would be such a blessing to your family. His needs would be a lot to take on... but even if you are not his mommy or daddy, you can pray for him.
Last but not least, remember Dmitriy and Genesis, who are both blind and in the same institution... they could be adopted together.
Every one of these kids deserves a family, not a warehouse. They deserve to live, not just be kept alive. Some have more difficult special needs, but sweet Sergey would fit into any family. And nearly every child would be adopted if money was not a problem--if we could fill Sasha's grant, maybe a family with a lot of love who had a heart for very special kids but not a lot of money would be able to commit to him.
Whatever we do for these little ones, we do for Jesus.
Today I wanted to point out some of the kids who I've posted here before who are in danger of being sent to institutions soon. (All of the girls at that link--except Teri Lynn, who has been adopted--are also institutionalized or in danger of it).
Kyle is one of those boys who looks a little like my son.
Kyle is 5 years old and has Down Syndrome. He'll be in a mental institution soon. His fifth birthday is this month. He has a $2700 grant.
Sergey was due to be transferred in September, but I haven't heard any updates.
(Actually it looks like I haven't blogged about him before--now I am!) Sergey is 4 and has HIV. He gets along well with other children; he's never aggressive; physically and developmentally on track, cognitively normal. There's no reason why Sergey shouldn't have a family. It's not known whether he was/will be sent to a mental institution or a boarding school for older children.
Last but not least, remember Sasha, age 7 but so tiny.
Sasha has Down Syndrome, cerebral palsy, and possibly autism. No one pays attention to him or works with him. No one loves him. He lies in his crib and he chews on his tongue. At his age he must already have been transferred... he desperately needs a family. It is a wonder he has held on all these years. Sasha will need a lot of attention and care, but surely God has a reason for keeping him alive this long... perhaps because he would be such a blessing to your family. His needs would be a lot to take on... but even if you are not his mommy or daddy, you can pray for him.
Last but not least, remember Dmitriy and Genesis, who are both blind and in the same institution... they could be adopted together.
Every one of these kids deserves a family, not a warehouse. They deserve to live, not just be kept alive. Some have more difficult special needs, but sweet Sergey would fit into any family. And nearly every child would be adopted if money was not a problem--if we could fill Sasha's grant, maybe a family with a lot of love who had a heart for very special kids but not a lot of money would be able to commit to him.
Whatever we do for these little ones, we do for Jesus.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Responding to a special plea for a special family
This sweet boy is David:
You won't find him on Reece's Rainbow. You won't find him on any site listing waiting children. No, I'm not pulling another fast one on you... David really does need a family.
David has an ANG tube and is diagnosed with epilepsy, developmental delay, acid reflux, and brain damage (possibly cerebral palsy). He has also had heart surgery. At this point, David does not eat by mouth.
God loves this precious little man. God is preparing a family for him. But how can they hear if no one tells them? How can they see if no one shows them? David's country does not believe anyone would want a child who weighs only 17 pounds at 3 years old and who cannot walk or talk. He is not played with, touched, or even taught to sit. He lives in a nursing home because no one else would take him. And no one from his country has tried to find a family for him. That's where you come in. If you have a blog--ESPECIALLY if it's not an adoption blog--if you know someone interested in adopting a child with special needs--if you visit an adoption forum--please share David. His mommy or daddy might be reading.
But look at this sweet little boy inside, who never had to be taught to smile! (Please see the video on the original blogpost; can't figure out how to post a video).
David has no hope where he lives now (an Asian nation). But if someone loves him enough to bring him home, David has hope and a future. He doesn't have to stay in that crib until he dies of old age in that same nursing home--or more likely dies of neglect a good deal sooner.
These are his country's "preferences" for an adoptive family:
~~ Both spouses should be under 50.
~~ Judges prefer smaller families--but there is some flexibility.
~~ Around $4500 for in-country fees (legal, translations, etc.).
~~ A homestudy costing $1500-$3000, depending on where you live.
~~ Travel and accommodation in-country.
~~ Visas, etc., stateside.
David can be adopted. He just needs a family willing to go and bring him home. The adoption should be affordable--which in the adoption world probably means between $15,000 and $20,000. The process would take 6 to 8 months. Since these are preferences, not requirements, if you don't meet one, or even a couple, you may still be able to bring David home! So if one of you is 51, or if you aren't sure your family is small, but you really think you may be David's family, you could try.
Serious inquiries only, by families hoping to adopt David, may be sent to mlhadoption@gmail.com
I got this information from Adeye (No Greater Joy Mom), who received it from a missionary in David's country.
We serve a God who loves to take on desperate cases. We serve a God who does miracles. Surely He is a God who can find a family for a little boy who's never had a mommy and has a smile as wide as his face.
And a God who can find a family ready and eager to love a deafblind daughter.
You won't find him on Reece's Rainbow. You won't find him on any site listing waiting children. No, I'm not pulling another fast one on you... David really does need a family.
David has an ANG tube and is diagnosed with epilepsy, developmental delay, acid reflux, and brain damage (possibly cerebral palsy). He has also had heart surgery. At this point, David does not eat by mouth.
God loves this precious little man. God is preparing a family for him. But how can they hear if no one tells them? How can they see if no one shows them? David's country does not believe anyone would want a child who weighs only 17 pounds at 3 years old and who cannot walk or talk. He is not played with, touched, or even taught to sit. He lives in a nursing home because no one else would take him. And no one from his country has tried to find a family for him. That's where you come in. If you have a blog--ESPECIALLY if it's not an adoption blog--if you know someone interested in adopting a child with special needs--if you visit an adoption forum--please share David. His mommy or daddy might be reading.
But look at this sweet little boy inside, who never had to be taught to smile! (Please see the video on the original blogpost; can't figure out how to post a video).
David has no hope where he lives now (an Asian nation). But if someone loves him enough to bring him home, David has hope and a future. He doesn't have to stay in that crib until he dies of old age in that same nursing home--or more likely dies of neglect a good deal sooner.
These are his country's "preferences" for an adoptive family:
~~ Both spouses should be under 50.
~~ Judges prefer smaller families--but there is some flexibility.
~~ Around $4500 for in-country fees (legal, translations, etc.).
~~ A homestudy costing $1500-$3000, depending on where you live.
~~ Travel and accommodation in-country.
~~ Visas, etc., stateside.
David can be adopted. He just needs a family willing to go and bring him home. The adoption should be affordable--which in the adoption world probably means between $15,000 and $20,000. The process would take 6 to 8 months. Since these are preferences, not requirements, if you don't meet one, or even a couple, you may still be able to bring David home! So if one of you is 51, or if you aren't sure your family is small, but you really think you may be David's family, you could try.
Serious inquiries only, by families hoping to adopt David, may be sent to mlhadoption@gmail.com
I got this information from Adeye (No Greater Joy Mom), who received it from a missionary in David's country.
We serve a God who loves to take on desperate cases. We serve a God who does miracles. Surely He is a God who can find a family for a little boy who's never had a mommy and has a smile as wide as his face.
And a God who can find a family ready and eager to love a deafblind daughter.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Genesis
This is not how I had hoped this post would go. I had hoped that when I finally posted Genesis, I would be saying she was going to be my daughter. But now I have to say that she isn't.
Genesis is a beautiful, sweet girl who needs a very special family. She is deafblind. We knew when we started working toward adopting her that she was blind. She has some hearing, she may even have some vision. She may be a candidate for a cochlear implant, which would restore some of her hearing. She is considered severely retarded. This could mean exactly what it says--or this could mean absolutely nothing, and she might have this diagnosis simply because she is deafblind, and it's hard for her to perceive the world around her, and the world must be brought to her fingers so that she can engage with that. She could have that diagnosis even if there's no cognitive involvement. At least one person who met her felt that she was very high-functioning. At this point she does not speak or walk. But how would a deafblind child living in an orphanage know that speaking and walking are things people do? How would she get the input to show her that one should move around on two legs when falls are much more likely? She can pull up to standing, and ride on a rocking horse, so if she does have a little bit of complicating cerebral palsy, it is not severe. She is almost certainly capable of walking--she just needs to be taught. It's even possible that she was not walking due to regression after being institutionalized, and she used to be able to walk.
Genesis is in a mental institution. She will turn 5 in December. She does not deserve to be where she is--there shouldn't be any little girls or boys there. She is blessed now to have a one-on-one caregiver, paid for by her prayer warrior in the US. (This program, through Life 2 Orphans, provides one-on-one caregivers to children at her orphanage. This can be a difference between life or death, or between surviving and thriving, and I would encourage anyone to support it.) It is through this program we received the update on her--but the update is from when the caregiver had just started working with her. So what we know about is really her low point, not her full capabilities.
She had lost weight. She had been taken away from everything she knew. If she had a strong bond with a caregiver, if she had a very special friend, she had just lost that. But even at her low point, I could see some hope. She smiled and laughed and showed affection. She had a short attention span--which means that, at least for short times, she could be engaged. Somehow, this caregiver had started getting through to her.
Genesis is not hopeless. She is God's daughter if not mine. She has so much potential. But she will also need a lot of one-on-one attention. She probably needs a mommy and daddy without 2 or 3 younger kids. She needs a family that can spend a lot of one-on-one time helping her learn about her world. And even as I write this, I am wishing so much it was us. I wish that I could help her explore the world, put pretty bows on her poor shaved head, cuddle her when she needed comfort. I wanted to be her mommy. Maybe I still do. If I thought I could make it work....
I don't know what her capabilities are. It may not be possible to know that until her mommy and daddy meet her. It may not really be known until she's been home for years. Even with no cognitive involvement, you couldn't just throw a deafblind child into a family and expect that she'd go with the flow. I don't know if she can even communicate at all. I don't know if she will learn. If I knew for sure that she had no cognitive involvement, or if we knew for sure she could hear and see a little, maybe we could go for it and there'd be reason enough to expect she would become somewhat independent. I'm not looking for a daughter who will become a Nobel prize winner, solve world hunger, or even necessarily live independently or go to college. But I have a 22-month old now, and I don't know if I can commit to a child who would function at a toddler level all of her life. And Genesis' parents need to be ready to be her mommy and daddy no matter what life brings. They need to be ready for a little girl who may never eat her own food, be potty trained, or walk. They need to be ready to provide a lifetime of care to a daughter who will never say thank you. They may end up with a daughter who is very bright, who can live independently, who can hear and speak and read Braille and sign. But they need to be able to commit to this little girl for her whole life, no matter where on that spectrum she is.
If I could know for sure that Genesis were my daughter, none of that would stop me. If God supernaturally told me I were her mom, or if she had been born to me, I would stop at nothing to give her everything she needed. I would find a way. But God has not told me I'm her mommy. It seems God has been very gently telling us that we are not her family. But I do believe she has a family!
How sad is it that if you travel backwards through Genesis's life, she becomes higher functioning?
She so needs to come home to a family.
Please, if you are reading this and think you might be her family--if you are thinking "I would adopt her, but..."--let me know and maybe I can help. I've done a lot of research now on educating and communicating with deafblind children. There is actually a school for the blind with a program for deafblind children only an hour from my house; I know of another in Alabama. This girl is so precious, and it is so important that she gets a family. Please pray for Genesis.
Dear Father in Heaven,
We pray for your sweet daughter Genesis. We don't know for sure what her needs or capabilities are. We don't know for sure what being her family will entail. We do know she is a precious little girl made in Your image. We know that Your Son Jesus loved her so much He died for her. We know that Genesis deserves every good thing, and we pray in faith that You would bring forward her family. Please, Lord, give her a mommy and daddy who can show her Your love and help her reach her full potential, be everything she can be, even while being willing to parent her if she is what the world would call the least of us. Please, Father, we pray in Jesus' name--show Genesis's mom and dad who they are. Teach them how to love her as you love us--not saying that our needs are too great, our potential too little, the cost to rescue us too much, but simply saying, my daughter, I love you.
Amen.
Genesis is a beautiful, sweet girl who needs a very special family. She is deafblind. We knew when we started working toward adopting her that she was blind. She has some hearing, she may even have some vision. She may be a candidate for a cochlear implant, which would restore some of her hearing. She is considered severely retarded. This could mean exactly what it says--or this could mean absolutely nothing, and she might have this diagnosis simply because she is deafblind, and it's hard for her to perceive the world around her, and the world must be brought to her fingers so that she can engage with that. She could have that diagnosis even if there's no cognitive involvement. At least one person who met her felt that she was very high-functioning. At this point she does not speak or walk. But how would a deafblind child living in an orphanage know that speaking and walking are things people do? How would she get the input to show her that one should move around on two legs when falls are much more likely? She can pull up to standing, and ride on a rocking horse, so if she does have a little bit of complicating cerebral palsy, it is not severe. She is almost certainly capable of walking--she just needs to be taught. It's even possible that she was not walking due to regression after being institutionalized, and she used to be able to walk.
Genesis is in a mental institution. She will turn 5 in December. She does not deserve to be where she is--there shouldn't be any little girls or boys there. She is blessed now to have a one-on-one caregiver, paid for by her prayer warrior in the US. (This program, through Life 2 Orphans, provides one-on-one caregivers to children at her orphanage. This can be a difference between life or death, or between surviving and thriving, and I would encourage anyone to support it.) It is through this program we received the update on her--but the update is from when the caregiver had just started working with her. So what we know about is really her low point, not her full capabilities.
She had lost weight. She had been taken away from everything she knew. If she had a strong bond with a caregiver, if she had a very special friend, she had just lost that. But even at her low point, I could see some hope. She smiled and laughed and showed affection. She had a short attention span--which means that, at least for short times, she could be engaged. Somehow, this caregiver had started getting through to her.
Genesis is not hopeless. She is God's daughter if not mine. She has so much potential. But she will also need a lot of one-on-one attention. She probably needs a mommy and daddy without 2 or 3 younger kids. She needs a family that can spend a lot of one-on-one time helping her learn about her world. And even as I write this, I am wishing so much it was us. I wish that I could help her explore the world, put pretty bows on her poor shaved head, cuddle her when she needed comfort. I wanted to be her mommy. Maybe I still do. If I thought I could make it work....
I don't know what her capabilities are. It may not be possible to know that until her mommy and daddy meet her. It may not really be known until she's been home for years. Even with no cognitive involvement, you couldn't just throw a deafblind child into a family and expect that she'd go with the flow. I don't know if she can even communicate at all. I don't know if she will learn. If I knew for sure that she had no cognitive involvement, or if we knew for sure she could hear and see a little, maybe we could go for it and there'd be reason enough to expect she would become somewhat independent. I'm not looking for a daughter who will become a Nobel prize winner, solve world hunger, or even necessarily live independently or go to college. But I have a 22-month old now, and I don't know if I can commit to a child who would function at a toddler level all of her life. And Genesis' parents need to be ready to be her mommy and daddy no matter what life brings. They need to be ready for a little girl who may never eat her own food, be potty trained, or walk. They need to be ready to provide a lifetime of care to a daughter who will never say thank you. They may end up with a daughter who is very bright, who can live independently, who can hear and speak and read Braille and sign. But they need to be able to commit to this little girl for her whole life, no matter where on that spectrum she is.
If I could know for sure that Genesis were my daughter, none of that would stop me. If God supernaturally told me I were her mom, or if she had been born to me, I would stop at nothing to give her everything she needed. I would find a way. But God has not told me I'm her mommy. It seems God has been very gently telling us that we are not her family. But I do believe she has a family!
How sad is it that if you travel backwards through Genesis's life, she becomes higher functioning?
She so needs to come home to a family.
Please, if you are reading this and think you might be her family--if you are thinking "I would adopt her, but..."--let me know and maybe I can help. I've done a lot of research now on educating and communicating with deafblind children. There is actually a school for the blind with a program for deafblind children only an hour from my house; I know of another in Alabama. This girl is so precious, and it is so important that she gets a family. Please pray for Genesis.
Dear Father in Heaven,
We pray for your sweet daughter Genesis. We don't know for sure what her needs or capabilities are. We don't know for sure what being her family will entail. We do know she is a precious little girl made in Your image. We know that Your Son Jesus loved her so much He died for her. We know that Genesis deserves every good thing, and we pray in faith that You would bring forward her family. Please, Lord, give her a mommy and daddy who can show her Your love and help her reach her full potential, be everything she can be, even while being willing to parent her if she is what the world would call the least of us. Please, Father, we pray in Jesus' name--show Genesis's mom and dad who they are. Teach them how to love her as you love us--not saying that our needs are too great, our potential too little, the cost to rescue us too much, but simply saying, my daughter, I love you.
Amen.
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