Our Vision | A world where every child has a loving and secure home.
A message to adoptive families from Holt’s clinical services team.
During these times, we are being bombarded by recommendations geared towards keeping up with our children’s academic needs. Such recommendations, while important, often leave out the essential task of prioritizing connection and self-care.
Our children need connected/supportive parenting now more than ever, and providing this approach should be our top priority.
Why is this important?
To our dear families, friends and colleagues,
As new information becomes available daily about the COVID-19 pandemic and how it is impacting communities, I want to reassure you of Holt’s commitment to the children and families we serve.
Continue reading “Holt’s Message to Adoptive Families Regarding COVID-19”
Over the past several weeks, Holt International, like all organizations, has experienced the consequences of the coronavirus outbreak and the critical impact on our programs, our staff and partners, and the children and families we serve together with you around the world. As the world watched what was happening in China, this felt very personal to Holt. With the health and safety of both children and families our utmost concern, we made the heart-wrenching decision to suspend travel for more than 20 adoptive families who were ready to bring their children home. In both the U.S. and China, Holt staff responded quickly to support and assist families and took immediate measures to ensure our partner orphanages had the medical and other supplies needed to protect the children in their care.
When the virus began to spread to Korea and other countries where we work in Asia, we took immediate action — sending masks and other supplies to our partners in those countries. Thankfully, as of today, we have received no reports of any children in our programs contracting the virus, and we continue to pray for the health and safety of all children, families, staff, partners and supporters around the world. Continue reading “Holt’s Work Continues Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic”
Holt International Expands Support to Orphanages Across Asia as they Reassure Adoptive Families Waiting to Bring Their Children Home.
EUGENE, ORE – Holt International is rapidly ramping up its support for orphanages in Asia that are at risk of the expanding coronavirus outbreak. It also is working closely with 250 U.S. families in the queue to adopt children from China, including more than 20 families whose adoptions have been delayed by the outbreak.
“The families have been amazing in their understanding of the situation. It is not easy for them, but they realize it is a situation beyond anyone’s control,” says Jian Chen, Holt’s vice president of China regional programs. “We are all worried about the health and safety of the children in orphanages in China, but we are pleased with the quick response of Chinese authorities to isolate the children immediately. The caregivers in the orphanages have also been isolated with the children to continue to provide 24-hour care for them.”
Continue reading “Intercountry Adoption Becomes More Precarious As Coronavirus Outbreak Grows”
Over the last week, over 700 donors came together to provide urgently needed medical and cleaning supplies to protect the 600 children in care at our partner orphanage in Wuhan, as well as seven other orphanages in China’s Hubei province — the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak.
We just received photos and videos from our partner orphanages, showing how these supplies have gone to use to protect children from this deadly virus! All children in care at all of our partner orphanages in China are reportedly healthy and safe.
Continue reading “News from our Orphanage Partners in China”
Meg is an energetic, happy, darling 6-year-old girl who is waiting for a family of her own.
She came into care in China when she was just 9 months old and has been waiting ever since. As you can see in her video, she loves to run around, play and laugh. Her caregivers also describe her as strong willed, smiley, extroverted and talkative.
Meg has some developmental and cognitive delays as well as deformities in the fingers on both of her hands. But with the resources, care and love that she can only find in a family, Meg would thrive.
Right now, Meg attends a specialized school where she has learned to count up to ten. But her favorite thing to do at school is dance with her classmates!
Meg needs a family prepared to meet her physical and developmental needs. She needs a family that will play and dance with her and give her all the love she deserves. Could you or someone you know be the right family for Meg?
For more information about her, email our adoption specialists at waitingchild@holtinternational.org.
Late last month, our fellow U.S. adoption agency Bethany Christian Services announced their decision not to renew their international adoption accreditation when it expires at the end of March 2021. In a blog post, their vice president of global programs, Kristi Gleason, shared how they prayerfully came to this decision after nearly 40 years of helping children come home to families through international adoption.
“The future of adoption is working with local governments, churches, and social services professionals around the world to recruit and support local families for children and to develop and improve effective, safe in-country child welfare systems,” Gleason wrote. Continue reading “Why International Adoption is Still Needed”
A few months ago, we shared with you the story of Thak Kan and his family in Cambodia.
Eleven-year-old Thak Kan and his family had trouble sleeping every time it rained where they live in rural Cambodia. The roof would leak. The house would flood in heavy rain. But what worried them the most were the poisonous snakes and scorpions that crawled through the holes in the walls of their house seeking dry shelter. Thak slept on the ground with his parents and three younger siblings. And he was scared of snake bites.
Thak Kan’s family was one of the poorest families in their village in rural Cambodia. They could hardly afford food, much less the materials to build a safer house. But when, on Giving Tuesday, we asked you to help build new safe homes for families living in dangerous conditions, you responded with overwhelming kindness and generosity.
Julien came into care when he was 5 years old, and has been waiting for a permanent, loving adoptive family ever since.
Now 10 years old, Julien is sensitive and sweet and likes to be active! He loves to ride his bike, run, use the slide and swings, dribble a basketball and throw a ball as far as he can! Continue reading “Julien Needs a Family!”
In partnership with the nonprofit Vitamin Angels, Holt’s nutrition team helps bring vital supplements and medication to vulnerable women and children in rural Uganda.
In October 2018, Holt’s nutrition team launched a partnership with Vitamin Angels, a nonprofit organization that provides vitamins and deworming medication to mothers and children under age 5 who are at risk of malnutrition. Continue reading “Holt Partners With Vitamin Angels in Uganda”