Adoption Blog

End of January Ethiopia Referrals!

Congratulations to the following families that received their referrals at the end of January! Find below the list of these 6 children and the DTE dates of the families. Please keep in mind some of these referrals are sibling sets as well as children with special needs.

Age and Gender of Child	DTE Date
2 Male Infant	1/9/2009 11/6/2009
2 Female Infants	6/19/2009 6/19/2009
1 Male Toddler	1/29/2010
1 Female Toddler	1/9/2009

Due to the recent trends of received referrals the wait time for an infant male is 3-6 months, while the wait time for a female infant is 8-11 months.  This trend is based on recent history, but is subject to change.

We are excited to begin 2010 with 17 referrals this first month!   We are thankful for your prayers as we enter a new year in hopes to continue to bring children home to their forever families!

January Ethiopia Referrals!

The Ethiopia program is excited to start out 2010 with 11 referrals so far! Find below the list of these children and the DTE dates of the families. Please keep in mind some of these referrals may be sibling sets or children previously on our waiting children list.

Age and Gender of Child	DTE Date
6 Male Infants	8/20/2009 8/28/2009 8/28/2009 9/18/2009 10/9/2009 10/30/2009
1 Female Infant	5/8/2009
2 Male Toddlers	9/4/2009 10/9/2009
1 Female Toddler	9/4/2009
1 Female 5 years or older	Paperchasing

Due to the recent trends of received referrals the wait time for an infant male is 3-6 months, while the wait time for a female infant is 8-11 months.  This trend is based on recent history, but is subject to change.

We are eager to see what the Lord has in store for the Ethiopia program during 2010!  Please keep the Ethiopia program in your prayers as we send children home with their forever families and bring more children into our transition homes.

Update On Robel

Thank you for your prayers, encouraging notes, and emails for our Ethiopian Travel Coordinator Robel Alawi. Robel is finally home from the hospital as he recovers from his motorcycle accident. He has appreciated the prayers and well wishes of our families and is thankful he was wearing a helmet. Please keep Robel in your prayers as he is on crutches and still in pain because of his knee injury. Robel celebrated his birthday in the hospital on January 1st.

More December Ethiopia Referrals!

Congratulations to the following families that received their referrals the end of 2009! Find below the list of these children and the DTE dates of the families. Please keep in mind some of these referrals are sibling sets as well as children with special needs.

Age and Gender of Child	DTE Date
1 Male Infant	8/14/2009
3 Female Infants	3/20/2009 3/20/2009 10/30/2009
1 Male Toddler	10/30/2009
1 Female Toddler	9/4/2009
1 Males 5 years or older	6/12/2009
1 Female 5 years or older	6/12/2009

Due to the recent trends of received referrals the wait time for an infant male is now currently 4-6 months, while the wait time for a female infant remains 9-11 months.  This trend is based on recent history, but is subject to change.

America World is excited to announce that in 2009 the Ethiopia Program referred over 200 children to their forever families!  We are humbled by the work the Lord has given us and are thankful for His blessing over this program and our agency. We appreciate your prayers as we enter a new year in hopes to continue to bring children home to their forever families!

Prayers Requested for a Member of our Ethiopia Team

Please keep Robel Alawi, our in-country Ethiopia Travel Coordinator in your prayers. Robel was injured in a motorcycle accident over the weekend. He is currently in the hospital with a badly injured knee. Families who would like to send a note of encouragement to Robel can send them via email or mail to our office for us to pass along. Robel is a valued asset to our AWAA team in Ethiopia and has blessed our traveling families with his hard work and heart for orphans and street children. Please keep Robel in your prayers during this time.

December Ethiopia Referrals!

8 referrals have been given so far this December in the Ethiopia program!  Find below the list of these children and the DTE dates of the families. Please keep in mind some of these referrals are sibling sets as well as children with special needs.

Age and Gender of Child	DTE Date
2 Male Infants	8/7/2009 8/7/2009
2 Female Infants	1/16/2009 2/6/2009
1 Male Toddler	9/4/2009
2 Female Toddlers	10/2/2009 10/2/2009
1 Female 5 years or older	7/17/2009

Due to the recent trends of received referrals the wait time for an infant male is now currently 4-6 months, while the wait time for a female infant remains 9-11 months.  This trend is based on recent history, but is subject to change.

As we move towards the end of this year we reflect on the many blessings the Lord has bestowed on the Ethiopia Program in 2009. We are encouraged by His hand in this program and continue to ask for your prayers over this program, staff, and children.

Travel Update

We are excited to share the news that 25 families in our China program and 4 families in our Ethiopia program met their children for the first time today! We also currently have 5 families from our Rwanda program in Africa this week. We are thankful for the Lord’s faithfulness to each of these families and rejoice as they have their children in their arms at last!

Our China travel group consists of 13 families from our China Waiting Children program and 12 families in the healthy referral program. The families will be in their child’s province this week then headed to Guangzhou on Friday to obtain their child’s US visa at the US Consulate. Families in the group are adopting from the Hunan, Guangdong, Gansu, Guangxi, Henan, Jiangxi,  and Yunnan provinces. We rejoice with these families as they begin to get to know their precious children after a long wait.

The four families in Ethiopia met their children today and spent the day with them at our transition home in Addis Ababa. During their time in Addis Ababa the families will be meeting with our transition home doctor, visiting two of the orphanages we work with, and obtaining their child’s US visa.

Our Rwanda program has continued to grow and we are blessed to have sent our largest group of families to Rwanda yet! Families in this program spend their first week in Rwanda meeting their child and completing local adoption paperwork then travel to Ethiopia to obtain their child’s US visa.

Please keep our traveling families in your prayers as they continue to bond with their children and complete their adoption paperwork.

Meet our New Transitional Home Educational Director!

Ferehiwot Zewdie has a degree in Educational planning and Management with 12 years experience in teaching and school administration.   Frehiwot is developing a curriculum for the transitional home school, managing teachers and teaching older children. She says “This is an exciting and challenging job as the children come from different backgrounds and are only here for 3 months on average. My hope is for them to gain some skills and basic educations that will help them transition into their new life in the US”.

 
Frehiwot will prepare progressive report cards for the school age children (3+ years). That will be given to adoptive families when they come to Ethiopia to pick up their children.

Immunization Recommendations by the CDC

Families should note the following information from the US Department of State regarding Hepatitis A vaccinations, Hepatitis B screening, and Hepatitis B vaccinations:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC – www.cdc.gov ) now recommends Hepatitis A immunization for household members (including  babysitters or anyone who anticipates close personal contact) who will be returning to the US with a child who has been adopted from a country where hepatitis A is prevalent.  Screening for Hepatitis B is also recommended for children who were born in geographic regions where Hepatitis B is common. 

Under current law, children adopted from Hague countries, are required to present documentation of having received certain required vaccinations and screenings, including Hepatitis B.  Families can find more information about these regulations from the CDC at the following sites:

Hepatitis A
Updated Recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) for Use of Hepatitis A Vaccine in Close Contacts of Newly Arriv¬ing International Adoptees

Hepatitis B Screening
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/HBV/PDFs/ChronicHepBTestingFlwUp.pdf
(recommendations for Routine Testing and Follow-up for Chronic Hepatitis B Virus (HBV)
Infection)

More information about Hepatitis A and B:
http://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/

International Adoption Overview and Statistics:
http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/yellowbook/2010/chapter-7/international-adoptions.aspx

Second AWAA Transitional Home in Ethiopia!

We are excited to announce that America World will be opening a second transitional home for the children in our Ethiopia Program! In hopes to better serve our children, this transitional home will be fully equipped to house additional children with more resources and space during their transitional time with America World.  The home is located just around the corner from the current transitional home and is expected to be open and house children beginning December 1st!  Please keep an eye out over the next few weeks as we post news and photos regarding the additional transition home.