Camp-to-Adopt Reader Response
Reader Response
The Camp-to-Adopt Program Contributed by Judy Williams
Russian Resources Inc.
RussianResources@cs.com A resounding YES, I do think that camps are a good idea!
I help orchestrate small groups of 6 to 9 children at a time to come to the US for a four week camp. They are told only that they are great kids and have been chosen to attend camp here. The word "adoption" is not used during the initial process. Since many orphanage children in Eastern Europe are sent to camp during the summer, the idea of camp itself is not new to them. The fact that they have been selected to come here is very exciting.
I solicit funding for the campers to cover incountry and international travel, passports, visas, and medical insurance. In addition, I provide donated camperships to the parents who are geographically able to attend the available camp site.
The parents are required to have a child abuse registry clearance, a criminal background check, a current medical at their expense and sign a host family agreement. A social work visit is done in the home, as well as group meetings to prepare parents for the camp experience.
We provide a translator at the camp with the children, and language resources are available during the time the children are not in camp. We have contingency placements for children if for some reason the family can not cope with the child.
So far we have sent 100% of the children from all 5 of our camps back with an adoption plan in place. When the last child has a committed adoptive family, we tell the entire group that they have all been chosen to return to a forever family. This is difficult for some of the families that commit early on, but we feel it is in the best interests of the children. So far we have never had a case where a child was not sent home with an adoption plan. My hope is that we will not ever need to address that issue!
When the children return to their orphanages after camp to wait for their adoptions to be processed, we send two pieces of checked baggage with each child, filled to the allowable weight limit with supplies for their orphanage. This is a very good way to ensure that needed supplies get back to the children who need them. I feel that camps should be good for children who wait as well as for children who are chosen.
After the children return to their orphanages, all adoptions are processed in the same way as "regular" adoptions. The waiting time for parents to complete their adoptions is the same as for parents that did not host a camp child.
I think that this is a wonderful way for parents to see if the addition of this child, or a child of this age would be a good fit for their family. The children also benefit. They are not leaving home to go to an unknown, they are going home! Instead of being anxious about what is happening, they are eager to proceed.
2001 (c) Judy Williams More reader contributions
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