Through the “Angels from Abroad” orphan host program, children residing in Russian orphanages are brought to the U.S. for a fun-filled summer vacation to experience American culture and share their culture with others.  The program is an opportunity to raise awareness about the need for older children living in orphanages, like these, to be adopted.

Dillon seeks to find families to host the children in their homes during their two week visit in August 2010.  We seek both adoption-minded families (referred to as “Host to Adopt”) and families interested in advocating for the children (referred to as “Host Advocate”). The children will be between 6-12 years of age and are already considered legally available for adoption.  

Angels from Abroad 2010 will allow host families the opportunity to make a difference in the life of a Russian child visiting the United States.  Hosting is a great way for potential adoptive families to participate in the experience of having a child from Russia living in their home as they consider international adoption as an option for parenting. The program also gives those interested in helping find forever families for these children an opportunity to host a child while advocating on their behalf as Dillon seeks to find an adoptive family for the child (or children).

 

You can be involved as a Host to Adopt or Host Advocate Family:
Host to Adopt :
Adoption-minded families interested in hosting-to-adopt a child, ages 6-12 from Russia, are eligible. Host to Adopt families must meet outlined qualifications and will begin the steps towards international adoption prior to the child's arrival. By doing so, they are able to shorten the amount of time between when the Angel returns to Russia and when the family is able to travel and complete their adoption.  Host to Adopt families may or may not choose to adopt the child they host.  The clinical team will work with the family to assess the best match for an adoption placement.
Host Advocates: There are two types of Host Advocate families:

1. Some Host Advocate families are open to the potential of adopting a child, but are not quite ready to commit to the adoption process.
2. Other Host Advocate families are just committed to praying earnestly for the child they host, impacting the child’s life during the 2-week visit, and helping to advocate for an adoptive family for the child.  

 

We will be bringing between 15-17 children from Russia to Dallas, TX for two weeks from July 30- August 16, 2010, to stay with approved host families. There will be 4 Russian adults accompanying the children during their trip.

 

The children will be involved in several activities in the Dallas area. Families who live outside the Dallas area can temporarily reside in Dallas part of the time while the children are here in order to host an Angel.

Buckner is working with churches and individual donors to help sponsor the cost of bringing each child to the U.S. for the hosting program. It costs approx. $2,000 for each Angel to participate in the program (including airfare, visa, passport and other travel expenses).  We ask that each family encourage their friends and families to pray about these costs.
Fees for Host to Adopt and Host Advocates:
Paid by family- $150 Application fee
Paid by family- $650 Host family home study (this fee would be applied to a completed Home Study should you decide to adopt)
Should a host family decide to adopt, they will also be responsible for additional adoption service fees prior to the Angel’s arrival. Fees are paid at the time of service.  Please see the Explanation of Fees for Hosting and Adoption.

 

Buckner is a licensed child-placing agency that is committed to keeping kids safe.  In order to do this, we need to evaluate prospective families so we can place children in safe, protective homes and not potentially put a child at risk.  Since we don’t know you, the host family home study is a way in which we can get to know you and your family so we can make good placement decisions for the children.  The education program will help to prepare hosting families for the needs of children who have been living in an institutional setting and provide guidance in how to parent a child if the family decides to adopt a child internationally. The host program fee helps cover the cost of bringing the children from Russia, passports and visas, in addition to covering the costs of running this special program.

If you have a preference, we would like to know. We cannot guarantee that the child will be placed in your home for the hosting program, but we will consider your request as we make child placement decisions. Our clinical team will make all placement decisions after each family has been approved to Host. Host to Adopt families will be given first preference, then Host Advocates who are considering adoption and finally Host Only families will be considered for any remaining children.

 

These children have been identified to Buckner as being available for adoption. However, there are no guarantees they are available. As older children, each child will have to make the decision themselves whether they want to be adopted. In addition, many of these children may have family members and other legal issues that will need to be resolved in order for them to be adopted. Our Buckner staff has been working with the orphanages to help these children become legally available.

 

We do hope to find families to adopt these children, but you are not going to be pressured or expected to adopt any child.  Our hope is that you will be a voice and advocate for the child you host. You will forever touch this child’s life during their time spent in your family.

 

Several specific events including a family day, vacation Bible school program, etc. have been planned during the two-week visit that we ask all host families to attend. These fun, child-centered events provide the children with opportunities to be around the other children whom they traveled with from time to time. These events will not be intrusive and will still allow the child to have a relaxing time with your family. The host family will have the opportunity to plan their own family activities around the schedule of these planned events. At least one host parent will need to remain with the child at all times during the two-week time period to transport the child and supervise them during their stay. We do not want the child to be left with other caregivers outside of the approved host parents. 

 

A Buckner social worker will be connected with each approved host family and will be checking on the family during the course of the child’s visit to lend support and guidance as needed.  If problems develop, the host family can contact their social worker to see if the problem can be resolved.  If it appears that the problems are such that the family and child are at risk, Buckner will have alternate host families available.  The Buckner clinical team will work to transition the child to a different home for the remainder of their visit.  We will need the host family’s commitment to assist in a smooth transition of placement to ensure the child feels safe and secure.

You will learn more about the process to adopt a child internationally by attending the Angel Interest Meeting and educational programs.  Any family who decides to pursue international adoption through Dillon International will need to complete the online Pre-adoption Workshop, application process, home study evaluation and education process in order to meet requirements to adopt a child internationally.  From the time a family applies with Dillon, it generally takes 12-24 months to complete an international adoption through the Russia program.  The process may be longer or shorter based on varying factors.

 

Dillon International will have interpreters available to assist families with translation and regular communication.  If a family has a friend or knows someone who speaks Russian that they may seek for help, Dillon will want them to attend a meeting to orient all the interpreters in preparation for the children’s arrival.  It would be helpful for host families to obtain a telephone that has a speaker phone option, if possible, so that an interpreter can be called at any time of day for assistance.

 

YES!! The children do have to return to Russia at the end of their visit to the United States.  The Russian government has given the agency permission to host the children for a vacation ONLY.  The Russian government maintains legal guardianship of each child until the time a child is adopted.  The children will return to the orphanage, which they know as their home.  If an approved host family decides they would like to pursue the adoption of a specific child, the Dillon International staff and family will meet and discuss the process ahead.  All families who adopt a child from Russia are required by Russian law to make two trips to Russia in order to finalize an adoption.

 

We need volunteers available prior to and during the visit to assist with some of the events and activities for the children.  We will need assistance with playgroups, babysitting, carpools and VBS for the children.  If you cannot host a child, but would like to sponsor a child so that an adoptive host family is relieved of the financial expense of the program cost, please contact Beth Brinkmeyer, (214) 906-4547 or bbrinkmeyer@buckner.org.