Today marks one year since my return from Moldova.
I cant believe its been a year!
I also can't believe "we" are about to be going back. This time straight into Transnistria!
There are about 10 orphanages throughout Transnistria. The Lord has given us the opportunity to do some work with a local organization called Help the Children Moldova/Transnistria.
More on our trip and exactly what we'll be doing later...
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
Hope
Many of you have been following our adoption for the past year and know the whole story of how it began. A few days ago I figured out that there is a way to see how many people view your blog. I was AMAZED to see the number of views from people all over the world - Netherlands, Taiwan, Canada, UK, Croatia, Slovenia, Spain, France, Sweden, Germany, Indonesia, Russia, Moldova...
Several of you who know our story have suggested that we put it ALL in writing for others to hear. And I guess if you are interested, they will be too, especially those who are going through this, who have adopted or plan to.
I find myself reading adoption story after adoption story and they always touch my soul. Hopefully this will touch yours. I pray that as I type, nothing is less or more than it is.
We talk a lot about Moldova and Transnistria. If you don't already know, Transnistria is a breakaway territory in Eastern Moldova and is not recognized by anyone in the world. They have their own currency, stamps, documentation, etc. One of the orphanages we visited was the Popenki Children's Settlement. Since this region is unrecognized, the orphans have little chance of being adopted. It is next to impossible.
While at the orphanage I met a 7 year old little girl (her picture is to the left). I'll refer to her as "Hope" on this blog. At the time I was told her name was Nadia. Later we were informed that her name was not "Nadia" but a name very similar. The director also mentioned that Hope had an aunt who held rights to her -she was one of the many social orphans. 80% of orphans in Moldova/Transnistria are considered "social orphans" because they still have relatives (if not biological parents) who have not relinquished their rights to the child. Most of these children are in the orphanage because their relatives are either incarcerated, abusive, or financially unable to care for them.
Hope had been on my heart (cry-like-a-baby on my heart) from the time I left the orphanage. On the plane home I was reading a Sky Miles magazine and came across an article about a charitable Christmas event held by a European company for the orphans of Transnistria. The article was not only about the orphans of Transnistria but the orphans of the exact orphanage we had just visited. On the page was a photo of the little girl whose face I could see every time I closed my eyes.
Oddly enough, the first thing I told Chris about the whole trip to Moldova was what had happened on the plane home in which he responded, "We have to try and get her". His heart was immediately prepared to start what we had always wanted to do but just didn't feel ready.
So, now you know how this all started.
We started out doing everything we could to adopt Hope. After being told by several lawyers and agencies that it is impossible to adopt from this region of Moldova much less an identified child from this region -we've found ourselves in the Moldovan adoption program.
Hope - One night I woke from a deep sleep, sat straight up and said, "We are going to give her the name Hope". The next morning I remembered saying this and felt a little silly but decided to see what the name Nadia meant... It means Hope.
While working on documents for our Moldovan adoption we decided that we would not give up on Hope until the door completely shut. We needed something other than "impossible". For months we tried to figure out a way to adopt from Transnistria. There was no information to be found. "Its near impossible to bring a child out of a country that doesn't exist" is all we heard. We eventually took it into our own hands and emailed Moldovan govt officials who responded saying "adopting from Transnistria could be done but it has never been done." They gave us a "scheme" of how it could be done if it could be done...you get my point.
Our friends in Moldova who visit the Popenki regularly tried to help us. They told the director about our family and our desire to adopt Hope. They were able to send us new photos of her as well as a video. We were able to get her full name, her birth date, and information about her biological parents. We are grateful to know so much about this one child.
Here's some pictures we've received along the way -
Habakkuk- In a recent dream I had there was a little boy that came to me. He told me his name was Habakkuk and he was from Transnistria. In the dream there was also a hammer (which I did not understand at all). Knowing Habakkuk was a book of the Bible I decided to read it. This should explain my post on Habakkuk...read it. A couple months later a friend sent us an article about Transnistria knowing we'd be interested in which we learned that the national emblem for Transnistria is a "hammer" and a sickle.
In December after months (9 months to be exact) of online researching we came across a non-profit faith based organization called Help the Children located in Transnistria. The organization partners with local churches and aims to motivate local Christian couples to foster orphans. After stumbling across their website we saw that they work closely with Popenki. We contacted the founder of the organization who put us in contact with Anna (sponsorship coordinator PR and fundraising). Anna was interested in helping us with our situation. If she found that nothing could be done she was willing to get Hope into a local Christian foster family.
A few weeks ago Anna contacted me saying she would be in the States for 2 months to raise money for Help the Children. She knew we lived in Georgia and happened to have a few free days betweem her trip from Texas to North Carolina and wanted to meet. Everything worked out and she was able to fly into Atlanta from Texas to stay with us a few days. While she was here she shared her photos with us. There are about 10 orphanages throughout Transnistria. While looking through her photos and videos we found a few of Hope. Here's one...
Her time here was way too short and oh so special! Anna, your passion for the orphans brings tears to my eyes. You touched the hearts of so many people while you were here. Continue making disciples of the world!
For reasons we cannot yet explain, Hope has become a part of our lives and is the face of our adoption. She has appeared in our lives throughout the year in ways only God himself could orchestrate. We believe this with our whole hearts. There is a reason Hope has come into our lives and one day we'll have our answer. We will continue to pray for God's direction and for Hope. His plan is perfect.
"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11
"I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations." Jeremiah 1:5
Several of you who know our story have suggested that we put it ALL in writing for others to hear. And I guess if you are interested, they will be too, especially those who are going through this, who have adopted or plan to.
I find myself reading adoption story after adoption story and they always touch my soul. Hopefully this will touch yours. I pray that as I type, nothing is less or more than it is.
We talk a lot about Moldova and Transnistria. If you don't already know, Transnistria is a breakaway territory in Eastern Moldova and is not recognized by anyone in the world. They have their own currency, stamps, documentation, etc. One of the orphanages we visited was the Popenki Children's Settlement. Since this region is unrecognized, the orphans have little chance of being adopted. It is next to impossible.
While at the orphanage I met a 7 year old little girl (her picture is to the left). I'll refer to her as "Hope" on this blog. At the time I was told her name was Nadia. Later we were informed that her name was not "Nadia" but a name very similar. The director also mentioned that Hope had an aunt who held rights to her -she was one of the many social orphans. 80% of orphans in Moldova/Transnistria are considered "social orphans" because they still have relatives (if not biological parents) who have not relinquished their rights to the child. Most of these children are in the orphanage because their relatives are either incarcerated, abusive, or financially unable to care for them.
Hope had been on my heart (cry-like-a-baby on my heart) from the time I left the orphanage. On the plane home I was reading a Sky Miles magazine and came across an article about a charitable Christmas event held by a European company for the orphans of Transnistria. The article was not only about the orphans of Transnistria but the orphans of the exact orphanage we had just visited. On the page was a photo of the little girl whose face I could see every time I closed my eyes.
Oddly enough, the first thing I told Chris about the whole trip to Moldova was what had happened on the plane home in which he responded, "We have to try and get her". His heart was immediately prepared to start what we had always wanted to do but just didn't feel ready.
So, now you know how this all started.
We started out doing everything we could to adopt Hope. After being told by several lawyers and agencies that it is impossible to adopt from this region of Moldova much less an identified child from this region -we've found ourselves in the Moldovan adoption program.
Hope - One night I woke from a deep sleep, sat straight up and said, "We are going to give her the name Hope". The next morning I remembered saying this and felt a little silly but decided to see what the name Nadia meant... It means Hope.
While working on documents for our Moldovan adoption we decided that we would not give up on Hope until the door completely shut. We needed something other than "impossible". For months we tried to figure out a way to adopt from Transnistria. There was no information to be found. "Its near impossible to bring a child out of a country that doesn't exist" is all we heard. We eventually took it into our own hands and emailed Moldovan govt officials who responded saying "adopting from Transnistria could be done but it has never been done." They gave us a "scheme" of how it could be done if it could be done...you get my point.
Our friends in Moldova who visit the Popenki regularly tried to help us. They told the director about our family and our desire to adopt Hope. They were able to send us new photos of her as well as a video. We were able to get her full name, her birth date, and information about her biological parents. We are grateful to know so much about this one child.
Here's some pictures we've received along the way -
Habakkuk- In a recent dream I had there was a little boy that came to me. He told me his name was Habakkuk and he was from Transnistria. In the dream there was also a hammer (which I did not understand at all). Knowing Habakkuk was a book of the Bible I decided to read it. This should explain my post on Habakkuk...read it. A couple months later a friend sent us an article about Transnistria knowing we'd be interested in which we learned that the national emblem for Transnistria is a "hammer" and a sickle.
In December after months (9 months to be exact) of online researching we came across a non-profit faith based organization called Help the Children located in Transnistria. The organization partners with local churches and aims to motivate local Christian couples to foster orphans. After stumbling across their website we saw that they work closely with Popenki. We contacted the founder of the organization who put us in contact with Anna (sponsorship coordinator PR and fundraising). Anna was interested in helping us with our situation. If she found that nothing could be done she was willing to get Hope into a local Christian foster family.
A few weeks ago Anna contacted me saying she would be in the States for 2 months to raise money for Help the Children. She knew we lived in Georgia and happened to have a few free days betweem her trip from Texas to North Carolina and wanted to meet. Everything worked out and she was able to fly into Atlanta from Texas to stay with us a few days. While she was here she shared her photos with us. There are about 10 orphanages throughout Transnistria. While looking through her photos and videos we found a few of Hope. Here's one...
Her time here was way too short and oh so special! Anna, your passion for the orphans brings tears to my eyes. You touched the hearts of so many people while you were here. Continue making disciples of the world!
For reasons we cannot yet explain, Hope has become a part of our lives and is the face of our adoption. She has appeared in our lives throughout the year in ways only God himself could orchestrate. We believe this with our whole hearts. There is a reason Hope has come into our lives and one day we'll have our answer. We will continue to pray for God's direction and for Hope. His plan is perfect.
"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11
"I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations." Jeremiah 1:5
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