I have been asked many times about sponsorship programs, charities and project fundraising. Generally speaking, I find that adoptive parents are likely to become attached to their child's birth country and want to give something back. I often wonder if it is more pronounced for those adopting from Guatemala....is it the proximity? the beauty? the circumstances of our own birth families? the resemblence to our own children? or the respect for our children that bring us back?
Whatever the case, Guatadopt.com will try to spotlight some organizations that I think are amazing.
So, lets start with an amazing Children's Home called Casa Para Niños Aleluya.
Like many others, I started researching sponsorship programs in Guatemala. A friend and adoptive mother, Karen, told me about this organization and I wonder if mere words can describe what these people accomplish each and every day! Casa Aleluya is a Christian based organization, but it is not affiliated with any particular denomination. Since this is an adoption information site, I should make it clear that this home does not do adoptions. They are not against adoptions, but it is not their focus. In any case, many of the children would not be eligible for adoption and others would have to fight the abandonment process to become eligible.
During my last visit to Guatemala, I arranged a visit to the home the last day of my stay. In the spirit of Central America, I also had a bit of a time arranging transportation when I needed it. However, I finally made it to the home and into the facility. They have too much to do to handle drop-ins, so I arranged a visit well in advance. Even then, being tardy was inconvenient to the home. Moreover, I was exhausted from the prior weeks activities and the FOA Conference (which we will talk about soon). Even so, Dottie was so kind to give me a tour and arrange some time with my sponsored children.
What I found, was an amazing organization who was managing to provide a home to over 420 children of all ages. As you come in the home, you see a number of dorms, the kitchen/dining building, the educational buildings and right in the midst is Mike and Dottie's home (the founders). The children call Dottie and Mike, Mommy and Pappy. I was so amused at the children who lost a tooth running to Dottie to collect a coin. I was also warmed by their home where children came in and out for the special priviledge of watching Toy Story. I doubt I could do Casa Aleluya justice in a short description. But it is easy enough to get an idea of what is going on there by subscribing to the site and signing up for Mike's Daily journal. I hope some of you who are researching sponsor programs will take a look at this Home.
I learned quickly that sponsoring a child is much more rewarding than simply helping with a few expenses. My whole family has become involved and have adopted these children into their hearts.
I visited my two sponsored children (age 16 and 6). My oldest is Ludy who is a beautiful, sweet, shy teenager who would like to be a secretary. After meeting her, I am determined to do what I can to see that her dreams become a reality. I brought what I figured would be the most appropriate teenage girl items....CLOTHES!!!! Yet it was apparent that she was not used to this kind of attention and gifts (at least from an outsider). I was also impressed to have a fellow dorm roomie translate for me!!!! I am sure that as time goes by, I will get to know her better and vice versa.
The biggest surprise was my youngest, Maria 2 who was found abandoned near Antigua. She would not talk and the staff suspected that it was because she was traumatized and possibly, only knew one of the Mayan languages. But recently (I'm sure after she warmed up to the staff), they realized that she had a significant hearing loss.This darling child has not spoken because she doesn't hear well. She apparently came to the home with restricted language skills. You have to remember that some of these people lack such basic education that even things we consider workable are missing from their day to day lives. While I do not think it is fair to speculate WHY this child was separated from her biological family...this handicap *could* have been the reason.
I was so shocked to have this little girl come to me and sit in my lap. She was beautiful and is apparently, very sharp. Even so, her life has left some faint scars. Her face has many tiny scratch scars from either bushes or from unattended nails (prior to her coming to the home). Those of you with dark skinned children understand that they seem to show even the slightest mark for months from minor scratches and boo-boos. Maria is learning Spanish (which is spoken loudly so she can hear) and she has made some friends who *assisted* her arrival by dragging her to the living room of the dorm house.
She was thrilled with the clothes and the toys. But the highlight for her seemed to be bringing each item for the house mother to put her name on (with a permanent marker). These small things we take for granted...and here is a child who is thrilled to have a few items she can call her own. As we went out to the courtyard, many of the other children came running (2-6yrs) to hold my hand. But this little girl ran up to me giving me a bear hug and informing the
other children that I was HERS!!! I was floored...
Unfortunately, there are still many children in the home who do NOT have sponsors. I hope that many readers who are looking for a child to sponsor will consider Casa Aleluya. Get your church involved, get your family involved!
It is very beautiful what you wrote and in essense this is what Casa Aleluya is for us. I do work here as a bilingual secretary (I don't think we met), but I am so glad and happy that you expressed your experiences here at Casa with many people.
Thanks for helping out our children.
Posted by: NADIA at February 2, 2005 04:29 PMThis is such a blessing and an answer to a prayer. If this is the same Mike and Dottie, I used to listen to his preaching program on the radio here at home. The wonderful part is that I've been trying to find out how to get in touch with them; even called the local Christian radio station. I'm so glad to hear that they are still in Guatemala and continuing their work. Please let me know how to correspond with them, so I can send items.
Praise God,
Lois
Their website (the link is bolded in the article) and there is a contact section there.
Posted by: Kelly (guatadopt.com) at February 4, 2005 09:43 PMWhy is the USA still allowing adoptions of Guatemalan Children when the rest of the world has prohibited them because of the illegal ways these are done? Young mothers in Guatemala are been paid miserably amounts of money to give up their babies while the attorneys keep what Americans pays them. The children in Guatemala that reaaly need to be adopted are not been adopted because they are older, sick etc. Please visit www.proceso.com.mx for this week article.
Posted by: Maria Cristina at February 7, 2005 11:01 AMMaria -
Adoption is not illegal. Paying a birth mother for her child *IS* illegal...especially, under US law. There is no law in Guatemala that states that only sick, older children are eligible for adoption. To keep an infant born to an impoverished family in an underfunded orphanage or in their current situation RESULTS in SICK, OLDER CHILDREN. Would anyone (with a little common sense) think that it is wise to force all children to become special needs before they are elligible for adoption? Should children be neglected and prevented from having a family because YOU don't like seeing attorneys being paid for the 4 - 6 month service of taking care of these children, finding them a home and processing the pile of paperwork? Are you suggesting that a birth mother should not have the right to find her child a home when she feels she cannot feed and clothe the child?
The US Embassy is very strict with the interpretation of an orphan. On occassion, we have people like you that comment that adoption is illegal. However, there has never been an instance where the person could back up this claim. If there are instances where an adoption is attempted which does not meet the legal qualifications then it is usually caught by the Guatemalan officials and by the US Embassy (thats why a legal adoption takes months!). If you are claiming that all adoptions are illegal, then you are suggesting that the Guatemalan officials (who take months reviewing case) and the US Embassy are plagued with corruption. If THAT is the case, then the officials in these positions should be removed. However, there is no evidence of this either... Improvements can be made to any process, but I don't believe in "Throwing the baby out with the bathwater". Stopping adoptions does not respect the rights of the birthmother to decide the best course of action for her child and her family. Stopping adoptions does not respect the rights of the child to survive.
Maria, I am sorry that you are so misguided about adoption. How exactly does closing down adoptions help these children? If adoptions are closed, are YOU planning on taking care of these children yourself?
Kelly Caldwell
Adoptive mother
Guatemala Coordinator (Children of the World, Inc.)
Focus On Adoption Administrator
Maria,
I would suggest you get accurate information regarding adoption in Guatemala and maybe this is not a site for you. As an adoptive parent of two beautiful children from Guatemala that there is a VERY LONG and LEGAL process in the US and in Guatemala to adopt a child. Your comments and attitude are NOT wht this website is for. People who are mis or un informed are one of the many reasons there is so much inaccurate information about adoptions. I am sure there are many of us who would be happy to tell you all about the process. Please do not spread misinformation.
Posted by: Kim at February 8, 2005 02:24 PMMaria,
How many of those older,sick children have you adopted? And what other alternative do you have for birthmoms who cannot afford to raise their own children?
Laura
Kelly, so very well said. I couldn't have said it better myself!
To Maria: You seem to be someone with very strong opinions on this matter and based on who we know hits this site, are likely from the Casa Alianza mindset. I can respect your idealism. But I would seriously like to ask you to explain why it is that you seek to effectively end adoptions rather than suggesting ways to improve them that don't negatively impact children.
Can you point to one country where those with your opinion have successfully managed to "clean up" a system and intercountry adoption still remains a viable option to provide a permanent, capable, and of course loving family for a child, infant or older, whose biological family has determined they can't or won't care for him/her?
Let us never forget that intercountry adoption is first and foremost about the children. With all your outrage, even you can't deny that the goal of children finding permanent families is being met.
Every effort should be made top ensure that proper ethical practices are part of every adoption system - public or private. Like any system that is forced to rely on adults in order to function, adoptions from Guatemala will have some breaches. The sad fact is that some adults are bad people and they can be found in every walk of life, occupation, geography, race, and religion.
Mind point is that it would be better to suggest tangible ways to improve the system rather then end it. There are many of us who know the story of our children's birthmothers. We know why our children joined our families. Without adoption, what Kelly wrote would have been an undeniable truth.
Kevin
Posted by: Kevin at February 12, 2005 05:42 PMSorry,
I think maria may have an interesting point, I was just told that our agency wants 20,000 for her fee?? Darn that sure seems like a lot of money for a guatemalan lawyer to make on a case??Agency say's it will be a three month case??HMMM
who is making all of that money? And may I ask is there a place for a family who cannot afford 25k to adopt in Guatemala? If there is I sure would like to see you all name it here.
Adopt Mom -
I'm not sure I understand the logic of your post. Yes, I would love to see the price come down for adoptions so that more families could afford it. Unfortunately, I cannot afford a Lexus, but it does not make the sale of these illegal...and I suspect that my daughter has brought me more joy than a Lexus. The fact remains that these are private adoptions. The government does not provide any child welfare for these children, so they are cared for by the attorney and their foster mothers.
Yes, I would love to see the cost go down, but it is an eye opener to look around and see how many countries have effectively closed their doors to adoption and left the children to languish in underfunded orphanages. Regardless, of the price...I don't see this as a *solution* to the cost of an adoption.
Again, I am not sure what *point* you are crediting, but there are also older children and special needs children in some orphanages that need homes as well...and often the fees are reduced to make it easier to find a home.
As a side note:
I would appreciate it if EVERYONE would respect the subject of the post and keep to the topic of the original post. This thread was about an orphanage that is NOT funded by the Guatemala government and it is NOT funded by adoptions. Every few days, a child is brought to the home or comes to the home looking for refuge.
Many charitable organizations are suffering because of the holdup with containers, the government bureaucracy, the fluctuating dollar and the burden of trying to accommodate every child in need. These children desperately need sponsors and the orphange desperately needs more financial supporters. I know many adoptive families have also adopted charities in Guatemala through sponsorship and the like. I hope that others that visit this site will feel inclined to do so as well. Even if you can only commit to a one-time donation, please consider doing so.
Kelly Caldwell
Adoptive Mother
Guatemala Coordinator (Children of the World, Inc.)
I recently spent a week at casa aleluya, it is amazing to see what God is doing in the lives of the children there. I spent time individually with the children and almost every child young or old there new they were loved by the workers and mike and dottie. I also spent time in a village and a city where they might have the alternative to go if they were adopted. I met children in these places, they were looking for love from me more then those at casa aleluya. I know it is a wonderful place for them to be raised.
Posted by: zach at March 27, 2005 12:25 AMI would like to comment "on subject" and ask whether or not the children that are at Casa Aleluya who are eligible to be adopted might not be better off if they were simply allowed to be adopted? If you believe that Adoption to a nuclear family is indeed the better option for a child, rather than living in a faciltiy that has 419 other children, then you are in alignment with everyone from developmental psychologists, to family services and adoption advocates. But you would not be in agreement with Mike Clark, who founded Casa Aleluya. What is Miike's basis for this decision? Homes like this seem
very impressive to the casual observer, but do they really focus on the best for the child, or have they become simply "the ministry". What are the profiles, the stories of the children? Maybe, as you have chosen to hilight them,you might ask them what the best for these children is, in their minds?
This reminds me of the adoption debates...what is best for the children? Government intervention simply will not help in Guatemala. But an open market is creating an atmosphere where the key participants ( the adoption professionals) have lost the focus on the best for the children, and are therefore being questioned as to motives. This will implode when Unicef bears it's full weight on the issue, and Adoptions will stop. Then we will need Casa Aleluya....with all the children who could be adopted gone, to make room needed for the next wave.
Posted by: brad at April 15, 2005 06:59 PMKelly;
I appreciate your enthusiasm for what you saw at Casa Aleluya, but feel a need to clarify something for you. Sadly, things are not as they seem there, and I would challenge you to investigate as you have endorsed them as meriting help. It is indeed a beautiful facility, and the children have received many blessings, and it is natural to feel that it is a wonderful place. But, as you said, it is unaffiliated. Read that as accountable to no one. Therefore people who want to help the children of Guatemala have no one but Mike to vouch for the home. There is no accreditation, or oversight. As you can read on Mike's journal, he is going to counselling for anger management. How do you think that anger has manifested itself over the years? You have ot read the journal with a grain of salt to see the truth. As people who know say about Mike Clark’s daily journal, “you can’t always count on it being factual, but you can always count on it being interesting.”
I lived and worked there with my family for 7 years, and in fact was instrumental in much of what it has become. But I along with many American families are no longer there, feeling we can no longer support the administration as it is. There are critical problems, and Mike and the board of directors seem unable, and unwilling to address them. These issues do not help the children, but hurt them. Many sponsors who wanted only to help, and stayed through very difficult happenings for the sake of the children there, have finally said enough is enough, and can no longer support them. I will not say more here, but am willing to answer any specific requests for information to any who e-mail me.
There are a number of other homes that could use your reader’s help, and I would be glad to share their information with you also. There are many needs in Guatemala!