I agree with you Kevin, I am glad this agency is no longer allowed to operate and conduct unethical business practices.

I also feel for the families who are using this agency and have invested their money, time and hearts to them in this process. I pray that they can find another agency and get their little angels home

As a former client, I'm sad for the families that have been hurt, but glad that RAI has been investigated and shut down.

Where did you get your information? I can't find it on any news sites or on the DHS site.

I helped a women who was using them use my attorney instead, and I was so appalled by her story. Kudos to DHS, its about time. ~Melissa T.

Kevin heard the story from me. My wife and I are one of the families involved in the investigation.

My name is Rick Spaulding and you can read about our story on the many news stories that have come out with the investigation by the MN Attorney General's office. Some of you know me and will now understand why the story I've told as "adopting papi" sounds so much like your own.

I felt at the time I needed to create an alias to protect us from possible retaliation by Reaching Arms or Mary Bonn but now that doesn't seem to be an issue.

Another one of the families involved in this case called us this morning to tell us the news. I am so relieved that some justice has been served for all our efforts. It seemed at times like we were beating our heads against the wall with no one to help with the pain. When I get our letter I will post more or ask Kevin to if it seems appropriate.

What we all need to do is report other agencies that are doing the same things. Reaching Arms, unfortunately is one among many, that prey on prospective adoptive parents for the sake of a buck and we are the only ones who can stop them. If you know of an agency or facilitator who is acting unethically you need to report them to your state’s licensing agency as well as your state’s Attorney General. We can’t hold them accountable by posting our stories on adoption forums while keeping their names secret. Tell everyone you know when you are being treated unfairly! It’s the only way someone can help.

I want to say thank you to all the people who have sent prayers and well wishes to “adopting papi”. After today he’s doing a little better! We still don’t have our daughter home but at least we are starting to get some truth. I am so tired of the lies.

These people tell you lies then sign them with “have a blessed weekend” or “God Bless”. Call me naive but I truly cannot comprehend how a person can look you in the eye and lie to you in God’s name about an adoption they could care less about ever being completed!

Don’t let these people win! Tell your stories!

Take care,
Rick (aka “adopting papi”)

You can find details of the complaint at;

http://www.internationaladoptionstories.com/reaching-arms-international-problems.htm

This is true. I confirmed it with the Department of Human Services. The order of revocation was issued Friday. Reaching Arms has ten days to appeal it.

Hey no fair - we never reveal a source. In reality, a huge amount of respect deserves to go out to rick and all the courageous families who refused to allow themselves to be victimized and how did the right thing to protect other families from going through what they have. I really do respect ALL the families who did what it took.

Dublinmom - we have the original complaint posted on Guatadopt. But that was actually, while related, a different complaint. That one involves the MN AG's office auditing the financial records of RAI. To my knowledge, that investigation has yet to be concluded. What we posted today involves a different invesitgation conducted by the MN Dept. of Human Services.

Kevin
Guatadopt.com

I'm a total newbie at this. Sorry if I confused anyone!

Here, here!

I want to put in my own two cents about Rick's points!

We've often received complaints about agencies and the number one problem is that most in process parents are afraid of retaliation and/or losing the referral of a child they have grown to love. While we (Guatadopt.com) have tried to go after unethical behavior and/or tried to push for investigations, we often feel powerless because we are "third party". In this case, a very strong group of parents put their foot down and said "Enough is enough".

and in my opinion, reporting unethical/illegal practices to your state is far more powerful than complaining on a forum or list!

While it is still an extremely emotional situation for the RAI parents, I applaud your strength and dedication to obtaining/providing the necessary proof to the investigation.

My thoughts and prayers will remain with all of you (and the children) as there are still adoptions that are "unresolved".

I am relieved to hear that RAI has had their license revoked. I appreciated the many hours of work the state of MN put in to investigate this agency. I found them very interested in hearing our stories and in getting to the "bottom" of things.

Regards,
Gloria PIckering
mom to 5 Guatemalan blessings & former RAI client

I'm SOOOO glad that something has finally been done to stop RAI from their unethical practices. My daughter was told one lie after another and when she would question them or ask why there were so many delays, she was threatened with losing her referral. Once she was told that a delay was caused because there was a problem with the birthmother's signature not being clear. When she finally got her paperwork, we found out that the birthmother signed with an X!!!

She was also told that the lawyer was very slow but after we arrived for our third visit he was the one who got all of the documents completed so we could bring her baby home with us. In the meantime, RAI's "facilitator" was there too, but she never called us once in those 11 days to see if we needed any help.

I sincerely hope that the families still waiting are able to bring their children home as soon as possible. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Does anyone know the names of the Guatemalean facilitators that they worked with?Or even the names of the orphanage or hogar?

To Rick (Adapting Papi),

You said you didn't understand how someone could sign emails saying "God Bless" and tell lies. For honest people like us, that is truly bewildering, but once you have encountered a con-artist, I think you will probably not have problems recognizing subsequent con-artists.

Con-artists especially target people with religious inclinations. They get involved in religious organizations and become leaders in them. They try to get a reputation as do gooders.

I became acquainted with a someone when I was living in a Christian coop in college that many years later I found out was a con and his whole family were cons. He told this story of how hard his life had been. He was from Vietnam and said he was only 2 when his mother was killed by communists while his other family members were away. He claimed that his family members didn't know where he was for many years. He was getting very good grades in pre-med and he talked to women about a rosie future with the nice house, the white picket fence, 2 kids and nice vacations. A friend of his said, "I don't know how it happens but women are always giving Hung money. And not small amounts either." Everyone loved Hung. Everyone thought he was sooo sweet.

About 10-15 years later I ran into a woman who was engaged to his brother. He was a deacon in the church and sponsored refugees. She had taken out a loan for 20K at 16% in the mid 80s to help him start a business. She went to church and the members told her that he had married someone else, unbeknownest to her. She went to the police and found out that 17 other women (I'm sure he was selling them on the nice house with the white picket fence too) had also filed charges against him.

Anyway, watch out for people who are constantly telling you how moral they are, how they have had very hard lives, and ask you for money to do something good. They are cons and they have no problems looking themselves in the mirror. Truly disgusting. So sorry you went through this.

Best, Cheryl

Just so everyone knows, our fight is not over. My husband and I are clients of RAI and we are very involved with this case. We have had our baby switched and we have been lied to so many times. (like everyone else who has worked with RAI) Nila and her crew of criminals continue to play dumb over the phone and try to make us believe that things are going to be "OK". I'm so glad that no one else will fall victim to her evil ways.

My husband and I started the journey w/ RAI two years ago. At that time we never would have thought we would be here today. Two years down the road, still waiting for our child and now dealing with the added stress of RAI and their cohorts. It still dumbfounds me when I think of their antics and the horrible tricks and lies they have played. I know that the people that have fallen prey to their sort of extortion will never be without doubt of someone else's sincerity.

Some people have asked me, didn't I see this coming....didn't you check out your agency...did you check out their reputation...so on and so on. The answer is a profound yes! We checked w/ the BBB and other adoption affiliations. Part of the problem came from the adoption community, it is just like every other close knit group, they don't like to blow the whistle on their own. Another problem is the extortion of the parents, desperately trying to get their children home. The last thing they want to do is make waves and delay or disrupt their process. Therefore it virtually creates a smokey veil for unethical agencies.

The above problems have been discussed at length on this site. But I want to bring up another area that may have gone unnoticed. Again, let me remind you that my husband and I have been in process for two years. We have passed many milestones I would have never dreamed of missing. But now they're gone. And I am still left wondering how much more we will miss. We have pleaded to everyone that will listen, (and even to a few that refused). We have asked help from every corner of the adoption community, government, private industry and divine intervention. We have spent countless monies on people eager to help, only to hear that there is nothing anyone else can do. The comments are always the same, you have a legitimate process...you just have to wait for it to work itself out. BULL####...how much longer can someone be expected to sit and just wait patiently for a simple situation to correct itself? Who is able to help?
With the current climate in Guatemala, there is no safety net for those of us that are legitimate, but have no resolution.

To RAI victims (Beano, Sad, Adopting Papi, ...)

Thank you for fighting them and for sharing your story with us. It is truly frightening. I know I'm thinking about things that can be done to increase security for adopting parents and recommendations that I would like to make to my representatives for passing laws. Maybe at some point you can share your ideas with us all.

One of the things that comes to my mind is that when I sold my condo I was under a duty to disclose everything I knew about or that I could have reasonably been expected to know about that could affect the price of the property. I wonder if people in the adoption business shouldn't be held to a similar standard.

I don't think it should be enough for them to keep saying like a mantra "Well, International adoptions are risky. There are no guarantees." I interviewed a lot of agencies and it seemed to me frequently the onus was on me to think of the exact right combination of questions to drag the truth out of them and even then many of them would color the story. Of course this doesn't even begin to compare with what you dealt with, the lieing, the threats, the switching of children. How truly horrible.

Thank you cheryl for your kind words...all of your well wishes really matter to us. One cannot imagine the mental anguish us RAI families have been thru. The lies, the stalling, the threats and now the uncertainty of our children's futures with us. With our case, we have NO proof that anything has been done in a whole year and they keep stalling and lying to us. We do not know what to do next. The DHS is saying that RAI is required to have a "back-up agency" to take over our case...but my question is What the heck does that mean? Does that mean that our daughter will be able to come home before her 1st B-day? (which is on next week) We want to know which agency will be taking over our case, we want to know if we have to gather new documents....the list of "need to knows" goes on and on. I'm hoping that when we get our letter from DHS all these questions will be answered, but in the meantime our lives are in pieces. We are trying as best we can to stay sane, but it's really hard.

This isn't the first time this director and RAI have victimized their clients. There were many of us in 2003,04, and into 05 that suffered through horrendous adoptions as well. Many families lost referrals, emotional security, and thousands of dollars in the process.

The director and RAI have continued to align themselves with unethical and "banned" associates within Guatemala while others have sat by and ignored the negative light it will cast upon ICA. She will come out and "blame" others for the demise of RAI, and she'll abstain from any responsibility what-so-ever! She'll claim one associate is at fault, but she will not disclose the true identity of this associate - as she knows this will only incriminate her further. But, it is too late for that. Everyone that NEEDS to know her associates, does so!

Folks will talk about a class action suit, but we all know there are NO assests to be had! Unless of course we can find those hidden bank accounts in Russia, Guatemala, or the Ukraine - highly unlikely.

The recent families did what we did in 2003, they banded together to fight corruption. They fought hard for children that are caught up in this mess. Many children will not come home and many families will not be reimbursed, but ICA is a better place with this director and company on "vacation."

Thanks for sticking together and thanks for "listening" to the advice you received. Sometimes things were difficult to say, so I am sure they were difficult to hear.

Troy
guatadopt

I could have sworn that I had seen on the RAI website just a few days ago that they had opened another office in a different state. Today, I checked back and the information is no longer there. Was I mistaken? The reason I checked back was I was wondering if they could continue to victimize adoptive families through another state other than MN.

A few years ago a good friend of mine was working at RAI, and as she began to notice questionable practices, she confronted Nila. Nila, in addition to being deceptive, can be very manipulative and at times had my friend wondering if SHE was the problem (my friend finally quit). I think what bothers me most about all of this is the banner of "Christianity" Nila worked under. What an insult to those of us who not only wear that name, but actually live it out in day to day life. This is evidence that you can only get away with deception and wrongdoing for so long. It will eventually catch up to you. My heart goes out to the families who are stuck in limbo.

I am very happy that something is finally being done at RAI. I wish all of you involved with this the best of luck at bringing your children home. I hope and pray that the agency that picks up your cases will work quickly and do whatever they can to bring your children home to you soon.

May God continue to watch over you all...

I'm glad to hear that the MN DHS has stepped in to shut RAI down. I am grateful to the families who have stepped forward, and I hope those who are still waiting for their children will get the answers they need soon.

Beth in MN
PS Gloria P. can you please email me?
bhentges@qwest.net

HELP!!!
My husband and I are currently using Reaching Arms. I understand that some clients have switched to another agency and have finally gotten their child home. Could someone PLEASE email me tinystars@juno.com and let me know how they switched agencies. Our daughter is now 9 months and we have been waitng for DNA approval since November. We are ready to make a change but are not sure what to do. Any information would be helpful.
Thanks!!