When you can't

"When you can't run, you crawl ... and when you can't crawl, when you can't do that... 

 'You find someone to carry you.'" 

(firefly)

I remember as a child being utterly fascinated by the thick newspapers that graced my Great Grandpa's footstool every weekend. Not only did they have the best comics  and word searches which he continued to pass along to me until he passed away my first year of college, but, for many year the local CAS would feature a child or sibling group in need of a family.

Adoption was something I always remember being aware of, let's face it, as a Canadian everyone up here has heard of a certain red-headed orphan girl from P.E.I. But I was the weird child who read a story and needed to know what was behind it so I started researching. 

I found vague statistics that saddened me as a child (yep back in the pre-google days) and mostly put it to rest due to a lack of connection. When college came I stumbled upon Reece's Rainbow and that interest was renewed  only this time with more passion. Now there was internet, research, I could double and triple check the facts (did I mention that the term nerd is often used when describing me? I think it's pretty accurate and usually loving). I didn't like the facts.

Did you know that if  orphans founded their own country they'd be the 10th most populated?

Did you know that many children with special needs will not face happy futures after aging out falling victim to trafficking, drugs, gangs, poverty, suicide, or wasting away in an institution?

Did you know that the brain develops differently when faced with trauma or lack of human interaction?

How does one face a situation when hundreds of thousands of lives are being set up to fail and falter.

I remember reading a blog,

It  told the starfish story and I allowed my thinking to shift. 

How  do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

How do you help the orphan crises? One step at a time. 

It's really the only way to do anything. One step and then another, walking in faith.

But sometimes it wears on me and I see that weariness in others too. 

Life keeps us firmly unable to do anything but write, shout, and try to help raise funds to brings these kids home before it's too late though my heart aches to do more.

But sometimes it feels like I'm standing on a beach covered with starfish and no one's getting to the water.

My first Angel Tree girl has aged out. She will never have a family and faces life in whatever system her country has  established. We shouted and fundraised but no mama or papa stood up.

My second child still waits with a larger grant than most. She's waited 2 years already and continues to wait, her file has information, though dated and yet no one steps up.

My current girly is sitting at the bottom of the  tree

With so little information and a dated picture, interest just isn't there despite my efforts and my heart breaks as i see her slipping through the cracks.

I'm tired and  weary and my heart longs for things I can't  control. Today would you help me out and share this little girl, share the Christmas Campaign, because I'm weary and heavy hearted  and could sure  use someone to help carry me today.

Tying Angel Tree into your Holidays

Angel Tree is underway and the numbers are already starting to climb!

One of the things I love about Angel Tree is how simple it is to participate in Angel Tree as part of your holiday giving.

Personally, I adore ornaments for the Christmas tree.
In our family, each child was given an ornament in their stocking with the idea that, when we moved out, we would have our own ornaments filled with holiday memories to take with us. After all what's a Christmas tree but a collection of memories from holidays and gatherings long past tied up with the hope of memories to come?

This is a tradition we hope to continue with our son and Angel Tree has an amazing option for an ornament with meaning.
After going to the main Angel Tree page all you need to do is hit Ctrl+f (this opens a search box), type in "Tara," and let your mouse over the donate button.

At this point, you'll see an option for "buy ornament" with a minimum donation of $35, clicking on it puts the ornament in your cart and allows you to check out. Not only do you contribute to an Angel Tree grant (obviously I'm focusing on Tara but, technically, you could donate to any of the Angel Tree children ;) ) but, with this option, you receive a 2014 Angel Tree ornament for your tree or to give as a gift (you could even get more than 1, there's no limit until they run out of stock).  These ornaments provide a great entry point for talking with kids about the bigger issues that can get buried under the understandable Santa excitement that seems to follow this time of year.

The other way to tie Angel Tree into your Christmas giving is Angel Tree dollars. Essentially, these function as Angel Tree gift certificates that can be redeemed by the recipient in the Angel Tree grant of their choosing.

Afraid your gift would go wasted if the recipient forgets to redeem them? No worries, unclaimed AT dollars are gifted to the voice of hope fund assisting Reece's Rainbow in their year round operations which have helped over 1000 children come home to their forever families since opening.


Now to address another issue I've seen pop up occasionally since I've first started following Reece's Rainbow. After all, Angel Tree is supposed to be fun, hopeful, and full of celebrations, right?

Some people question the need to raise so much money for adoption and accuse grant organizations of "selling children" or "paying parents"

Let's cut the confusion.

In domestic adoption the cost in much less. You can go through government care which, in Canada at least, can bring some tax refunds and other benefits that leave the cost extremely low. Even going through a private agency (the most popular option for healthy babies) still comes in at less than half the cost of what agencies such as Reece's Rainbow cite as an approximate number.

The reason is simple international adoption is expensive - special needs international adoption is even more expensive!

Domestic adoption doesn't require translators, international flights (multiple as many countries require 2-3 trips), living costs in country during court, agency fees for both countries, paperwork fees to file with both countries. Costs add up quickly and these costs are necessary. Home studies, dossiers, fingerprinting, government paperwork all help to insure that each child is being paired with the right family and that each family is growing with the right child. The last thing anyone wants is a mismatch or a child to go to a family that cannot provide for their needs. These processes are necesary for the safety of everyone involved.

Now add medical needs in there. Some children's situations are desperate enough they require expedited processes and/or medical care during the trip home again adding more costs.

While the families adopting have the funds to cover an expanded family whether through income/ insurance/whatever. Finances are taken into consideration during the paperwork mentioned above. However, most families simply don't have the approximately 40 grand laying around that is required to finance the adoption in the timelines given.

This is where agencies like Reece's Rainbow come in raising funds for the child to help relieve some of the fear (how am i going to finance this) for the families and help faciliate bringing these kids home. No buying, no selling, just helping those who are taking the plunge into adoption. After all, take many people giving what they can and, even though it may be small, the end result can be spectacular.

Angel Tree 2014 is here!

It's here, it's here!

Angel Tree 2014 has started and each Angel Tree face has been added to the main page so we can watch their accounts creep up towards their goals.

I'm so incredibly excited and now seems the perfect time to introduce to our Angel for 2014 -Tara.

Ms. Tara (not her real name to protect her privacy) is a twelve year old young lady from China with Down Syndrome.

12 is such an awesome age, so many things to learn and see yet for Tara and others like her, 12 also means the clock is ticking down.
China's orphans age out at 14 years old which means they are no longer eligible for adoption and the chance for a family closes.

No matter who they are, what the struggles or abilities are, 14 seems too young to age out of the chance for a Mama and Daddy. 

According to Tara's profile she is non-verbal but does communicate through sign and shows an extroverted side in her daily life. Strong-willed and independent though not academically strong, it's also been reported that she enjoys physical activities like bikes and running around and what pre-teen can resist a bit of tv? 

Angel Tree is an awesome way to invest in this little lady as donations can be as large or small as a person decides (although Paypal is so much easier if a donation is over $5)
Donating to Tara's fund is as easy as clicking on the donate button on the right side of the blog (you can also donate through RR main Angel Tree site but will need to find Tara's individual picture and click on the donate button directly below). How easy is that!

Even for people who can't donate even sharing Reece's rainbow, Angel Tree, and blog posts like this one is helpful as someone who can donate may see or, even more amazing, a prospective family may be led to start asking questions and next year instead of on the Angel Tree a child could be putting the Angel on the top of their families Christmas tree. 

So, please share, pray, and, if you can, donate to a great cause.

Next time I'll talk about two great ways to tie Angel Tree into Christmas giving and why so much money is needed to help facilitate these adoptions.

Two Days Until Angel Tree!

It's only two days until Angel Tree officially starts and donations start counting towards the Angel Tree goals!

Did you know it's also two days until something else?

Previously unknown to me, November is Adoption Awareness Month.
Wow, I'm guessing this is either an intentional overlap or the best of coincidences.

What was less exciting were the statistics.

The ad I saw was Canadian-based (useful since I am Canadian) and stated that 21% of Canadian families consider adoption at some point in their family, a great positive statistic.
Unfortunately, the most current stats for Canada I've seen place children eligible for adoption in Canada at close to 30000 and the hundreds of children internationally helped by organizations like Reece's Rainbow are a drop in the bucket compared to the number of children looking for families. So what happened to all the interest? What makes families hesitate, drop back, and say no even when they know they are being called towards adoption.

Fear and finances, if I had to make a guess, are the two biggest killers when it comes to adoption dreams and that is why, although I also love the organizations who go in and work with orphans in their home country, my heart returns to places such as Reece's Rainbow.

The RR community address both of these dream killers in such a unique way.

International adoption is hard, expensive, and in many cases a battle on so many fronts - emotional, financial, physical, mental, paperwork (is that it's own category). Reece's rainbow provides the financial help through Angel Tree, 5/5/5, and year round fundraising to help families meet the financial burden in a timely manner. Which, for some kids, literally means the difference between life and death. The truth is for a family on the edge about to give in to the fears and the seemingly insurmountable odds, having a grant gifted could be the encouragement they need to bring their child home rather than walk away like so many in that early 21%.

Reece's Rainbow also provides another venue of support in it's people. So many people in the RR community be they staff who walk you through your questions or families who blog about the ups and downs of life pre, post, and during adoption honestly communicate about the reality of adoption and life in country for these kids rather than the misinformation and borderline fear mongering that seems to abound. I'm not saying it's easy or without struggles, neither do they but these families who pour out their lives and invite readers on their journey provide some much more wisdom/information/ and an honest ability to "count the cost" than any promotional material ever could.

If you're curious check out some of my favourites

http://covenantbuilders.blogspot.ca/  - (the Nalle family adopting number 2, warning reading their posts about the Lost Boys is eye-opening and you won't be able to hide behind the line"I didn't know" ever again)

http://nataliekeller.blogspot.ca/ - (not updated very often anymore but her posts mid adoption are beautifully honest regarding the adoption process)

http://angeleyesadoption.blogspot.ca/ (no longer updated but some great insight into life post adoption)

Do some reading, challenge some assumptions, and don't forget Tara ;)

Happy (almost) Adoption Awareness Month.

Angel Tree starts November 1st!

In the final hours, at the last call, the final child waiting for a warrior was matched!

It was a great feeling to watch the numbers shrink. First 54, then in the 30's, down to 9, 6, 4 children waiting for someone to notice and shout on their behalf.

4 was a scary number, the last 4 children sat stalled after the rapid pace that had been set until, finally, I went to bed and only one child remained.

God spoke, warriors stepped up.

Some of these kids already have grants, although funds towards their 1000 dollar goal don't count until November 1st.
So, warriors sit, wait, and pray for what is to come. Waiting to watch God speak and people move. Perhaps, even families hear the whisper that they need to grow.

I wonder though.

I felt the need to step up and speak for a child who couldn't speak for themselves weeks ago. I waited until this week in the final hours to step forward and say, in a desperate whisper, "I'm here." There is such temptation to think there is too much need, too many children, and perhaps the easiest lie of all - someone else will do it. I wonder though how much we miss out on, how much we rob ourselves by waiting until the last minute or until it's too late.

Honestly, if someone were to offer us front row tickets to the greatest show on earth, be it a performance, a premiere, a concert we'd most likely grab those tickets as fast as our hands could snatch them, in awe of our luck as we claim our prize never minding of any hoops that might need jumping through or conditions that need meeting (thinking of friends who've waited hours for concert tickets at weird hours, or worked extra shifts and sacrificed to make it to a valued event.) However, so often, when our God gives us the opportunity to have front row seats to working out of his plans we shrink back assuring ourselves that someone else would certainly fill our gap or that we surely had to have heard wrong. We convince ourselves our participation, our obedience isn't necessary.

In the end I smile, because so many have heeded the call and stepped up. Over the next few days I look forward to introducing you to the young woman you know see to the right of the screen -Tara and giving some easy ways to help her meet her Angel Tree goal as part of your own holiday celebrations.

3 Days and counting until Angel Tree 2014!

Only a few more days until Angel Tree officially starts and dozens upon dozens of children will have a chorus of warriors joining together to help raise their grant goal.

The anticipation is exciting as the last few children have warriors stand up and say, I choose this one.

As of last count 17 (now 9, whohoo for updates) children still have no warrior to cheer, to write, to pray, to plead that this one matters.

In a lot of ways Angel Tree is a combination of paradoxes. It's a fundraiser during the holidays when many budgets are stretched either through tight budgets or through the pursuit of bigger and better.

The goal of 1000 dollars raised for each child on the tree seems an extravagant goal and yet in the face of international adoption which can run 30 - 40 thousand dollars, 1000 seems a small though blessed drop in the bucket.

We plead and cheer and pray for these children for 2 months and perhaps even throughout the year and yet too many children are repeat visitors on the Angel tree still waiting for a family ready to take a risk on the unknown of bringing a broken child into a differently broken family, cause, let's face it, we're all broken in our own different ways.

and yet . . .

Every year volunteers step forward in faith, watching as God moves in mysterious and magnificent ways bringing hope that things can change. Sometimes so slowly it's painful and other times so quickly your head could spin numbers climb and grants are strengthened.

Sometimes, if you're really lucky you'll even see one or two faces that you've come to know by an old picture and a name gifted by others to protect a child's identity, have someone step forward and take their own leap of faith and begin the process to bring their child home.

I dare you, today, right now, take a look at the children on Angel Tree. See the faces, see the children, read the stories and allow your hearts to be opened.

Then, if you dare, go here see the difference a grant can make to a family and a family can make to a child.

Angel Tree starts in 3 days!

Angel Trees and a leap of faith.

I'm back and on a mission.

As I've grown a little older and a little wiser the holidays take on a different tone. The idea that our little one will actually catch some of the excitement this year brings me so much joy as I start planning our adventures even now. Lets face it, any major plan with an 18 month old requires lots of planning.

Planning is one of my favourite things.

So, I plan trips, gifts, and special memories. Times with grandparents and all our aunties and uncles, celebrating special birthdays with special people. I want this time of year to be full of good memories and family time yet, even at such a young age I worry about the materialism that runs rampant as the year winds down. I wonder how I'm supposed to instill in our son concern for others, compassion for those who don't have the same opportunities, love for those who need it.

I also realize how quickly good intentions can be laid aside if you don't make them a reality sooner than later. So this year I've agreed to raise my voice with dozens upon dozens of others in an effort to raise awareness and raise funds to bring attention to special needs orphans around the world with Reece's Rainbow, orphans who's greatest Christmas wish is a family that can see beyond the cost- financially, emotionally, spiritually, and physically and see the treasure and worth inherent to those the world considers "the least of these".

The #2014AngelTree doesn't officially start until November 1st so that's when I'll be revealing the angel I'll be shouting for this season, the goal is to get each angel an extra 1000 dollars in their grant over the next two months that will go directly towards helping their family, once committed, to paying the large upfront fees that accompany overseas adoption.

This Christmas season Angel Tree is a great way to redirect our focus off of the excess and back onto what matters. Will you join me?