Program Updates

November 15, 2007

Each Child Finding a Home, More This Year than Ever

Colombian adoptions are really busy here at the end of the year. The Colombia Team is in the rush of trying to figure out who can travel this year and squeezing in everyone possible.

Children’s Hope currently has 10 families in Colombia and 5 more families leaving this coming weekend. Based on families currently assigned with travel dates, we'll see at least 84 children come home to 44 families this year—a new Colombia record for Children’s Hope!

Recent Arrivals include:

• A 1 ½-year-old girl from Medellin to a Colombian family.

• A 9-year-old girl from Monteria

• Four brothers and sisters, ages 5,4,3, and 2, from Bogota

Currently in Colombia we have families adopting:

• Infant boy from Bucaramanga

• 7-year-old boy from Barranquilla

• 1-year-old boy with special needs from Monteria

• Infant girl from Ibague

• Brothers, 10- and 9-years-old, from Bogota

• 11-year-old boy from Bogota

• Siblings, 11-, 9- and 7-years-old from Bogota

• 18-month-old girl from Cucuta

• 7-year-old girl from Bucaramanga

• Siblings almost 4, almost 2 and almost 1 from Bogota

Traveling within the next week are families for:

• 1-year-old boy with special needs from Cundinamarca

• 12-year-old boy from Bogota

• Brothers 8- and 10-years-old from Bogota

• 8-year-old boy from Cundinamarca

It's a wild and crazy time and we're excited about all the children coming home this year. Rejoice with us!

 

October 15, 2007

Seventeen Children Just Home, Seventeen Matched with Families

Boy, have we been busy! This is a great time for the Colombia program with assignments and arrivals keeping the Colombia team hopping. Children’s Hope is excited for all the children coming home this year. So far, 55 have come into their forever families. We have 17 children currently assigned. It's going to be our best year ever!

Recent Arrivals:

• 3 Siblings from Bucaramanga: boy, 8; girl, 6; boy, 3

• 2 ½-year-old girl with special needs from Bogotá

• 3-year-old boy with special needs from Bogotá

• 4-year-old girl with special needs from Bogotá

• Colombian family adopted a 1½-year-old boy from Santa Marta

• 3 brothers from Ibagué (8, 6 ½ and 2 ½)

• Infant boy from Bogotá

• Girls, 7 and 4, and brother, 5, from Cundinamarca

• Girls, 8 and 4, and brother, 6, from Bogotá

Families are currently in Colombia to adopt:

• Infant girl for a Colombian family

Assignments & Soon to Travel:

• Infant boy from Bucaramanga

• 9-year-old girl from Monteria

• Four brothers and sisters from Bogota (ages 5 and under!)

• 7-year-old boy from Barranquilla

• 1-year-old boy with special needs from Monteria

• Infant girl from Ibague

• Brothers, 10- and 9-years-old, from Bogota

• 11-year-old boy from Bogota

• Siblings, 11-, 9- and 7-years-old from Bogota

• 18-month-old girl from Cucuta

September 15, 2007

Program Director Currently in Colombia

Colombia Program Director Julie Eagleson is currently in Colombia for two weeks visiting with ICBF officials and getting the latest up-to-date information which she will pass on upon return. Five families have completed their adoptions and returned so far in September. Two other families will complete and be home next week, leaving two families currently in Colombia. Children’s Hope has four other families who have accepted assignments and will be traveling soon. The Colombia program is hopping!

 

August 15, 2007

With the recent homecoming of seven children (three families) and four other families in Colombia now finalizing their adoptions, August is keeping the Colombia team busy. We have 11 other families with dossiers in Colombian regional offices who should be assigned soon – a couple for infants; most are for already-identified older children, special needs children or sibling groups. Two are Colombian families. This is really an exciting time for the Colombia program! Our patience is paying off and placements are picking up.

Recent Homecomings:

• Four siblings: Brothers 9- and 8-years-old and their sisters 7- and 5-years-old years from Bogotá

• 18-month-old girl from Bucaramanca

• Sisters 12- and 13-years-old from Zipaquirá, Cundinamarca

Congratulations and Welcome Home!!!

 

July 20, 2007

We currently have two families in Colombia. One is adopting a 20-month-old girl with a corrected congenital heart defect who is the cutest little girl on the face of the earth. The other is adopting a sibling group of four, ages 9, 8, 7, and 5—two girls and two boys. Both will be home by the end of July.

We have 5 families assigned and soon to travel. They are adopting:

• Two sisters, ages 13 and 12. These two girls' younger sisters were already adopted by a family in the same state so the girls will be able to visit each other!

• A sibling group of 3: two boys ages 8 and 3 and their 6-year-old sister.

• A 4-year-old girl missing one kidney.

• A 3-year-old boy with developmental delays.

• A 2 ½-year-old girl with club feet.

August should be a busy month for assignments. The dossiers of several of our families requesting to adopt sibling groups and older children have already been sent to regional offices for assignment. We also have a couple of families who could be assigned infants and we are excited about that!

So far this year, 31 children have come home.

 

May 09, 2007

Colombia Sibling Groups Placed Quickly in Loving Homes

April was a busy month for assignments for Colombia adoptions. We are seeing families traveling and preparing to travel. Currently in Colombia we have a family adopting 3 brothers (ages 14, 13 and 8) and two families adopting infants. They have reported that everything is going very well for them and their kids are great! In the next couple of weeks, four more families will leave for Colombia, adopting: 3 sisters (ages 11, 10 & 8), another sibling group of 3 (boy 6, girls 4 & 3), an infant boy, and another sibling group of 3 (boys 5 & 2 and a girl 3). We have additional assignments pending, so the program is going very well.

We continue to see sibling groups of three or more children assigned as quickly as the family’s dossier reaches Colombia. We have also been receiving some information on waiting children with special needs so that may become another area that will allow families to move through the process more quickly. Prospective adoptive parents who were born in Colombia move through very quickly, as do parents looking for a single older child adoption.

 2007: Children adopted, 16 

 

April 13, 2007

During the first week of April, two of our families are in Colombia spending the first few days with their new children. One family is adopting a 9-year-old girl and her 4-year-old brother. The other family is adopting three sisters: 6, 5 and 2 ½-years-old. There are three other families who are not far behind in their Colombian adoption, as they recently received their assignments for three siblings.   

Children’s Hope continues to see sibling groups of three or more children assigned as quickly as the family’s dossier reaches Colombia. We also are receiving some information on waiting children with special needs so that may become another area that will allow families to move through the process more quickly. Prospective adoptive parents who were born in Colombia move through very quickly, as do parents looking for a single older child adoption.

 2007: Children adopted 10

 

March 15, 2007

Two siblings groups recently arrived home from Colombia: a sibling group of three—a boy, 8, girl, 5, and boy, 3, from Manizales; and another sibling group of three—a girl, 8, and twin brothers, both 2-years-old, from Bucaramanga. Congratulations and welcome home!

One Colombian family is currently traveling to complete their Colombian adoption of an 18-month-old boy from Medellín. We are extremely excited for the families soon set to travel to adopt:

• A girl, 9, and her brother, 4, from Bogotá

• Three sisters: 6, 5 and 2 ½ from Bucaramanga

• A girl, 3, from Montería for our family that has waited the longest! Hooray!

• Three siblings: boy 4, and twin 1-year-olds, boy and girl, from Montería

We have several more families requesting specific sibling groups that should be assigned any day now, and we are still anxiously awaiting assignments for some of our families waiting for infants in the Bogotá Regional Office.

Are you interested in adopting from Colombia? The Colombia program is particularly great for:

• Families who just adopted or gave birth to a child and don't mind waiting on a list for an infant.

• Families interested in adopting children of African/Colombian heritage.

• Families interested in sibling groups of three, ranging in age up to 7-years and older, or sibling groups of two in the same age range. While there may be a wait of up to a year for a sibling group of two, sibling groups of three are assigned very quickly once the family's dossier arrives in Colombia.

• Families in which one or both parents were born in Colombia. These families receive preference in the assignment process.

• Families interested in a child with a special need that is not easily remedied by surgery.

• Families who have a heart for Colombia and know that their child (or children) is there.

We look forward to hearing from you!

 

February 14, 2007

There are three families in Colombia finalizing their adoptions. Two of the families are adopting sibling sets of three and the third family is adopting an 18-month-old boy. Everyone is happy and healthy. More assignments are expected soon.

Children’s Hope finalized 55 adoptions from Colombia in 2006.

 

January 23, 2007

Two families are in Colombia this January. Both families are adopting three siblings! Congratulations to the amazing transformation in your families: from happy couples to families of five after a three week trip to Colombia. We are hoping for more assignments toward the end of the month!

Children’s Hope finalized 55 adoptions from Colombia in 2006.

 

December 1, 2006

Adoptions from Colombia: Children’s Hope currently has four families on their adoption trip to Colombia. With the competition of these adoptions, Children’s Hope will have found loving homes for 55 orphans from Colombia this year.   

The wait for an infant is getting lengthy; around 24-to-27 months. The delay has to do with the number of families wanting to adopt. The more families adopting, the longer everyone waits. 

We are placing lots of sibling groups of two, three, four and even five children. If the family is open to siblings up to the 7 or 8-years-old, the wait should be minimal. Examples: An Oregon family, with their 5-year-old boy and twin 3-year-old sisters had much less wait. Another new family was just assigned an 8-year-old girl and twin 2-year-old brothers (it's been a big year for twins!) These assignments took place as soon as the family's dossier reached Colombia and was reviewed/approved. We are also beginning to place some young, special-needs children.

 

April 20, 2006

Sluggish Holiday Period Over

Children's Hope families are adopting more infants than we have seen in the past. Out of the six families waiting to travel to Colombia, three have referrals for infants. One of the other three referral families is going to adopt a sibling group of five. 

 

March 15, 2006

Many sibling continue to find homes

For 2006, 16 children have already come home.  There are currently three families in Colombia adopting six children: A sibling group of three (13, 11 and 8-years-old) from Bogota , two siblings (6 and 3-years-old) from Villavicencio , and one 5-year-old boy from Neiva .

February was disappointing in terms of our hopes for multiple new referrals. At the end of the month, most Regional Offices were still reporting that they hadn’t had time to have Adoption Committee meetings yet, so we continue to anxiously await the assignment of several families with dossiers in regional offices.

 

If you have any questions about the program,
please call us at 503.665.1589 or e-mail at
 Colombia@childrenshope.net

 

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INFO REGARDING FINGERPRINTING:  TAKEN FROM

 http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/info/info_453.html

 Q: I have adopted my child and brought him/her into the country. Is there any reason for me to be fingerprinted again?

 A: No, there is no need for you to be fingerprinted again. Your application for a specific child was approved. If you file another I-600A application to adopt another child, you will need to be fingerprinted at that time.

 Q: I filed an I-600A and an I-600 application in your office. The I-600A was approved in December of 2002, and the I-600 was approved in February of 2003. My child will be brought into the U.S. in April of 2003. My fingerprints, taken when I filed my I-600A, expire in March of 2003. Should I be reprinted?

 A: No, you do not need to be printed again. You were able to file your I-600A and your I-600, and get approvals on both within the 15 months that your prints were valid.

 Q: My I-600A was approved in December of 2002, but I had my fingerprints taken in January of 2002  when I filed my application. That would mean that my prints will expire in April of 2003. I plan to bring my child home in late March of 2003. Should I be printed again, just in case?

 A: Yes, if you will be filing an I-600 application within 30 days of your fingerprint expiration, it is recommended that you be printed again.

 Q: I brought in my I-600A application in October of 2002, and it was approved in March of 2003. If I don’t know when I will be filing my I-600, should I be re-fingerprinted this summer so that I can be assured  that my prints will remain valid for the duration of my approval.

 A: No, it is best if you wait until you are certain that your prints will expire before having them taken again. Thirty (30) days before expiration is plenty of time to have prints taken again.

 Q: If I do need to be re-fingerprinted, will I need to pay the fee?

 A: Yes, if you need to be re-fingerprinted you will need to pay the $50 fingerprinting fee for each adult member of your household being re-fingerprinted. Please note, the fingerprint fee cannot be paid at the Application Support Center (ASC) where your fingerprints are taken. The fingerprint fee must be paid at your local Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS) office. When you go to the BCIS  office to be scheduled for fingerprints, bring your I-171H approval notice with you. You will then be provided with a referral letter/appointment notice to appear at the ASC for fingerprinting.

 Q: How will I know that my fingerprint files are about to expire?

 A: Your fingerprint clearances files expire 15 months after that the date that the BCIS received a response from the FBI. This is approximately 15 months from the date that you were fingerprinted

 Q: I am planning to travel overseas to file my I-600. Can I wait and be fingerprinted at the Embassy or Consulate?

 A: Yes, you can. You should be aware that the fingerprint clearance process for persons fingerprinted overseas takes much more time than it does for those who are fingerprinted in the United States. If your fingerprints have expired, or will expire before your date of travel, you should contact your local office to be fingerprinted again so that your fingerprints can be processed sooner

 

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