It’s
official! The Children’s Hope transition home is now named
“House of Hope”. Since gaining our licensure to facilitate
adoptions in Ethiopia April 5, Children’s Hope In Country
Coordinator Tsegay Fisseha has been hard at work first acquiring
and then staffing and furnishing our transition home in Addis
Ababa. This home within the capital city will provide care for a
maximum of fifty children concurrently. Once a child is referred
to a Children’s Hope adoptive family they will leave their
orphanage or community to come into our direct care and
guardianship.
House of Hope is
located in the center of the city, near the Ministry of Women’s
Affairs and the High Courts responsible for finalizing
adoptions. Included within the 22 rooms and 7 bathrooms are
several large rooms in which adoptive families may stay in lieu
of a hotel if they prefer.
The home has space
for office, laundry, classroom, infirmary, lounge, playroom, and
sleeping quarters for both staff and children. Depending on the
size of the room, four to eight children will board in these
freshly painted bedrooms.
Once our Ethiopia
program is established, all children will meet their families at
the transition home. Until the home is fully staffed and
furnished, families may meet their children at their original
orphanages or alternate locations.
There are currently
44 families who have successfully applied to adopt from the
Ethiopia program and 2 have submitted their dossiers thus far.
Congratulations to those fast working families! Several other
families are waiting on CIS approval.
Referrals: Everyone
is anxiously waiting for the day we will receive referrals, and
so are we! Much is being done within Ethiopia to establish the
program, including staff hires for House of Hope and data
collection for referrals. Thank you all for your patience and
support. Blessings to all of you!
Frequently Asked
Questions for the Ethiopia Program Process and Timeframes:
*Please note
timeframes are approximate and subject to change.
What is the age of
the youngest child that will be referred?
4- or 5-months-old is most likely the youngest the child would
be at referral from Ethiopia. The youngest child would then be
6- or 7-months-old at the time of travel.
How long will it
take to translate the dossier once it’s in Ethiopia?
One week - along with the authentication. The entire dossier is
not translated, only certain documents, unless an official
request is made for a particular document. These certain
documents have to be authenticated again in Ethiopia.
What is the
length of time from the dossier arriving in Ethiopia, through
translation and approval, to the time the family travels to pick
up the child?
6-8 weeks.
After the dossier
is translated and processed in Ethiopia, how long does it take
to get a court date?
Approximately 15 days. After the court date, the decision
of the court is translated, which takes a few days. The child
then receives his/or her Ethiopian birth certificate and
passport in about 5-7 days.
What is the
length of time after the adoption is finalized in the court to
travel?
2-3 weeks
What legal
documents will the children travel home (to the U.S.) with?
An Ethiopian Birth Certificate and a Passport. The birth
certificate and passport will have the child’s Ethiopian first
name and the adopting family’s surname. (Additional documents
will also accompany your child home).
The
Miracle Story of Little Andrew
Waiting
Across the Sea
Final
Arrival
Conversations
with Taylor
Garage
Sale
Hand
in Hand
ETHIOPIA PROGRAM UPDATES
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