China—First Hope Center Opens

July 10, 2002 marked the official opening of the Children’s Hope Center in Chu Xiong, Yunnan Province, China. Melody Zhang, Associate Director of CHI and CHI Foundation was there for the ribbon cutting ceremony. After the ceremony, Melody emailed that it was “a blessed trip” and reported that local officials were very supportive of the center and thankful for what Children’s Hope International Foundation has done. None of this would have been possible without the generous support of the many donors who made the Hope Center a cause of personal concern. CHI Foundation extends a heartfelt thanks to these donors.

The Hope Center in Chu Xiong is the first of three such Centers planned for Yun Nan Province. It is at these Centers that babies will be placed in qualified foster homes and not be sent to orphanages. Additional gifts that have, and will be made, will help support the opening of the next two Hope Centers in Yunnan – in Mi Le and Wen Shan.

Children’s Hope was inspired to make these Centers happen when we first heard the story of a baby left on a doorstep. The baby was left on the doorstep of a family who could not afford to help her; they left her on another doorstep and the story was repeated – repeated until she could not survive any longer. This is how the project to build the Centers became known as “Project Doorstep.” We have joined with Civil Affairs of Yunnan in paying the salaries of a doctor, a nurse and two other staff members. These individuals will receive and care for abandoned children, recruit foster families, and evaluate the care children receive through regular visits to the foster homes. Our goal is to see these children adopted either domestically or internationally.

Russia—Children’s Hope Foundation Established

Children’s Hope has maintained an office in Russia to facilitate adoptions for quite some time. It soon became apparent that an extension of our Foundation in Russia would streamline our humanitarian aid efforts in that country.

In May 2002, the Children’s Hope Foundation of Russia became a reality when the proper documents were filed with the Russian government. The Foundation is located in Tomsk and the Director is Boris Chernov who had previously worked very closely with Children’s Hope International in the area of humanitarian aid. Yuri Kudinov, Director of the CHI Russia Program, is credited with ensuring the establishment of the new foundation. Yuri and Boris teamed together to follow all registration requirements and paperwork, from bank documents to official government filings. In the spring of 2002, Melody Zhang joined Yuri in a trip to Russia to discuss the particulars with officials and to finalize details for the Foundation’s establishment.

Gifts now made to CHI Foundation designated for humanitarian aid in Russia will be sent via Children’s Hope Foundation of Russia. With guidance and approvals by CHI and CHI Foundation, Boris will manage the gifts and the grants to various regions and orphanages. In turn, he will also manage the system that requires recipients to report on how gifts and grants were used. These reports will include pictures as appropriate.