[heart4Russia]

As you can see from my forum name I have a heart for Russia.
My wife and I have been doing overseas mission trips to St.Petersburg,Russia every six months for the last three years. we just returned from Russia april 25 from our 7th trip.If you would like more info on what kind of work we do in Russia let me know and I would be glad to share with you.
As for adoption.
I would like to say first that this forum is an awesome thing!
Now I will keep this short but would love to give more details to those who would like to hear them.

We met two girls(among many others) at a shelter for abused and neglected children.
The Lord put these two girls (now 12 & 15)on my heart to help them ant way I could.
we do One week of ministry on these trips to Russia so we started staying one extra week to spend with the girls (which ended up in orphange # 24).
We love these girls as if they were our own.we have built a great relationship with them over the past three years. We have someone in Russia that helps us with the girls while we are not there and she has became a great friend as well.
this last trip was hard for us. The 15 year old is rebellious and has run away from the orphange a couple of times,and I don't blame her it is not a good place.
she is now living with a 21 year old man and likes her life there. She has her life all planned out.I love her with all my heart but realized I can't make her change.I have put her in the hands of the Lord and have faith that He will bring her around some day.
We came back from this trip with the Lord telling us It was time to adopt these two girls.
We found out a few days later that the 15 year old does not want to come live us and likes her life as it is for now.
That was hard for me but like I said I have handed her over to the Lord.
The 12 year old has been ready to go for a couple of years now.
with this said I have been referred to Nightlight christian adptions and Hope cottage for home study.
what do you think about them?
do you recommend any others?
what else should we do?

I'm 30
wife 31
married 11 years
8yr boy
5yr boy
wife is stay at home mom
great church family
thanks for listening.
Chuck

[Dobby]

First, I want to encourage you on the adoption of the 12 year old if this is what you feel led to do. Good luck.

Second, I wanted to bump this up to the top to see if anyone else could help with thoughts on the agencies you mentioned.

[sak9645]

By all means, proceed with the adoption of the younger sister. The older one may have a change of heart.

However, do be aware of U.S. immigration rules, when it comes to the older child.

In general, the petition to immigrate a child MUST be submitted to the USCIS before his/her 16th birthday. So once the older child turns 16, you will not be able to get an adoption visa for her, even if she changes her mind.

The only exception occurs if a person has already adopted and brought home a biological sibling of the child. Then, that person can file an orphan petition any time before the child reaches age 18.

Your post does not indicate whether the two girls you wish to adopt are biological siblings. If they are, the exception could buy you some extra time.

Sharon

[heart4Russia]

Yes they are bio sisters.
Are there any international adoption agencies that specialize in adopting older children?
thanks for your responses.

[sak9645]

Most agencies place older children and children with special needs -- if they can find families for them. Unfortunately, most Americans want to adopt infants. Sometimes, an agency will reduce its fees for families wanting a school aged child or one with a significant medical issue.

Sharon

[SingleMama2B]

Hi Chuck.... I think it is a wonderful for you and your wife to persue adopting the sister. The older one may change her mind before this journey is complete. I adopted my daughter (home FOREVER Jan. 2005), and she is 8 years old. She is wonderful, loves America, school here, etc. Her orphanage was very bad, over crowded, etc. She is amazed that she pick out clothes every morning to wear to school, and not wear the same clothes for 7 to 10 days in a row! I have never been happier in my life since my daughter came home, and adopting an older child, is wonderful. Most people do want to adopt infants, and that is good, but MANY do not understand how MANY older children are in the system, and what their futures will probably be. The statistics are Heart Wrenching, and knowing that my daughter now can have a Future, I am sooooo happy for her. I wish you all of the Blessings and Grace as you start this wonderful JOURNEY!!!!

[mikeintexas]

I too am glad you have an older child in sight. If the 12 year old wants to come, by all means, pursue it. The 16 year old may be a bit trickier although an adoption lawyer or your agency can guide you on that. There is also the hosting option if your agency does summer or winter hosting programs. It might be possible for the agency to include the children in their program and you could host them (that way, they could see what life is like here). Those are just a few thoughts off the top of my head.

Bottom line, pursue it if you feel led. Pray for God's will for you and your family. Listen intently for answers to make sure it is indeed God's will that you move forward with this. I wish you nothing but success and happiness.

Mike

[heart4Russia]

We are in Texas by the way.

[Amysue1112]

Heart4Russia-It is wonderful that you do mission work in Russia, and may God bless you with all the desires of your heart!
As far as agencies, I don't know either one of them. Not all agencies go to St. Pete. Maybe you could ask the orphanage the 12 y/o is at, and see if they know of reputable agencies that work with them.
Good luck!!!
My prayers are with all of you!
Amy

[heart4Russia]

I would love to talk to anyone who has adopted older children from Russia. It would be great if they were in Texas as well.

[mikeintexas]

I'll send you a PM.

Mike

[heart4Russia]

what do you all think about going independent on this?

Most of the agencies I talk to said they wont do an adoption if you already know the child you want to adopt.You have to choose one from their list.I found a Russian attorney that says she can handle the adoption for us that she has been doing them for a long time. What do you think?

[sak9645]

You raise a good point.

Many agencies spend their time and effort on finding homes for kids who DON'T have anyone advocating for them. As a result, they may be less willing to commit resources to helping with identified adoptions.

Also, many agencies are leery of identified adoptions because, all too often, they find that they must tell the parent that the painful news that the child with whom they have bonded is not adoptable or eligible for immigration.

That being said, there ARE agencies that will work with families who have identified a child on their own. Do some research, and you may find one.

Another option I would strongly recommend is the use of a well-respected, experienced American immigration/adoption attorney. Many such attorneys specialize in helping families bring home identified children from overseas.

I would NOT recommend using a foreign attorney, except in conjunction with an American one. For one thing, if you don't know the language and the culture well, you could hook up with a shady character who will take your money, and not bring your child home.

Even if you use a "solid" Russian attorney, he or she may not be familiar with USCIS procedures. And that is one of the main reasons for inability to bring home a child.

Especially since you will be dealing with that "loophole" that can let a child immigrate after age 16, you will want someone who can deal effectively with immigration issues.

If your American attorney needs some help with something on the Russian side, I'm sure that he/she will know someone whom he can use, and who has been thoroughly "vetted".


Sharon

[SingleMama2B]

I agree with Sharon..... Part of the PROBLEMS in Russia, is the "shady" people there doing adoptions, and they are trying to weed out the 'shady' ones. I would go with an agency that handles identified children OR an American Attorney that handles this type of adoption. Please be careful and research ALOT!!!

Blessings......................SingleMaMa2B NO MORE! Mama to 1

[Amysue1112]

We are with an agency CAI (and very happy). I have seen some talk about independent adoptions online, and since this case in Illinois (where they went independent and abused and killed the child). some regions are not even doing independents anymore. I am not sure of it, but you better check before doing too much research in attorneys.
When I was looking at agencies, I had lots of questions, so I just picked one of the agecies (it happened to be CAI) and asked all the questions I wanted. They didn't push me to sign with them at all, but helped me get a better understanding of how it all worked. Maybe that is an idea? GOOD LUCK TO YOU!! Let us know what you do! Prayers on the way for you and your family...may God's will be done...