[skiboo]

This is an interesting article from today's Moscow Times on an initiative to start a foster care program in Russia:

http://www.moscowtimes.ru/stories/2005/11/10/010.html

I found it curious that a Russian woman who wanted to adopt encountered too much red tape ...that makes no sense.

I am glad to see, though, that some children are finally finding a way out of the orphanages in to a family situation....

[Beaglepup]

This article sure does portray foreign adoptions negatively in my opinion. As though we are buying the children and it's bad for them to be taken from Russia. I wish all children had homes. I just wish that international adoptions weren't portrayed so badly.

[angelkisses0102]

In the end, if more children find loving homes...especially in their country of birth...this will be for the best. Yes, it will negatively impact the number of Russian foreign adoptions, but...there are so many children in this world that need loving homes...I am certain those of us looking to adopt (again) will find our child in another country.

For the children languishing in orphanages...I pray this works...for them.

[Beaglepup]

I totally agree that I am 100% for Russians adopting. I just want the kids to have loving homes, bottom line. My only complaint is that the article seems to make all international adoptions sound corupt which I do not believe is the case.

[swmphoto]

The article was right. Where did the $5000.00 dollars
in crisp new 100.00 bills go after I handed it
to my Moscow coordinator?? I know it wasn't used
to pay the translator and drivers because we gave
them crisp new bills. I know it wasn't for the hotel
because we paid them too. I sure hope the
orphanage got at least a few hundreds! Wouldn't it
be nice if the Mom who was so poor that she could not
raise our soon to be son got some money to help
her get out of the rut. I wonder what our coordinator
will do with the next envelope we need to give him on our second trip. I don't intend to be bitter I just
really wonder where the money goes.

[Gina3735]

We did not have to bring any money to Russia. We paid everything here with a regular check.

[votemom]

adoption in russia (by russians) is a long process. fostering them is not. our russian friends are fostering. "getting" their daughter was very simple and fast.

the only complication seems to be having to keep all the receipts and prove you are spending your monthly stipend on the child. they said some sort of a caseworker/government worker comes every few months to check on the child.

i'm glad that someone is checking.

[waiting4agirl]

this sounds good. I just hope their foster system runs better than ours. If not, the children will suffer. I would like to see our foster parents have to submit receipts for their stipend-especially the relative caretakers. Those are the worst ones for spending the money on things other than the children.
I also hope that this doesn't mean those of us who are waiting will end up without children. I wonder if that is the intent? The way they ahve created one delay after another while all the while looking at this one can't help but wonder.