| What makes a single mom struggling to start | | | | stepped in to provide them with blankets and |
| up a new business, adopt a hard-to-place, | | | | food. Eventually the orphanage reopened, but |
| "special needs" child from another country? | | | | everything was completely destroyed, |
| Why would a perfectly happy, healthy, and | | | | including the children's beds and toys. |
| content family take on a Down syndrome child | | | | |
| with heart complications, when the boy's own | | | | Now what was the connection and motivation |
| mother chose to give him up at 6 weeks of | | | | that moved the Buckley's to adopt these two |
| age? And why would a New York family rescue | | | | young girls in the first place? Lorraine's |
| three frail and traumatized orphans from the | | | | dad was doing some volunteer work to build a |
| ravages of Liberia's second civil war? | | | | home for an old Air Force buddy, who had |
| | | | later turned to missionary work. While |
| We asked ourselves these questions as our | | | | swapping time with other contractors to save |
| foundation's Board reviewed the grant | | | | his buddy money, Lorraine's father met yet |
| requests from these families. When most | | | | another missionary family in the area. That |
| people hear the term 'adoption,' we tend to | | | | family had already adopted one of the |
| think about couples faced with infertility, | | | | children from that Liberian orphanage, by the |
| or couples who are trying to put their | | | | name of George. George had been spared from |
| step-families together to strengthen their | | | | the attack on the orphanage by being in the |
| family bond. These first three grant | | | | US on tour with the Liberian Boy's Choir. It |
| requests to The Orphan Foundation bore no | | | | took a year for George to get up enough |
| similarities to those stereotypical images. | | | | courage to ask the missionary family to try |
| | | | to find his sister, who was also living in |
| The Smith Case - California | | | | that orphanage. The family was in shock. |
| | | | They never even knew he had a sister! The |
| Madeleine Smith, the first recipient of an | | | | family agreed immediately, found his sister |
| adoption assistance grant from our | | | | Mala, and brought her to the States. |
| Foundation, is a very interesting woman. She | | | | |
| describes herself as having a big heart, with | | | | When the Buckley's went to visit Lorraine's |
| an even bigger pile of bills. When she found | | | | parents during the December holidays of 2004, |
| her way to our Foundation, she was in the | | | | they also met the other missionary family, |
| process of adopting Dang Jian, a "special | | | | and the reunited siblings, George and Mala. |
| needs" child from China. The name she chose | | | | The plight of these children thrust them into |
| for the 4-year old boy is "Elijah." She | | | | motion. Mala asked the Buckley's if they |
| describes Elijah as a wonderful child who | | | | would help find her two roommates from the |
| loves to play outside, and is especially fond | | | | orphanage, Patience and Naomi. The Buckley's |
| of toy cars. His fifth birthday will be in | | | | not only found them, but by October 2005, the |
| December, so she's planning a very big | | | | girls were on their way here to their new |
| celebration when he arrives. | | | | home with the Buckley's in New York. |
| | | | |
| But that is only a small piece of the story. | | | | As fate would have it, when Lorraine's father |
| Dang Jian was placed in the "special needs" | | | | and husband went to pick-up the girls, |
| category by his China orphanage, and given to | | | | Naomi's parents brought her brother Abrous to |
| an adoption agency in Oregon to place. Dang | | | | the Liberian orphanage when they came to see |
| Jian is missing his right ear, which is | | | | Naomi off. Abrous' parents asked that the |
| accompanied by marginal hearing on that side. | | | | Buckley's take Abrous as well as his sister |
| Adding to that malady are various | | | | Naomi. It was not safe for any of them in |
| urinogenital and colorectal problems. These | | | | Liberia, and the parents were not only living |
| factors, along with his age, also put him in | | | | in abject poverty, their situation was made |
| the "hard-to-place" category of adoptions. | | | | even worse by Abrous' father being severely |
| And what does that mean? He was given this | | | | injured in a work accident. But in that |
| one last chance to be adopted before he would | | | | first round of adoptions, the Buckley's only |
| be permanently institutionalized in China. | | | | succeeded in bringing the 7 and 9 year old |
| | | | girls back to New York. Abrous had already |
| If China and the adoption world considered | | | | been relinquished to the orphanage, but he |
| Elijah's problems as significantly daunting, | | | | was on a waiting list to get in, and of |
| why would a single mom struggling to grow a | | | | course there was the mound of official |
| start-up music services business, step in to | | | | paperwork required, and all the money that |
| rescue him? Good question. But wait, there | | | | had yet to be raised. Imagine that - on a |
| is still another page to this story. | | | | waiting list to get into an orphanage! |
| | | | |
| Elijah will be Madeleine's third "special | | | | When they brought the two girls home to New |
| needs" child that she has adopted! And she | | | | York, Abrous returned home with his parents |
| also has a 22-year old college student son, | | | | to wait for an opening at the orphanage. |
| Donovan. Madeleine's other adopted children | | | | Luck finally prevailed, and at the end of |
| include her 7-year old son Michael, from | | | | August, Abrous was one of 100-plus children |
| Bulgaria, and her 3-year old daughter Hana, | | | | admitted to the orphanage. The Buckley |
| from Guatemala. And just to make this random | | | | family immediately went into motion trying to |
| act of love more difficult on her, Madeleine | | | | raise the money they needed to rescue Abrous, |
| decided she had to move from her 2-bedroom | | | | and once again, they reentered the adoption |
| apartment to a 3-bedroom apartment to make | | | | process. Nearly 14 months later, in December |
| sure that there was enough room for Elijah in | | | | of 2006, their documents were finally clear |
| his new home. | | | | to send to Liberia, and the monies were |
| | | | almost all in place to cover the country fees |
| Madeleine discovered Dang Jian, when a friend | | | | and other adoption costs. As of July 2007, |
| emailed her that she saw Dang Jian's story on | | | | they are still waiting for word on the case, |
| an adoption agency's website, and described | | | | and final passport clearance. The Buckley's |
| his impending fate. Madeleine found out that | | | | are hoping that the adoption petition is |
| someone had put up an anonymous donation to | | | | either in the Liberian courts or will be |
| help offset part of the adoption expenses, | | | | there very soon. |
| and that started Madeleine's wheels in | | | | |
| motion. With domestic adoptions averaging | | | | What did they want from The Orphan |
| $18,105 currently, and almost double that | | | | Foundation? Financial help to complete the |
| internationally, due to travel costs, | | | | adoption. The families were all asked to go |
| document translations and other country | | | | through the same United States adoption |
| specific requirements, this was the opening | | | | agency, which resulted in additional |
| break she needed. This was her chance to | | | | processing fees of $1,800. The Buckley's |
| give Elijah a home, and she'd worry about the | | | | were now running out of sources to tap for |
| rest of his living and medical needs when he | | | | quick financial help, and were becoming more |
| was in her care. | | | | anxious and desperate in the eleventh hour of |
| | | | Abrous' rescue. Another unanimous vote from |
| Madeleine has since arranged for the UCLA | | | | the Board, and another lost child in the |
| Craniofacial Center to replace Elijah's | | | | world was sent a lifeline. |
| missing ear. All she wanted from The Orphan | | | | |
| Foundation was enough money to finish her | | | | These were definitely not the stories that we |
| legal paperwork with the State of California, | | | | expected to see in our first three grant |
| get the legal documents translated into | | | | requests. Where was that stereotypical family |
| Chinese and certified, and have enough left | | | | that was starving for a child of their own, |
| over to pay her travel expenses to China to | | | | but left barren by some cruel twist of |
| bring "Elijah" home. | | | | biological fate? Where was that known |
| | | | connection between the parties that used |
| When we asked her why she was doing this, she | | | | adoption to solidify a new marriage and |
| simply repeated what she said earlier - she | | | | family? These weren't childless parents |
| has a big heart. The only anchor on that big | | | | looking to fill an empty space in their |
| heart seems to be that big pile of bills | | | | heart, or stepparents coming in to secure the |
| she's managed to build in the process. Our | | | | bonds of their new family. These were a |
| Board could not have agreed more, and voted | | | | whole new breed of parents, with a whole new |
| unanimously to grant her the money. | | | | agenda and view of life. |
| | | | |
| The Cancilla Case - California | | | | Our 12-person Board looked at each other in |
| | | | astonishment. We just could not get our |
| Mary and Warren Cancilla, along with daughter | | | | heads around this left-turn in our world |
| Annalise, seemed truly overjoyed about 6-week | | | | views. We were seeing entirely different |
| old Harrison's arrival. Harrison would be | | | | passions at play, complete with an |
| that new brother for Annalise, and the | | | | unfaltering commitment to see the long |
| perfect one boy, one girl family would arrive | | | | arduous adoption process through to the end, |
| in a small, quiet California town. However, | | | | so that they could then begin on the really |
| this family portrait turns out to be a bit | | | | hard part of all this - raising children with |
| more unique than that. Harrison was born | | | | some very special needs. |
| with Down syndrome, with the added rare heart | | | | |
| complication called tetralogy of Fallot. | | | | We told all three of these families that they |
| | | | are the real heroes out there. Forget |
| Mary, a sign language interpreter, told us | | | | Superwoman, Batman, and Spiderman. Meet |
| that they had been on the Down Syndrome | | | | Madeleine, the Cancilla's, and the Buckley's. |
| Association of Greater Cincinnati's waiting | | | | These are the kind of quiet heroes we pass |
| list for 2 years. This seemed hardly a "spur | | | | on the streets each day, and had no clue that |
| of the moment" decision. When the | | | | they even existed. They're made of the same |
| association called to tell the Cancilla's | | | | mettle as those courageous people, who rush |
| that Harrison's mother decided to give him | | | | into burning buildings to save children, |
| up, and they were on the top of the list to | | | | rescue a fallen soldier from enemy fire, or |
| receive a Downs syndrome child, they were | | | | run down a thief who snatched an old woman's |
| overjoyed that their long wait was finally | | | | purse. And then they want to quietly |
| over. | | | | disappear behind their private lives, shying |
| | | | away from the cameras and lights of a press |
| What did they want from The Orphan | | | | eager to exploit their bravery and courage. |
| Foundation? Just some financial help with | | | | These families don't even seem to know what |
| their adoption costs so that they could free | | | | all the fuss is about. Wouldn't all of us do |
| up some money for the medical needs that | | | | the same? |
| Harrison will be facing. | | | | |
| | | | Perhaps it was that small quote, nearly |
| Another unanimous vote, and another unnoticed | | | | hidden at the top of our home page that led |
| random act of love from just a regular kind | | | | them to us ( |
| of family who chose to love a very special | | | | |
| boy. | | | | "We ask that you not judge our success in |
| | | | terms of "bottom lines." Instead, we ask to |
| The Buckley Case - New York | | | | be measured by the number of "lifelines" we |
| | | | extend to the homeless children of this |
| When we talked with Lorraine Buckley she told | | | | world." |
| us all about the incidents that led up to | | | | |
| their finding Abrous, the brother of one of | | | | Perhaps we were never alone in our mission to |
| the two girls that they had already adopted | | | | find these children a family to love them, to |
| from an orphanage in Liberia - an orphanage | | | | cherish their worth, and to give them hope. |
| that had been overrun by soldiers during | | | | Either way, bear witness to the birth of a |
| Liberia's deadly civil wars. A badly beaten | | | | whole new breed of family. Meet the new |
| orphanage director managed to save the | | | | "tutelaries of hope," the real guardians of |
| children from harm, by convincing the | | | | our world's children. They know no bigotry, |
| soldiers that some of the children might be | | | | no deception, nor bias of thought that would |
| their own. The soldiers confiscated all of | | | | ever prevent them from the simple act of |
| the orphans' food, but allowed the children | | | | loving a child that would otherwise be lost |
| to vacate the orphanage. The children walked | | | | to the world. We think this is a bright and |
| for two days in search of shelter, with at | | | | shining light in the distant skies, and we |
| most, a handful of rice for each day of their | | | | choose to call that light "hope ascending. |
| journey. The UN came to their rescue, and | | | | |