Russia
Program
Welcome
home Zach!
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Welcome home Ty!!
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The
Knuteson family writes. . .
The Knuteson
family writes. . .The staff at WPA are extremely caring and genuine.
Our questions were always answered in a timely manner and we were
kept up to date on our adoption process. When the time came for
us to travel on our first trip they were right there to get us
on our way with all of the important information we needed.
The in country team was absolutely fantastic. We were met at the
airport amd instantly made to feel welcome. During our stay they
kept us up to date on our process and made us feel very secure
being so far from home. Our driver was very safe, our translator
was extremely talented and our facilitator was very caring and
professional. We knew right from the start that we didn't have
a worry.
E-mail
address: MoniceK@juno.com
Web site: http://groups.msn.com/OurlittleZach
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Summary
of our Russia Program
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Click
here to download our reference list
The
process is typically 8-9 months to the time of your first
trip. If you have INS clearance or your homestudy completed, it
could be faster.
The children
waiting for adoption in Russia are typically a minimum of
12 months at the time you bring them home on your second trip.
Older children up to 7 years old are also waiting for adoption
in our Russia program.
Our overseas
partners are a dynamic team of adoption professionals who
have been involved with adoptions for many years! We work in numerous
regions and orphanages throughout Russia.
[Click
Here to request an Information Packet ]
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The
Russian National Flag:
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The Current
Weather in Russia:
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Russia and
it's surrounding Soviet Republic's
have over 250,000 orphans waiting for adoption, and their prospects
for local adoption are bleak. With the growing poverty and economic
struggles, many of the residents are unable to adopt Russia's
waiting children, and the adoptions of children other than newborns
have fallen nearly to zero. Children in Russian orphanages face
an almost certain future of institutionalization until they become
16 years old, whereupon, they will face life on the streets without
family support and with little likelihood of finding anything
more than sustenance-level occupations. Russia is a beautiful
country rich in history, museums, and story telling. From the
Kremlin, Red Square, Cathedrals, to the waiting children, your
trip to Russia will certainly change your life! .
The Children waiting for adoption from
Russia live in Desky Doms, or orphanages until they are adopted.
They are grouped by age and attend classes to socialize with their
peers.
The
age of the waiting children in Russia is 6 months to 7 years old,
however, you should anticipate the child to be close to 12 months
at the time you bring them home. The caretaker to child ratio
is approximately 1:10. The quality of care varies dramatically
from one orphanage to another and is directly related to the physical
and psychological well being of the children. With the number
of children in each orphange the level of care is not always adequate
and you should anticipate developmental delays in your adopted
child. We recommend reading the many books available on the problems
associated with institutionalization when adopting a child from
any of our programs, but especially with Russia.
Upon
submission of your dossier our partners begin to actively
look for your referral. This is a process that may take weeks
or months depending on the criteria you have set forth. The general
timeframe we advise our families is to allow 5 months after submission
of your dossier for us to locate your referral. Upon acceptance
of your referral our partners will start the travel process, usually
you will travel within a matter of weeks for your first trip.
On the first trip you will meet and formally accept your referral
and file the necessary paperwork to start the court process. Once
this is done you will leave for home and wait for your court date.
Court dates vary by region, but a general timeframe is 6 weeks
after you file your initial paperwork. Once we have your firm
court date you will be set to travel arriving about 3 days prior
to visit with your child again. Once court is done, usually on
day 3 or 4, our partners will get all the court paperwork translated
and your child's passport issued, then your off to Moscow for
INS processing at the US Embassy.
We
will be happy to help you in any way and answer any questions
you have. Please call us at 1-800-350-7338 or email us at
WPAdopt@aol.com
We look forward to being a part of your journey to adopt a
Child! |
Single
females are allowed to adopt.
There are two adoption trips,
one to identify the child, and second to finalize your adoption