LWB Community

Visiting the Older Children of Huainan

The city of Huainan was the next stop on our journey.  LWB has been helping in Huainan for the last eight years through every program area we offer. The first evening we arrived, we took seven of the older kids from this orphanage out to dinner. I know that one of the things that weighs on a lot of adoptive parents’ hearts is what happens to the kids who “age out” of their orphanages. It is something we are continually thinking of as well, and through our Secondary and Higher Education program, we want a clear plan for every older child in our care.

There are many issues facing kids who have grown up in institutions. Without having parents to encourage them, many kids in orphanages fall far behind their peers in both grades and study habits.  Read more.

Visiting Zhang Village Foster Care

Next on our trip was a visit with the children in our Zhang Village foster care
program, which is located in Hefei. When we first began this program many years ago, it was for children with more intense medical conditions who needed to be monitored closely by our Anhui Healing Home staff. At first, it was located in a small village of Hefei called “Zhang Village,” and all of the children lived in one community. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you feel about it, that village was demolished last year to make way for new high rise apartments, something which of course is happening more and more in China. Now the children are located throughout the city.  So while it technically should be called “Hefei Foster Care,” we are sticking with the original name for nostalgia’s sake. Read more.

A Visit to the Anhui Healing Home

Every time I visit the Anhui Healing Home, I wish more than anything that I could just unpack my bags and work as a nanny there.  This home has a very special feel because all of the caregivers are related or good friends.  When you walk in the door, you hear music and laughing – and you know within minutes that all the babies are in very good hands, from their heads to their sweet little toes.
Read more.

Chandler: LWB’s Featured Child of the Week

Baby Chandler is a new arrival at LWB’s Anhui Healing Home (AHH). Chandler has multiple heart conditions, which will require heart surgery when she is about six months old. Chandler will be at AHH to gain weight, grow stronger, and prepare for her surgery. Read more.

Kick Off The Week Right with Ronan

Happy Monday!  We thought you might enjoy kicking off the week with Ronan, one of the boys in our Huainan Believe in Me School who has been waiting to be adopted.  His spirits are high despite the long wait!

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Hopes and Plans for Our China Trip

When I was a little girl, I remember seeing the passport of my friend’s father, and as I turned each page and saw the entry and exit stamps from different countries, I thought inside how wonderful it would be to someday have a little blue book of my own. I didn’t get that first passport until I was 35, when I adopted my first child from China, but I still remember the excitement I felt when the immigration officer firmly put his red stamp in it. I still feel that same excitement every time I land in China – and by the time you read this, I will probably be standing in the immigration line yet again.

Each time I make a trip to check on the children in our programs, I of course reflect back on previous journeys. I always have the same prayer leading up to departure:  that any child who truly needs our help will somehow cross my path. Read more.

John Waits

John is a child whom many of us have watched grow up.  Part of our foster care program in Anhui since 2008, we have seen monthly reports on him for many years, and LWB volunteers have met with him on numerous occasions when they visited his village.  He has truly grown into a boy who is full of fun!  John has been on the shared list for several years now, and he also is the recipient of an adoption assistance grant.  Boys are typically chosen for adoption less frequently than girls (see Amy Eldridge’s blog post, “The Adoption of Boys“).  Despite this, and despite the fact that with each passing year John’s chances of being adopted become slimmer, we hold onto hope that an incredible family is out there for this special boy.

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Jacob, Future Chess Master

Adorable 7½ year old Jacob attends public school and joins the students at LWB’s Anhui Believe in Me School during the mid day and evening when he returns to the orphanage. We featured this humble boy in our blog last summer (“Humble Jacob“). Amazingly, despite his incredible personality, Jacob’s file remains on the shared list…waiting for just the right family to find it and fall in love!

Jacob is “all boy” as you can see from these two recent videos. In the first, Jacob is playing a game of  ”Hawks Catch Chicken” with the little girls at the Believe in Me school.   Read more.

Dancing With the Stars of Lu’An

The hit TV show, “Dancing With the Stars,” is about to begin another season here in the United States.  Those dancers are quite talented, but we think we have some other very promising, dynamic dancers in our foster care program in Anhui!

Three children in LWB’s Lu’An Foster Care Program have apparently been practicing their dance moves.  During our China manager’s most recent visit to their foster care program, they put on quite a demonstration that features both “Gangnam Style” and Michael Jackson-style moves. Read more.

Cadence: LWB’s Featured Child of the Week

Little Cadence was admitted to LWB’s Anhui Healing Home in the fall of 2012 with a heart condition. Under the watchful care of the healing home nannies, she gained weight and was well enough to undergo surgery in December to repair her heart. Read more.