Meet Emillio. Doesn’t he have a winning smile? But this adorable little boy didn’t have much to smile about just a few short months ago.

Emillio was born in October 2009. This tiny baby came into orphanage care with a severe bowel obstruction. Love Without Boundaries was contacted about him, and our medical team was able to arrange immediate surgery to save his life. After a successful surgery, Emillio recovered for two weeks in the hospital and then returned to the care of his orphanage.

However, Emillio suffered unexpected complications and was rushed back to the hospital nine days later. He was unable to keep any formula down, was severely dehydrated, and had to be tube-fed as he could not even tolerate water. Three weeks later, Emillio was reintroduced to the bottle but could only drink about an ounce of formula at a time. A week later, Emillio was able to take 13.5 ounces of formula in 24 hours and was finally strong enough to leave the hospital and travel to the Heartbridge Pediatric Healing Unit in mid-December.

Since his arrival at Heartbridge, Emillio has made incredible progress. During those first few days, Emillio was still very thin and weak, but remained stable and could drink two ounces of formula at a time. By the end of February, he was taking 5.4 ounces with each feeding and had gained over four pounds! And although he is doing great, he still needs careful monitoring and frequent feedings.

Emillio is a very sweet baby who loves to be cuddled or gently rocked in his bouncy chair. His nanny insists that he is very bright. He cries loudly when he wants attention, and then responds to a kind word or a stroke of his fuzzy head with a radiant grin.

This year, 25% of LWB’s “Born In My Heart” Art Auction proceeds will go to the Heartbridge Pediatric Healing Unit, where your donation or purchase will help keep the smile on little Emillio’s face – as well as the faces of the other children receiving TLC at Heartbridge! (The remaining 75% of the proceeds will help children with medical needs in other Love Without Boundaries programs.)

Mark your calendar! The Love Without Boundaries “Born in My Heart” Art Auction is on eBay from April 22-27. This year, there are more than 300 items – artwork, Chinese arts and crafts, handmade quilts, children’s items, etc. – up for auction, and all proceeds will go to help children with medical needs ranging from heart surgery to pneumonia care. For more information, contact us at auction@lwbmail.com. Emilio and his friends at Heartbridge thank you!

Our annual “Born in My Heart” Art Auction on eBay was held from April 23 to 28, and was a huge success!

By the second day of the auction, the total bid amount was already enough to fully fund heart surgeries for two children – Lacy, a beautiful child in Guilin; and Maria, a sweet girl in our Sanmenxia Foster Care program.

On Sunday, our medical team received word that one child, Mei from Anhui, was doing worse. She was pale and had trouble breathing. A quick check on the auction total showed that we could now also help Mei. We were relieved to inform our China Medical staff right away that Mei was funded and able to have surgery.

We were so excited that the auction was going to help heal 3 children!

But then…..people kept bidding and bidding, and by Tuesday morning it was evident that we would be able to help ANOTHER child: Joshua, a 1 year old with Down’s Syndrome and a complex heart defect. He is adored by his foster family. I can’t wait to let them know he will soon be healed.

In the end, the auction proceeds (100% of which go to the children) reached a total of $21,675. Wow!

These 4 children will soon receive life-saving heart surgery thanks to your support, what a huge blessing! Thank you to everyone who donated items, gave their time, spread the word and of course, bid on all the wonderful items! We are so grateful for your support.

Laura Baldwin is the Medical Program Director for Love Without Boundaries. She lives in Texas with her three children, Elise (Vietnam), Grace (Vietnam), and Julie (Guangdong Province).

. . . Baby Xiao’s Life is Forever Changed!
As we are preparing for this year’s Art Auction on eBay beginning April 23, I went through the list of the 13 children with heart disease that were helped with the proceeds last year.

Children whose lives have been changed and are now alive because of this money. This year, more than ever before, this auction is so needed to heal children….children with heart defects that are waiting for their lives to be saved.

One child in particular that I was taken by while reading through the list was baby Xiao. I remembered the heartbreak of his story…..We didn’t think we were going to help him after the first review of his information. We were told that his “window of opportunity” was almost closed, and he may not be a candidate for surgery.

Little Xiao had truncus arteriosus and also had a very small pulmonary artery. In the US, these children are immediately healed at birth with a complete repair, but by the time we received his file, baby Xiao was already 7 months old and his heart was enlarging. He was SO blue…one of the bluest babies I had ever seen. Because his little heart had still not been repaired, his pulmonary hypertension was increasing, and he had HUGE collateral vessels. If there was any chance to help him, we knew that he needed to be moved to the hospital immediately. There was no time to waste.

Thank goodness we had Art Auction funds. We sent him to the hospital and did a heart cath. They thought that they would be able to help, and right away moved him for surgery. They performed a Bidirectional Shunt to improve his blood flow, and his color improved right away. He will still need another surgery, but he is doing so well now, and he is alive!

He is now almost 17 months old and loves to eat. His favorite food is crackers. Developmentally, he is doing well. He can stand in his walker, sit on his own, and is crawling. His nannies love him and say that he is very well-behaved.

I look at his photos and know that this child is alive today because of the Art Auction….Thank you so much for making this a success each year! These children count on your continued support.

Karen Maunu is the Associate Executive Director for Love Without Boundaries. She lives in MN with her husband LeRoy and five children, Ryan, Tyler, Trevor, Anna (Guangdong province) and Ellie (Jilin province).

Love Without Boundaries’ 6th annual “Born in My Heart” Art Auction goes live next week!

Beginning Thursday, April 23 through Tuesday, April 28, you can bid on some amazing items and forever change the lives of children born with heart defects. As always, 100% of the proceeds go to fund heart surgeries.

With items for every budget, this is a great time to shop for Graduation and Mother’s and Father’s Day too!

This year there are items you won’t want to miss, from original art to glorious quilts to books, clothing, toys, and more. What makes this event possible? It’s you! It’s the generosity of those who have donated these wonderful items. It’s the thoughtfulness of those who have asked “how can I help?” It’s the hearts of our amazing supporters who know that every orphaned child deserves a second chance.

Be a part of our auction and help forever change the life of a child like Jing Mei. At nearly one year of age she suffers with ASD, VSD and PH. What does it take to heal a child’s heart? About $7000. Yes, it’s a lot of money but as all of us here at LWB know, “many hands make light work”. Working together we can raise the funds to heal her heart and others like her.

One healed heart. One life spared. A truly priceless gift. Together, we can reach Jing Mei and other children with heart defects (and have a little fun too!) by taking part in the auction from April 23-28. Join the fun at:

http://stores.ebay.com/Love-Without-Boundaries-Store

Auction items will begin launching at 9 am (Pacific) on Thursday, April 23. Nearly 300 items will be added throughout the day so keep checking back! This 5-day eBay auction will close Tuesday, April 28th with items closing throughout the course of the day.

See you at the auction! And please help us spread the word. If you have a website, blog, are on Facebook or Twitter, please mention this event. Be a hero….help heal a heart!

Deb Mann is Co-Coordinator for Love Without Boundaries’ “Born In My Heart” Art Auction. She lives in Idaho, USA, with her husband Mike. They have 3 grown sons and a beautiful Jiangsu daughter, who was adopted from China in 2003.

You may remember our sweet Jia who was the subject of a painting called, “Jia, Portrait of Hope.”

She had a heart defect that was at one time considered to be inoperable, but last year was able to come to the US for life-saving surgery.

I had the privilege of visiting Jia in her foster home in China a few months ago. I was amazed to see this child who had once been in end-of-life care, smiling and bouncing around the room. She has a smile that lights up her whole face and is so full of life! Her foster family and foster sister adore her and she is surrounded with love as she waits to be adopted. Her foster parents proudly described all of her accomplishments to me, just like any parent would do. It was so touching to see their love for her.

I came away from the visit with such thankfulness in my heart for our sponsors and for those who take part in the “Born In My Heart” auction.

Little lives are saved and those lives go on to grace and touch the lives of so many other people. Who knows how one small donation may play a part?

Each donation truly makes such a difference not only in a child’s life, but also in the lives of everyone who that child meets. It takes all of us working together to make a difference in the world.

Our 2009 Born In My Heart Art Auction is April 23 – 28.

Karin Prunty is the Shunyi Foster Care Coordinator for Love Without Boundaries. She lives in Michigan with her husband, Jeff. They have 10 children, two adopted from the United States, one adopted from Guatemala, and seven adopted from China.

The deadline to donate to the annual “Born in My Heart” art auction fundraiser is April 1st! If you would like to donate, email us right away at auction@lwbmail.com this week. The eBay Auction will take place April 23-28.

One of the perks of working on this auction is getting to preview the wonderful items as they come in. Once again we have received some AMAZING works of art and many other fun donations from you! Here is a taste of what you will see this year:

We have oil and acrylic paintings, and photographs from professional artists like Caroline Young, Kenny Chu and Liu Kairong, plus some truly gifted “amateur” artists. Fabulous quilts from whimsical to elegant in a variety of sizes. Stunning lifebook layouts in both hardcopy and digital formats that will inspire anyone to get busy on that lifebook! Something new this year, several language series designed for age groups from elementary to high school. We also have some wonderful personalized items including pillow covers with your child’s Chinese name and custom website design services. A great selection of dolls, books, clothing, 2008 Olympics items, embroidery, jewelry, and so much more!

Please join us for the 6th “Born in my Heart” fundraiser on April 23-28. Watch for a link on the main page of our website at www.lovewithoutboundaries.com that will take you to the auction. As always, every penny raised is directed to providing surgery for Chinese orphans like one year old “Dessie” who waits to be healed of her heart disease.

Debbie and I want to thank you for helping us pull together another impressive auction. With your generosity and support we are on our way to being able to say “Yes!” to Dessie and a few more of China’s most vulnerable orphans who wait for that precious gift of a strong heart.

Deb Mann is Co-Coordinator for Love Without Boundaries’ “Born In My Heart” Art Auction. She lives in Idaho, USA, with her husband Mike. They have 3 grown sons and a beautiful Jiangsu daughter, who was adopted from China in 2003.

In every orphanage in China , children in need of heart surgery wait. Every breath labored, every movement an effort. They wait….

Each year Love Without Boundaries’ “Born in My Heart” Art Auction raises funds for these precious children. Children who wait for surgeries that will allow them to breath easily and move without effort. Lifesaving surgeries that will allow these little hearts to live a normal life.

Yu is one of these precious children, struggling and waiting for our help. Yu was born with multiple serious heart defects. She is only 15 months old, and her first months of life have been a daily struggle for survival. Her lips and fingers are blue, as her heart cannot get enough oxygen throughout her tiny body. But there is hope for Yu. There are surgeries available that can heal her heart, and can allow her to lead the normal, healthy life every child deserves. Yu is running out of time. She is in desperate need of surgery. The “Born In My Heart” Art Auction can help raise the funds necessary to save the lives of children just like Yu.

Last year, the “Born In My Heart” Art Auction gave several children a chance at life. Little Xiao is one of those children. When we first found out about Xiao, he was only 6 months old. He, like little Yu, was very blue from lack of oxygen. Xiao had a long list of complicated heart defects, and he would not survive without intervention. His situation was very urgent, and he needed to be hospitalized immediately. Born In My Heart funds gave us the opportunity to provide Xiao with heart surgery and a fighting chance at life. His surgery was a great success, and just look at him now! He is a healthy 15 month old little charmer who loves to cruise around in his walker and is full of smiles.

Xiao is not the only child helped by Born In My Heart funds. Look at the faces of these other precious children: Yue, Qun, Xin, Guo, Yang, and DaiYu all received heart surgeries funded in part or whole by the Born In My Heart Art Auction.

You can offer Yu and other children an opportunity for essential heart surgery and give them the gift of life. What better time to extend your heart than at Valentine’s Day?

Please consider being a child’s special Valentine this year by donating to the “Born In My Heart” auction. Items with a theme of China or China Adoption are needed. Artwork, photographs, jewelry, books, music, dvd’s, quilts, scrolls….the possibilities are endless. Perhaps your FCC, DTC or play group would be willing to join hands and donate an item or a themed basket.

Here are some examples of donated items from past auctions:

If you have questions, please email us at auction@lwbmail.com

This year’s eBay auction will take place April 23 – 28th.
Deadline for donations is April 1st.

Every penny raised will go to heal a precious child’s heart, giving them the opportunity to thrive and grow strong and just perhaps, find a family of their very own that they can hug effortlessly.