Copied from the Vulnerable Children blog:

Vulnerable Children Society would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to all Canadian families who have donated to and/or visited Faya Orphanage. Your generosity means that, to date, the children living at Faya Orphanage have not experienced negative fallout from the drought affecting Ethiopia.

According to Faya Orphanage director Meseret Demissie, the donations brought to the orphanage have offset other costs, and enabled the orphanage to afford food for the children in her care.

As a result of the drought, prices in central Ethiopia where Faya operates have skyrocketed, meaning that essential food supplies and medicines have become almost out of reach for many families.

Over the last few years, several dozen Canadian families have visited Faya Orphanage with donations, while families in Canada also continue to sponsor children living there. It is this generous support that has helped safeguard the well-being of children who call Faya Orphanage home.

During this food crisis, it has never been clearer that donations from Canadians make a real and lasting difference in the lives of HIV+ and HIV- children living at Faya Orphanage.

If you are planning to visit Ethiopia or have donations you would like to send to Faya Orphanage, please contact VCS board member Nicole Bellefleur at info@vulnerablechildren.ca for more information.

While the children at Faya are safe, unfortunately many of the community families enrolled in Faya Orphanage’s House 2 House program in Adama, Wonji, Ambo and Guder are feeling the effects of runaway inflation on food prices.

Please stay tuned to Vulnerable Children Society’s blog and Facebook page this week to learn more about the actions we are taking right now to assist vulnerable families living in Ethiopian communities.

Read more: Drought in Ethiopia Takes its Toll on Families

Written by Vulnerable Children board member Chris Ardern

I’ll add that there will be a big announcement about our drought relief efforts tomorrow!!!!

After 16 months of waiting, 7 months of living in Ghana, 8 information requests from the HC in Accra, and countless tears, requests and frustrations, the Sorokas are FINALLY bringing their kids home.

Read about their frustrating, crazy adoption journey here.

Their visas were issued today. Thank goodness.

We are so very very happy for them!!!!

Yeah!!!!

You may have heard about the droughts in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia. It’s important to hear what is going on, and how the NGOs and governments are responding.

You may ask what you can do to help people so far away, with such a huge crisis. First, you can donate to a food aid organization, such as Oxfam, Save the Children, the Red Cross/Crescent or UNICEF. Or, you could help one family in dire need through Vulnerable Children Society. You know, all these organization do invaluable work. I know from reports from our friends in Ethiopia that life is getting harder for everyday working folks, and extremely dire for those living on the edge of poverty.

The other consideration is to think about where all these droughts are coming from. I know this is an indirect connnection, but there is a lot validity behind climate change exaserbating the droughts, and making them happen more often. All scientists aside, I remember clearly speaking with farmers and elders in Ethiopia two years ago, and having them describe climate change to me and how remarked the difference in water cycles have been because of it. I tell you, it sort of blew my mind and humbled me. You think that sustainance farmers who haven’t studied past elementary school wouldn’t be aware. To the contrary; they taught me some hard lessons about the effects of a drying climate pattern on their livelihoods and forests.

Whatever the reasons, there is no doubt that there are a whole bunch of people hurting on the other side of the world. Hopefully all my blogging buddies will also tell their friends about the Horn of Africa food crisis, and encourage their friends and family to donate to one of the excellent organizaions above.

(1 of 3 Posts on Harambe) The main purpose of Harambe (in my view) is for our girls to enjoy time with other multiracial families. But the second purpose is is the cultural activities that instill pride in African culture.

Now, I will say at the outset that there are no Ethiopian activities at the camp, which I am trying to remedy. And Africa’s a big continent, so Cote d’Ivoire drumming and Nigerian cooking don’t really have much to do with our girls’ Ethiopian heritage. That said, there is a pride and engagement that is totally positive from doing “African” activities with African adult role models and other kids. Plus, we just have a lot of fun participating and learning!

Here are some of the highlights!

I think this joyous video makes us all grateful and happy for what we have. My daughters love this video – they saw it the first time and said “we want a brother from THERE, Mama!” I explained that not all people from this place could dance THAT well. “Oh,” they said. “Let’s watch it again!”

Enjoy!

Folks – this is a friend of ours who has been waiting SINCE THE IMAGINNE ADOPTION BANKRUPTCY to bring home her kids. She is so desperate, she has finally decided to go public and she REALLY needs our help.

PLEASE WRITE A LETTER!!!

PLEASE REPOST THIS ON YOUR BLOGS!!

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

_______________________________________________

Calling all adoptive parents
HELP THIS FAMILY BRING THEIR KIDS HOME FROM GHANA

April 19, 2011, Kelowna, BC: After 7 months living in Ghana, and 8 requests for additional information from the Canadian High Commission in Accra, the Soroka family’s only hope is that the two sides of their family will be united soon.

Jessica and Gregory Soroka were one of the unfortunate families caught by the Imagine Adoption agency bankruptcy. When the agency went bankrupt in July 2009, the Sorokas already had been matched with a referral of two young children from Ghana: Thelma and Gabriel. Jessica and Gregory learned that their adoption couldn’t be completed by the agency, and they were devastated.  Meanwhile, the Ghanaian orphanage where the children resided shut down, and the children were sent back to their biological parents.

The Sorokas decided that the children were too special to forget, so they signed on with Life’s Vision International, a US agency, to facilitate the adoption. In January 2010, their files arrived in Ghana. Thelma and Gabriel had been re-relinquished by their biological parents by this time, and were living in a foster home. The Department of Social Welfare one again matched Jessica and Gregory to Thelma and Gabriel. Jessica left her husband and then four year old son Tamire in Canada, and flew to Ghana to start a three month fostering period.

On April 26, 2010 in Accra, the children were placed in Jessica’s care by the Department of Social Welfare, and on July 6, 2010,  the Ghanaian court awarded the Sorokas a full adoption order for Thelma and Gabriel. Jessica spoke with her son in Canada over the phone, promising to return with the three and five year old Ghanaian children as soon as the Canadian High Commission allowed.

Little did Jessica realize that she would live for seven months in Ghana, apart from her Canadian family. Her son Tamire, born in Ethiopia and experiencing loss for the second time in his life, grieved for his mother’s return the whole time. Jessica developed a strong relationship with her new Ghanaian children, but, after seven months, the Sorokas could no longer afford to live on two continents. So now Jessica, Gregory and Tamire are waiting in Canada for the High Commission in Accra to allow their Ghanaian family members to come home. Thelma and Gabriel are being cared for by a nanny in Accra; they wonder if they will ever see their new mother again.

Why is this family waiting and torn apart?

THE HIGH COMMISSION IN ACCRA IS PURPOSEFULLY STALLING THE PERMANENT RESIDENT VISAS FOR THELMA AND GABRIEL SOROKA.

• HC Accra has asked for additional information on 8 occasions over the course of eight months. Some of this information is irrelevant to the legality of the adoption. Each time, the requests have been fulfilled, only to be followed with additional requests.
• HC Accra asked Jessica to appear for an interview in Accra on 5 day’s notice, shortly after she had returned to Canada after seven months in Ghana. They declined to interview her until that request, although she had visited HC Accra 6 times.
• Both the Department of Social Welfare and the Ghanaian courts have met with HC Accra attesting to the legitimacy and legality of the Soroka adoption.
• The last request for additional information was for the original copy of a document that HC Accra has held a copy of for months. This document does not relate to the legality of their adoption and was not used in any way for their adoption.

PLEASE SUPPORT THIS FAMILY’S UNIFICATION BY WRITING A LETTER TO THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE. If you can write a physical letter, it will be counted by the government and taken much more seriously than an email. IF you can’t print and mail a letter, please do email. Since we are in the middle of an election, please take care to send your letters in a timely fashion.

Most important, in order:

Neil Yeates, Deputy Minister of  Citizenship and Immigration
Jean Edmonds Building, South Tower, 20th Floor
365 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, Ontario  K1A 1L1
Telephone:613-954-3501 Fax:613-954-3509
Email: neil.yeates@cic.gc.ca

Claudette Deschênes — Assistant Deputy Minister, Operations
Ministry of  Citizenship and Immigration
Phone: 613-954-5335   FAX: 613-957-8887 Email Claudette.deschenes@cic.gc.ca

Rt. Honourable Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2
Fax: 613-941-6900 Alternate Fax: 403-253-8203
E-mail: pm@pm.gc.ca

The Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism
Phone: 613-954-1064 E-mail: Minister@cic.gc.ca Fax: 403-225-3504
1168 137 Ave SE, Calgary, AB, T2J 6T6 P. 403-225-3480 F. 403-225-3504
325 East Block, House of Commons, Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6 P. 613-992-2235 F. 613-992-1920

Your Own MP
Find out who they are here:
http://www2.parl.gc.ca/parlinfo/compilations/houseofcommons/memberbypostalcode.aspx?menu=hoc

THANK YOU!!!!

Many of our Ethiopian children come from extreme poverty. I found this fascinating website that explores life in slums (of which there are many in Ethiopia) on four different continents. The pictures above area by the website’s creator. His work is currently being shown at the Nobel Prize Centre. You should check it out! It’s a very multi-medium website, with sounds and photos as insights into a way of life. You get to enter into homes with a 360 degree point of view, and hear from the voices of the people who live there.

If you would like to support a child who lives in places such as these… consider sponsoring a child through Vulnerable Children Society. Many of our children live in slums… many are HIV+ and orphaned. You can make a difference one life at a time! Learn more.

A bit of a continuation on the theme for Black History Month.

I have been, for as long as I can remember, a big fan of Nina Simone. In fact, I named one of my daughters (Spice) after her. She was an unabashed supporter of the civil rights movement in the 60s in the US. She grew up playing piano and even attended Juilliard… debatably, her astounding piano skills even surpassed the wonder of her voice. She lived in the US, Liberia, and eventually settled in France. Oddly, she did have a conection to Ethiopia since she was good friends with Miriam Makebda. Read more about her here…

Nina Simone had a few bad habits, got in trouble with the law in a few different countries, and spoke openly, on tough issues like race and equality:

To most white people, jazz means black and jazz means dirt and that’s not what I play. I play black classical music. That’s why I don’t like the term “jazz,” and Duke Ellington didn’t like it either — it’s a term that’s simply used to identify black people.”

What I love about Nina Simone’s work is not her boldness and political statements, although I admire those elements. Simply, her voice is like noone elses.  Her version of “Here Comes the Sun” is my favourite song in the world. It’s my happiest place, listening to that song. And I, along with her namesake, can sit and just absorb her storytelling through the keyboard. Just amazing. One of my few regrets in life is that I didn’t get to hear her play live before her dealth in 2003.

So I’ll let the music do the talking. Let’s listen to two of her anthems from the sixties talking about race and equality. Enjoy… and let’s let her story of the past inform our future.

Nina Simone canta “Four Women” al Festival jazz d’Antibes
Uploaded by AMALTEO. – Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

BTW, her namesake Spice thinks she’s “really really beautiful” and she want to play piano like her one day. Music to my ears…

I was just looking at the new pictures of the lovely children at Faya Orphanage on the Vulnerable Children Society website.

It is so sweet – my girls were looking at the pictures too, and Sugar exclaimed “that’s my old favourite shirt!” Well, so it was!

You can see a picture of Sugar wearing the same shirt last February below.

Anyway, I thought you would find it comforting to know that your doantions actually do get there, are used and appreciated!

See the rest of the pictures of the kids here  (and maybe cosider sponsoring a Faya Child? We only need 4 more sponsors to acheive sustainable core funding!!)

It’s the ultimate gift of love that keeps giving year round!

And Vulnerable Children Society will send an ecard for you, right up until noon on the 24th!

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or Genna, a December gift of love for a vulnerable child is sure to delight and warm the heart.

Show your loved one that you care about them, and about the children in Ethiopia at the same time. Sponsor a child in your friend or family member’s name… or make a one-time donation to Vulnerable Children Society to honour your loved one.

It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3! (Credit, debit and PayPal accepted!)
 JUST CLICK HERE!.

Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Joyous Kwanzaa! Melkam Genna!

Today is World AIDS Day – a day when the world (hoepfully) thinks of the milions of people suffering from the world’s largest health epidemic. Stephen Lewis was recently interviewed about the state of HIV/AIDS prevalence and suffering in the world today – I found the interview disquieting.

Q: The United Nations’ AIDS agency recently said that there has been a 20 per cent decrease in new HIV infections over the past decade. But there are still 7,000 new infections each day. How do you continue to find hope amid such staggering statistics?

SL: …it is true that we have more people in treatment and we have fewer infections, as they say, and fewer deaths and the pandemic has stabilized, albeit at very high levels in some countries. But the numbers of infections are still significantly outstripping the people we are putting into treatment to stay alive. For every person we put into treatment, there are two new infections. So it remains a terribly, terribly difficult situation…

Q: Of all the challenges – from lack of funding to drug access – what would you say is the single biggest obstacle to turning the tide on HIV/AIDS in Africa?

SL: …At the moment, the biggest single obstacle is resources, is the dollars. There’s just no question about that. [...] Read the rest of the interview here.

The Stephen Lewis Foundation does wonderful work. In our own small way, the volunteers and sponsors and partners of Vulnerable Children Society are also trying to ease the burden and help families and children affected by this terrible disease.

We’ve made big strides in the past month, (I say “we” because I’m the president of the society.” Thanks to gracious sponsors we’re close to reaching sustainable core funding for Faya Orphanage (we need about 10 more sponsors to reach our goal.) 

We’ve also expanded the number of children supported in the community thrugh Faya’s fantastic House 2 House Community program.

If you haven’t already, please check out the videos below and learn more about how you can help a child or a family affected by HIV/AIDS.

Here is our original Vulnerable Children Society overview video with Sugar and Spice acting as spokeskids:

This video is a detailed 13 minute video about the society:

And here are some of the headlines of what we’ve been up to in the last month! We have blog updates twice a week – and there will be new pictures of the kids going up on Monday!

• Grand tour of the NEW Faya Orphanage
• Shining Faces of Faya Children
• Poll: what values are most important to you?
• It breaks your heart…
• Board of Directors Meeting
• Sponsors Needed for the Community Kids
• Holiday Gifts for your family and friends

Thank for your support, friends. We couldn’t do it without you!!!

Earlier this year, MP Judy Wasylycia-Leis introduced a bill into the House. She stated:

I am very pleased to be able to table my very last petition in the House before I leave this place after 13 years. Actually, this will be the very last time that I will say anything on the official record of the House of Commons. I cannot think of a better issue around which to do this than on the matter raised by petitioners from my constituency and across Canada, particularly from the Canadian Grandmothers for Africa organization.

The petitioners call upon this House to follow through with the support that it gave Bill C-393, my private member’s bill on the access to medicines regime, to ensure that more drugs flow at costing rates to Africa and other developing nations.

Members will know that this bill was supported by the House of Commons at second reading. It has gone to committee and the petitioners implore members of the House from all parties to see the process through, to discuss this matter at committee, to call witnesses, and to ensure that we change Canada’s access to medicines regime to ensure that drugs flow to countries in need and to ensure that Canada lives up to its reputation as a leader in terms of humanitarian and compassionate issues around the world.

I thank all of those who have worked so hard on this issue, especially the grandmothers across Canada. I urge the House to help me leave this as a lasting legacy for all Canadians and the world.

The bill was set to be debated in its third reading by the House tomorrow, but because Judy has since retired all MPs must approve a sponsor for the bill for it to go further. So in the next 2-3 days, this bill needs your support with a letter to your MP and the Prime Minister, to tell them you support the bill and want it to continue through the House of Communs process.

Here is a backgrounder document, that also tells you the contact info for the Prime Minister etc. and also gives you some suggestions about what to say to support the bill. This document also gives you some suggestions for a draft letter.

This issue was brought to my attention by T, a fellow adoptive parent. Here is a copy of her letter you can revise and email to your own MP, the PM, etc.

Dear Minister Lake,

As a mother of two young children that were orphaned by AIDS, I was shocked to learn that there may be a movement to reduce the efficacy of Bill C-393 in providing access to mothers and children in sub-Saharan Africa.  There are currently 2.1 million children living with HIV in the developing world. Many of these children became infected with HIV simply because their mothers were not able to access medicines to reduce mother-to-child transmission of HIV before they were born. Furthermore, nearly 90% of these children do not have access to the medicines that they need to survive and will die before the age of 5.

This is a humanitarian issue and it needs your attention. These children and their mothers need treatment to survive, and they are simply unable to do so due to the prohibitive costs of HIV drugs. Canada passed the Canadian Access to Medicines Regime (CAMR) in 2004 to ensure that no child would die from a lack of medicines. Since that time, only one drug has been shipped to one country in nearly six years. Clearly this legislation is incredibly flawed and mires a laudable initiative in red tape.

CAMR needs to be streamlined. Bill C-393 can do this through its “one license solution”. It is WTO and TRIPS compliant, guarantees royalties for brand-name pharmaceutical companies, will stimulate the Canadian economy, does not cost taxpayers anything, and most importantly will ensure millions of lives are saved.

Can I count on you as my MP to support this important initiative by voting “yes” when the bill comes before you at its third reading?

People are dying unnecessarily, children are being orphaned and I urge you to do the  right thing.  Put yourself in the shoes of those who know that there are treatments available but that no one cares enough to make it happen.

Sincerely, T.

This is such a great video – I think you’ll love it too.

It’s a hair-love song from a father to his Ethiopian-born daughter. Thanks to my friend who has a daughter from China who passed this on to me – please watch it and let’s spread the positive hair vibe to all our daughters!

About the video (from NPR):

“I Love My Hair” debuted on the Oct. 4 episode of Sesame Street. It was posted on the show’s YouTube page — and then women began posting the video on their Facebook pages.

African-American bloggers wrote that it brought them to tears because of the message it sends to young black girls.

Joey Mazzarino, the head writer of Sesame Street, is also a Muppeteer who wrote the song for his daughter. Mazzarino is Italian. He and his wife adopted their 5-year-old daughter, Segi, from Ethiopia when she was a year old.

Mazzarino says he wrote the song after noticing his daughter playing with dolls.

“She wanted to have long blond hair and straight hair, and she wanted to be able to bounce it around,” he tells NPR’s Melissa Block.

Mazzarino says he began to get worried, but he thought it was only a problem that white parents of African-American children have. Then he realized the problem was much larger.

In writing the song, he wanted to say in song what he says to his daughter: “Your hair is great. You can put it in ponytails. You can put it in cornrows. I wish I had hair like you.”

That simple message has caused an outpouring of responses from women. Mazzarino got a call from an African woman who told him the song brought her to tears. “I was amazed, ’cause I sort of wrote this little thing for my daughter, and here this adult woman, it touched her,” he says.

Mazzarino says he’s happy to report that Segi loves the song — and her hair.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted about the Vulnerable Children Society… it’s been a whirlwnd of a month and a bit to get the society up and running and providing that necessary care for some of Ethiopia’s most precious, yet vulnerable, kids.

I’m so grateful for the awesome amazing ladies that I am getting to work with – and so grateful to those of you who have donated and sponsored. Honestly, it keeps me up to 11pm each night just doing stuff.. but I know that every minute is paying off for this kids. I’ll sleep when we have 100% core funding secured! lol Thankfully we are half way there!

Here are some of the highlights.. please follow the links to read more!

We exist! Officially a non-profit society…

Finally! After lots of paperwork, sending papers for signatures across the country, and waiting for the BC government to process our application, Vulnerable Children Society is now officially registered as a (non-profit) society in British Columbia. Read more…

Tell your story of visiting Faya

To all those wonderful supporters who have dropped off donations or taken a tour of the orphanage… we would like to hear from you! Read more…

End of September Update

First of all, our sincere thanks to all the fabulous people who donated or sponsored kids… after just one month, we have :

• 21 Faya child sponsorships
• 5 community child; and
• 4 community family sponsorships! Read more…

Rebecca visits Faya Orphanage (June 2010)

Recently we have had the privilege of visiting Faya Orphanage in June 2010. When we arrived the kids were at the gate waiting for us. They came running to greet us with hugs and smiles. It didn’t take long for the young boys to grab my husband and take him to the yard to play football! Read more and SEE THE PICTURES…

Add us to your RSS feed

If you would like to help spread the word about the Vulnerable Children Society, one option is to add our blog posts as an RSS feed to your email or to your blog. Here is our RSS URL: http://vulnerablechildren.ca/feed/rss2/

Sponsorship Video

Please pass this video along to your friends… and consider being a sponsor through the Vulnerable Children Society.

One of our board members for the Vulnerable Children Society (and a fellow adoptive mom) runs a great non-profit called Swazi Kids. They have a brand new blog, and a fundraiser in Vernon coming up October 16th, so check it out!