Adoptions in Haiti...

Many of you have asked what the earthquake will do to our adoption of Jonas. I have tried not to think about it because so many are still trapped or need medical attention. So many have died, this is not a time to think about myself. I would be lying to you if I told you that I have not stopped to think about our adoption.

Here is what I know. Remember when we went to Haiti in October to sign the paper for the Judge. Judge Cadet is not reported to be dead and he was crushed in one of the government buildings downtown PAP.

Where is our dossier??? ( A dossier is a file that holds ALL OF THE PAPERS that we spent hours gathering and getting state sealed, notarized, and approved by immigration.) Where is it??? Well, we are currently in Parquet, so that means more than likely that our file, dossier, is in one of the buildings that no longer exists. Haiti adoptions are completed a lot by hand, and the different offices are not always 'organized'. So, our papers are probably EVERYWHERE along with hundreds of other dossiers.

So, what will happen with Jonas's adoption??? I do not have ANY FEAR that it will be completed, I just don't know how it will happen at this point.

Here is what Dixie, the director of GLA, our 'O', wrote about current adoptions today:

14 January 2010

Our lawyer was able to get through to us today. She says all of the government buildings downtown were damaged or destroyed! She reported that Judge Rock CADET was killed in a building collapse.

I have asked our lawyer to petition IBESR and the government of Hait to allow all children in the adoption process to be allowed to join their adoptive families. We are all going to need beds for orphans who have lost their family in this disaster! I need all of my families to contact their adoption agencies and government officials to allow these children to leave Haiti without a Haitian passport on Humanitarian or Refuge visas! I KNOW the USA government can issue emergency passports for situtations like this because they did it for me during a crisis in Haiti from a poison in a children's fever medicine and children were dying. We sent 11 children out of Haiti during that time and most did not have a Haitian issued passport. Please find out if your government has such a system in place! (All DUTCH Families: Please work through NAS to get these children home. They are trying to get ALL children in process and not just those finished in Parquet. So join forces with NAS and not to confuse the issue with the Dutch Government.)

Some of your dossiers are thankfully with us in our office. Others are wtih other government sections and we do not know if they are intact or not. I do know that the National Palace, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Finance, DJI building which is part of the legalization department, National Cathedral is gone. I do not know about Immigration or IBESR!

I do not know if this is possible but let us explore the possibility of getting the children out so that we can take in more orphans.
--------------------------------------------------------

So, that is where we are at... I have a peace...

As our little boy turns a year older today, Jonas--Happy 4th birthday, I still cannot get his Haiti family out of my head. I pray that they all have survived. I also have had a crazy prayer today: God, if he does have siblings and they survive and their mom does not, if it be Your will--bring them to GLA. I have not shared this prayer with Ryan... ;-) When God called us to adopt Jonas, He did not just call us to him, He has called us to take care of him and his Haiti family. I have said this before, but we adopted a family, not just one member. My heart is breaking and praying for a family that I have never seen nor touched. Please God, spare Jonas's family and unite us with them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!