Van Dyke, Inc., Adoption Assistance now offers the following Eastern European Adoption Programs:
(Click on the country for more information.)
December 20, 2001
I have just returned from a trip to Ukraine, Lithuania and Romania. I have visited with the Adoption Authorities in all three countries and I have visited some orphanages too.
There are not a lot of changes to the initial information
about our new adoption programs, but I would like to share with you some
observation from my trip.
Ukraine
I stayed in Kiev, a beautiful city, old and
interesting. The city is located on a hilly area, and the cable cart is as
abrupt as the one in San Francisco. The city is a mixture of old architecture,
Soviet style buildings and new, modern constructions as well. The open markets
of the city display a large variety of seafood, fresh fruit and expensive furs,
but as I was told they are not a luxury, but a necessity for the long and cold
winters they have. The people of Kiev are soft spoken, carefully dressed, and
pleasant. The young generation has a group of very tall people. I am 5’8”
and compared with some of the young people in Kiev I felt very petite. The
population is mostly Eastern Orthodox, but Catholic population is present as
well. When I inquired about the Christmas decoration I was told they celebrate
it on January 14th, something completely new to me.
The city is very impressive, but there is a
difference between Kiev and the rest of the country. Ukraine is large for a
European country and only two or three cities are connected by regular air
transportation, train connections are used for the rest of the country,
including the orphanages one may want to visit.
An adoption trip to Ukraine should have a Saturday
departure from the U.S. Arrival in Kiev is Sunday and the visit to the Central
Adoption Authority takes place Monday. One may be quite scared by the large
number of people waiting for an appointment, there is no set time for the visit,
therefore in the morning there may be close to a hundred families in the
crowded, small hallway. I was told however that the wait for our clients is no
longer than a couple of hours.
The visit with the Central Authority will give you the opportunity to view pictures and medical records of children available for adoption and select a child. Pictures of the children are approximately one year old, taken at the time the children were listed for adoption. Children are available for domestic adoption prior to being freed for international ones. The medical information is current, updated as necessary (typically on a monthly basis).
Monday night you and your translator-escort will most likely depart Kiev for a long (up to 20 hours) train ride that will take you in the region where the child you selected resides. Tuesday afternoon, after securing an approval from the Regional Child Protection Agency, you will visit with the child.
Three scenarios may unfold from this point:
a) You like the child and decide to adopt him/her. Usually by Friday, Monday the latest, you will have an adoption court hearing. The judge may wave the 30 days appeal time and issue the adoption judgment (decree) the same day. You will return to Kiev with the child and the rest of the documents are prepared for your departure. During this time you will have the opportunity to have the child complete the medical examination at the American Medical Clinic, accepted by the American Embassy in Poland for the child’s visa. The total time spent in Ukraine can take up to three weeks, and then you travel to Warsaw, Poland for another 2-3 days, for your interview at the US Embassy, prior to returning to the US.
b) Same as the first scenario, but the child resides in a region where the judge will not wave the 30 days appeal time before issuing the adoption judgment. You will complete some formalities and after a 10 days trip to Ukraine you will return to the US. One or both of you will travel at the end of the appeal time for two weeks and bring the child home.
c) You travel to the orphanage, but decide not to adopt the child. If there was another child in that region you would like to see, the transfer of paperwork can be completed while you wait in the region. If the other child you would like to see is in a different region you return to Kiev for a second visit with the Central Authority. This second visit will most likely take place Thursday, and the process restart from here.
A new Child Protection Law will soon be signed. Among the provision of the new law, there may be an age limit on adoption parents, and it also may be a restriction for single parents. As soon as the bill is signed we will inform you of any changes.
The orphanages are quite similar those found in Romanian. Up to 150 children resides in each orphanage, and a physician manages the institution. Children are divided on groups of 10-12 children supervised by an educator and a nurse. Support personnel are also present on the premises.
Special needs children will be soon posted on our web site and they are available for adoption. Complete medical information will be made available for any family interested in adopting them. There are special fees for the adoption of these children. If the family resides out of state and/or the family has a completed home study our agency will guide you through the process at no charge. The only fee will be a reduced attorney fee, payable in Ukraine at the end of the process.
For an adoption of healthy children, boys are more available than girls. The adoptive parents’ flexibility of the child’s age is quite helpful, in locating a healthy child.
During the whole adoption process our Ukrainian partners will be available 24 hours/day and we will be in constant contact with you, if we are not going to be present for part of the process. If needed someone from our staff in Bucharest will travel and aid you right away.
The best time to complete the adoption is fall, winter and spring. During summer time the process may take a few days longer due to vacation time. Keep in mind that if you decide to travel in wintertime the weather is extremely cold and windy. The temperature in the hotel room was way below comfort, in spite of the $150.00/night price tag, but we have located reasonably priced and very civilized one-bedroom apartments you can select from. Travel inside the country should not be considered vacation time, but a business trip required in order to complete your goal.
Ukrainian adoption is an option for a family who want to adopt in a short time. Even seasoned travelers will find Ukraine rough, but we have a lot of confidence in our Ukrainian partner, and his ability to make your stay as short and comfortable as possible. The age of the youngest children is a little over one year.
Lithuania
If I was pleasantly surprised by Ukraine, Lithuania was well above my expectations. I felt the Scandinavian influence and culture, the level of civilization one usually expects from a country that lived in democratic system for centuries not only one decade.
Prices are very convenient for the quality they offer. I was very impressed with the hotel, centrally located, within walking distance from the Central Adoption Agency, and visiting areas in Vilnius, moderately priced and in great shape.
The atmosphere of the city before Christmas was relaxed and pleasant. The city is very nice; I particularly enjoyed the stroll through the old city. In the middle of the city, on a small hill, perfectly preserved in the original castle, the main Catholic Cathedral as well as Saint Mary’s Church are wonderful historical and religious monuments.
My interview with the person in charge of adoption with the US, took place in an office that could very well be located in any city in the US, or Western Europe. Again I found out the referrals for little girls take the longest time. Also single parents are not encouraged to apply, the judgment may be unfavorable.
A relatively small country, one can reach any point in Lithuania within three hours of drive time from Vilnius.
I visited an orphanage and again I was very impressed.
Between 100 and 110 children reside in an orphanage. The Director of the
orphanage, a very nice and courteous lady is the manager of the institution. The
orphanage had 4 physicians on staff, a dentist, a physical therapist and a
masseuse. The social worker of the orphanage was very kind and knew all the
children and their social situation.
The children, under the age of four are divided into groups based on their health condition. Children with physical special needs are in groups of 6, children with emotional special needs are in groups of 8, healthy children are in group of 10-12, with a staff of 3, educators and nurses rotating in three shifts. In spite of the soviet style building, the atmosphere inside was very pleasant. Each group of children had a name like: “The Ladybugs,” or “The Ducks”, and the name on the door was found inside in the decorations of the room. The Ladybugs had pillows in that shape; the Ducks had a display with several ducks (toys of course). The care of the children here is visible in the Christmas decorations made by the staff.
In one room a baby looked quite relaxed under the care of
the masseuse. The other children were playing with the caretakers. They look
healthy and contended. They didn’t gather around us looking for comfort and
love, and they did not jump on the candies we brought for them. When the
caretakers told them we had candies, they politely came and took one, and
resumed playing. Some of them did not eat the candy, very few, if any, came for
a second one. They were more curious to see how my camera worked and were very
happy to play with it.
However, very few children are available for adoption in Lithuania, not many orphans reside in orphanages to begin with.
25 children were adopted this year in the US, and waiting time can easily exceed one, even two years.
Once a referral is received, our attorney goes with a physician to the orphanage and prepares the medical file, takes pictures and a videotape of the child. The adoptive parents have 30 days to decide if they want to adopt the child. The health situation seems to be good, and the children are well taken care of.
The description of the adoption process is available in the initial information package.
The Lithuanian adoption can be the best option for families who are in the process of completing one adoption and know that in the future they want to pursue a second one. The file can be listed in Lithuania for the second adoption. Also adoptive families looking for sibling groups should consider Lithuania. In sibling adoption the waiting time is considerably shorter. For families concerned with the period the child spends in the institution and the health condition and medical screening of the child Lithuania is a definite option.
There are no guaranties, but from my conversations with our adoption attorney from Lithuania, the director and the social worker in the orphanage, there may be options to make the adoption process shorter.
Romania
During my stay in Bucharest, the Secretary of State, President of the National Authority for Child Protection had the kindness to meet with me during the Christmas vacation.
I had a lot of questions about the new Ordinance related to adoptions. I have discussed some specific cases and I also asked her about the future of Romanian adoptions.
There are over 3000 adoption files submitted in Romania before June 21, 2001, and these cases will not be approved under the new regulation unless the adoptive parents met a child, or a referral was received.
Special need adoption will be evaluated on a case-to-case basis. If a family adopted a child and a sibling is available on the list the family can apply under the new ordinance.
The future of the international adoption in Romania is still uncertain, and no specific dates are available for the complete reopening of the process. It depends if the new adoption law (the project is in an advanced stage), will be reviewed by the Romanian Government alone or as part of the new Child Protection legislature in Romania that will be a very complicated and lengthy process.
If you have specific questions about a case please do not hesitate to contact our office.
Also please review our site for available children, and special needs available children.
Our office will be closed until January 2, 2002, but do not hesitate to leave us a message or email any questions that you may have.
A list of available children will be listed on our web site in 2002.
Have a Wonderful Holiday Season and a Happy New Year.
Mirela Van Dyke, Executive Director
Van Dyke Adoption Agency