Our Vision | A world where every child has a loving and secure home.
When his wife left their family, Anurak suddenly had to raise his two sons alone. And in a traditional culture where women typically do the majority of childcare, he didn’t know where to begin. But his love and dedication for his sons motivated him to learn. And as he soon discovered, he didn’t have to go it completely alone.
You can learn a lot about Anurak from his hands.
It is with profound sadness that we share the loss of our board chairman and friend, Chuck Mitman, who passed away on May 24, 2018.
A member of the Holt International board since 2012, Chuck brought a wealth of international business experience and wisdom, and a contagious passion for serving children and families around the world.
Chuck was a seasoned businessman and the co-founder and former president of Prism eSolutions. At the beginning of his time as board chair, Chuck traveled with Holt to China, where he was deeply moved by the children and families in Holt’s family strengthening programs, for whom he was an especially big advocate. Read more here about Chuck’s trip to China.
In one of his last letters to the board, Chuck wrote this: “Never lose hope in the face of the enormity of the need, but trust God and do the best we can to respond with courage and faith.”
With this charge, we will honor Chuck’s work and legacy through continued care, advocacy and empowerment of vulnerable children and families — Holt’s mission, and a mission Chuck said brought great meaning to his life. We will deeply miss Chuck, and are so grateful for his leadership and legacy at Holt.
I met “Kramer” in China last year, but we didn’t have his child information file to advocate for him at the time. Now we do, and I’m excited to share more about him. It’s amazing he hasn’t already been matched with a family because he is incredibly sweet, silly and fun. Continue reading “Kramer Needs a Family!”
These loving siblings are currently living in two different group homes, but want to be together. In order for that to happen they need an adoptive family! Continue reading “Valentina and Samuel Need a Family!”
Brody is a cute and active 1-year-old who likes building towers with blocks and exploring his orphanage. He is just learning to stand with the help of the furniture, but can get around quite quickly by crawling. Continue reading “Brody needs a family!”
As you can see in the video, Gabe is learning all kinds of things like colors, numbers, Chinese characters and identifying animals! His teachers say that he learns things easily and that he follows instructions well. Continue reading “Gabe Needs a Family!”
Pablo is an affectionate 3-year-old who needs the love that only a permanent family can provide! He is good at expressing his emotions and is learning how to use words to communicate with his caregivers. He is shy with strangers at first, but once he warms up to them he likes interacting with them and playing games. Continue reading “Pablo Needs a Family!”
After traveling to meet their former foster mothers in Korea, adoptee siblings Emma and Isaiah Perron finally understand what their parents always told them — “You were greatly loved in Korea.” This post written by Lisa Perron — Emma and Isaiah’s mom — originally appeared on catholicfam.org.
The first night our Korean-born son arrived home, he cried for his foster mother. Less than thirty-six hours before, he had woken up in the only home he had ever known, been brought to the Holt International Adoption Services offices, handed to a stranger, and traveled around the world to be placed in our arms. He had never seen us before and had no idea what was happening. After a very stressful first introduction to our dear son, we arrived home late from the airport. Soon the family was all sleeping peacefully in their beds — all except Isaiah and me. Continue reading “That Felt Like a Mother’s Love”
For some reason, the children with HIV stuck with him the most.
Last summer, when David Choi traveled to see Holt’s programs in China, he visited orphanages, special medical foster homes for babies, and group homes for kids with special needs.
But something about the children with HIV in the Nanning Group Home project — children who lost their families and now live together in a three-story apartment, hoping to be adopted — those kids touched his heart the most.
“Maybe God highlighted those kids,” says David, a Southern California-based IT professional who began supporting Holt programs last year. Continue reading “EVERY Child Deserves a Birthday”
After her husband died, Shabnam and her five children were grief-stricken and without options. But then, sponsors brought hope.
He was a river diver. In the Yamuna, the most polluted river in all of India, he dove below the surface to collect metals — copper, silver, gold if he was lucky. But one day, his foot got caught.
His wife and five children waited for him to come home, but he never did…