A Page from Holt History

Nurse, farmer’s wife, and mother, Bertha Holt was simply “Grandma” to thousands of children adopted through Holt International, to all of the adoptive families including birth children, and especially to thousands of children who waited and hoped to be adopted.

After Harry Holt died in 1964, Bertha had the grace and courage to continue the work she and her husband had started 8 years earlier.

For the next 36 years, Bertha’s faith inspired the growth and development of Holt International. During her life she was named “Mother of the Year,” logged more than a million flight miles traveling for Holt and advocating for homeless and disabled children, and set a world record for her age group in the 400 meter run.

Bertha Holt passed away at the age of 96 on July 31, 2000. She is buried next to Harry on a hillside at Holt’s Ilsan Center in South Korea, overlooking the facility for homeless and disabled children.

“The two weeks were as a dream,” said adoptive mother Gayle Lindell, recently returned from Holt International’s China Family Tour.  “During the time in China, it was like the experience was infinite.”

Comments from other participants indicated that a timeless intensity is the rule rather than the exception when adoptive parents take their children on a tour of their birth country.  “Meeting with orphanage workers, our daughter’s foster family and being welcomed as valued and important individuals by persons involved in their early life gave our daughters a sense of belongingness no story we could tell them could ever convey.  I came to realize that the ‘good spin’ I’d put on the girls’ stories was far more true than I’d ever imagine,” said adoptive mother Ann Glass.

Holt’s tours are designed to offer participants a fun and educational adventure, as well as a view of the astounding variety of life around China, from modern big city to the countryside. But most importantly, as Jian Chen, Holt International Director of Programs for China put it: “We want these adopted children to return home from this trip understanding that they were not abandoned in China; instead, they were deeply cared for by so many people along the way to finding their forever home.”

Said 8-year-old adoptee Lauren Glass: “Seeing the orphanages made me sad that so many kids don’t have families.  I am glad that I got a family.” Read the rest of this entry »

Washington, D.C.—It was All-Star Tee Ball on the South Lawn of the White House for 5-year-old Alex Thaler, a Holt International adoptee from South Korea. July 16 on a hot afternoon in the nation’s capital, Alex toured the East Wing of the White House with his family, played ball and met President George W. Bush—as well as Baseball Hall of Famer Frank Robinson. Last spring Alex’s mom, Mary, responded to an e-mail from Little League, filled out the necessary application, rounded up a letter of recommendation from his coach, and Alex became the representative for the state of New Jersey. One child represented each state.

Alex’s mom said that the letter of recommendation that was written by Alex’s coach was based primarily on Alex’s love of baseball. “Alex attended all of his games and practices ready to play and to play whatever position was assigned to him to the best of his ability. While Karl and I have always recognized his love of baseball, other parents were recognizing this as well and commenting to us during and after the games. As you can imagine during these conversations, we beamed with pride for our little boy.” Read the rest of this entry »

by Peter Feaver, Holt adoptive parent

Bangkok, Thailand—Even in a city famous for its exotic sights, sounds, and smells, we draw a few gawkers ourselves; I guess we provide some sights, sounds (and maybe even smells) that folks around here are not used to experiencing. We are a merry band of about 30 or so: some 14 beautiful Thai children aged 8 to 23 and a motley crew of 15+ Westerners aged, well, we best not say.

We are spending a little over two weeks on the Holt International Thailand Family Tour, reconnecting with this land that we love, with these people that we love—the birth country of these children that we love.

The tour is only in its fourth official day, but we have already had more emotional highs than an Oprah After School Special. We have visited some of the great monuments of Bangkok: the Grand Palace, the summer palace at Ayuthaya, the ancient palace at Ayuthaya, and a welter of wats (Thai for “temple”). We have been told a college-course’s worth of Thai history, but probably only remember the Clif Notes version: “and then the Burmese attacked again.” Everywhere we go, the Thai people have lived up to the billing, “a land of smiles.” Read the rest of this entry »

Portland, Oregon—First given in 1979, the Bertha Holt Award honors those who have selflessly, and with loving care and concern, given themselves in personal service to help homeless children of the world.

The 2008 Award was presented in honor of Myrtle Croy, the second employee ever hired by Harry and Bertha Holt. She worked for Holt International from the late 1950s until 1976, helping to develop Holt’s adoption work. Korean adoptee Stephen Nelson recalled Mrs. Croy as the “angel” who helped him find a family in 1959, cooked for him when he visited, and joined him in intercessory prayer for his son when she was 99. “I could not imagine not having her to call and talk to, or living without her prayers for me and my family,” he wrote for her memorial. Mrs. Croy passed away October 2006 at age 100.

Holt President and CEO Gary Gamer presented the award June 28 at Holt International’s Portland, Oregon, picnic to Myrtle Croy’s granddaughter, Maria Copelan. Maria drove her grandmother’s old baby blue VW bug to the picnic, the same car Mrs. Croy brought to the picnics, where she was once a familiar face. Mrs. Croy used to travel the nation checking on adopted children and their families in that same VW bug, Maria said. And she remembers that her grandmother prayed regularly for the children for whom she helped find families.

Pakkred, Thailand—Holt International adoptees and adoptive parents are currently embarked on Holt’s Thailand Family Tour, led by Holt senior executive Lisa Vertulfo. Adoptees are visiting their birth country with their families, exploring Thai culture, customs, history and the diverse landscape in addition to reconnecting with their foster families, childcare centers and the Holt Sahathai Foundation.

Adoptive mother Lisa Cahill reports:

“Today the Thai Family Tour visited Pakkred Babies Home. Pakkred houses about 300 children (infant to 5 years old) in the care of the Department of Public Welfare (DPW). Holt has worked there for about 20 years. Our family also visited Pakkred 20 years ago when we adopted our twins Don and Will, now 25. We returned in 1995 to adopt another boy, Ae, who was 8 at the time. We have been fortunate to return several more times over the years, and today Ae returned once more as a young man of 23.

“The most important impression that my husband Larry and I shared today is that of the tremendous strides in the quality of care. Read the rest of this entry »

The entire Dietrich family found creative ways to help children affected by the recent earthquake in China.  On a recent sunny afternoon in Reno, Nevada, they held a combination yard and bake sale.

Sisters, Maddie, 10, and Macayla, 12, took the lead; parents, Dan and Stephanie, and little brother Logan, 3, also got involved.  Both Dan and Logan were adopted from Korea.

“After seeing the devastation the people, and especially the children of China, have had to face this past month, the girls really felt a need to do something,” said Stephanie. “Raising money for Holt just felt like the perfect solution. Our family has no doubt that every penny given will touch more lives than we could ever imagine.”

The Dietrichs’ efforts involved baking, sorting, sacrificing, selling—and lots of determination.  At day’s end they had raised $286.

“Maddie put together a bake sale—chocolate chip cookies and crispy rice treats sold out right away.  Her sales alone totaled more than $60,” said Stephanie. “Beloved toys, good books and favorite outfits were brought out for the sale—sacrifices we had never seen before. We knew they were on a mission, and boy did it show! Every time we looked at the girls, they were either counting coins or taking money. They were all business!”

Thank you, Dietrich family.

You, too, can help children through a variety of efforts, and Holt will provide informational materials and other resources.  You provide the energy and creativity. Check out Holt Ambassadors, a new program for volunteers.

Susan Soonkeum Cox, Holt International Vice President of Public Policy, will speak on transracial adoption in an interview to be aired on BlogTalkRadio.  Host Dawn Davenport will interview Susan and take questions and comments from callers.

Susan, who was adopted from Korea during the early years of Holt’s work in international child welfare, has been an advocate for adoptees, adoptive parents and international adoption. As spokesperson for Holt International, Susan has appeared on many programs and conferences.  She was a primary force in efforts to increase citizenship protections for international adoptees adopted by U.S. parents, and she has served on the boards of directors of several national and international child welfare organizations.

The one hour program will be broadcast live beginning at 9 a.m. PDT on July 2, and it may be accessed later by visiting BlogTalkRadio online.

UPDATE: On July 1st PBS’s News Hour did a segment on International Adoption issues, highlighting Vietnam. The report featured a discussion with Susan Soon-Keum Cox and Congressional Coalition on Adoption Executive Director Kathleen Strottman. Click here to hear this segment as MP3. PBS’s News Hour segment.