And This One Matters......: August 2015

Thursday, August 13, 2015

AGING OUT TEENS IN NEED OF A FAMILY ASAP THAT WE KNOW!!! PLEASE HELP!

PLEASE FOLKS HELP ME PUSH ANOTHER AGING OUT TEEN WE KNOW!

This is Ryon, he is 15 years old and has VERY little time. I am talking little time! 9/30 someone needs to have their i600A in on him to prevent him from aging out. I have known him over a year and 3 of my children grew up with him. When adopting 3 of my children last year he was with us daily and loved playing soccer with my Kolya. He loves soccer very much and played competitive soccer with our son Kristjan. He loves also to play ping pong.

He is very shy and soft spoken and kind. He in not all up in your face and looking for all the attention, he is the polar opposite. He waits to be asked to join in. He is a very good young man and never caused trouble in school, and did as asked by the staff. He does not smoke, drink or follow the crowd. He avoids the crowds of kids doing wrong and avoids trouble. Now that I am in Ukraine and with him daily he has made it very clear he wants a family. I have been watching him and when he does not know I am looking. He sees the needs of people or things that needs to be done and he moves. For instance. All the kids ate sunflower seeds. Made a massive mess. All the kids left their mess behind them. Ryon stepped up and grabbed the broom and started cleaning the shells up. I have never in over a year seen him raise his voice at any authoritative figure or refuse to do what is asked of him. He never was a big hugger but now I am greeted with a smile and big hug. He has the hope of a forever family. He said he hopes for a large family. He is not picky but he would enjoy lots of brothers and sisters. Not a normal request when I talk to kids! Ryon wants to help contribute to a family and have someone to just plan love him and cheer-lead him. He wants an affectionate mother and father as he has never had that and to invest in his life. The boy has a crooked smile that can light up a dark room. He is not a charming young man to manipulate people but charming as his heart is sensitive as he holds to hopes of a better future then he knows he has now. His very real and knows what he is up against alone.

For a man of few words I was very proud of him about 3 weeks before coming to Ukraine for our boys he reached out to me via internet and asked for help to find a family. This is HUGE for Ryon.
PS I have many more photos of Ryon as well to share.

PLEASE HELP ME PUSH RYON TO HIS FOREVER FAMILY WHILE HE STILL HAS TIME!!

AGING OUT TEEN November 22nd, Samuel! He is 15 years old. Need your help folks to push this young man. He is quiet and reserved and he has been brave enough to reach out to me to ask for help to find him a forever family as he is shy. I have known him over a year and he is very close to my children. He is my daughters best friend. He is very friendly, kind, courteous. If you ask for help he will be there to lend a hand. I recall when he had an opportunity to sneak out to go visit his Aunt as he so wanted to see her and I told him along with our facilitator not to do it, it was not worth the cost or repercussion should he get caught. The next day I arrived at the school and he came and told me he listened to us and did not go but he stayed at the school although it hurt him not to leave and go see her. I am with him now daily at camp while adopting my children. Many of the kids are making fun of him because he wants a family so badly. They are teasing him and coming down hard on him. He is trying to avoid the pressures and is working off campus to earn money and stay away from the pressures. He longs for a family so badly. You see it in his actions and eyes. When he sees me you can see he is losing hope of what can be. He is not picky on what kind or size family he has. He wants to belong and be loved and help as asked. I have never seen him like Ryon the other boy I am advocating for talk back to their teachers or show them disrespect. He always greets me with a smile and hug.

He likes to play soccer for fun and ride a bike. I would not refer to him as a total sports nut. As he is on the calmer side but he does enjoy them. Samuel is on the school soccer team as well.
He is always near us not saying a lot but always having a gentle humble smile. His smile and face always for over a year has reflected the desire of family. It is clear as day but he just needed to to say something. Well folks HE IS! He is boldly telling me to help him find him a family before it it too late for him.

Even when Kristjan and Angelica were writing they wanted me to adopt them last year, Samuel was right there as you will see photo'd behind Angelica, they are best friends and he has hoped all along for this opportunity as well for a family to say "I pick you".

PS I have many other photos of him as well.
PLEASE FOLKS HELP ME PUSH SAMUEL HOME AS HE IS 15 AND DOES NOT HAVE MUCH TIME!!!! HE HAS BEEN BRAVE TO SPEAK UP AND HAVE A VOICE!

What Does Nicole Mean By Advocating For Orphans?

So glad you asked! In Ukraine many hosting programs are shutting down. The reason being is boarding schools (orphanages) are being condensed the more the foster care system grows in Ukraine. This leaves the school Directors in fear of losing their jobs if they do not hold a specific number of children in their boarding school. Then the threat of shut down looms over their heads. The second reason is with hosting programs that means many children will find their forever families which means again the number of children falls under what is required for the school to remain open. It is a double edge sword. You have many Directors that want their children adopted but then they know if they loose their job they cannot support their family. It is not easy in Eastern Europe to find a job in a couple days. Especially with the current climate Ukraine is in with war at hand.

5 years ago Nicole started to notice the decline in hosting programs being allowed to continue to bring children over to America. With the adoption of their children, especially their 2 littles ones Nicole & Joe knew they did not have the allotted time needed to dedicate to volunteer with NHFC and not be able to give it their all like they had done in the past. They did not want to fail the NHFC team. So they resigned and Nicole went freelancing in Ukraine. On Gods timing, when she was able, wherever God lead and with the team God put together. On these trips Nicole, her son Kolya and/or the team would teach children English, teach them about Jesus, love on them and then fight for them. Meaning if a child or boarding school staff came to Nicole and said this child wanted a family Nicole would interview them and spend as much time with them as possible to get to know them personally. Nicole would do this in an effort to learn as much as possible to help advocate for the child in hopes their forever family would come forward. Nicole would learn the good and bad in an effort to be upfront and honest with a potential adoptive family.

Nicole is not an adoption agency, a hosting agency, nor a professional and she does not work for anyone accept God. She is a gal after God's heart and children, a stay at home Mama that has worked with teens for 20 years and this is her heart and passion.

Why Ukraine Nicole?

In Eastern Europe it is very different then America. In America if a child is in the foster care system they can remain with their family for care until they are 18 years old. In America there is opportunity for just about everyone even if it is working at McDonalds. You are not labeled as an "Orphan". In Eastern Europe an orphaned children is basically wearing a stamp his/her their forehead that says "Orphan". It is like a permanent tattoo that is with them for life and never washes off not only in their mind but to others. They are not wanted or welcomed in many cases. On a trip to Ukraine a sign was spotted that stated "No orphans allowed" that was posted up on the door of a store. At the age of 16 these children age out of their boarding schools and have a choice of trade school or the streets. Most of them have no family to turn to. So just imagine a 16 year old child left to their own with NO accountability. With the economic crises and war in Eastern Europe the children that have extended family like Grandpa, Grandma, a sister or a brother cannot afford to take in the child so they only visit. If the child should choose to go to trade school it generally consists of coal mining, hair dressing, etc. Even with that in school the kids again are accountable to themselves and if they do not hold up their grades they are on the streets. If they graduate they still are stamped "Orphaned". So should they apply for a job with many other folks they will be the ones tossed because of this label. So their chances of graduating trade school and then getting a job are slim to known unless they are one determined child. The trade school housing for the kids is old hospitals that are now used as dorms. If a child is not back to their dorm by 10PM they are locked out for the night and they will call the streets then bedroom. Many children have been noted to say that they are scared to be in the trade school dorms because of the violence, rap, prostitution, drugs and alcohol. One child was noted to say that he would find kids shooting up drugs in the hallway and passed out. He bought a gun illegally in order to be able to protect himself of the unknown there. Then you have the rebels that take the world on by themselves that either at this point in their life want to live independently and not report to anyone or just cannot handle the trade school life and want nothing to do with it. So they take the streets to make it. They generally fall into becoming thieves, go into prostitution or commit suicide in order to survive. No matter how you flip this coin the statistics are grim from these children. They are all survivors doing just that.......surviving.

There is such a significant need all over the world even in America. Joe and I were foster parents and have served with youth in the US for our entire marriage and Nicole prior to marriage. God steered Joe and Nicole on a different path when they were introduced to NHFC and adopted their first son, Kolya from Ukraine. God has continued to call them to Ukraine in an effort to reach the voiceless and give them a voice, hope and love. God calls each of us to a specific place, time and season to do His work as Christians. God has shifted their call to Ukraine.....for the time being. Again they go where God leads where ever it may be.

Meet The Dewberrys

The Dewberrys came together as a family after hosting their now 18 year old now son, Kolya from Ukraine during Christmas 2010 through an International hosting program called New Horizons For Children, Inc.

In the midst of hosting Kolya, Joe and Nicole felt the Lord was going to lead them through more then just hosting in Ukraine. Nicole and Joe was were blessed to work with NHFC as a volunteer Regional Directors in North Carolina for the orphan hosting program. Nicole realized that in time there seemed to be a decline to host children from Ukraine with all the politics that was abounding in Ukraine. So she felt a lead to break away from hosting and go where God leads to travel to Ukraine and be wide open to God to lead her to orphanages to met children that could no longer be hosted and advocate to find them forever families that were aging out. For the last 6 years Nicole has been traveling to Ukraine several times a year to teach English in orphanages, teach the children about Jesus, show them the love of Christ and advocate for true orphans that want a forever family. Nicole brings aid to the Ukraine military, visiting the military in the hospitals as well as meeting active duty and on the field military and serving with mission teams the local folks that remain in regions that are devastated by war with her oldest son Misha. The Dewberrrys children have returned with Nicole to Ukraine on many occasions to serve the people of their country.

Kids are Joe and Nicole's love and passion. Nicole has worked with teens for 22 years. Joe and Nicole together have done mission work with youth and have specifically worked with at-risk youth and in church youth ministry for 17 years. The Dewberrys arms are wide open to show the love they have for the lost and forgotten youth.

The Lord lead them back to Ukraine in 2012 to adopt Tania, 10 years old & Stopha who is 8 years old and are HIV+. In 2014 the Lord lead the Dewberrys back to Ukraine to adopt Bogdan 12 years old who is HIV+ and Angelica 19 years old and Kristjan 16 years old. Then in 2015 the Dewberry's returned for Vova 16 years old and Viktor 12 years old. None of the Dewberrys children would not be home without the prayers and the hands of feet of Christ of folks coming alongside their family to see their children home and also all the mission trips Nicole has been on.

Nicole and her children continue to return to Ukraine to do mission work advocating for orphans that want forever families, teaching them about Jesus, teaching them English as well as doing doing mission work with the military and regions of devastation by serving those left behind.

With the greater increase in adoptions which is amazing there is also a greater need for support for adopted children and their families. Nicole is now working with Hope Connection International holding classes and support groups to teach pre-adoption classes, connect families that have adopted within the US and abroad and work with families in crises to help prevent disruption.

Our family prayer is to go where God leads.

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. - James 1:27

About This Blog

This blog is dedicated to our heart and soul, the orphans that cannot speak out of Eastern Europe. This blog is about our journey of the adoption of our children, the mission work we do in Eastern Europe, advocating for orphans and wherever God leads our family.

This blog is also about the trials and tribulations we have faced with hosting, adopting, missions work already and yet to come. The grace, mercies and restorations of our hearts and minds. The incredible friendships God has provided along the way. About our missions trips to Ukraine working with orphans. The blessings of when Nicole volunteered with New Horizons For Children as Regional Director. All our crazy stories & adventures we have had along the way here in America and in Ukraine. And oh how we have adventures and stories! This blog is a dedication to our Lord and Savior encompassing the one thing he treasures more then anything, His children.....the orphans.