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Chaperone Host Families Needed!

Our Winter Hosting Program is well under way, and the children will be here in less than a month!

We still need some amazing volunteers to help contribute to our Orphan Hosting Program – we are most especially looking for volunteers to serve as Chaperone Host Families.

It is completely free to be a Chaperone Host Family. All you need is a spare bedroom and an open heart! You have the option of hosting a chaperone for either two or four weeks, which is half or all of the hosting program. It’s a great opportunity for you to meet the amazing caregivers and translators who are here to support the children throughout the program. It’s also a neat opportunity for the chaperones to visit America and learn our customs around the holidays.

Our chaperone from Latvia knows English, and she needs a host family in the New York area. If you live in New York or one of the adjacent states and would like to host Laura, please email Cayce at cayce@childrenofallnations.com. We also need host families for our China chaperones in the Tennessee, Illinois, California, and New York! If you’re able to host a China chaperone in one of these areas, please email Shannon at shannon@gwca.org.

It’s through your service that we are able to help the amazing children of the Orphan Hosting Programs! If you’re ready to become a Chaperone Host Family, you can start your FREE application here!

Can I Host?

There are so many questions that revolve around hosting. Am I ready? What if I’m not interested in adopting? What if I am? What do I need to host? What do I need to provide? Question after question – and we have the answers for you!

For general eligibility, many of our programs are similar. As a general rule, families should be the following requirements:

• Citizenship: One parent must be a U.S. citizen.
• Age:  Generally between 29-60 years old, depending on the country and the special needs of the child, if any.
• Marriage  Status:    Single women  and  married  couples  are generally eligible in both countries, and single men can be considered on a case by case basis for Latvia.
• Criminal History:  Applicants with a criminal history of child abuse, violence or domestic violence are not eligible to host
• Health:  Host parents must be in good health with no major medical or psychological concerns.

But there are often bigger questions that aren’t so easy to answer with a general eligibility check. What do I need to have? Do the children come with clothes? Should I take off work?

The children need to have their own bed to sleep in while with a host family. Many of the children share a room with a sibling of the same gender – this actually may be comforting to the children, as many of them will never have slept in a room alone before. If you’re hosting a child and you have no other children, consider keeping a nightlight in the room to comfort them when they sleep.

Many of the children will come with few to no possessions, so host families should be prepared to provide clothing for their host kiddo while they’re here. Gently used hand me downs and thrift store finds are a great idea – taking a host child shopping once to pick out their very own clothes is a great bonding idea.

The biggest concern we see with eligibility is work during the program. Since the children in our hosting programs are not proficient in English, they cannot be watched under day care or day camp services. They also come from institutions, either orphanages or foster homes, so going back into what they will see as another institution can feel like abandonment all over again. Host parents are asked to take the majority of the hosting program off of work in order to spend time with their host child. Host parents also can reach out to extended family (host grandma and host grandpa!) for help periodically. Every adult who is in charge of a child must have a background check on file with Children of All Nations, and host children can never be left unattended or in the supervision of a child under the age of 18.

If you have eligibility questions about hosting, we would love to help! You can get your hosting questions answered at info@orphanhosting.com or call (512) 323-9595 to ask to speak to a Hosting Coordinator today!

Why Does Hosting Cost?

The Cost of Hosting:

One of the most common questions we receive from families: “Why does hosting cost?” We know it’s the biggest obstacle for families to participate, so we want you to know exactly what the money goes to.

All of the costs of hosting go toward sponsoring the children’s travel to the United States. This means their travel approvals, their actual flights, and the insurance (yep the kiddos have insurance!) while they are here in the states. In essence, families sponsor a child’s travel here to the US in order to spend time with a family. All costs are tax deductible, and families receive a letter from our office for tax purposes. Families are providing humanitarian aid to a child in need!

The cost of hosting depends on the program:

$3150 Latvia
$3250 China
$3450 Philippines

The differences in cost reflect the different flights prices per country.

There is a great thing about our hosting costs – many of the costs of hosting cover some of the expenses of adopting a host child. With our hosting program, the hosting application doubles as your adoption application, meaning families don’t pay a second fee to another agency to begin your adoption process.

That also means that the ball doesn’t get dropped when a family decides they want to adopt their host child. You don’t get passed on to another agency that doesn’t know you. Our staff is in direct contact with our agency’s adoption staff, and we walk you through the process every step of the way.

Hague Training, which is a requirement for all families choosing to internationally adopt, is also included in the cost of hosting. This saves families time and hassle down the line as they prepare for adoption.

The tax deductible letter is available for all families in reference to payments made for the hosting program. This is a humanitarian service to these children, and we want to help in any way we can. We know that hosting costs each and every family, but the experience of hosting a child is one like no other. If you’re ready to start the journey, contact us at info@orphanhosting.com today!

What It Means to Age Out

What do you mean
“age out?”
What happens when
they turn 14?

This is a question we hear over and over as we speak with families about the older children in our hosting program. The answer to the question is complicated, difficult, and heart-breaking. In our China program, children “age out” of the orphanages at age 14, in Philippines and Latvia it is age 16.

On the face of it, this means that the children are no longer available for international adoption, but the reality is, when the children in our programs reach this age, this is often the end of the line. The day these children turn 14 or 16, their hope for a forever family flickers out. What is most unfortunate, as these children get closer and closer to this aging out deadline, there are fewer and fewer families stepping up to prevent the bleak life ahead of them.

For the lucky ones, children are allowed to stay on and work at the orphanage. They may help cook meals or serve as a caretaker for the other, younger children still at the orphanage. They work as they watch their younger friends get adopted, knowing that is now a permanent impossibility for them.

For the not-so-lucky, they are turned out of the orphanage, sent to look for work in a local village or a nearby city. In many cases, the children who reach 14 or 16 are simply never heard from again. Human trafficking and child labor is a real issue that many of the children we serve face as they grow older, and we are unable to protect them once they reach their age deadline.

If you’re ready to help an older child find their family through hosting, contact us today. These are the faces of the children in our program who are nearing “aging out.” We can stop a life of work at 14, of begging on the street at 16, and a future with no family to call their own.

Hosting Volunteers Needed!

We did it! We have completed the matching for our Holiday Hosting programs, and we’re so excited to begin preparing families for the arrival of our sweet host children. However, we still need your help! We are currently looking for both Backup Host Families, and Chaperone Host Families. This is your family’s opportunity to make a difference this holiday season, by opening your doors and welcoming a guest!

We are currently in need host families living in or within driving distance of Houston, Dallas, Nashville, Atlanta, New York, and Chicago. If your family is interested, apply online or contact info@orphanhosting.com today to learn how you can get involved!

Read more about being a Backup Host Family here!

Read more about being a Chaperone Host Family here! 

5 Things We Want You to Know About Hosting

The hosting team works with the children in the hosting program day in and day out – we come to love each and every child on our photolisting, and we care passionately about whether or not they find a family. Below are five things we want every family to know about why hosting is so important.

1. The Children Are Older

We get a number of inquiries about hosting children who are under the age of 6. While children of this age are also searching for their forever families, children over the age of 6 are the best served by hosting. Children ages 7 and up are hard to find families for – these are kiddos who sit in orphanages and foster homes and watch while their younger friends find a family. Hosting is an opportunity for these children to come to the United States, stay with a family, and show potential parents here that a 9 year old is not so scary, that he or she deserves a home, too.

From a practical perspective, children under age 6 struggle with the travel and adjustment much more than older child. The hosting team always tries to put it in perspective – imagine yourself as a 4 year old, put on a plane the first time with a number of other children you may not know, taken to a strange place where everything looks, smells, and feels different, and then a stranger tries to hug you. We’d be terrified, too! It’s very difficult to put a child this young through this type of travel, so hosting is most beneficial for children who are emotionally ready to handle travel.

2. Every Child is Perfectly Imperfect

We want every family to host or adopt a child that is best suited to their family – the best fit for the family is ultimately the best fit for the child, too. Families should do their research, be prepared for a medical need, and be aware of the emotional extras that being an orphan comes with.

Whether or not children have a medical need, each child we work with is perfectly imperfect. Whether it’s hearing loss or a history of abuse, these children have a “need,” on the most basic of levels, their need is that they have been neglected. You might read in your host child’s file that he isn’t doing so well in school or she is afraid of hugs – what we want to stress is that this doesn’t mean that child will ALWAYS do poorly in school or shy away from hugs. What it does mean is that he’s never had a parent to sit down and help with homework (or he was never given the opportunity to go to school at all). She may have never been hugged before, so the idea of someone coming at her with open arms is scary. No child is perfect, but we can help them through their little imperfections with patience and time. Your host child may warm up to the one-armed side hug after a great meal or ask you to read to them after a year of being home. It is these amazing milestones that show us these children all have potential – we just need to show it to them.

3. Boys Boys Boys

Our experience in orphanages, particularly those in China and Philippines, has been one of overwhelmingly boys in need. We get questions often about why there aren’t more girls on our photolisting for hosting. Simply put, girls are more likely to be adopted at a younger age, and boys are growing up in the orphanages. Hosting is a great way to serve the 7-14 year old boys that deserve a chance at a family.

We want to encourage families to consider hosting a boy. For many of our boys, they really only have two “special needs” – they are an orphan…and they are a boy. Every program we see healthy boys go unchosen for hosting; let’s change that for them!

4. Hosting Costs

There is a cost to host, and we completely understand that it’s the biggest obstacle for most families to participate in the program. All of the costs of hosting go directly towards the children’s travel – from processing their documentation, to ensuring they are healthy enough to travel, down to the plane tickets to get them here. Host families sponsor the travel of an orphan to come here to spend time in the US. This cost is tax deductible because you are providing humanitarian services to an orphan in need. You’ll receive a tax deductible letter from our office!

We strongly encourage all families to fundraise – some families have not only been able to fundraise the cost of their hosting experience but put money towards their host kiddo’s adoption as well. Here are some great ideas that have worked for host families previously.

5. We are real people!

When you’re considering adoption, it can often feel like we are the big agency that is the face of all the paperwork and costs that you have to trudge through in order to get your child home. However, we love and adore these children (almost) as much as our families do. For the hosting team, this is particularly true because we have met each one of the children. We remember faces, favorite colors, and cute things our kiddos did during the hosting interview.

We’ve also watched our families come together through the hosting process, and we’ve seen the change that hosting brings in each child. We’re there at the airport, stressed and worried about each flight getting here on time and each child safely landing. From the kiddo who is terrified to leave his chaperone on arrival day to the child who lovingly hugs his host mom and dad before he leaves, we watch each one of these moments and fall in love with hosting all over again. We’re here with you every step of the way, and we want you to know that we care!

New York and New Jersey Families – We Need You!

Children of All Nations has just received approval from the Philippines to expand our hosting program to include families living in New York and New Jersey! This means that we are now able to work with families living in New York, New Jersey, Texas, Florida and Georgia! This huge. We still have some incredible kids waiting. Now is your chance to give the gift of family!

If you or someone you know is currently living in one of these approved states and may be interested in hosting a child this holiday season, call us today. Families that apply before October 15th will receive a $250 gift towards their hosting fees!

During Business Hours:

(512)323-9595 ext. 3101   or   (512)323-9595 ext. 3102

After Hours and on weekends:

(512)323-9595 ext. 3094

$250 Hosting Gift Today Only

In an effort to make sure each child has the opportunity to spend this holiday season with a family, today EVERY CHILD on our Orphan Hosting Photolisting has a $250 gift toward his or her hosting costs. (Any child who already has a scholarship will receive the $250 in addition to their current scholarship.)

Any family who applies before 11:59 pm this evening (11.14.2015) will receive $250 off their second hosting payment. We want as many families and as many children as possible to have the opportunity to connect, to love, and to feel the joy of family this winter!

To get started, visit our photolisting to find your host child, send us an email at info@orphanhosting.com, or start your application NOW! There are a limited quantity of these gifts available, so start today on your hosting journey.