GWCA/CAN Orphan Hosting provides children with an amazing opportunity to be loved by a family and see life outside their orphanage. Hosting pairs orphan children to live with American host families, for a 4-5 week experience.

Hosting a child from Latvia is the perfect way for you to not only give the child a chance to have an amazing experience outside their orphanage, but also brings your family together to accept another child into your home and your heart.

Our hosting programs are for 4-5 weeks during the Summer (typically anywhere between late June and early August), and our special holiday program is 4-5 weeks in the Winter (typically mid-December to mid-January). Many children have never spent a holiday with a family or have not had the chance to do so in many years. This is why the holiday program is close to our hearts. It is a truly moving experience for both the family and child to be hosted during the holiday program.

We strongly encourage families to fundraise for their hosting experience. Please see our page about methods and suggestions for fundraising. Some of our hosting families have been able to fundraise the entire amount for their hosting experience. Keep in mind that the donation paid for a hosting program is tax-deductible. There is $100 discount for each additional child when hosting more than one child.

Program Costs:

GWCA/Can Application:  $250
Latvia Hosting Donation:  $3150

*Note these costs are subject to change

The donation goes towards paying for much more than your child’s airfare, including:

• Your host child’s travel document preparation
• Background checks
• Home safety visit
• Travel to an international hub
• Medical Insurance for your child during the program
• Hague Training courses – they’re all ONLINE, so you never have to leave the comfort of your home!

Additional Expenses:

Clothes for Children (Gently used are fine)
Living Expenses While Child is in Your Home
Travel for Arrival and Departure to a specific domestic airport to pickup/return child

We recommend using either PureCharity.com or Youcaring.com for fundraising, as well as reaching out to friends and family. You can also check out our other resources for fundraising here.

GWCA/CAN arranges all flight travel itineraries for the children and their chaperones to an international hub in the United States. Families will be required to meet their child at the international hub and arrange for domestic travel for the children from that hub.

Our staff abroad, in partnership with the orphanage and foreign government, have hand-picked these individuals to accompany the children. They are social workers and orphanage directors who know each child from their orphanage very well. They are all young adults who are to support these orphans during their host program. Chaperones should be in contact several times each week to check in with the child. When a translator is needed to help bridge a communication gap between you and your host child, feel free to call the lead translator as well for assistance.

GWCA/CAN provides medical insurance for every host child and chaperone. This will involve a deductible and perhaps other medical costs, which are all the responsibility of the host family. Be sure to check your insurance card for the in-network providers to keep any medical costs low should you have an emergency. Keep this information with you at all times as you never know when you might need it.

Eligibility depends on the country you wish to host a child from. In general, this is what each country accepts for hosting, but please contact us for a free case-by-case consultation. In some cases, income, religion, and other factors will determine your eligibility.

Citizenship: One parent must be a US citizen.
Age: Generally between 27-60 years old, depending on the special needs of the child, if any.
Marital Status: Single women, single men, and married couples are generally eligible.
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.

No, but a home safety visit is required. This is a much less intensive process and should last about an hour to two hours. We can provide you more information on getting your safety visit scheduled.

We are looking for families to prepare themselves with realistic expectations, accept children as they are, love them, guide them by example, and show patience. It is important to provide a loving, nurturing, and safe environment for them to experience the love of a family they may have never known.

Rarely, it is sometimes in the best interest of the host child and host family to move a host child to another home. This is not a decision that should be made in an instant; it should be discussed in depth with the Program Coordinator, Director, host family, and the chaperone. A few dramatic moments or miscommunications are not a reason to move your host child. The host family is NOT permitted to MOVE a child without permission to any home other than one that GWCA/CAN has pre-approved a backup family.

Backup Host Families are needed in cases in which the Host Child can no longer stay with the Primary Host Family. Often, these are through no fault of the child and may simply be due to an unforeseen emergency within the Primary Host Family. There will be a transparent line of communication with Backup Host Families about any issues the child may experiencing that might have cause the need for a move. You can let us know, for any reason, that you will not be able to serve as the Backup Host Family for a particular child after we contact you.

These chaperones are social workers and orphanage caretakers who come to support the children during the program. They are excited and motivated to be here, and love to share their culture with you! If you are interested in a great cultural experience by hosting a chaperone, please let us know. It is NO COST to you to host a chaperone. All you need is a spare bedroom and an open heart and mind.