A Sweet Little Boy Who Needs a Home

Once, in a not so distant land, lived a young prince. Even though he lived surrounded by friends, the prince did not smile very much. However there were two things that he was waiting for that could make him smile. He waited for a chance to learn in school, and he waited for a family that would be his forever.

One day, visitors arrived. They were taking photos of all of his friends with such excitement that the prince was immediately shy. In fact, he was so shy that whenever one of the visitors looked his way, he would pretend to be ASLEEP. He didn’t want to be disappointed if the visitors weren’t there to help bring him those two big wishes.

But the visitors from Love Without Boundaries did notice the prince. They would sneak peeks at the prince to catch him carefully looking out of the corner of his eyes watching them, wondering why they were there. They were so delighted at the prince’s cleverness and air of strength that they named him “Rocky.”

Rocky soon received his first wish. The visitors opened a Believe In Me school in Rocky’s land and enrolled him. Rocky enjoyed school. His teachers even gave him a walker so that he could walk around like his friends. True to Rocky’s personality, the walker was different. He much preferred to scoot around in his favorite toy car! Rocky’s teachers quickly taught him that the walker was for the classroom and the car was for the playground. In school, Rocky blossomed into a social, smiling boy.

The visitors came back again and again to see how Rocky and his friends were doing in school. By then, Rocky was showing how much he loved art projects in school but saved his smiles for those who knew him best. Finally, one of the visitors that had been following Rocky’s progress for over a year picked him up for a hug and Rocky squealed with delight, tickling and playing with the visitor who was now an honorary ai yi.

Now, dear reader, the rest of this story waits to be written. Rocky received his first wish and has been going to school. He has blossomed into a sweet, funny, smiling little boy. In fact, he has blossomed SO much that his orphanage has submitted his paperwork and placed him on the shared waiting list in hopes that Rocky’s family will see him and bring him home. Please help Love Without Boundaries tell Rocky’s story far and wide so that this very special young boy can receive his second wish and give this tale a happy ending.

Fundraiser for LWB and Half The Sky

We at LWB feel that we have the best supporters. Some of those supporters are parents that adopted from China and have an interest in digital scrapbooking. They have their own forum called China Digital Scrapbooks and can be found at http://chinadigitalscrapbooks.com. The forum has been around just over one year, and many of the members are now widely recognized in the digital community for their creative work.

Last year, several members decided to create a digital scrapbook kit and enlisted some of the best designers out there to contribute to the project. The result was the Journey of the Heart collaboration kit. See http://www.digital-scrapbook-kits.com/store/JOTH-Charity-Kit.aspx. All proceeds from the sale of the kit go to Love Without Boundaries and Half the Sky.

Once the JOTH kit was released, one of the members decided to enlist the help of others to create quick pages using the kit. Quick pages (QPs) are already assembled pages with room for pictures and journaling. It makes it much easier for the novice digital scrapbooker to complete projects. Even seasoned scrapbookers often choose to use QPs when they want to create scrapped pages quickly. Again, 100% of the profit from sales of the QPs go to Love Without Boundaries and Half The Sky.

The project grew exponentially: There were more than 30 contributors, and a lot of thought went into the creation of each page. Many digiscrappers print their finished books at http://shutterfly.com; so special consideration was given to the margin requirements for the digital scrapbook option on Shutterfly. Of course there are other printing options out there, but adjusting for Shutterfly's margin requirements took a lot of burden off the end user.

The project team also considered different digital scrapbooking programs out on the market and wrote tutorials for them. The quick pages have been tested out and will work with the following programs and most likely any others that allow you to put a picture behind another image. The project team went to great lengths to create simple QP assembly instructions for users of these programs too:

Adobe Photoshop (7, CS2 and CS3)
Adobe Photoshop Elements (free 30 day trial available)
Microsoft Picture It!
Microsoft Digital Image Pro
Microsoft Digital Image Suite
Corel Paint Shop Pro
Macromedia Fireworks
Creative Memories StoryBook Creator Plus
Creating Keepsakes (for home printing only)
FotoFusion (for 8x8 printing or 12x12 at an acceptable but lower resolution than required by some online print services)

Pages can even be scrapped using Microsoft Powerpoint!!

The final Lifebook Quick Page kits come in two color schemes: Spring Blossom and Bright Jade. Each set is available with and without page titles.

To view and purchase the page kits, check out the links below:
Spring Blossom with titles: http://www.digital-scrapbook-kits.com/store/Spring-Blossom.aspx
Spring Blossom without titles: http://www.digital-scrapbook-kits.com/store/Spring-Blossom-No-Titles.aspx


Bright Jade with titles: http://www.digital-scrapbook-kits.com/store/Bright-Jade.aspx
Bright Jade without titles: http://www.digital-scrapbook-kits.com/store/Bright-Jade-No-Titles.aspx

The kits have pages for both girl and boys, have several versions for many of the topics covered, and really do offer flexibility. Even if you don't scrap digitally, you can still download these kits and print them to use as traditional 12x12 pages that you can embellish with your own supplies. To make sure no one is overwhelmed, the people driving this project have created a Yahoo Group to provide users with support as they create their books.

This project was really a labor of love!!! Most digital designers produce no more than 12 quick pages from one kit, yet these charity kits, created from the huge original JOTH kit plus many specially-made add-ons comprise 70 different pages EACH! You really are getting some high quality pages at a bargain price.

If you are new to digital scrapbooking, you can download four free sample quick pages here: http://www.digital-scrapbook-kits.com/Freebies.aspx.

Now we, as adoptive parents, have some great kits to help us finish those all-important lifebooks to preserve our child’s history. And to think you can do this and help Love Without Boundaries and Half the Sky will make these projects using these pages even more special. LWB sends a special thank you to all who have contributed to these kits and to http://digital-scrapbook-kits.com/ for their generosity.

Students Help to Change the World - One Child at a Time

Twelve Ajax High School seniors from Ontario pulled together to change the world...One child at a time.

Written by their teacher Ms. Lacy:

How it all began....two students named Jalal and Cassie were taught by Ms. Jennifer Cassano during the semester I was still on parental leave with my daughter. After learning about attachment theory, what happens around the world with children in orphanages, and, of course, learning about my daughter who became part of my family on July 31, 2006, they decided they wanted to make a difference. When I returned to work in February, Ms. Cassano and I spoke and decided we would help them to make a group. I surveyed my classes to get volunteers and that was how we formed our group that we named after your association.

"Love Without Boundaries"...I think showing them a picture of my little sweetie also helped! We all got together to make a plan, and it was decided that they would sign up each week to sell cupcakes in the front foyer every week. Students rotated from week to week, sharing the tasks of baking and selling. From February to June they did this...making the $725 they donated. We made display boards that listed facts about China and the orphanages, as well as photos I had photocopied out of a book. Also, each week they made an announcement during homeroom to raise awareness about this important cause. They are really such a wonderful group of students!!!! We had a party to celebrate in June, and of course my daughter, Lienna Mei, who attended was a big hit! They really love her and all my stories about her that are so relevant to the course I teach called "Issues in Human Growth and Development."

The students who were part of this group are: Alana, Savannah, Jennifer, Sarah, Ally, Jalal, Cassie, Jodi, Kristin, Julia, Balynn, and Brittany. The teacher advisors were Ms. Jennifer Cassano and me, Ms. Jennifer Lacy.


Thank you, Ajax High Students, for giving of yourselves every week. Any amount given helps, but what you have raised is enough to fund bed 11 at Heartbridge Pediatric Rehabilitation Unit for three full months. You have much to be proud of! Currently in that bed is a sweet little girl who is truly in need of some tender loving care. Three months of the intense medical and physical attention she will receive at Heartbridge will make such a huge difference in her life. I am confident that by taking the time and the energy to think beyond the walls of your own home and your own school that you have not only impacted the life of one precious orphaned child, but what you have learned will forever impact your lives as well. Well done!


Wendy Petersen, R.N.
Heartbridge Coordinator

Rejoice!

Budgets are tight. Gas is expensive. Food costs more. My children listen to me rant and rave about not wasting food because I just spent a ridiculous amount at the grocery store! How is it for your family? What items have you had to cut back on?

Inflation, of course, affects orphanages and foster families as well. Cribs cost twice as much as last year. The price of rice has doubled. Higher quality formula is more expensive . . . and out of reach for many orphanages. Love Without Boundaries feels the economic pinch too. Sometimes children wait to receive services. We hate when we have to say, "Sorry, we canʼt help you" or "Sorry, you will have to wait." Yet we are overjoyed about each and every child we are able to help--the lives we can save and the lives we can change.

Rejoice with us! Here are just a few of the children whose lives we are touching this year:

In these hard economic times, we are especially grateful for everyone who has made a commitment to the children in China. Thank you for your continued support.

A Dream Come True

We want to thank EVERYONE who advocated for sweet Fen to find a forever family. Thanks to everyone's efforts, we are so happy to be able to report that a family has chosen her to be their newest daughter. What a dream come true for this very special little girl who has been waiting so long to be adopted.

There were actually two girls from this orphanage who came out on the shared agency list at the same time. We were so grateful for the outpouring of support for Fen that we hope the same blessing can be given to her friend Meigan. Here is a photo of them together from Children's Day. Fen is on the left in white and Meigan is in red.
Some of you might remember my post from many years ago that talked about us sending a beautiful scrapbook back to one orphanage, with photos of all of the children who had been adopted. We had worked so hard on the book, and we thought that the aunties would love to see each child, now home in a loving family. I was making a visit to this orphanage at one point, and the staff finally shared with me that they were concerned about me coming because of this book. You see, they had put the book away and hidden it from sight because of the deep pain that it caused to all of the older children in the orphanage who had NEVER BEEN CHOSEN. They knew we had worked so hard on it, but they just didn't want to cause any more pain to the older children who had opened the book and saw the friends they once knew in the orphanage now riding on merry-go-rounds, being hugged by their new siblings, and being dressed in princess gowns with bows and barrettes in their hair. Oh my heart. I couldn't believe that I had not thought of that, and I was so sad to know that I had caused any of them pain. Lesson learned in a very hard way.

I just learned something else that has made my heart sad, and it involves Meigan. I made the mistake of asking if she really wanted to be adopted, since she is now 10. And I was told that she wants it more than anything. In fact, since this orphanage now has done adoptions for many years, several families have returned on homeland tours with their older daughters. Meigan's eyes have followed them the whole time, with a longing that the whole staff could see that she wished SHE could be the one holding onto a mama's hand, and that she could be the one who someone had chosen as their own. Each time an adoptive family has returned, there is a deep sadness in Meigan's eyes and a feeling that she just isn't good enough to be chosen. During normal days, she is a happy girl with a smile to melt any heart, but close to the surface is a feeling of, "Why did no one want ME?"

Meigan is ten years old and has the sweetest personality. She is a loving and gentle little girl, who loves her baby doll and who has the voice of an angel when she sings. She loves music and playing with her friends. Meigan was born with a spinal tumor, which was repaired as a baby. She has full range of motion with her legs and is a beautiful dancer. However, due to a complication with the surgery, she has one health issue that might make her adoption more difficult. However, many parents have helped their children successfully overcome this issue with treatment by a specialist such as Dr. Pena at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. It absolutely does not have to stop her from having a full and productive life.

LWB has decided to offer a Tuan Yuan adoption grant for Meigan, in the hope that it will help allow someone to bring her home. Please help spread the news that this beautiful young girl is waiting, as we know that somewhere out there is the perfect family just waiting for such a sweet daughter. Meigan has so much to offer this world with her loving and sweet spirit, and we are all praying that her family will soon be found. Thank you so much for your help!

Amy Eldridge
Executive Director

Facebook Babies Update

In February, it was announced on Facebook that LWB won the Facebook challenge. With winning this award, we won $50,000, enough to help heal 10 heart babies. We thought you might like to see the babies and get an update on how they are all doing. Some are healed, some are in the hospital right now waiting for their turn, others are still waiting until just the right time. Everyone one of these children's lives will be changed forever with the money won through this contest.

Thank you to everyone who helped to make this happen!

Ying from Henan is still too tiny for surgery but is scheduled to have her ToF repair done in August. What a peanut! As soon as her heart is repaired, she will then have cleft lip surgery as well.

Yun from Zhejiang received surgery for ToF in February and is doing GREAT. This is a photo from the hospital bed.

Xiang from Guangdong was SO sick, and his aunties from the orphanage really didn't think he would make it. The Facebook funds came just in time and he had surgery in March. He received surgery for ToF and PA and is doing so well that he is being submitted for adoption. He was very blue before and now is a lovely shade of pink!

Ya received surgery for ToF and has been matched with her forever family now. That is what makes us absolutely the happiest.

Yang from Henan will be having ToF surgery next week. We can't wait to see his blue lips turn to pink!

Yun from Anhui received surgery for VSD and pulmonary hypertension and is doing so great!

Yan from Anhui will have surgery for VSD and PA soon. She needs a very specialized surgery so she needs extra prayers.

Yu from Guangxi received successful surgery for PDA.

Lin from Anhui received surgery for both PA and VSD!

And Xiong from Henan received surgery for VSD, PDA, and pulmonary hypertension. Isn't that a GREAT smile?

Karen Maunu
Medical Director

Father's Day Cards

Father’s Day is right around the corner and we’ve got a great idea for truly celebrating Dad and all that he means to you! Honor the special Dads in your life by donating to the Tuan Yuan Adoption Assistance Grant Program of LWB. Because one of our fundamental beliefs is that every child deserves a loving family, LWB established the Tuan Yuan Adoption Assistance Grant Program in 2004. Although it’s one of the lesser known programs at LWB, it is a great program that has so far brought 12 children into loving Forever Families of their very own! Additionally, we have two grant recipients who are currently waiting for their adoptive families to travel to bring them home.

The Tuan Yuan Adoption Assistance Grant Program works by providing an adoption assistance grant to a child who needs a little extra help finding his or her Forever Family. Each time our fund reaches $3,000, we review the Waiting Child program and identify a child who is at risk for his or her file to be returned without being chosen for adoption. We offer the Tuan Yuan grant in the hopes of giving a child an extra chance of being chosen by a family. Please visit our website to learn more about the Tuan Yuan Adoption Assistance Program of Love Without Boundaries: http://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/projects_tuanyuan.cfm

Please help us offer a grant to a child who is waiting for a loving family and truly tell your Dad how important he is to you by purchasing a Father’s Day gift card. Father’s Day is June 15^th and we will accept orders through June 10^th to ensure on-time delivery. THANK YOU for giving a child a chance to have a loving forever family of his or her very own! Visit our website for ordering information: http://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/projects_giftCards.cfm

Perfect Timing

The following photos are from an orphanage located in Gansu Province, just north of Sichuan. The building, like so many others, was damaged by an aftershock. All 80 children have been living outside in tents to keep safe. Unfortunately, the weather has been damp and chilly.

Love Without Boundaries was able to contact the director and found out they were in need of warm clothing and diapers. In perfect timing, we had just finished a clothing fundraiser for this SWI, through our Orphanage Assistance program! Due to the generosity of the SWI adoptive parent group, we were able to send a large shipment of clothing and diapers just when they were needed most.

Don’t the babies look snug in their new clothes?

The little one on the right gets my 'cutie-pie of the year' nomination!

This little one is counting how many layers her friend is wearing:

It looks like some of the children are enjoying several sets of clothing.... :o)






It appears the sun has at last come out. How wonderful it is to see the children warm and dry, enjoying the day in their walkers.

I love how the babies clap and wave, unaware of the tragedy nearby.


One of these little guys will join his forever family in just a few weeks. His anxious mama was relieved to see pictures of him safe and sound!

We are thankful for all the loving Ayis in the earthquake area who are working so hard to keep the children fed, warm, and safe, despite their difficult circumstances.

Laura Baldwin

Orphanage Assistance Coordinator

Craft for China Auction

Craft for China is a fundraiser that raises money through donated arts & crafts. 100% of the money goes to sponsoring orphaned children living in China. Funds that are raised help to sponsor two LWB program children:
Emma, who is in foster care and Gracie, so she can attend preschool.

In order to continue their sponsorship Craft for China is holding an arts and crafts auction on eBay. The auction is live now and all the money raised will go for another year of sponsorship for Gracie and Emma. If the auction can raise enough money another LWB child will be sponsored.

Pictured are some of the items offered in the auction. The auction ends June 7th!

Please visit the auction at http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZcraftforchina and check out all the wonderful items.

To learn more about Craft for China please visit the website at http://craftforchina.com/ .

Thank you and happy bidding!!

Toys

When I was a young child, I wanted to grow up to be Mrs. Santa Claus. This is because I wanted to have access to Santa’s giant sack containing every kind of toy in the world. I grew out of the Mrs. Claus phase by the time I was 6, but I doubt the excitement over seeing new toys ever really leaves a person.







It occurred to me this morning that I am creating new
Santa Clauses with our Foster Care Managers as they are being sent a variety toys and books, for every age group, to carry around with them when they do their monthly visit.


I can just see the curiosity on the children’s faces wondering what will come out of the sack. And the best part is that every child will get a new toy. But I am getting ahead of myself here on how this all started.

In order to more closely monitor developmental progress in the children, we have revised our foster care report format. The Henan programs were the first to try out the new format on our April reports.

The new report has several sections which include movement, vision & hearing, language, cognitive, and social development. The new format has been useful in determining where the children are developmentally. They also give the foster families ideas for age-appropriate activities to promote development. Each age group has different developmental milestones to check their progress against. The reports vary every other month so that the children have 2 months to work on their progress before they are tested again.

As we know from experience, children who have spent their first months in an institution may be somewhat delayed due to the lack of one-on-one attention that families can provide. We are hopeful that these new reports can more closely monitor the development of our foster children and we can intervene when necessary to get the best care for the kids as early as possible.

Much of a child's development centers on play. We have learned that many of the children do not have toys in the home that help promote their development and learning.


So, we are providing the foster care children age-appropriate toys so that they can be encouraged to develop to the best of their ability.

This will be a learning process for all of us to see if this format will help the children. We are hopeful that it will a the first step on the road to a brighter tomorrow.


Note: please disregard the child eating the book that we sent. This program is still in the trial stages.












For more information about our Foster Care Programs please go to:
http://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/foster.cfm

Help for JD

Occasionally LWB learns of families who are living in such difficult circumstances that they are barely getting by. Recently we were asked if there was any way that we could help a little boy living in the Hunan province. JD was born with cleft lip and had lived 10 years without it being repaired. Many years ago, he was picked up in the street by a warm-hearted man who had special needs himself (he had only one hand and leg.) He took JD home with him and raised him as his son. This man had also taken in an older girl who had been orphaned as well, and together they formed a loving family through adoption.




Sadly, four years ago, this man passed away and so now the two children are living with his elderly mother. So many people have suggested to the grandmother that she should send JD away to another home, but she cannot even think of doing that because she feels he is truly her grandson. A middle school teacher in their town heard about JD and asked LWB if there was any way we could provide free surgery for him so that he could face the world with a new smile. In partnership with the new Operation Smile hospital in Hangzhou, we were able to arrange for this surgery to be done.



Our hearts were so touched by the love of this family that we wanted to learn more about their situation. We learned that this family is under tremendous financial strain. JD’s elder sister, who is just 16, is now the sole financial provider of the family. Grandmother, who is in her eighties, is doing her best to grow rice for the family to live on, but it is not enough. JD is small for his age most likely because they are often only eating 2 meals of rice a day. He is also not doing very well academically due to the long distance he must walk to school each day (over 3 km) and the lack of funds for sufficient nutrition and school supplies.

LWB has committed to helping this family formed and surviving through adoption! A total of $600 per year will supply all that JD and his family need to provide opportunities for academic success. Two sponsors are needed to donate $25 per month to provide:

· School Supplies

· Clothing,
· Nutritional Support
· Tutors

These items and services will strengthen JD’s opportunity to become a strong and independent member of his community when he reaches adulthood. We believe this is truly an opportunity for two sponsors to completely change the life of a child.

JD’s sponsors will receive photos and updates of his health and academic progress quarterly. Sponsors will also be able to write short notes of encouragement to JD and his family.

To learn how to help JD please go to http://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/SponsorEducationChild.cfm

Britt's Quilts for China

A few months ago Britt found out that she was going to get a new cousin. This is not so unusual until you hear the story of her Aunt and Uncle and their family. You see they already have a big family. George, DJ, Sarah, Luke, Carrie, Mark, Christy and Mom and Dad. The story starts almost two years ago when Sarah was invited on a trip to China with a family who was going to adopt a young girl.

As she was preparing for this trip Sarah’s mom Suzanne began thinking about children. She could take on another child and raise her. Maybe she could even take two. When she approached her husband Darrell he was a little taken back. They decided that this was the path they should take. The ball was in their court and Suzanne ran with it. After a lot of work and prayers they were given notice that Li Wan was waiting for them in China. Eight year old Christy (Li Wan) became an adopted member of their family in August of 2006.

When the news came that their second child was ready to be adopted, Britt was asked if she would like to send a few quilts to the orphanage where her new cousin was coming from. Britt responded with this project. She presented her ideas to her church youth group and they wanted to help also. So on a Wednesday night in November of 2007 , ten girls and eight leaders came to the church gym armed with fabric, batting, sewing machines, and chocolate.

During this one evening 30 quilts were made for children who were residing at 3 different orphanages in China. The quilts were then quilted by another Aunt. Rocky Mountain Quilters, a local quilt guild also lovingly made and donated another 20 quilts.

All of these quilts were sent to Suzanne who packed them into airtight bags and put them into boxes for mailing to two of the orphanages and in her luggage for their adopted daughter‘s orphanage. Suzanne, Darrell and Christy left for China with Britt’s quilts and came back with a nine year old girl named Gracie. Along this journey many lives have been changed for the better.

The world is truly a wonderful place when people work together to help others!

Earthquake Update

One week ago today a 7.9 magnitude earthquake devastated Sichuan Province and surrounding areas. Since then the reports have been grim. The death toll has climbed to 32,476 people nationwide, 220,109 people have been injured. Aftershocks have been estimated in the thousands with one on Sunday as big as 6.1. Landslides have hindered rescue efforts and flooding remains a constant fear.



A tragedy of huge proportions to be sure. But, within this great devastation are stories of great compassion and heroism. There are stories of people loading food, clothing, tents and water into their cars and driving to the affected areas to help; taxi drivers lined up for hours to take the injured to the hospital; people waiting in line for hours to donate blood and offers to adopt children orphaned by this earthquake. It seems the worst in Mother Nature brings out the best in Human Nature.


We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from our donors. We are posting updates on our website as soon as we receive news from our staff in China http://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/earthquake.cfm.



We have also set up an “Earthquake Relief Fund” where 100% of donations received will go to help children affected by this tragedy. We will focus our efforts on orphanages and orphaned children needing assistance. We are unable to get assistance immediately to the orphanages affected as many roads are blocked. However, we have spoken to Chinese government officials and have pledged that we will assist wherever we can once the long-term implications of the quake are known. Additionally, an LWB Board member will be meeting with the CCAA next week about how we can best help children and orphanages affected by this disaster.



Unfortunately, we have been told to expect many more children to be orphaned due to this tragedy. Because of this, orphanages will need assistance with basic supplies and medical care to help meet the needs of these children. We may also be able to help with building repairs so the children can be safely moved back into the orphanages. Funds may also be used to help children who are not orphaned. We thank you for your generosity in helping us to help children of China.

https://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/donate.cfm?category=147&child_id=0


Our heartfelt condolences are sent for lives lost and damage incurred as a result of this disaster.

Erik

I have a new update about Erik, a little 5 year-old blind boy, that I’d like to share regarding his future enrollment at a School for the Blind. He had previously traveled to another city to be seen at a School for the Blind.

School teachers recently traveled to his town and his foster family's home and evaluated Erik and taught his foster mother some things. Erik is too reliant on her for enrollment at this time, so he needs more training in his ability to be independent. Teachers should come and train him more in the future. Since his file has also been submitted for adoption, we are not sure yet which road this sweet little boy will be on in a year.

We hope he will be provided a forever family of his own soon.

We are grateful for those who help us with Love Without Boundaries' Foster Care program as we try to touch the lives of these children.

You can read more about our Foster Care program at: http://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/foster.cfm

Turning a Checkup into a Java Event!

It was her turn to go see the doctor… it was inevitable… but how do you turn a potentially traumatic day into a fun-filled event? Starbucks of course!

I know that when you think of a typical toddler you don’t always think of Starbucks. But, when you see these photos you will see that she seemed to be having fun getting a lot of extra attention. It appears she even received her own “age appropriate” snack.







Niu was treated like a very treasured little girl by Heartbridge staff. It reminded me of how any one of us might take our child out for a special treat after going to see the doctor. One of the many benefits of Heartbridge is that the children receive more individualized attention and have a familiar hand to hold during the scary and confusing moments of life.

Heartbridge provides care to children who are either preparing for or recovering from surgery. Some kids were underweight, had chronic infections or needed a higher level of care than could be provided at their orphanage homes. Through a partnership with New Hope Foundation in Beijing, an 18 bed unit for pre- and post-operative children was
created to help children build strength and facilitate healing.







To read more about Heartbridge visit us at:
http://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/projects_heartbridge.cfm


Wendy Petersen RN
Heartbridge Coordinator

Art Collections

One day my daughter was fingering her collection of key chains dangling from her backpack and asked me, “Mom, what do you collect”?

I had to slow down and think about that because what first came to mind was flippant—dust, books and newspapers next to my bedside table, grocery store receipts in my pocketbook! Generally, I purposely avoid collecting “stuff”. I dislike clutter.

However, I dug deep and was able to answer honestly that I collect my children’s artwork.

The walls of our family’s garage are completely plastered with my kid’s artwork from school. On Labor Day weekend, we hold an informal art show, save a few keepsakes and enjoy our “ripping party” as we clear the walls for next year.

That answer satisfied my daughter and made me think of all the kids in our Believe In Me School programs that create art as part of their school experience….who is collecting and cherishing their artwork?

Today, I offer you a small and unique collection of art produced by the wonderful students in our Believe In Me School at Jingzhou in Hubei Province. These children are absolutely alive with the delight of having a chance to draw and color and create with purpose—to delight their teachers, to share with a friend and have photographed by our school’s manager for their sponsor.

Take a couple of moments and enjoy these beautiful pieces of art!

To learn more about our Believe In Me School please go to our website at http://www.lovewithoutboundaries.com/education_believe_in_me.cfm

Linda Mitchell
Believe In Me Jingzhou Coordinator

We Love You Nana!

No trip back to my beloved Loudi Foster Care program would ever be complete without a sit down in "Nana's" home. This wonderful woman who has nurtured so many foster children is no longer a foster parent, but time is always made for that welcome visit. This time I had another LWB volunteer with me, Melissa our Loudi PT coordinator, who was on pins and needles with excitement to meet our legendary foster mom--a woman with fun, laughing eyes and so much love for the children. I had a special book to show her:

a copy of LWB's "Love's Journey 2: The Red Thread" was tucked into my bag so that I could convince this wonderful lady of how the world now knows of her gentle, selfless nurture.

She quickly brought out a small table and laid it with biscuits for us, clicked on the kettle for tea, and then, with such warmth in her eyes, looked over the book She, I think, was finding it unbelievable that she should appear in this glossy, beautiful book. I hugged that woman yet again and thanked her for being her. I sent her the love of the children now adopted to their great and super Nana!

You can read Nana's story on page 83 of the book and are sure to love all the other wonderful photos and stories on the over 250 pages in this book as well. If you don't yet have a copy, ordering information can be found at http://store01.prostores.com/servlet/lwbshop/Detail?no=47 . All proceeds go to help the children in China in LWB's programs.

Julie Flynn Coleman
Loudi Foster Care Coordinator

Auction Thank You!

The results are in, and our 2008 “Born in my Heart” art auction raised over $35,000! That is enough to provide emergency surgery to SEVEN children who we otherwise would not be able to help. We cannot thank you enough, as the worth of those seven lives is simply immeasurable!

This year’s donations were the most beautiful yet, and we thank everyone who used their time, talents and resources to provide “gifts of the heart” for this annual fundraiser. And of course we thank all of our supporters for bidding generously and making these surgeries possible. We also thank our amazing group of auction volunteers who have been working behind the scenes for months. This has truly been a group effort, and LWB feels incredibly blessed by all of you!


Immediately after last year’s auction, we were able to send adorable little Chen (above) to have heart surgery. She’d had such a difficult time, and we had a very narrow window of opportunity for providing her operation. We were able to arrange her surgery on very short notice, and later were able to have her club feet casted and straightened. Chen has now been chosen for adoption, and we can’t wait to hear soon that she will be home in the arms of her new family!

Please watch our website for news of next year’s auction. We should begin posting details some time in the fall.

Once again, we sincerely thank you for being a part of our story of HOPE!

Goodbye Charlie

One of the hazards of volunteering for LWB is that it is hard not to become attached to the children in our programs as we read about them every month and watch them blossom and grow. Of course there is nothing better than the news that a child has been chosen off a list and will soon have a forever family. From what we have been told, next month we will also have to say goodbye to another child in our program. His name is Charlie and you may recognize him as he is one of the kids whose photo appears on the homepage when the pictures randomly change. I always looked forward to reading his reports and seeing a photo of his deep brown eyes.



Charlie is a typical 4 year-old little boy full of fun and mischief. He is in our Anhui foster care program. Charlie is also a LWB Medical Child. I met Charlie in Hefei in October 2006 when he came for an evaluation by the cleft team. My “office” was in the same room where they did the pediatric screening for cleft surgery. I would always wander over to the examination table every couple of minutes to lend a hand…aka a good excuse not do my own computer work because it was more fun to hang out with the kids. I remember Charlie very well because he was quite social and older than the other babies who came for surgery. He was such a good little boy when Dr. Melloy was examining him. She was moving his legs all around, bending his knees, moving his hips one way then the other to get his range of motion. Charlie didn’t fuss at all. He just had this look on his face, “wake me when this is over lady.” He had been diagnosed as having CP but on examination Dr. Melloy felt his physical limitations were the result of polio. This diagnosis has not stopped Charlie and on his foster care reports it says and he can run fast, although one leg does trail behind.



I am so happy to report that next month Charlie will soon be with a forever family and will be living in sunny Spain! What lucky parents to have such a treasure in a son. Charlie's adoptive parents sent a gift to him and when LWB Foster Care volunteers visited his program last month they were able to deliver it to him. It was awesome to read about Charlie as they reported the excited look on his face as he opened his treasures. I am sorry for the loss the foster family will feel as they have done an outstanding job raising Charlie.





Goodbye Charlie, we will miss you. We wish for you a wonderful life.







Heidi Reitz
Foster Care Director

"Mother's Love"

Our "Born in My Heart" Art Auction is currently taking place. All proceeds from the auction will be used to provide heart surgeries for orphaned children in China. We would like to share a wonderful story behind one of the items, a remarkable painting by acclaimed artist Caroline Young entitled "Mother’s Love."

From the artist: "'Mother's Love' is a limited edition of a painting I did for my own mom, for her Mother's Day present. It is very relevant for the 'Born in My Heart' auction, and for the adoptive parents who will be viewing LWB's auction items. The story behind the piece is as follows:My father and mother were born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. After World War II they emigrated to Hong Kong, to start a business and a family. After three miscarriages, my mother was able to carry her fourth pregnancy to full term. She labored for two days and two nights, and the doctor told the nurse to sit on her stomach and push the baby out. A beautiful baby boy was born, but died several days later. My mother almost died, and the doctor warned her never to become pregnant again, as she could lose her life the next time. So my parents decided to adopt. In those days, there were many unwanted children in orphanages in Hong Kong, as the Chinese there did not adopt children that were not blood-related to them. My parents visited several orphanages, but did not find a child that was right for them. They finally decided to try an orphanage run by American missionaries. Not finding THE one there, they decided to leave. As my dad was driving out of the parking lot, my mom stopped him, saying, 'Wait! We have to go back in there. We didn't see ALL of the kids.' My dad replied, 'What do you mean? We saw everyone there!' And my mom spoke these fateful words: ;No we didn't. I know, because I hear my daughter's voice, in my heart, calling to me from within those walls.'They went back in, and that is when they found me. According to my mother, my caretaker at the orphanage had bonded with me, and did not want me to be adopted. So she had hidden me in a closet. When she thought the coast was clear, she let me out, and that is when my parents returned. So if my mother hadn't listened to her heart, I wouldn't have this wonderful life today."

To read more about the artist and view the painting in the Art Auction, be sure to visit the following link before the auction ends tomorrow, Tuesday, April 29th.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190217116229&ih=009&category=72182&_trksid=p1742.m153.l1262