Grayson

Grayson is an eleven year old boy who wants to be adopted by and be part of a family. He wrote a letter to this effect. He also says, "I like to play badminton and draw. I am not picky and I like to eat all kinds of food."

Grayon has a repaired cleft lip and palate. He went to a special school for a few years but started 5th grade in a regular school this year. He loves to draw and his artwork is often displayed by his teacher on the blackboard. He gets along well with his classmates and is respectful to his teachers.

He is described as a very polite boy who enjoys listening to adult conversation and occasionally adding his opinion.

Grayson is in foster care. He is one of the children the Superkids team plans to meet when we are in China in two weeks (YAY!!!) So we should be able to get updated information and photos at that point.

This sweet boy needs a family. Could he be your son?

Please contact April Uduhiri at april.uduhiri@gladney.org for more information about adopting Grayson.

Meet the April 2015 Team {Tanna}

Hello everyone! My name is Tanna Becker, and I am so excited to be blessed with the opportunity to go to China with SuperKids! I’ll tell you a little about myself first, and then I will explain how I got connected with the program! I am a Junior in college studying Human Development and Family Studies and a minor in Leadership and Management of Non-Profit Organizations. I would love to pursue a career with an international adoption agency when I graduate from college and am also considering the possibility of going on in school to receive my Masters in Social Work. I have four siblings, and I consider my family my very best friends! 

My Aunt Darla played a role in my passion for international adoption. When my aunt and her husband began the process of adopting their daughter, Tessa, from China she introduced me to several adoption blogs. I spent hours reading through the blogs and discovering so many incredible stories of adoption (I still read these blogs today)! Just a few weeks after my aunt and uncle brought their daughter home from China I spent the summer living with their family and helping out wherever I could as they transitioned to a family of six. This experience was a huge blessing, and I discovered even more how passionate I was about adoption.

The next summer I went on a mission trip to Uganda, Africa to work and live in an orphanage for two weeks. It was honestly two of the best weeks of my life, and I truly fell in love with the country. I have now spent time in Uganda in the same orphanage for the past three summers, and my family adopted my two younger brothers from this orphanage. Frank and Vick came home ten months ago and being able to experience adoption first hand has been incredible!  

   

My Aunt Darla first introduced me to Gladney and SuperKids. I found the work she did with the SuperKids to be fascinating! With my interest in adoption she encouraged me to apply for a summer internship with Gladney, and I am excited to be the international adoption intern with Gladney this summer! 

I am thankful for the many experiences I have had with adoption, but I never would have imagined myself receiving the opportunity to go to China with Superkids! I am excited to help the team in any way I can and see adoption through a perspective of a different country! 

Gorgeous Gigi

Today I'm going to interrupt my normal, scheduled posting to introduce you to a lovely little girl. This is Gigi. Isn't she beautiful!? Just look at those dimples!

Gigi is 7 years old. She is a described as cheerful and easygoing. She gets along well with other children. She enjoys coloring, drawing, and singing. Her favorite toy is a telescope. And her favorite colors are pink and red.

Gigi's special need is multiple hemangioma (disappearing).

Gigi is in a foster home and attends school outside of the orphanage where she studies Chinese, math, English, music, drawing, and physical education. She can count to 100 and do simple addition and subtraction. She is learning to write Chinese characters.

Could Gigi be your daughter? We need a family with an LID (log in date) or whose dossier is very near completion to adopt Gigi.

Please contact April Uduhiri at april.uduhiri@gladney.org to learn more about adopting Gigi.

Meet the April 2015 Team {Nancy}

I am so excited to be joining the SuperKids Asia team – I have to pinch myself sometimes so I know it is for real!  

My name is Nancy Dobson, and I have been a physical therapist since the early 1980’s.  I grew up in Mankato, MN as the daughter of two physical therapists.  My mom Barbara Lee Graham worked primarily with children, and became my inspiration to pursue a career in pediatric PT.  A friend of mine and I dreamed of opening a clinic for special needs children, and in 1991 we established Pediatric Therapy Services!  It has grown from a small one room clinic to a well-established facility in our region with a staff of over 25 (Physical, Occupational and Speech therapists) and support staff.   Every day we strive to “make a difference…one child at a time”.

  

My practice area has been fairly diverse, with more focus on children with CP, Developmental Delays, Musculoskeletal disorders and infants with torticollis.   I am blessed to work with a highly dedicated and skilled team of therapists– and I learn from them every day.  We have absolutely amazing kids and families that come through our door every day.  

I have gone on two mission trips to Panama with Mission Save a Smile (http://www.missionsaveasmile.org/) Although the primary focus is dental care; I was able to work with a few children with physical impairments.  I helped educate their parents on therapeutic activities for their child, and with the help of my handy-man husband Joe, we were able to build a home-made stander from local materials for one little guy.

 

Outside of work, I love to bike, ran my first ½ marathon in 2014, and treasure any time spent with my family.  My 5 “kids” are all grown up now, and I am blessed to have 3 grandkids and inherited another 7 from my hubby.   I have a feeling there will be more grandbabies coming, which of course makes me happy!

I am very grateful for the opportunity to be part of this SuperKids Asia team.  I am hopeful and prayerful that God will use me in a meaningful way during our time in China.  

Tessa

Tessa is a timid and shy four year old girl who has a close bond with her nanny. She gets jealous when her nanny holds other children.  

Tessa's file indicates that she has Down Syndrome as well as a cleft lip and palate. On examination by a pediatric physical therapist, the diagnosis of Down Syndrome was questioned. So Tessa needs a family who is open to some unknowns.

She understands what is said to her and responds to questions. She can say "nana". Tessa likes to look pretty and wear pretty clothes. It is noted that she "will immediately smile happily" when you tell her how pretty she looks.

This darling little girl needs a family to love her and tell her how perfect and beautiful she is! Could you be her family?

This sweetie has a very sizable grant of over $10,000 through Reese's Rainbow.

For more information about Tessa please contact April at april.uduhiri@gladney.org.

Meet the April 2015 Team {Keely}

Hello everyone!! My name is Keely O’Dell and I am thrilled to be joining the SuperKids, Asia team.  My first experience with SuperKids was the summer after I graduated from physical therapy school at Duke University in 2009.  A classmate andI traveled with two others to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.  In the seven weeks we spent there, our efforts were focused on caregiver and volunteer education to support and increase developmentally supportive care to all the children, especially those with disabilities.  It was such an amazing experience early in my professional career… and I absolutely fell in love!

Caregiver Training Program-- Ethiopia

Since then, I have traveled to Central and South America on several occasions with SuperKids.  In 2010-2011, I spent 8 months working with children and caregivers in institutions in Cali and Medellin, Colombia as well as San Jose, Costa Rica. With the help of my visiting volunteers/therapists/friends, we were able to provide equipment and orthotics for many children. We provided volunteer, caregiver and staff/administrator trainings.  We provided direct therapy to many children and helped the staff create treatment plans to continue the activities after we left. We implemented work programs for teens in the institution.  Throughout this year, though I tried to leave more than I took, I was definitely the big winner.  The amazing resilience, personality, will power, happiness, sadness, and shear force of the children I met was so inspiring—it changed my entire perception of childhood, families, life and  love.

Looking straight and tall in my new braces--Cali, Colombia

For details on the amazing work we did, and the many adventures I had during my time there, please feel free to check out my blog.

I have been back to Colombia on a few shorter trips since that time. On our most recent trip last August, we went to Bogota and met over 30 waiting kids looking for forever families.  For more information on these amazing kiddos, please see the Colombia Waiting Child program.

Between SuperKids trips, I completed a pediatric physical therapy residency in Conway, Arkansas and have had amazing experiences in a variety of PT settings: inpatient, outpatient, home-health, hippotherapy and now I am working in early intervention.  I also am currently finishing a master’s degree in Applied Developmental Psychology—with an emphasis on examining the impact of out-of-family-care on child development.

Animal Sounds are Fun... So is Evaluating These Awesome Kiddos-- Bogota, Colombia

I have learned so much in my academic and “real-life” experiences thus far, and I look forward to learning more from the amazing crew that has made SuperKids, Asia such an successful program through the years!!

Sometimes Sad Things Happen...

Sometimes things do not work out like we want them to. We were all so excited that Andy had a family, but hard things happen, and they cannot move forward with his adoption due to personal circumstances.

So Andy is waiting again! There are 75 days left to get to him before he is no longer eligible for adoption. Andy needs a family to step forward now!

Because we are so concerned about him, Gladney is willing to transfer his file to another agency if someone is already in process with another agency or want to add him to an adoption.

Someone please step forward and bring this wonderful, deserving boy home! He deserves a family!

To read more about him please see this post.

To learn more about adopting him please contact April Uduhiri at april.uduhiri@gladney.org.

And please, please share his information. Andy's chance to have a family is running out! I can't stand the thought of going to China and seeing him again without being able to tell him that he has a family coming for him!