Ethiopia Program Update - June 28, 2010

-We have been hearing from many of you that you are concerned about the slow down we've recently been seeing in referrals, especially infants.  We certainly understand your concern, and while it is impossible to predict when things might change or why they are happening, there are a few things that may help clarify:  

• Things have not returned to normal after the elections. From our point of view, the election is over and things should be back to normal, but we don't really understand how things work in a developing country. The children must have paperwork completed in their home regions by the local authorities.  That is one place where the process is stalling right now.  It is not unusual for changes (or in this case a return to normalcy) to take longer in the outlying regions then it does in Addis. 
• The process is going to be permanently longer due to the new regulations after all the shake up last spring. The Ethopian authorities are being a lot more diligent when clarifying orphan status before we even know about the kids in the pipeline over there.
• In the light of the lengthening of the process, we have adjusted the wait times we estimate for the different lists.  Please bear in mind that these are only estimates, and we always hope wait times are shorter than we estimate.  Times given are from the time the family is added to the waiting list.

1. Infant girls:  12-18 months
2. Infant boys:  12-15 months.
3. Toddler girls:  6-12 months
4. Toddler boys:  4-8 months
5. Children over 5 years:  3-6 months
6. Siblings:  We cannot predict, as there is such a wide variety of what families on this list are approved for. 

-We know that many of you are anxiously awaiting information on the new court travel requirements.  Our in-country staff is working diligently on clarifying the details, and we look forward to having our first families complete the process in the near future.  Thanks for bearing with us as we do our best to provide the most accurate information available in a timely manner. 

-IAN has a representative, Tomas Bayou, currently in Addis Ababa.  Not only will Tomas be escorting children home, but he will be providing a great source of communication between the Ethiopia and US offices of IAN.

-Finally, we do have wait list movement!!!  An IAN family has chosen to pursue other opportunites for building their family, and have removed themselves from all wait lists.  So

• Everyone after #20 on the infant girl list moves one spot.
• Everyone after #10 on the infant boy list moves one spot.
• Everyone after #6 on the sibling list moves one spot. 

As always, if you have questions about any of these updates, please do not hesitate to contact your coordinator.  Thank you!!

 

 

IAN Family Picnic

Here are the details on IAN's Family Picnic!!  If you did not receive an evite, please let your coordinator know or comment here so we can send it to you.  Everyone is welcome!!


When: Sunday, August 8, 12:00PM to 3:00PM
Where:  Belleview Park, Englewood, Colorado

It's time to celebrate IAN Families!
Please join us for the Annual IAN Family Picnic. There will be yummy barbeque food, drinks, cotton candy, fun and games. This year we have moved the fun to Belleview Park, between Sante Fe and Broadway on Belleview Avenue in Englewood. The park has a shallow stream for wading, a playground, plenty of shelter, and a petting zoo and train ride available for $1 per person.

The barbeque will be catered, and a $5 donation per family is suggested, but not required!

Please RSVP so we can plan for numbers. We look forward to seeing you there!!

Our new care center!!

We would like to share some new photos and information with you about our new Care Center.  As mentioned in a previous post, we moved our care center to a new, bigger facility in early May.  All of the children (and even the playground) moved to the new location.  We are all very excited about this great new facility because it is much bigger and can accomodate more children with lots of space to play and learn!

Please see the photos below and the description of the facility.

1. The front of the care center. 2. The fun playground3. Beautiful painted wall4. Front (balcony on the left)

5. Patio

The infants stay in the room behind the balcony. The kids eat lunch on the tables and chairs on the balcony. The classroom is the door you see beyond the slide on the balcony.

The classroom is above the tuck-under garage area. The kids like to play in the cool area the "garage" creates. The toddlers/preschoolers sleep in the green building.

The facility and that the playground equipment is well loved by the children and the staff in Ethiopia.

Referral Acceptance!

We are happy to announce that a family has accepted their referral for a six-month old baby boy.  Everyone after #1 on the baby boy list and everyone after #7 on the baby girl list moves up one spot.  As always, please contact your coordinator with questions.  Congratulations to the happy family!

New Referral!

Wonderful news!!  One of our waiting four year old boys has found a home!!  Congratulations!!