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Adoption Month: Giving kids in China something we take for granted

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[5]By Holt International, Eugene

A meal at a restaurant… a visit to the zoo… a new set of clothing… new school bags and stationery… 62 dictionaries.

These are some of the ways children in foster care and orphanage settings in China were treated to something special thanks to Holt sponsors and donors, who contributed over $4,400 to see that these vulnerable children had the kind of day other kids take for granted. All in all, nearly a thousand children had a special day and were made to feel special through gifts, treats, presents and special events.

At schools in Fu’an, 44 children in Jinzhuotou elementary school and 18 children in middle schools received a Chinese dictionary. Li Li said she was looking forward to this dictionary for a long time, and now she is very happy to have one. Teachers say the dictionaries will help children learn how to solve some difficulties when they study. In Longchuan, 165 children got to choose the school bags they like. Older students were permitted to go to a shop to make their choices, and Holt field staff took samples to the school so that the younger children could make their selections.

In Lanzhou, 69 children received new cotton undergarments and socks. In Wang Qi Town, children with cerebral palsy who are in Holt foster care visited a vegetable garden at a country farm, and their foster parents taught them how to pick vegetables. They gathered in a circle, sang and played games. Other children in foster care in Jilin gathered at the orphanage cafeteria to wrap dumplings.

Children from Meihekou visited a monkey park and rode bumper cars. And the 42 children in the Liuzhou foster care program played games and contests before visiting an ethnic restaurant, where they ate moon cakes and received gifts.

In Tonghua, kindergarten children sang songs, performed nursery rhymes and counted numbers while sharing a meal together with their foster families. Xin Qia sang the popular “Beijing Welcomes You” Olympic Theme song, but forgot the words and began to hum, and soon her solo turned into a sing-along.