China adoption news for September, 2006

Journey Of Personal DiscoveryBay Area Adoptees Invited To China

"Since the 1990's some 50,000 orphaned girls and boys have been adopted by American parents. Bay Area Adoption Services out of Mountain View was among the earliest agencies to find homes for many of theses children right here in the Bay Area." more>>

'H3A' helps the 'undesirable' children

"ON THE DAY of her birth, JP was found at a countryside park, abandoned by her biological family for unknown reasons. A policeman patrolling the area found her a few hours later. Wrapped in soiled bedding, she was taken to the city's social service office and placed at a home for abandoned children. Once it was determined that JP's parents' identity was truly unknown, she was formally a ward of the state and placed on the "for adoption" list within the Department of Human Services." more>>

Asian-American Cultural Center celebrates birthday, harvest moon

"Amy Wong Mok, self-proclaimed grandmother of Austin's Asian-American Cultural Center, helped usher in the center's sixth birthday Saturday.

Several hundred volunteers and community members marked the center's anniversary with Asian music, dance performances, food and jewelry, clothing, and informational booths.

Mok, president and chief executive officer of the center, said she wants to blend the cultures of America and Asia.

"We want to be the bridge from the East to the West," she said." more>>

South Florida parents with Chinese-born children keep heritage alive

"Penny Drapkin and her husband were living in New York when they brought their adopted daughter home from China.

In New York, they could take Julie to Chinatown, immerse themselves in the food and the language -- all in a place where their daughter could see faces like hers. When they moved to Pembroke Pines five years ago, finding Chinese culture proved more difficult, Drapkin said." more>>

Helping an orphan, then an orphanage

Bob and Fay DeBellis' adopted daughter had been close to death, so malnourished her nerves were damaged. Now, the couple wants to give other orphans the care they need.

"Fay DeBellis tells her only child, Ling, that they were destined to be mother and daughter. Even before they met, she tells her, a long, red thread — a Chinese symbol of destiny — connected them from southern China to Minnesota." more>>