International Phone Information

Will your phone work in Haiti?? This isn't a question you want to be asking yourself standing at the airport in Port Au Prince... Trust me make sure you have a phone that will work in Haiti.. You are going to want one! Here is some helpful information about several different phone plans. Please feel free to comment at the bottom with other phone plans not listed here.

If you have ATT

• to call Haiti from the US you need the World Connect plan for $3.99, each call will be $.30/ min
• while in Haiti to call out you need the World Traveler plan $5.99, each call $1.69/mi
• to add texting to the World Traveler plan it is $30.00 for 200 texts
• to add data (NOT unlimited)  for smart phones to the World Traveler plan it is $24.00

You can give them specific dates and cancel upon your return.

 For Verizon customers who do not have a global ready phone

Verizon has a global rental plan. I want to say it is like $25 or maybe $30 to get a phone it comes with easy instructions on how to use the phone. We have also done this and it also worked very well. The phones that they send you are nice and are capable of having internet/email if you are in need of this.http://businessportals.verizonwireless.com/international/Global_Travel/index.html

• Verizon Wireless covers more than 220 voice and over 205 data countries, more than 155 with 3G speeds – check our GlobalPhone and Global Data tabs for details on specific destinations offered. 

• Solutions are available for Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, standard voice/text, and data card customers. 

• Customers may call (800) 711-8300 to speak to a Global Services Activation Specialist for additional details or to place an order.

I purchased a phone from http://www.ekit.com/ekit/home I bought the cheap phone that they have and it came with minutes and now every trip that I make I just go onto my account and add minutes… It has really worked well and I only use it in emergency situations. The only thing I always forget is to activate the phone in haiti you have to enter your pin # I finally got smart and I write it on my hand with a sharpie when we leave miami!! lol... don't want to be stuck in the PAP airport with out a phone!

Fundraising / Grants

We are almost all looking for ideas, suggestions and 

guidance when it comes to fundraising ideas. Feel 

free to comment on other ideas that you may have!

There is also a section here for links to 

adoption grants. Please give feedback on the grants 

you have personal experience with. Thank you!

Fundraising:

• Mud Love - pottery bracelets - $3.15 each when ordering 50. They can say a variety of things...mine said hope. I sold them for $10 each and I have 2 left and I started selling them on May 2nd.  mudlove.com 

• Ordinary Hero http://ordinaryhero.org/

• Adoption Bug - http://www.adoptionbug.com/

• The Apparent Project - Haitian made bracelets - http://www.apparentproject.org

• Virtual/FB "yard sale"

• Haitian Coffee sales - http://www.singingrooster.org 

• Electronics Recycling - http://www.recyclingfundraiser.com/Default.aspx   There are several different organizations out there so I would compare price lists with your donations (and even check ebay before turning in) if you have the time.  The good thing about this company is they take a lot of different electronics in addition to cell phones and ink cartridges AND they have FREE shipping.

• 147 Million Orphans http://www.147millionorphans.com/

• Adoption with out Debt
•  http://juliegumm.com/adopt-without-debt/

Grants:

• Show Hope - http://www.showhope.org/

• The Abba Fund - http://www.abbafund.org/ 

• Lifesong for Orphans -http://www.lifesongfororphans.org

Airline Miles Donations

Airline Mile Donation = Paypal $ and Gift Cards for Adoption Expenses

No one ever knows how much they will love their unborn child until they are holding him in their arms.  What many don't realize is that for those adopting, it's like falling in love with the newborn placed in your arms right after birth and then being told that you can't hold or see that baby for another year.......or longer.

The process to adopt from Haiti is a long and expensive process but once a bond has been made, a decision to love a child has been decided, there is little that will stop a mom and dad from making that dream a reality.

People often want to know how they can help these families in addition to just donating cash.

There is a system now for anyone with miles or points from certain business points to donate miles for Paypal cards/cash that can be used for all adoption fees/needs!!! The easiest way to to this is through www.Points.com. There are MANY airlines and companies that participate with points.com.

This is what to do if you are interested:

1. Go to and register with www.points.com.
2. Once registered, link any of the participating airline or reward programs.
3. Go to the "Give and Redeem" tab and then choose Paypal or another gift card option and then choose the amount they want to give and it will tell you the amount of miles/points needed.
4. If you already know who you are donating to you can contact them to get the donation to them.  If you do not know who to donate to or would like to donate anonymously, please contact Shasta Grimes at shasta@themissionhaiti.com.  (T.H.E. Mission, Inc. is a 501c3 and can offer a receipt for you donation as well.)

Thank you and know that your miles will bring families together!

What is Hague

Understanding the Hague Convention

The Hague Adoption Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Inter-Country Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention) is an international agreement to safeguard intercountry adoptions. Concluded on May 29, 1993 in The Hague, the Netherlands, the Convention establishes international standards of practices for intercountry adoptions. The United States signed the Convention in 1994, and the Convention entered into force for the United States in April 2008. Read thefull text of the Hague Adoption Convention.

The Hague Adoption Convention applies to all adoptions between the United States and the other counties that have joined it (Convention countries). Adopting a child from a Convention country is similar in many ways to adopting a child from a country not party to the Convention. However, there are some key differences. In particular, those seeking to adopt receive greater protections if they adopt from a Convention country. (See our chartcomparing the Convention process and the non-Convention process.)

Convention Facts

• It requires that countries who are party to the Convention establish a Central Authority to be the authoritative source of information and point of contact in that country. The Department of State is the U.S. Central Authority for the Convention.
• It aims to prevent the abduction, sale of, or traffic in children, and it works to ensure that intercountry adoptions are in the best interests of children.
• It recognizes intercountry adoption as a means of offering the advantage of a permanent home to a child when a suitable family has not been found in the child's country of origin. It enables intercountry adoption to take place when:
  1. The child has been deemed eligible for adoption by the child's country of birth; and
  2. Proper effort has been given to the child's adoption in its country of origin.
• It provides a formal international and intergovernmental recognition of intercountry adoption, working to ensure that adoptions under the Convention will generally be recognized and given effect in other party countries.

Keys to the Convention Process

• Accredited Adoption Agencies: Only adoption service providers that have been accredited on a Federal level may offer certain key adoption services for Convention adoptions. When adopting a child from a Convention country, prospective adoptive parents know that their agency has been evaluated by one of the Department of State's designated Accrediting Entities. These Accredited Entities evaluate agencies using uniform standards that work to ensure professional and ethical practices.
• Transparency: When adopting from a Convention country, accredited adoption agencies must itemize and disclose in writing the fees and estimated expenses associated with the adoption ahead of time. The adoption service provider is only permitted to charge for unforeseen expenses under very specific circumstances. There is also an official mechanism for lodging a complaint against an accredited agency to the Department of State.
• Adoption Certificates: Every child adopted from a Convention country receives a Hague Adoption Certificate or a Hague Custody Declaration. The certificate is issued by a U.S. consular officer after determining that the adoption (or grant of custody) has met the requirements of the Convention and the Intercountry Adoption Act. In Convention adoptions a U.S. consular officer also determines whether the child appears to meet the criteria for visa eligibility before the adoption is finalized (or custody is granted) in the country of origin. This will allow the parents to know ahead of time whether the child appears to be eligible to enter the United States.
• Updated Forms & Visa Categories: Forms I-800A and I-800 replace Forms I-600A and I-600 for Convention adoption cases. Through Form I-800A, which must be filed prior to Form I-800, prospective adoptive parent(s) gain eligibility to adopt. Prospective adoptive parent(s) will identify the country from which they will adopt on this form. Form I-800 later determines the eligibility of a particular child to be adopted into a U.S. family. Children adopted from a Convention country must meet the definition of a "Convention adoptee." New visa categories, IH-3 and IH-4, will be used in Convention adoption cases.

Hague vs Non-Hague Adoption Process

Both the Hague Convention Adoption Process (Convention adoptions) and the orphan adoption process, (or non-Convention adoptions) involve two basic U.S. determinations: 1) The suitability of the adoptive parents, and 2) Whether the child's adoption meets eligibility requirements in order for the child to immigrate to the United States.

So what's the difference?

Below is a chart outlining the differences between the two procedures. In general, prospective adoptive parents receive more protections when adopting from Convention countries.

	Convention Countries	Non-Convention Countries
Your Adoption Service Provider	Licensed in U.S. state of residence + Accredited or approved by one of the Department of State's designated Accrediting Entities	Licensed in U.S. State of residence
Adoption Services Contract	Adoption services contract contains information about agency's policies, fees, history, relationships with supervised providers, etc.	Though many ASPs disclose policies, fees and relationships with supervised providers, they are not required by most state laws to do so.
Home Study	Must meet both State and Federal requirements; Prepared by an accredited agency, supervised provider or exempted provider	Must meet State level and USCIS federal requirements
Adoption Fees	Itemized in adoption services contract
Parent Education	10 Hours of parent education	Parent education only if mandated by U.S. State of residence or voluntarily provided by agency
Adoptive Parent's Eligibility	Form I-800-A; Must be filed before being matched with a child (and before Form I-800)	Form 1-600-A; Can be filed at the same time as the Form I-600.
Provisional Petition Approval; Child's Eligibility	Country of Origin must determine the child is adoptable with Convention consents and other protections, must meet definition of Convention adoptee Form 1-800	Must meet orphan definition Form 1-600
Child's Medical Records	Prepared, and provided by Convention country's competent authorities; Prospective adoptive parents given at least 2 weeks to review
Visa Type	IH-3 or IH-4 Visas	IR-3 or IR-4 Visas
Visa Application	Submitted before foreign adoption/ legal custody proceedings	Submitted after foreign adoption/ legal custody proceedings (except Guatemala and Vietnam)
Adoption Records	Preserved for 75 years

What's In A Dossier

dos·si·er/ˈdôsēˌā/

Noun:	A collection of documents about a particular person, event, or subject: "we have a dossier on him"; "a dossier of complaints".
Synonyms:	file - record - folder

What will you need to have in your Dossier?

1. 3 PASSPORT PHOTOGRAPHS OF A RECENT DATE 

(HUSBAND AND WIFE IF APPLICABLE) 

2. ONE PHOTOCOPY OF EACH PARENTS’ PASSPORT

3. A PERSONAL “REQUEST FOR ADOPTION” 

LETTER

4. POWER OF ATTORNEY

5. ADOPTIVE PARENTS’ BIRTH CERTIFICATE 

 

(2 CERTIFIED COPIES)

6. MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE (2 CERTIFIED COPIES)

7. DETAILED MEDICAL EXAM AND HEALTH 

CLEARANCE LETTER FOR ADOPTIVE PARENTS

AND ALL CHILDREN IN THE HOME

8. PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATION BY LICENSED 

PSYCHOLOGIST FOR EACH PARENT

9. EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION LETTER FOR EACH 

PARENT WORKING OUTSIDE THE HOME 

10. BANK LETTER OR STATEMENTS

11. ACCOUNTANT LETTER (IF YOU HAVE ONE) OR 

TAX RETURNS IF YOU DO NOT HAVE AN

ACCOUNTANT

12. INTERNATIONAL HOME STUDY COMPLETED 

ACCORDING TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF

YOUR STATE

13. POLICE CLEARANCE FROM COUNTY POLICE 

OFFICE

14. 2 LETTERS OF REFERENCE

15. TRANSLATION ATTESTATION

A few notes:

• If you have NOT been married at least ten years, 

but have been in a committed relationship for ten 

years, you can consider submitting a 10 year co-

habitation letter.

• If you have ever been divorced, you will also 

need to submit an original copy of your divorce 

certificate.

• If you have ever lost a spouse, you will need to 

submit an original death certificate.

Almost every document listed above needs to be 

notarized (the exceptions are the original birth 

certificates and marriage licenses which will be issued 

by an official officer, so do not need to be notarize). 

Once you obtain an original notarized document, you 

will take each document through the following steps:

1. State Authentication

(commonly referred to as obtaining an Apostille)

2. Translation into French

3. Legalization at a Haitian Consulate

I-600 / Non-Hague Visa Process

I-600 filing options ( This is for Non-Hague Adoptions once Haiti is Hague the new instructions will be posted)

There are three ways of getting your I 600 filled that I am aware of.

1: File in the US and opt into the AOF program: The advantage of this is that once USICS gets your petition they schedule the parent interviews. It does save time on the end portion BUT word of warning.. if you get your adoption decree BEFORE they complete the AOF investigation you are no longer eligable for the AOF and have to send a notice to withdraw to your USCIS officer. Not many people are really familiar with this program and it can cause confusion. I had to follow up and make sure all the ends were connected.

2: File in the US and wait for all documents including your adoption decree.

Send all to your USCIS officer and then they send it to NVC. NVC (National Visa Center) then send electronic copies to PAP adoptions and they then schedule your Birth parent interview. Once that has been completed they send your total dossier to the Consulate to issue a visa appointment.

3. File in PAP at the Embassy,

The Embassy they then have all your documentation and can schedule the BPI and confirm all your paper work.. they then send to the consulate.

After the earthquake orphanages were not recommending travel to PAP. Now it seems that those who file in PAP are moving fairly smoothly.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS - 

You must present the following documents with Form I-600:

• Child's original birth certificate or, if unavailable, a written explanation together with secondary evidence of identity and age (e.g. a re-issued birth certificate listing the adoptive parents);
• Evidence that the child either has no parents or a sole/surviving parent unable to provide proper care who has irrevocably released the child for emigration and adoption;
• Evidence of adoption or intent to adopt.

NOTE: Any foreign language documents submitted with the I-600 petition must be accompanied by a full English translation, which the translator has certified as complete and correct, along with the translator's certification that he or she is competent to translate the foreign language into English. If you file Form I-600 at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate, you must submit originals of the required documents along with the petition. If filing in the United States, USCIS permits petitioners to submit copies of some documents; please refer to the I-600 instructions for rules regarding the submission of original documents.

Facebook group discussion can be seen here

Adoption Resources

Here are some helpful resources for adoption. You can also visit the group Facebook page discussion about this.

Books:

• The Connected Child  http://www.amazon.com/The-Connected-Child-healing-adoptive/dp/0071475001
• Parenting Your Internationally Adopted Child - Patty Cogen 
• Parenting Your Adopted Older Child - Breda McCreight
• Cross Cultural Adoption - Amy Coughlin and Caryn Abramowitz (light read - good for grandparents, and extended family, friends, etc.)
• Attaching in Adoption - Deborah Gray
• Simple Language for Adoptive Families: Haitian Creole by Amy Kendall (Book/CD of commonly used phrases. Written in Creole and also spelled phonetically.) ****Please see below for a message from Amy Kendall****
• In Their Own Voices: Transracial Adoptees Tell Their Stories--Rita J Simon and Rhonda M Roorda.
• Adopted for Life:The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families and Churches--Russel D. Moore. (Wonderful read! Covers Theological basis for adoption, tells author's story of international adoption from Russia.)
• Parenting the Hurt Child -Gregory Keck

• Free download - Created To Connect Study Guide  (This study guide goes with the book The Connected Child)  By: Amy Monroe, Dr. Karyn Purvis, Michael Monroe Created To Connect: A Christian’s Guide to The Connected Child was created by Dr. Karyn Purvis and Michael & Amy Monroe to help illuminate the biblical principles that serve as the foundation for the philosophy and interventions detailed in Dr. Purvis’ book, The Connected Child.  This study guide is designed to help adoptive and foster parents better understand how to build strong and lasting connections with their children, and is ideal for use in small groups as well as by individuals or couples.  http://empoweredtoconnect.org/created-to-connect-study-guide/  The Connected Child: Bring hope and healing to your adoptive family [Paperback]  Karyn Purvis (Author), David Cross (Author), Wendy Sunshine (Author)  Price: $10.85  http://www.amazon.com/Connected-Child-healing-adoptive-family/dp/0071475001

• I really like this book. Works well with Daphnica. We hardly ever have to discipline her.  1-2-3 Magic: Effective Discipline for Children 2-12 [Paperback] Thomas W. Phelan  http://www.amazon.com/1-2-3-Magic-Effective-Discipline-Children/dp/0963386190

• Building the Bonds of Attachment: Awakening Love in Deeply Troubled Children by Daniel A. Hughes (Aug 8, 2006) I have heard this is really good but been able to get a copy yet   http://www.amazon.com/Building-Bonds-Attachment-Awakening-Troubled/dp/0765704048/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1328285960&sr=1-1

• Parenting With Love And Logic (Updated and Expanded Edition) [Hardcover] Foster Cline   Price: $15.54   http://www.amazon.com/Parenting-Love-Logic-Updated-Expanded/dp/1576839540/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1328286094&sr=1-1  I loved this one: Cross Cultural Adoption   http://www.amazon.com/Cross-Cultural-Adoption-Questions-Community/dp/0895260921/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1334685613&sr=8-1   very helpful and practical
• Beyond Consequences, Logic and Control by Heather T. Forbes  http://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Consequences-Logic-Control-Attachment-Challenged/dp/0977704009/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338079515&sr=8-1-spell

Language Apps:

• http://www.pimsleur.com/Learn-Haitian-Creole (I have not personally used this so I cannot speak for it's quality, accuracy, or effectiveness.)

Music:

• http://kreyolicious.com/category/music/ Reviews & info on variety of Haitian music styles

Hair Care:

• Chocolate Hair Vanilla Care http://www.chocolatehairvanillacare.com - also on Facebook
• http://www.facebook.com/beadsbraidsandbeyond
• http://www.thefroshow.blogspot.com (also on facebook)
• http://www.snapaholics.com/
• http://lovemybabycakes.com/

Food:

• http://www.hasnas.com/haiti/tag/cuisine
• http://haitifoodrecipes.blogspot.com/
• http://haitian-recipes.com/
• http://www.squidoo.com/Food-and-recipes-from-Haiti
• The Art and Soul of Haitian Cooking- Cookbook-Renewal4Haiti  http://renewal4haiti.org/store/#ecwid:category=560164&mode=product&product=200
• A Taste of Haiti-Expanded Edition Cookbook -amazon.com

Misc.:

• http://www.whitesugarbrownsugar.com/p/resources.html
• http://kreyolicious.com/ Fantastic resource for Haitian history, culture, fashion, people, arts etc...

French Translating Services

Here is a list of people who have been recommended 

for translating. For Reviews please visit the Group

Facebook page discussion.

Deb Blaz

• blazm@yahoo.com
• $250 total dossier

Catherine Lefevre ( In France )

caty.lefevre@gmail.com

Franslations

• email is franslations@aol.com
• He is in California
• super fast and reasonable
• ($10/sheet and no charge for similar sheets

@Sam Haiti

• add on Facebook

Isabelle Gallemaert

• igallema@club-internet.fr

TheGovernor Monestime - 

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