Massachusetts family reaches out to Ukrainian orphans (08/13/06)

Massachusetts family reaches out to Ukrainian orphans

by Peter Woloschuk

BOSTON - Chad and Deb Mills of Ayer, Mass., learned about Ukraine and Ukrainian orphans through the Internet. After their son Jason was born in 1996, the couple learned that they might not be able to have more children. The two had many discussions and finally decided they would adopt a child.

"And that's when the fun began," Mr. Miller said. "We quickly learned all about bureaucracy and red tape, and the horrors of the adoption process. We were advised to go through reputable adoption agencies and learned that it could take several years before we would receive a child and that the fees charged ranged between $20,000 and $30,000."

"One day, while doing some research online I discovered that Ukraine was one of the few countries in the world that didn't require an adoption agency to handle the procedure," Mr. Mills said. "Basically, an individual or family can deal with the Ukrainian authorities directly and can complete the adoption process in a fairly short amount of time with a much smaller expenditure of money."

"After talking the possibility over with my wife, we decided to press forward," Mr. Mills said. "A further search of the Internet led us to the website ukrainianangels.org, which was set up by Cathy Harris of Florida."

"Harris had adopted a Ukrainian child herself and was so taken by the plight of Ukrainian orphans that she set up an organization to help people adopt children from Ukraine," Mr. Mills explained. "She gives advice, helps walk people through the process, and connects Americans who wish to adopt with a facilitator in Ukraine who will help them with the language and paperwork once they have arrived in Ukraine."

"Harris takes a $500 fee for her services and the money is donated to the orphanage that took care of her child," Mr. Mills said. "She put us in touch with Dmitri Pugach in Kyiv who had formed his own charity to match up sponsors with orphans" (bigfamilycharity.org).

"We began to work with him in March 2001 and over the summer decided to go to Ukraine to explore the situation first hand," Mr. Mills said. "We were taken to an orphanage in Mariupil, eastern Ukraine, to meet a four-year-old boy by the name of Lucas."

"We walked into a room in that orphanage and knew that Lucas was our son," Mr. Mills recalled. "All the formalities were completed by November and Lucas came to join us in Ayer."

"Ironically, within a few months of our adoption of Lucas, my wife became pregnant with the twins, Jackson and Alex, who were born in January 2003," Mr. Mills said. "Even though our family was growing rapidly, my wife and I wanted to do something more for the children in the orphanages in Ukraine, and so we partnered with another couple and sponsored a young girl through Pugach's charity. We set monthly packages and money and received e-mails and photos in reply."

"Eventually the other couple decided to adopt the girl, and my wife and I decided to sponsor another child on our own," Mr. Mills said. "Again, through Pugach we were assigned 12-year-old Yaroslava at a small orphanage which houses 200 children in the village of Borzna, a three-hour drive to the northeast of Kyiv, and we began sending packages of clothes and toiletries."

"Yaroslava sent us a picture of herself holding up a pair of wool socks, like they were a gold necklace," Mr. Mills said. "As my wife and I looked at the picture it really hit us that such a small effort makes such a difference in these children's lives."

As Yaroslava approached her 14th birthday last year, the Mills knew that she would be "aged out" of the orphanage and sent to an "internat" and considered the possibility of adopting her as well.

"We know boys," Mr. Mills said, "and Deb and I looked at each other and repeatedly asked: Can we handle a 14-year-old girl?"

The Mills made their decision to adopt Yaroslava in May 2005 and Mr. Mills went to Borzna the first time in July. He returned in October, and Yaroslava, now 16, came to the United States this past March. He points out that in the last year he spent a total of 55 days in Ukraine.

Although Yaroslava had grandparents who lived only 15 minutes from the orphanage, they were too old and too poor to take Yaroslava in and so she agreed to come to the United States.

"We didn't realize the impact that we've had on Yaroslava," Mr. Mills said, "until she told us that no one cared about her as much as we did."

"Yaroslava's biggest barrier is language," Mr. Mills continued. "Fluent in Ukrainian and Russian and with some English, she is still slightly intimidated by words that she can't understand."

"Her transition period has been extremely smooth and she recently learned to ride a skateboard," Mr. Mills reported. "She has also taken her first roller coaster ride. She is homesick from time to time, especially after having a particularly good time with us. She's torn between her new life and her old life and her friends that are still there in the orphanage."

As a result of their experiences with Ukrainian orphans and with the deplorable conditions of the orphanage in Borzna, the Mills began a non-profit group, the Orphans' Hope Foundation. They applied for and got 501 (c) (3) status, and affiliated with the National Heritage Foundation, an umbrella organization of more than 6,000 American non-profits so that they could send all of the money that they raised directly to Ukraine. By law, American foundations normally can only send a portion of their funds overseas.

The Mills were particularly concerned with the older orphans who are phased out of the system somewhere between their 14th and 16th birthdays. Many of them are left to fend for themselves on the streets and some turn to drugs, crime and prostitution. A high percentage commit suicide.

In the 11 months since the foundation's registration in August 2005, the Mills have raised almost $50,000 from family and friends. A flat 3.5 percent fee is given to the National Heritage Foundation for administration and 3 percent is taken by the credit card companies when donations are given that way. A total of 4.5 percent of all income has gone for expenses.

Since its establishment, the foundation has hosted six children from the Borzna orphanage during the month of December 2005 with host families on Nantucket. It will host six more children during the month of August in Massachusetts and New York. It has also paid for school supplies, English lessons, flu and measles vaccines, library books, office equipment, a TV and DVD player, uniforms for the orphanage soccer team, the orphanage Christmas party, dental visits, lice treatment, classroom repairs and shoes, and sent 31 of the children to summer camp.

The goal of the Orphan's Hope Foundation is to raise awareness of the plight of the children and better their lives through improved living conditions, better health care, nutrition and education; and by letting them know that they are truly cared for; to raise funds and to collect humanitarian assistance to support the orphans; and to give the children hope.

Mr. Mills concluded by saying "It is estimated that there are currently over 100,000 orphans in Ukraine and approximately 8,000 new children enter the system each year. Sadly, they are underfunded by the Ukrainian government and living conditions are difficult at best. Help is greatly needed and that is what we're trying to do."

Mr. Mills, 37, attended the University of New Hampshire. He is the director of business development for the cardiac safety division of Covance, a company that conducts medical trials. His wife, Deb, is 35 and attended St. Anselm's College in Manchester, N.H.

For further information readers may visit www.ohfound.org and www.hearttoheartwithukraine.org.

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