Agency News
AAI Opens New Adoption Program in Kazakhstan
AAI is proud to announce the newest addition to its international programs—Kazakhstan! This program is now open and ready to help Kazakhstani orphans find their forever families.
For more information about this program, please visit our Kazakhstan Adoption page, or contact Chandra, Kazakhstan program manager, at 616.667.0921.
Temporary Russia Promotion to Begin Soon
Worried about signing up for AAI’s Russia program before our accreditation is renewed? Then worry no longer. In June, AAI will initiate a temporary refund option that will allow families to focus on what’s most important—bringing their child home.
Details of this promotion will be available soon. Please watch our web site for further information.
To learn more about our Russia program, please visit our Russia Adoption page.
New Q & A E-Mails for Nepal, Ethiopia, and Domestic Programs
AAI now offers weekly Q & A e-mails for our Nepal, Ethiopia, and domestic adoption programs. The Q & A e-mails offer valuable information about the adoption process, the children, travel, and more. You can sign up for only the program that you’re interested in—if you’ve already decided—or for multiple programs to observe what’s going on at AAI. To learn more, please visit our Q & A e-mails news item.
Golf Marathon Far Exceeds Fundraising Goal
AAI is thrilled to announce that its first golf marathon was a tremendous success!
Fourteen golfers, supported by pledges from family, friends, and business associates, teed off at 7:30am on Monday, May 14, and played over 100 holes of golf to benefit orphans worldwide.
The pledges and donations the golfers received, in addition to the contributions that many businesses made to the event as golf sponsors, resulted in a grand total of $35,605 being raised for the event. This amount far exceeded the golf marathon’s fundraising goal of $25,000.
The funds raised will be sent to several different orphanages and orphanage programs overseas to provide orphaned children with everyday items that we often take for granted, such as food, clothing, cribs, walkers, blankets, toys, coats, mittens, books, and more.
AAI would like to thank the event’s title sponsor, Kerkstra Precast, all of the corporations that sponsored the golf marathon, and the golfers and staff who contributed hours of time towards its success. Please know that your generosity will make a lasting impact on the lives of these orphaned children.
Sponsor a Child in Need
AAI is pleased to announce that we now have 170 children available for sponsorship in Ethiopia and Nepal. So far, 24 individuals, families, and groups have stepped forward to sponsor children, but 146 are still eagerly awaiting sponsorship.
For more information, or to sign up to sponsor a child using our online registration form, please visit our Child Sponsorship news item.
Embracing Ethiopia Project Update
AAI is pleased to announce that the Embracing Ethiopia project has received $18,576.20 in contributions to date, which means that we’re almost to the halfway point in reaching our goal of $38,000. A special thank you to everyone who has supported this cause.
The funds that have already been raised have been sent to our Ethiopia program coordinator. Because of these contributions, he was recently able to purchase the following for children in the ADERA and OROMIA orphanages in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia:
food and cooking utensils
cleaning items
clean water
electricity
items for the children’s schooling, including uniforms and desks
shoes
cupboards for storing the children’s clothes
medication and medical checkups
tutorial classes and teaching aids
Funds have also been used to help fund the celebration of special events at both orphanages for Christmas, New Year’s, and Easter, purchase office equipment for our program coordinator to use as he works to place these orphaned children in loving homes, and promote a basic health care education program to mothers whose children are temporarily supported by the orphanages.
In addition, AAI would like to thank a generous donor who pledged to give a matching gift of up to $15,000 to the Embracing Ethiopia project, as well as a very special little girl who recently donated to this cause. This little girl came home from Ethiopia six months ago and had been saving her own money, along with her siblings, to help orphans who are still waiting in this country.
If you would like to learn more about the Embracing Ethiopia project, please visit our Embracing Ethiopia page, or contact Thomas Gill, director of fund development, at 616.667.0677. You may also e-mail him at tgill@adoptionassociates.net.
New Themes Now Available for Adoption Journals
Families creating an online international adoption journal through AAI now have several more themes to choose from for their background!
Whether you’re looking for a theme that features children’s artwork, international artifacts, or one that is simply generic, there’s one designed to coincide with nearly every family’s adoption story and personal taste.
The journal program is free to families adopting through AAI. If you’re interested in starting your journal today, visit www.adoptionjournals.org, or ask your international consultant for more information.
