12 Feb 2010
12 February 2010 2 AM!
BBC London called me at 8 AM their time which was 2 AM Haiti time and I updated them on how the orphanage was doing a month after the earthquake. They spoke with me 5 minutes but of course, now I cannot go back to sleep! So I decided to watch a little bit of Anderson Cooper on CNN, because I really like Anderson, but I am not very happy with Anderson tonight!
Anderson has decided that it is better for children to be raised in orphanages than it is for them to be adopted into loving families. Where did he come up with this wisdom? Has anyone read a book by a child raised in an orphanage that said that it was the BEST experience in their lives? That living in a group of children was so MUCH better than having a Mom and Dad to raise them? I have never read a book like that!
Ask our foster son, JAMES, about being raised in an orphanage. He says he would have loved to have been adopted instead of spending his whole life from 10 months of age to now living in an orphanage. He missed out on a lot of family life…things a normal family do together. When he came to live with us, he did not know how to live in a family and what was expected from him!
I would bet if a poll was taken of Haitian children raised in orphanages, most would say they would rather have lived in a family setting. For every good orphanage in Haiti, there are probably 10 that are not so good. They try but without some sort of outside funding, most orphanages just scrape by every month and the children are not well taken care of. Anderson, report about these orphanages and talk to the children who are teenagers at these orphanages. Would they have liked to have been adopted and had a chance to better their lives rather than went to bed hungry every night and not got the education that they could have received if adopted?
Do NOT go to an American run and funded orphanage like Mercy and Sharing and show America and the world how well the children are doing in an orphanage. This is NOT a Haitian orphanage. Mercy and Sharing says they do not do adoptions, but there are children from Mercy and Sharing who are adopted by American Families. The orphanage just turns the children’s paperwork over to a lawyer and HE does the adoptions so they can say they do not do adoptions. It is not their main purpose in Haiti but children from their orphanage have been adopted into families! So Anderson, please do research before you report on an orphanage!
Haiti before the earthquake had over 50,000 children living in orphanages and IBESR has said that the number could be double that amount because many orphanages are not registered. UNICEF says there were 350,000 orphans in Haiti BEFORE the earthquake. Haiti authorizes about 2000 international adoptions per year. That is NOT a high percentage of children being adopted by foreign parents and many of those children are orphans with NO mother or father or just one parent who cannot care for the child.
Why does Angelina Jolie, who is in Haiti, not speak out for adoptions? There are times when adoption is best for the child! They never talk about that! My little Jerrensia, with bilateral leg deformities, will most likely be a beggar on the side of the road as an adult if she stays in Haiti! Tell me, Anderson, that this is better for her than going to the USA where she could be a doctor or lawyer or school teacher. Tell me that having her stay in Haiti and being a beggar is better!
But nobody wants to hear the facts. They want the sensationalism of kidnapping by American “missionaries”! Why are they called missionaries? They did not come to bring the gospel to Haitians. They did not come to live and work in Haiti. They had not even been in the Dominican long enough to be called missionaries! So why is the American journalists and Haitian authorities calling them missionaries? Did the group give themselves this title thinking it made them more legitimate?
Well, now that I got this off my chest and it is 3:30 AM, I will try to go back to sleep! OH one more thing, Anderson, you said that Haiti will have 3 days of mourning for those who died. The churches here are calling for 3 days of fasting for Haiti and those who LIVED! Get it straight Anderson, get it straight!
God bless you Dixie Brickell!!!!
Candice Rogers
February 12th, 2010 at 4:50 ampermalink
I posted to CNN’s Facebook page. Hoping that it would get attention. I think all of us should. WE NEED TO HELP HAITI’S CHILDREN AND GET DIXIE’S MESSAGE OUT THERE!
Chantal
February 12th, 2010 at 5:13 ampermalink
You are so right Dixie. God Bless you and your staff for all that you do. I sent an email to Anderson Cooper asking where the rest of his story was. What does actually happen to Haitian children who are raised in orphanages? Are they trully VPs of Haiti when they are grown. Maybe he could finish his investigation for that report and get back to us. God Bless!
Nikki Benich
February 12th, 2010 at 5:19 ampermalink
Thank you for sharing Dixie!I feel so upset by all this,can only imagine how you feel!Why do they not listen you have been there all along thru everything and they just say stuff .Do the research. I can’t believe in today’s age they just give a story without all the facts!Thank God you are the voice of the children!Maybe these reporters would like to come help you raise all the children for life!!Keep speaking out Dixie,God will get the message out!!Donna
Donna
February 12th, 2010 at 5:31 ampermalink
Thank you for your insight into this! America needs to know that everything they see on the news is not gospel. I am praying for you and your orphanage and the many wonderful people of Haiti who are going through this trying times. And I fully agree with you that adoption is the best option!
Mirandi Watson
Etowah County
Alabama
Mirandi
February 12th, 2010 at 5:47 ampermalink
Thank-you Dixie for speaking the truth and clarifying what is REAL in Haiti. You are an amazing women who is a voice for these precious ones. Bless you!
stephanie
February 12th, 2010 at 5:47 ampermalink
I believe this is all part of the push by a very loud minority to make international adoption much harder for folks to accomplish.
Bree
February 12th, 2010 at 5:50 ampermalink
Thank you, Dixie. I hope you emailed this to Anderson Cooper!!! It is people like YOU that truly make this world a better place.
Maggie Warner
February 12th, 2010 at 5:51 ampermalink
Thank you Dixie for your insight into all of this! I have been keeping up with your blogs and appreciate them so much. There have been many nights that I fall asleep crying and praying for you and your orphanage. I pray for God to continue to give you His strength, His love, and His peace as you care for these precious children. I’m going to pass your note on as well and try to get the true story out!
Sarah Diaz
February 12th, 2010 at 6:02 ampermalink
I would like to know more about the three (3) days of fasting for those who lived…
Aislinn Bell
February 12th, 2010 at 6:27 ampermalink
Dixie, You are so right! I can’t believe a journalist as amazing as Anderson Cooper would get this so wrong! I totally agree that asking older children who grew up in an orphange if they would have prefered a family is very wise! I also think that asking older children that were adopted into foreign families if they are happy or disappointed to have a loving family, a quality education, clean water, plentiful food and entertainment for goodness sake! Those who feel that children are better off to spend their life in an orphanage are unfortunatly very misinformed as to what life is in a Haitian oprphanage. Bless you Dixie for your ministry! The children in your care are blessed beyond belief as God works through you and your staff.
Corrine
February 12th, 2010 at 6:39 ampermalink
I don’t think that any child would choose to grow up in an orphanage rather than in a loving family who wanted them just because they would rather stay in their country of origin. Thank you for using your voice to raise awareness of such an important cause.
Shannon Birman
February 12th, 2010 at 6:48 ampermalink
Dixie- we pray for you and yours daily. I hope that your blog gets sent to Anderson Cooper and to CNN and to Larry King. Thanks for all you do!
Ellie Vanderwell
February 12th, 2010 at 6:57 ampermalink
Thanks for speaking the truth, Dixie! Keep up the good fight.
We have two Haitian children who were adopted 7 years ago…their widowed mom survived the quake but lives on the streets in Carrefour today with some remaining children. When we reunited our children with her on a trip in March 2009 she was OVERJOYED to see them so happy, so healthy and so loved. We thank God that she gave them a chance and loved them so much. She couldn’t raise them and life in an orphanage would have been awful for them!
We pray that God will bless your efforts a hundredfold!
Kris Meadows
February 12th, 2010 at 7:22 ampermalink
God Bless you Dixie! Please contact me regarding little Jerrensia. I am a DPT, and I will be traveling with a medical and physical therapy team to Petionville area in July. We would love to help her!
Cortney Felton, DPT
February 12th, 2010 at 7:35 ampermalink
Anderson Cooper does not have the benefit of guidance of the Holy Spirit. He is under deception…..(portions deleted by Tom Vanderwell)
Fran
February 12th, 2010 at 7:41 ampermalink
((((((DIXIE)))))))))
i posted this on my blog (kdizskorner.blogspot.com)
and I am praying for you and all the orphans in Haiti.
xo
KD <
Hugs 2 Haiti
Loving Haiti One Blanket At A Time
hugs2haiti.blogspot.com
Kelly D < :)
February 12th, 2010 at 7:50 ampermalink
Dear Dixie, I am horrified at the mistakes being made in this time of need by the orphans and people of Haiti. Thinking of your place being nearly empty at a time of such need is unethical, to say the least. Children better off in orphanages? Bah, humbug. We will be praying for all of you, for the UN to be humbled and broken of this way of thinking, and that more and more of the children will be allowed to go to various countries for legal adoption. Thank you Dixie for all your work. Blessings on this fast and prayer time for Haiti and the LIVING!
Linda Traub
February 12th, 2010 at 8:03 ampermalink
We to watched Anderson Cooper and love his reporting but wondered about some of the things he was saying. We to have adopted from the foster system and know that adoption into a good, loving family is the BEST way.
My brother in law is an orthopedic surgeon and goes to Nicaragua, Guatemala etc. to do volunteer operations on children with club feet, leg deformities etc. He works in Seattle and is an amazing doctor. I’m thinking he may be able to help with little Jerrensia. I will email Tom about it. Keep strong Dixie, your team is an inspiration.
Christal Holland
February 12th, 2010 at 8:10 ampermalink
what a beautiful post.
brook
February 12th, 2010 at 8:39 ampermalink
This opinion of Anderson Cooper and other powerful people need to be addressed. Thankyou for taking the time to write about this! I’ll never forget that when a friend of mine adopted a 6 year old boy from Haiti he was TERRIFIED of going back to Haiti even though his family always spoke positvely of the country (Not adopted from GLA). He even two years later passed up the opportunity to go with his adoptive mom to pick up his biological brother for fear that he would be left at the orphanage. That poor kid has seen so many horrendus things and to be in an institution like setting could never heal those wounds. By the grace of God he can now talk about Haiti again. That is a step in the right direction. An orphanage is nopleade for a child to grow up no matter how great it is, they should be a traditional place for children for a better life!
Corrine
February 12th, 2010 at 8:59 ampermalink
Keep up the good work Dixie! Every child deserves a mother and father and to grow up in a loving home. That is why some Haitain parents give up their children, because they want better lives for them and others have no choice. Children are our future. We must give them the chance to be loved and cared for as they rightfully deserve.
Nichole
February 12th, 2010 at 9:41 ampermalink
Bless you Dixie! This angered me so much last night while watching CNN myself. It almost seemed like UNICEF gave him a script to read or brainwashed him into believing these crazy things. I’ve never heard any child/adult say they were so thankful to be brought up in an orphanage. You are a true blessing to Haiti and we pray that you are able to take in more children soon. We are so thankful for the work you did in raising our little girl for the time she was with you. God Bless you Dixie!!!
Kelly Shomin
February 12th, 2010 at 9:49 ampermalink
God Bless You and the work you are doing for these precious children. I am glad I rec’d a link to read your message about the situation there in Haiti.
I don’t know how anyone could ever think that an orphanage is a better place for a child than a loving adoptive home that can provide and nurture the child.
Keep up the good work. We will keep praying for all of you in Haiti. May God provide for your every need.
Lynette Korpita
February 12th, 2010 at 10:57 ampermalink
amen dixie!! keep fighting the fight there for the children. we will continue to pray for their safety and needs to be met until they can get to real forever families!!
faith
February 12th, 2010 at 11:15 ampermalink
Thank God you are there to speak the truth about what is really going on in Haiti. I have been praying about how to get this message out to the people because the media is only telling one slanted view, as usual. I will continue praying to see how God will work in this situation. Keep up the fight and know that there are others standing with you for truth and the children of Haiti.
Adrienne Borders
February 12th, 2010 at 11:36 ampermalink
Goodness. God bless you and thank you for caring about the children and speaking the truth in love! May God bless Haiti!
JM
February 12th, 2010 at 12:44 pmpermalink
Thank you for all that you do on a regular basis. You go above and beyond every day. You are best spokes person the children could ask for. We as a family pray Haiti every night.
Elizabeth Scotto
February 12th, 2010 at 1:44 pmpermalink
Dixie, Thank you for keeping us posted on what is happening in Haiti. God has put a fire in you to do good forthe people of Haiti. There are so many people like my Husband and I who would love to give a loving home one of the children but it feels almost inpossible. Keep up your wonderful work and maybe one day adoptions will be possilbe!!!
Ellen
February 12th, 2010 at 4:03 pmpermalink
In 2008 ABC’s Dan Harris documented child trafficking in Haiti in his piece “How to buy a child in 10 hours”. He documents how a foreigner could go to Haiti and negotiate for a child in just hours and also the child slavery practices in Haiti..these people do not even pretend to be adopting children and the traffickers do not pretend to be offering adoption.
The sellers tell Mr Harris things like “When I give you the child, I will train it for you.” and “Yeah, it’s yours. You do whatever you want.” http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/buy-child-10-hours/story?id=5326508
Child trafficking does NOT occurring under the facade of international adoption. Adoption is a long process, costs more money and includes background and psychological checks…child trafficking is quick, cheap and happens on the streets of PAP!
I understand temporarily holding on the process of adoption while the government is rebuilt and to be sure the children don’t have parents looking for them but these kids deserve to have a homes and loving families. While an orphanage like GLA is a blessing to children and is safe, loving place to be and offers safety not found on the streets and tent cities it’s no substitute for a loving family, every child deserves a loving family!
Lish Burton
February 12th, 2010 at 4:03 pmpermalink
Thank you for continuing to posting the truth.Keep it goin I’m sure some good will come out of your blogs. I lived in a tent 20 to 30 weeks a year traveling pga tour..chaseing the sun year round. I n the summer my wife & 5 kids came with…..if the tent in the shade anytime during daylight it was just hellish…{we were the working poor}sometimes we just had to go & get a hotel room…even when the tent was in the shade.Ok enough said; not a good way to live for a child.*I have just sent tents even thoe its being said by Idiots calling the shots there are saying ” A peace of plastic for all & thier good to go”{ya cant even make this stuff up} …..but in the name of God fill up the well run orphanages first.Take care.
Kevin Lynch
February 12th, 2010 at 5:47 pmpermalink
I emailed the manager of Fox News and asked him to follow-up with Dixie and/or Tom. Tom I’m cc: you on the email. I don’t have your or Dixie’s telephone numbers, so perhaps you could email them to the manager of Fox??? THIS IS A BIG STORY and I agree the message has to get out.
Carol & Bob Dornon
February 13th, 2010 at 7:19 ampermalink
Firstly, GLA is well run and I contribute to it. However, there needs to be some balance in Haiti and that is possible with God’s help and peoples’ labors. Children should not be given away or put into slavery due due to povery – as is the custom in Haiti. Please don’t say children don’t miss their biological parents – some more than others – I myself adopted a number of children and have experience with this. Besides adoption, can we also support villages that consist of poor parents raising their children and some sort of village economy? Dixie, I am impressed with the amount of Haitian staff you have; surely this employment helps those people keep their children with them. This is not an adoption/ no adoption situation – we need balance – let’s not polarize the issue.
Susan Boston
February 13th, 2010 at 10:05 ampermalink
You’re right, we need balance. Balance on the side of UNICEF not branding orphanages as places where the only focus is shipping kids out to other countries. Balance on the side of orphanages in spending a lot more time, resources and staffing caring for ill, injured and displaced children and trying to find their birth families.
We are prepared to do that. We have people begging us for the opportunity to come down and help, we have said that adoptions are closed and we are not accepting applications for adoptions. We have a substantial number of Haitian staff who are anxious to spend time helping unite parents and children. But we aren’t being given the opportunity to care for the children because UNICEF thinks that tent cities are preferable. Where’s the balance in that?
Tom Vanderwell
February 13th, 2010 at 2:52 pmpermalink
Dixie, God bless you and the work you are doing for the children. May God continue to shine his light upon the orphanage so that Anderson Cooper and UNICEF can see how important your work and adoption is for the children. I will keep you in my prayers.
Brenda
Brenda Gillespie
February 14th, 2010 at 7:25 ampermalink
My husband grew up with his mother running an emergency foster home in Ontario. We have 3 daughters 23,18,and 16. He wants nothing more to go an get 4 boys to foster. I have my Early Education Degree and we have plenty of room……We have a hobby farm and know they would have a great life with us……….
Shelley Hachey
February 14th, 2010 at 7:10 pmpermalink
Shelley,
The opportunity might come, but it’s not there right now. It’s too early in the disaster yet.
Stay tuned,
Tom
Tom Vanderwell
February 14th, 2010 at 7:37 pmpermalink
Bless you Dixie and your love for those poor children may they be granted with their wishes of having a loving home with parents who can provide for them better than any orphanage. having fostered children previously i never encountered a child that would prefer to stay in the system rather than having two parents to call their own.
nichole reasoner
February 15th, 2010 at 11:41 pmpermalink