When Liên was a little girl, her mother would carry her from street to street, asking passersby for coins and food scraps.

At night, Liên shivered — sleeping with only a thin piece of cloth to keep warm…

Her mother, who had intellectual disabilities, loved Liên deeply and did everything she could to care for her. But her own challenges made it difficult to meet Liên’s complex needs. Living on the streets of a coastal city in Vietnam, sometimes selling lottery tickets or trinkets, she wasn’t earning enough income to meet even basic needs — let alone specialized care for her daughter.

Liên could walk and manage basic hygiene, but she struggled to communicate and learn like other children her age. Her mother felt overwhelmed by her limitations and unsure how to provide the care her daughter needed.

Recognizing the difficulty of the situation, compassionate neighbors suggested that Liên might receive the help she needed at a children’s center. While it meant that she would no longer live with her mother, moving Liên away from the harsh realities of street life gave her the possibility of a safer, more hopeful future.

A New Chapter

When she arrived at the children’s center, Liên was welcomed with open arms by a team of dedicated caregivers.

With expertise in nutrition and health, special needs and child development, Liên’s caregivers could provide the care and support she needed to grow and develop. They identified her unique challenges and began creating a tailored care plan that focused on her health and building basic life skills.

One of the first steps of Liên’s new journey was supporting her physical health. Regular health screenings became part of her routine. The center’s medical staff conducted nutritional assessments to ensure she was receiving the necessary vitamins to support her growth and overall well-being. These assessments are crucial for early intervention — addressing health conditions such as anemia and other deficiencies.

Through the center’s partnership with Holt Vietnam, caregivers are trained in feeding techniques, monitoring health benchmarks and creating daily routines and activities for children with disabilities. Because of donor support for the Molly Holt Fund, these trainings are made possible, and children receive the specialized, nurturing care they need to thrive.

Safe and Supported

After living on the streets, Liên’s adjustment to life at the children’s center took time. In the early days, she was content to be alone, sitting in the corner and taking little interest in the activities around her. She seemed focused on her interior world, occasionally watching other children play.

Liên’s caregivers were patient, knowing that she needed time to feel safe, secure and comfortable in her new environment.

Slowly, with gentle encouragement and reassurance, she began to show signs of progress. Liên practiced feeding herself — first with finger foods, then with utensils. She struggled, often spilling food, but her caregivers knew that Liên needed to learn at her own pace.

Over time, she became more adept at holding a spoon and fork. Not only could she start eating without assistance, but she also began to grow in confidence.

Liên was also shown how to dress herself. And with time, she learned how to dress independently. She learned how to zip her jacket and tie her shoelaces — significant achievements for children with special needs.

Growing in Confidence

Liên’s progress with self-care was transformational, but she often distanced herself from the other children. She would sit quietly during group activities, occasionally glancing at her peers but not engaging with them.

Eager to help Liên connect with others her age, her caregivers remained optimistic and patient. They continued to involve her in simple group activities, such as drawing, coloring and singing.

Slowly, Liên began to engage with other children. As she began to feel more comfortable, she grew in her social confidence each day. Soon she started to join in activities without hesitation and even began to initiate simple conversations with her peers.

But Liên’s ability to communicate and express her emotions was limited. Her caregivers encouraged her to express herself in different ways — through art, music and movement.

Ms. Thuy, one of Liên’s primary caregivers, says she is hopeful for Liên’s future.

“[Liên] is a fighter,” Ms. Thuy says. “Every step forward is hard-won, but she never gives up. I see so much potential in her and we are committed to helping her discover it.”

Helping Her Shine

Today, Liên is 11 years old, and she continues to grow each day.

The caregivers at the children’s center remain her biggest supporters, cheering her on with each victory.

“She has shown us all what true resilience looks like,” Ms. Thuy says. “Every child deserves a chance to shine and [Liên] is shining in her way. We are honored to be part of her story.”

Every child’s path is different, and Liên’s path is uniquely hers — and it’s one paved with hope because of your help.

Making a Difference

It is through the continuous support of sponsors and donors like you that Liên is receiving the specialized care she needs to thrive.

But while she continues to receive support and make progress, many children like Liên are still waiting — left without the opportunities and care they deserve. Her story is not an isolated one — it reflects a broader challenge faced by children with disabilities in the places where Holt works.

Private special needs programs, when available, are financially out of reach for orphaned and vulnerable children, whether they live in an orphanage or with their families struggling in poverty.

You can help children with medical and special needs who are left with no other options. Donate today to help provide care, healing and hope for a brighter future.

Your gift will help provide medical treatments, surgeries, specialized feeding assistance, therapies, adaptive equipment like wheelchairs, special education and so much more.

Every child deserves compassionate care that reminds them they are deeply loved and valued. Together, we can bring lasting change for children like Liên and help them shine.

Give to the Molly Holt Fund

Your gift helps a child with special needs receive the surgery, medicines, and specialized care they need!

Help a child now

The post Helping Liên Shine appeared first on Holt International.

Your generosity helps children all around the world receive the nurturing care and support they need to grow and thrive.

Last year, your gifts provided essential healthcare and met critical medical needs — including lifesaving surgeries — for over 131,900 children. You also helped provide specialized care and support for 2,280 children with disabilities who are living in orphanages or in poverty with their families. None of this would have been possible without your compassionate heart for children in need.

Whether it’s life-changing medical treatments for conditions like cleft lip and palate or congenital heart disease — or specialized feeding assistance, therapies or special education for children with special needs — your gifts make a powerful difference! Every child deserves compassionate care that reminds them they are deeply loved and valued. Thank you for seeing these children, and for providing the vital care they need.

Here are just a few of the children you’ve helped care for over the past 10 years!

Feeding Support for Jin in China

See Jin’s progress in the video below!

Surgery and Therapy for Arban in Mongolia

Heart Surgery for Luli in China

Physical Therapy for Jolie in Mongolia

Cleft Lip Surgery for Rebekah in China

Disability Support for Giang in Vietnam

Deworming Medication for Kissa in Uganda

Heart Surgery for Lai in China

Carrying on Molly’s Legacy

Just as Molly gave her life “to the things that she loves with her whole heart,” we’re so grateful you share her heart for children with special needs.

To continue Molly’s selfless legacy, send a gift to the Molly Holt Fund today to make a lasting impact on the life of a child with special needs!

Give to the Molly Holt Fund

Your gift helps a child with special needs receive the surgery, medicines, and specialized care they need!

Help a child now

The post Each Child Seen and Loved appeared first on Holt International.

Four-hundred-and-nine. Four-hundred-and-nine children evacuated from Holt child care centers in Vietnam in the spring of 1975. The most notable being the Pan-America “babylift” flight out of Vietnam on April 5, 1975.

The flight took off from Saigon, current-day Ho Chi Minh City, just before the city was overtaken by the northern Vietnamese army.

John Williams, who some years later served as Holt’s president, was working with Holt in Vietnam at the time of the airlift.

“All the kids had arm bands and leg bands on every limb to identify them so they wouldn’t get mixed up or lost,” John says of the children on Holt’s flight, most of whom were already matched with adoptive families in the U.S. at the time of the emergency evacuation.

“It was a long, long flight,” he recalls.

The plane flew from Saigon to Guam to Honolulu to Seattle to Chicago and finally New York. Beginning in Honolulu, and at each stop along the way, children united with adoptive parents who were extremely relieved to know their children had made it out safely. Because this wasn’t the case for everyone… An evacuation flight just days before — a flight the Holt children had nearly been on — tragically crashed several minutes after takeoff.

And just a few days later, John Williams – upon his return to Vietnam to help Holt staff evacuate – described the scene as “total anarchy in the streets — which were littered with uniforms and military equipment discarded by South Vietnamese soldiers fearing for their lives.”

This year marks 50 years since Operation Babylift, which was a defining and iconic moment in Holt’s history and legacy of caring for orphaned and vulnerable children.

But this flight was not the beginning of Holt’s work in Vietnam, and it certainly didn’t mark the end.

Holt Began Work in Vietnam

Holt first began working in Vietnam in 1972. The program primarily helped place children with adoptive families in the U.S. Because of the decades-long conflict in Vietnam, there were an estimated 900,000 homeless children in the country at the time.

Holt opened a child care center in response to this great need, providing the food and care that children needed while searching for permanent families for them through international adoption.

While some of these children had no known living parents, many of them did.

“Because of the conflict,” John says, “there were a lot of parents of children who were under great duress and thought their children would be better off in an institution because they were short of food and medical care.”

Realizing this, Holt’s team in Vietnam believed there should be alternatives or options other than international adoption for birth families to consider. Holt sought and secured a USAID grant to help reunify children from institutions with their birth families and empower families in poverty to continue caring for their children.

This is how Holt’s first family strengthening program began — in October 1974.

“The program was getting off to a very good start,” explains John, a former community development Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand and USAID agriculture and refugee resettlement officer in Laos, hired by Holt to manage the program. By January 1975, John says the number of families in the program was significant. But as it became clear mid-to-late March that Saigon would soon fall to the North, the program was cut short — and Holt’s team on the ground realized it was time to make plans to leave the country.   

International Adoption Today

After the babylift, Holt couldn’t fully serve children in Vietnam again until 1989, when the Government of Vietnam invited Holt to help support and operate orphanages. In the ensuing years, Holt continued what they started before the babylift in 1975 — developing programs throughout the country that enabled children to stay in the loving care of their birth families.

International adoption from Vietnam to the U.S. occurred mostly off and on throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, as adoption legislation and country agreements changed, and was suspended in 2008. But in 2014, Holt was specifically invited to reopen the international adoption program to begin finding families for older children and those with special needs.

Today in Vietnam, similar to in the 1970s, most of the children in orphanages have living parents or extended birth family. But the reasons they remain in orphanage care are complex, from neglect or abuse to poverty or other crises that keep their families from being able to meet their child’s basic needs.

Child welfare centers are meant to provide temporary care for children — with the first goal being to reunify each child with loving birth family. Domestic adoption is pursued for the children who can’t reunify with their birth family. And only once these options are exhausted, international adoption is seen as the best opportunity for a child to grow up in a family, and not an institution.

Huong Nguyen, Holt’s Vietnam country director, explains that the government has strict criteria for who can and can’t be enrolled into orphanage care. “First, [the government] sees if the child has any kind of relatives who can take care of them,” she says. “And even if a child does come to live at the center, they have a plan for reaching out to the family to discuss when they are able to reunite the child and the family.” 

Holt partners with both government-run and private child welfare centers across the country, providing caregiver trainings and other services to ensure the best care possible for the children who call these centers home.

While many of the children living in the centers are healthy and developmentally on-target, there is a much higher rate of children with disabilities and special needs living in institutional care than you’d find in the general population. The resources needed to care for a child with a disability are so much greater, and for a family already living in poverty, it can feel impossible. 

While orphanages in Vietnam have a high rate of children with disabilities, this reflects a higher overall rate of children born with birth defects and disabilities than other countries — particularly in certain regions of Vietnam. And the reason for this is tied to events from over 50 years ago.

While it was their grandparents and great-grandparents who lived through it, even generations later, Vietnamese children are still feeling the physical effects of the war. One region that was especially impacted is the city of Hoi An.  

Special Needs in Vietnam

Hoi An is a World Heritage Site and a beautiful coastal town that was once a significant Southeast Asian trading port in central Vietnam. It’s also the location of the Kianh Foundation – an incredible school for children with disabilities and special needs that’s supported by Holt sponsors and donors.

“The rates of disability are about 15 percent higher here,” says Hoang Pham, the program development director of the Kianh Foundation. And the likely cause is Agent Orange.

During the Vietnam War, American forces blanketed Hoi An and the surrounding region with the deadly chemical compound Agent Orange as they tried to fend off enemy troops. Thousands of innocent civilians died from exposure. And for more than two generations, women in areas once hit by Agent Orange have given birth to children with much higher-than-normal rates of physical and developmental disabilities.

But in this region with such high needs, there are few resources specifically for children with disabilities. That’s why the Kianh Foundation is so important.

The Kianh Foundation is an incredible, one-of-a-kind school for children with disabilities and special needs in Vietnam. Here, they learn life skills, have access to occupational and physical therapy — and grow and develop beyond what their families ever dreamed possible.

Every day, children with autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and more come from the surrounding area to learn. But there are many more who want, and need, to come.

“We have a wait list of about 200,” Hoang says. “And the school can hold just 80.”

Through word of mouth, parents hear about the Kianh Foundation and desperately hope their child can have a spot. Attendance here is one of the greatest hopes they can find for their child to thrive, and have as independent a life as possible.

Throughout Vietnam, some families know about Holt and come to us for help. But the majority are referred to Holt by the local child welfare officials. Since the end of the conflict in Vietnam, and the reunification of the country, Vietnam operates through a strong centralized government, with local branches in each province and city. Holt works closely with the government, often filling in the gaps to provide help.

“We support the parts that the government cannot,” Huong says. This can be Holt donor-funded programs like the Kianh Foundation, as well as individual families throughout the country who are living in poverty.

Family Strengthening in Vietnam

Life in Vietnam has dramatically changed in the 50 years since the end of the Vietnam War. Economic reforms have led to greater prosperity for many people. But they have also increased disparities between rich and poor, rural and urban, and ethnic majority and minority families. Rural families often migrate to cities in search of work, putting children at risk of family separation, trafficking and exploitation.

Because of this, Holt’s family strengthening program – which began because of the needs children and families faced towards the end of the war – is active and strong today, serving more than 6,000 children and families across the country.

The Vietnamese government is quick to identify families living in poverty, however they often don’t have enough resources to provide the help children and families need to overcome it. This is where Holt Vietnam and Holt donors come in with education, single mother support and economic empowerment programs.

Helping Children Go to School

Helping children go to school is one of the foundational ways Holt donors help children in Vietnam. While some aspects of school are free to students, essentials like tutoring fees, school supplies and more can easily force a child to drop out sooner than they should. But with the right materials, and the caring oversight of a Holt social worker, thousands of children are excelling in school and on their way to graduation.

This begins at even the earliest ages, at Holt-supported daycares and preschools throughout the country. Many families living in poverty would never have the option to send their child to preschool, or even have a safe place to send their child while they go to work. And because of the nutritious meal these children receive each day at preschool, malnutrition rates have dropped significantly!

Older children receive the economic support they need to continue in their studies. And for older teenagers who may have already dropped out of school — a common occurrence for those who don’t pass the entrance exam for secondary school — Holt sponsors and donors help provide vocational training. By learning a trade such as hairdressing or running a food cart, they have the opportunity to learn a stable trade to support themselves.

And the support Holt donors provide stretches to help the entire family.

Strengthening the Entire Family

“They are the poorest of the poor,” Huong says of the families in Holt’s family strengthening program today. “They’re really in need of support, and we come at the right time, when they are at the risk of family separation or at the risk of children dropping out at school.”

Some families, out of desperation and poverty, will place their child in an institution if they aren’t able to provide enough food, medical care or other basic needs. But keeping a child in the loving care of their family is Holt’s biggest goal.

They are the poorest of the poor. They’re really in need of support, and we come at the right time, when they are at the risk of family separation or at the risk of children dropping out at school.

Huong Nguyen, Holt Vietnam’s country director

To do this, Holt’s family strengthening program comes around families living in poverty, equipping them with the tools to become self-reliant and independently provide for their children.

Once these families are identified with help from the local government, a Holt social worker will visit their home, get to know their family, understand their needs and begin to make a plan with them. For many families, this can mean helping them start small businesses or other income-generating activities like raising ducks or goats, opening a small shop, and more.

“We work with them to identify their potential and abilities, and make a business plan for them,” Huong says. “It’s very individualized. It’s a case management approach.”

In Vietnam, this often works in combination with providing education to their children. Or, if they are young, single mothers, Holt’s team in Vietnam also provides support and resources as they learn to care for their baby.

The result is that each family receives just the help they need to make their life better, overcome poverty and stay together.

While Holt’s work has grown and changed over the years, its goal and the dedication of Holt staff and donors have remained the same since John Williams first arrived in Saigon in October 1974 to help create Holt’s first family strengthening program.

Amazing Commitment in Vietnam

“The degree to which the staff, under tremendously stressful circumstances, did their job…” John trails off as he fights back tears, recalling the days leading up to the babylift in April 1975. “Their commitment was amazing.”

And this amazing commitment continues today from the Holt staff, and the Holt sponsors and donors who make Holt’s work in Vietnam possible — all for the sake of children and families in need.

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Give emergency help to a child who is hungry, sick or living in dangerous conditions. Your gift will provide the critical food, medical care, safety and more they need when they need it the most.

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The post Fifty Years After the Vietnam Babylift, Holt’s Work Continues appeared first on Holt International.

Shui arrived at Peace House when she was just 3 years old. Her silvery-white hair rested delicately under her sunhat, and behind her thick-brimmed sunglasses were soft eyes. Shui has albinism, a condition that presents both medical and social challenges in her home country of China.

She had just undergone a liver transplant — a major operation requiring proper after-care to ensure full recovery. Before the procedure, she had been living in an orphanage, but when her liver began failing, she needed urgent care. Many children who return to orphanages after critical medical procedures struggle to fully recover due to a lack of specialized care, often developing infections, open wounds and severe scarring.

Because of donor support for Peace House, Shui was transferred to a safe, warm sanctuary where she could heal.

Holt’s Medical Foster Home in China

Peace House is a special medical foster home in Northeast China. Holt began overseeing Peace House in 2011, but a lot has changed since those early days. The medical foster home was once located in the heart of Beijing, inside a high-rise apartment. The home welcomed nine children at a time, serving 30-40 each year. But recently, Peace House has transitioned to sharing a campus with an orphanage north of the city. With this change, Peace House has opened its doors to more children, now providing a home for up to 14 at a time.

The children now have the opportunity to spend time outdoors, something they couldn’t do in Peace House’s previous 31-story building in the city. Since Peace House shares a campus with the orphanage, children in the medical foster home can join in the fun activities organized by the orphanage, including holiday dances and celebrations. Caregivers also have more capacity to focus on providing specialized medical care, as the orphanage now handles food services and other basic needs. Before, caregivers were responsible for everything — cooking, laundry and more. These changes have allowed Peace House to impact more children in need of medical care, an opportunity made possible through the generosity of donors.

Overcoming Developmental Delays

When Shui arrived at Peace House, her self-care and motor skills were behind those typical for her age. She was unable to hold a spoon by herself or put on her own socks and shoes. Shui depended on caregivers for almost all her needs.

Early childhood care is critical to ensuring a child reaches developmental milestones. Without proper medical care, physical attention and nutrition, the effects of underdevelopment can be permanent. Institutionalization substantially increases the risk of delays. Children can experience developmental delays of a month for every three months they’re in an orphanage. But in nurturing foster homes like the ones Holt donors support in China and other countries, children receive the attentive care they need to reach critical milestones. In China, Holt donors support a number of group homes, including specialized homes for children with special needs — such as HIV.  And of course, Peace House.

After just two weeks of one-on-one care at Peace House, Shui developed the ability to feed and dress herself. And as time has passed, Shui has become more independent in caring for herself, even regarding her medical needs.

Living With Albinism in China

Shui’s white skin and hair set her apart from those around her, creating a stark contrast in appearance. She is often seen wearing sunglasses — and sometimes a sunhat — to protect her skin and eyes from the harsh effects of sunlight. Albinism, which causes a lack of melanin in the skin, significantly raises the risk of skin cancer. The absence of melanin also affects how she processes light, contributing to low vision and nystagmus, an involuntary movement of the eyes. As someone who is legally blind, Shui will likely need vision support throughout her life and may be unable to perform certain tasks, such as driving.

While Shui faces certain limitations due to her condition, visual support and accessibility adaptations will help her confidently navigate daily life. In China, those with albinism have historically faced social ostracization and discrimination. As albinism is often seen as a symbol of bad luck, babies born with this condition are sometimes abandoned. As they grow, these children are typically excluded from traditional educational institutions and have limited career opportunities. This is especially challenging in a society that highly values educational and occupational success.

There are efforts to change the stigma of albinism in China. Organizations like Chinese Organization for Albinism are working to raise awareness and advocate for those with the condition. Their initiatives focus on providing medical aid, mental health support and crucial information to individuals with albinism and their families. The organization hopes to educate Chinese society about the medical aspects of albinism, which affects an estimated 100,000 people in the country. Care for the marginalized is also at the heart of Holt International’s mission — and Shui is just one of many who deserve love and care.

Shui’s Surgery and Recovery

Although albinism shapes Shui’s daily life, it was her urgent liver needs that brought her to Peace House. After undergoing a liver transplant, Shui needed ongoing care that her orphanage simply couldn’t provide. Thankfully, Peace House has made a world of difference to her future.

Without treatment, infected livers are unable to regenerate tissue and eventually fail. While in care at her orphanage, Shui was able to find a match and receive a healthy liver. The journey doesn’t end there, though, which is why Peace House is instrumental in helping children recover from medical procedures and providing support for children living with lifelong medical conditions.

In the first year following her surgery, Shui underwent frequent tests to monitor for signs of possible liver rejection. She began her twice-daily immunosuppressant medication regimen to help her body accept her new liver — which is a lot for a 3-year-old to undergo. Dedicated caregivers at Peace House helped Shui recover by administering her medications, performing needed tests and providing for her meals and basic needs.

In the time since her surgery, Shui has continually been impacted by her liver transplant. She continues to take immunosuppressants daily and has monthly check-ups to monitor the function of her liver. Along with the challenges of her liver, her albinism will be a lifelong journey, with her vision continuing to pose obstacles in her daily activities. She currently needs glasses but due to her nystagmus, she cannot be fitted for glasses until she is older. This leaves her in need of assistance while navigating daily tasks. Shui will continue to live at Peace House for another year, where she will receive care and learn to manage her medical needs as independently as possible. After completing her stay with Peace House, Shui will return to the orphanage, where she will attend school and continue to receive medical care from orphanage caregivers.

Shui’s Future Growing Up in an Orphanage in China

Through the generosity of Holt donors, Peace House has supported Shui through her early childhood development and a major medical procedure. She is continuously learning to manage her needs as a liver transplant survivor and a girl with albinism. Her caregivers aim to help her achieve independence as she progresses. As for her long-term future, Shui must continue to overcome adversity.

Last August, after more than 30 years, China decided to end its international adoption program. This policy change has altered the future of many children, particularly those with medical and special needs. Holt International hopes for international adoption to one day resume in China, as the need for international adoption persists. In the meantime, some children living in orphanages may be adopted domestically in China. But in reality, it is most often the youngest, healthiest children who are adopted by families within China.  As a child considered to have special needs, Shui is unlikely to be adopted domestically in China.

Because of this reality, the care Peace House has provided for Shui makes all the difference for her future. Through Peace House, she has received nurturing, ongoing care that she likely would never have otherwise received. She has made strides in her development, overcoming adversity and growing in her ability to function independently. While Shui may spend the rest of her childhood in an institution, her healthy development with Peace House caregivers will impact the rest of her life. At 5 years old, Shui is a curious and caring little girl who loves to help and share her toys with others. Peace House has given Shui a voice, which she uses to sing — even incorporating Peking opera into her repertoire from time to time.

As Shui returns to an orphanage with resilience, more children living in orphanages with medical needs will experience the haven of Peace House. Because of the generosity of donors sharing their hearts, more children will heal and overcome seemingly unsurmountable odds to live healthy lives.

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Your gift helps a child with special needs receive the surgery, medicines, and specialized care they need!

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The post A Haven of Healing and Peace appeared first on Holt International.

Hai cranes his neck to look through the doorway of his room. His eyes light up and his smile widens when he sees that there are visitors here to see him.

Every day, Hai spends most of his time in his crib. The crib is made of metal, with wooden slats on the bottom covered by a thin woven mat. Caregivers come in to help him eat, get dressed and go to the bathroom. Twice per day, he’s placed in a special chair and wheeled out to the courtyard to sit in the sun.

Hai has severe cerebral palsy, and very limited mobility. He can lay on his back, and turn his head from side to side, but his legs and arms are twisted tightly, and very thin for a 16-year-old boy.

“It breaks my heart,” says Hang Dam, Holt’s U.S.-based director of programs for Vietnam. “When he was in his former room, he used to have a television so he could at least watch cartoons and interact with younger children.”

Now that he’s older, Hai shares a room with a 22-year-old girl with a severe mental disability. This girl has only been here a few months, and before that she spent her whole life locked in her family’s home — because they had no resources to teach her how to function in public. This is heartbreakingly common for children with disabilities who are born into poverty. Now that she’s at the center, she has to be on medication to help her stay calm. She isn’t able to speak, and cannot interact with Hai at all.

Hang pulls stickers out of her bag and puts them on the bars of Hai’s crib. His smile widens, and he can’t take his eyes off them. He asks her to give him the rest of the sheet of stickers. He doesn’t want to use all of them up right away.

Child Welfare Centers in Vietnam

The orphanage where we meet Hai is located in a province several hours south of Ho Chi Min City in Vietnam. In Vietnam, orphanages are called “child welfare centers,” and they are directed and employed by the local government.

This child welfare center is a large, white two-story building centered around an open-air courtyard. The rooms, coming off of the courtyard, have white painted walls and white tiled floors.

From the outside, you wouldn’t immediately know kids live here. Not until you see the small plastic play structure in one corner of the courtyard, or the sports court lines painted on the ground outside.

The facility is clean, orderly and well-run. The caregivers and orphanage directors have strong relationships and bonds with the children, and they work hard every day to make sure the children’s needs are met. With the support of Holt sponsors and donors, Holt’s team in Vietnam helps provide medical care, more nourishing food for the children, nutrition and feeding training for the caregivers, and helps advocate for the children to ultimately join families through reunification or adoption.

But not every child will leave to join a family. And even though Holt has helped improve the quality for care at this orphanage, even a “good” orphanage is no place that a child should grow up.

No Place to Grow Up

The reasons children come to live in child welfare centers in Vietnam are because their families can’t care for them — either because they are truly orphaned, or their parents or extended family are incapable of caring for them due to mental illness, disability or imprisonment. Some infants, and even older children, are left at the gates of the center — and found and brought in by the staff.

This is a safe place for a child to live. But it’s meant to be temporary.

“The government strategy is now to deinstitutionalize,” says Huong Nguyen, Holt’s Vietnam country director. Deinstitutionalization, or transitioning children out of orphanage care, is Holt’s goal in every country where we work. We believe children are meant to grow up in a family, not an institution.

Huong explains that the government has strict criteria for who can and can’t be enrolled into orphanage care. “First [the government] sees if the child has any kind of relatives who can take care of them,” she says. “And even if a child does come to live at the center, they have a plan for reaching out to the family to discuss when they are able to reunite the child and the family.” 

Around the world, Holt advocates for every child to thrive in the love and care of a permanent, loving family. Whenever possible, a child should be reunited with their birth family. But if this isn’t possible, we next pursue domestic and then international adoption. But each of these paths can be complex, and the reality remains that thousands of children around the world live in long-term orphanage care settings.

Holt-Supported Orphan Care

Holt sponsors and donors have supported this particular child welfare center in Vietnam for over ten years. The youngest children in the center, and those with special needs, have Holt sponsors who help provide for their nutrition and educational needs. And over the years, Holt has provided supplemental funding to hire additional caregivers, as well as nutrition and feeding trainings for the staff through our Child Nutrition Program.

One of the caregivers, Le Leiu, has worked here for nine years. Her background was in nursing, which she said has been a perfect fit for taking care of the children, especially those with medical needs. She walks around, holding 22-month-old Vy on her hip, balancing the child around her own pregnant belly. Le Leiu says Vy has bonded especially closely with her. Vy isn’t walking yet, and is small for her age — it’s possible that she has dwarfism, and the caregivers and medical staff are continuing to assess her as she grows. She snuggles into her Le Leiu’s arms, giving a shy and small grin.

“This job is very hard work,” she says, “but seeing the children grow and develop every day gives me motivation.”

In 2019, Le Leiu took part in a training from Holt’s Child Nutrition Program. During the training, she and the other caregivers learned how easily children with disabilities can choke and get injured during meals, how to position them properly, and about the specialized formula or food they need to grow and develop. She says this training made a big difference for the children.

“Phillip,” for example, has cerebral palsy, and has benefitted greatly from the nutrition training.

His caregivers received the training when he was just a baby, so his whole life he’s been fed upright with the proper chair, utensils and technique. He hasn’t experienced as much aspirating, and the lung infections that can follow, like some of the other children have had to suffer.

Philip’s eyes are bright, and he smiles freely as he moves around in his crib, playing with a toy. Properly trained caregivers, and having enough of them employed at the center, have made all the difference for him. But this is a constant struggle for orphanages, which are chronically understaffed. Despite Holt’s efforts to bring in more caregivers, this problem persists due to Vietnam’s complex bureaucracy and strict policies.

Right now, for example, there are six caregivers who take care of the youngest children and those with special needs. But Le Leiu will soon go on maternity leave, and another caregiver recently got injured and is unable to come to work. So for the foreseeable future, there are just four caregivers – split up over three shifts – caring for 14 children with disabilities. The orphanage is doing its best to fill the gap by assigning one or two additional administrative staff to support the caregivers during meals and bath time, and by allowing older children to play and interact with the toddlers after school hours. 

Many of the children here — like Philip, Hai and Vy — have disabilities or special needs. But many others who live here are perfectly healthy, both physically and mentally. Some children live here for a short while, just several months or years until the can be reunified with their birth families. But many others, like Hai, will likely live here for their entire childhood, until they either age out and go out into the world on their own, or are transferred to a center for adults with disabilities sometime in their mid-20s.

Aging Out, or Adoption

What happens when a child moves to an adult facility?

“They stay there forever,” Huong says.

But thankfully, many of these children have another option — international adoption. That is, if a family comes forward before they age out of eligibility at 16.

While Hai is too old to be adopted internationally, there is still hope for 6-year-old Phillip, who has been on Holt’s waiting child photolisting for years.

“They see international adoption as very good for children.” Huong says of how intercountry adoption is perceived in Vietnam. “Because [the child] will have a better life, and they will be cared for better, and they will have more opportunities to develop themselves.”

This is because at even the best orphanages, they rarely have the specialized resources needed to help a child with disabilities and medical needs.

“What I’ve seen, and what makes me so sad,” Huong says, “is that for children with cerebral palsy, or autism or other disabilities, if they have enough therapy, their functions can be improved.”

But while they continue to live in the orphanage, their development is slow. While the resources provided by Holt donors address the most basic needs of the children — nutrition, education, medical care, even some therapy — their psychosocial and emotional needs can never fully be met in an institutional setting.

That’s why international adoption offers so much hope — in the care of a loving family, children can receive the medical care and therapies that are simply inaccessible in an orphanage.

Domestic Adoption in Vietnam

At Holt, our priority is to reunite children with their birth families. If that’s not possible, domestic adoption is explored for a child, and this option is always pursued first before international adoption.

However, domestic adoptions, Huong explains, really only happen for the youngest and healthiest children.

For the children who are eligible for domestic or international adoption, they live each day, month and year in hopeful waiting for a family to adopt them.

The Complexity of Reunification

For some children, it’s a different kind of waiting. These children are waiting for their birth family to become stable enough to bring them back home.

“I felt scared when I first came here to live,” says Thuy. Today she’s 16, but she started living here at just 6 years old. She’s a beautiful young woman, petite with an athletic build. Glasses frame her deep, bright eyes, which fill with tears as she shares her story.

“He can take care of me,” she says about her father, who lives just a couple miles away from the center. But the heartbreaking, unspoken implication is that he’s not truly capable of caring for her…

Thuy says her father used to come and visit her, as well as her older biological sister who lived in the center. But he visited less and less frequently as she grew up. Now, she mostly sees him on holidays.

“I wanted to live with my father, but he often drinks,” she says. “He goes out and gets drunk all the time, and comes back violent… So I feel safer here.” She cries softly as she shares this, and the orphanage staff who sit with her fail to hold back their tears as well.

Thuy says that in the future she wants to graduate and get a good job, so that she can help support her father and biological sister.  

Despite her father’s abuse and unhealthy lifestyle, it’s evident that she still cares for him deeply. It’s a complexity that shows a child’s deepest desire – to be loved and wanted by family. And while the children live here at the center, the caregivers try to operate as close to a family as they can.

Orphanage Family

The children who live here refer to each other as brothers and sisters, and to their caregivers as mothers. Because for the time being, they are each other’s family.

Caregivers will take the older children out for coffee, to talk with them and offer support. And even when children age out of the center, they often come back to help take care of the younger children — or to receive support from the staff as they learn how to find an apartment, apply for a job, budget their money and learn how to cook.

“I’m both happy and sad when I’m living here.”

Thuy walks upstairs, down an open-air hallway to a room that she shares with six other girls. Above the entrance to their room is a brightly colored, handmade sign that reads “Tiem Salon” with drawings of hearts and stars around it.

The room consists of three bunk beds, and in one corner are several clothes racks that hold the girls’ school uniforms and outfits.

Thuy shows us her bunk, but then points to a different bed across the room.

“I sleep here, though, with my sister,” she says.

“They love each other,” her caregiver says smiling. These girls aren’t biological sisters, but have bonded closely as sisters while they’ve lived here.

“I’m both happy and sad when I’m living here,” Thuy says.

This sentiment could describe every child who lives here. Each of them has experienced the heartbreak of illness, poverty, family loss and more. But they live every day with hope.

Here at the center, they are safe, they have enough food, go to school and have their basic needs met. Their caregivers do all they can for them, and are constantly striving to make their lives better.

They hope for a family — whether that means going home to their birth family or joining a family through adoption. And they embrace their “family” in the orphanage as they wait.

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The post Growing Up in an Orphanage appeared first on Holt International.

China

In early September, Holt received word from the U.S. Department of State that China had decided to officially end its international adoption program. We are heartbroken for the many matched children and families who have been waiting to unite since the Chinese government suspended all adoption processing at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic — and for all the children who will be left to grow up in orphanages because of this decision.

In response to China’s ruling, Holt recently sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, urging him to raise to the highest levels of the Chinese government the plight of children waiting to be united with their adoptive American families. 

Because we know you share our belief that every child should have a family, we humbly ask you to join us in advocating for children in China. Please contact your U.S. representative and senators today and urge them to encourage the U.S. Department of State to ask China for clarity on in-process adoptions and to resume international adoption.

This action tool on the National Council for Adoption’s website will quickly allow you to send personal messages to all three Congressional offices.

In both emails or calls to your senators and representative:

• Tell them you are a constituent and let them know if this issue impacts your family directly.
• Request that Congress and the Administration advocate at the highest levels of the U.S. government on behalf of the children in China waiting to join families in the U.S.
• Personalize your message and your individual situation (adoptive family, extended family, friend, advocate, etc.).  
• Thank them for their interest and support, and let them know you look forward to their response.

Please also encourage your family and friends to contact their senators and representative using the above instructions.

Over the past 32 years, Holt has helped more than 7,700 children from China join loving, permanent families in the U.S. In more recent years, Holt’s China team has helped find loving families for many children with medical, developmental, cognitive or emotional disabilities or special needs. 

Moving forward, we will continue to provide in-country programs and services for orphaned and vulnerable children — improving the quality of care children receive in orphanages and group homes, and providing support and resources to strengthen families that might otherwise separate under the strains of poverty. 

Our two other adoption programs in the region — Hong Kong and Taiwan — continue to move forward with uniting children and families through international adoption.

Ethiopia

Malaria has long been a major health issue in southern Ethiopia’s Kembata-Tembaro zone, where Holt has been serving children and families since 2008. In September, Holt Ethiopia collaborated with local government officials to conduct a third campaign to mobilize health workers and facilitate community-level treatment and awareness initiatives.

Holt Ethiopia also provided the Shinshicho Mother and Child Hospital with additional mattresses and beds for both children and adults, due to an increase in need. The Mother and Child Hospital opened in 2015, with the generous support of Holt donors. Today, the health center provides a wide range of medical services to more than 400 patients a day in the impoverished Kembata-Tembaro rural region.

India

Each year, on August 15, people across India celebrate Independence Day to commemorate the day in 1947 when the nation gained its freedom from British rule. This year, children at all of Holt’s partnering childcare centers observed the day with patriotism and pride. Dressed in clothing bearing the colors of the national flag (saffron, green and white), the children gave speeches honoring the spirit of freedom and unity and performed patriotic songs and dances. The program was followed by a special lunch, displaying foods in the colors of the Indian flag. The day’s activities were generously supported by Holt donors and sponsors.

Philippines

In late July, the heavy rains and winds of Typhoon Gaemi caused widespread flooding throughout Manila, and especially in the impoverished communities where children and families in Holt-supported programs live.

In response, Holt organized a fundraising campaign to help families affected by the flooding and devastation. And thanks to the generosity of Holt donors, our partner agency in the Philippines, Kaisahang Buhay Foundation (KBF), was able to quickly distribute emergency relief packages to 437 children and their parents sheltered in evacuation centers. Each relief package contained rice, canned goods, crackers, chewable vitamin C, rubbing alcohol, a bath towel, a woven mat and pillow. The items were carefully selected to keep children from going hungry, and to keep them healthy amidst the damp and unhygienic conditions in their post-flood homes and neighborhoods.

Glady Bunao, the executive director of KBF, thanked Holt donors on behalf of families in the Philippines. In a letter she wrote, “During the distribution of your support to the children and families, they expressed their deepest appreciation to Holt donors for this material support. Many of them said that they can now comfortably sleep at night because they have dry pillows, blankets and sleeping mats. They are so thankful for the medicines, food and liquid sanitizers/alcohol. They would like KBF to extend their gratitude.”

Uganda

World Breastfeeding Week is held the first week of every August and is supported by the World Health Organization, UNICEF and the ministries of health in more than 120 participating countries. This year’s theme was “Closing the Gap: Breastfeeding Support for All.”

Breast milk has been known to protect babies and young children against illnesses such as diarrhea, ear and chest infections, and other serious health problems. Educating parents about the benefits of breastfeeding is particularly important in a country like Uganda, where more than 20% of people live in chronic poverty, and one third of children under age 5 are stunted due to poor nutrition.

During this year’s World Breastfeeding Week, Holt Uganda spearheaded activities in its target communities, kicking off with opening ceremonies that drew 668 pregnant, lactating and breastfeeding mothers and 157 fathers. In central Uganda’s Luwero district, Holt Uganda held a separate “breastfeeding camp” that reached more than 350 mothers. Holt staff disseminated brochures at the event and offered presentations on breastfeeding, family planning services and healthy meal preparation.

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The post Notes from the Field: October 2024 appeared first on Holt International.

Katrina’s health conditions are some of the most serious we’ve ever seen. She was born without a full skull, with a cleft lip and palate, and she also suffers from regular seizures and severe asthma.

For Katrina, each day is a gift. And each milestone a cause for celebration. So for her recent eighth birthday, there was a full party and photoshoot!

In a beautiful floral dress and headband, she sat on a padded chair in front of the decorations her caregivers lovingly set up for her. Her caregivers and the other children at the care center sang “Happy Birthday,” and celebrated Katrina and another year of life.

“Every day is a new challenge for [Katrina], as every season is a change that affects her health condition,” says Ms. Nisan, the care center director where Katrina lives in the Philippines. “Despite this situation, she continues to inspire us with her strength and resilience to overcome every health challenge.”

Overcoming these challenges is, in large part, made possible by the loving, committed support of Holt donors.

Helping Children with Medical Needs

Each year, Holt donors give to the Molly Holt Fund to help children just like Katrina. Molly Holt was a nurse and the daughter of our founders, and she dedicated her life to caring for children with disabilities and special needs. Today, this fund continues in her honor, providing critical medical care, therapies, nutrition and feeding help, special education and more to children around the world.

Katrina’s care center in the Philippines is one of the incredible programs that Holt donors support through the Molly Holt Fund. They provide multiple services for the orphaned and vulnerable children in their care, including residential care, foster care, independent living programs for older children, and support to reunite them with their birth families, if possible.

For Katrina and other children like her with the highest of medical needs, there’s also the children’s recovery unit.

Caring for the Most Medically Fragile Children

The children’s recovery unit serves medically fragile children by helping to restore and improve their health. Some of the children live there temporarily until they can become healthier and reunify with their families. Others are part of an outpatient program for families living in neighboring communities. Through this program, parents can bring their children in each day for specialized therapies and medical care.

In their children’s recovery unit, Katrina receives daily, specialized care, including a very specific diet to ensure her body has enough strength and nutrients to get through her frequent seizures. She has access to an expert team of doctors at a nearby hospital. Nurses make sure she has the asthma medication and breathing treatments she needs to strengthen her lungs. She is gently cared for and set only on soft materials that will keep her head and brain safe.

“The staff care tremendously for the children there… Programs like Helping Hands give children the chance at life they deserve.”

Julia Hayes, Holt’s manager of nutrition and health services, visited Katrina’s care center earlier this year and was impressed by the level of care the children received.  

“The staff care tremendously for the children there,” Julia says. “I was introduced to a few of the kids who laughed and played and felt free to be a kid. After lunch, many of the children were brought outside for fresh air, sunshine and play. I found that children with special needs are met with the resources they need right at home, including modified diets prepared by kitchen staff and specialized medical care provided by nurses.”

This high-level care makes a tremendous difference for all of the children who live there, but especially those with the highest level of medical needs.

Top-Level Care for Children with Special Needs

In addition to Katrina, there’s Mary Ann, who has endured years of seizures and paralysis due bacterial meningitis — but is now recuperating and building her strength with specialized nutrition. Stephanie was born with microcephaly, and is also epileptic, mute, deaf and blind. She was neglected and malnourished when she was first brought to her care center, but is now gaining weight and experiencing fewer seizures because of the nurturing care she’s receiving.

Kevin was just 9 days old when he was brought into care in May of this year. He was born at a very low birth weight, and was found to be allergic to the cow’s milk in his formula. With support, he now receives specialized formula and is being closely monitored. He is growing and thriving more each day!

To grow and thrive is the goal for every child at this special care center. Even those with the most severe needs, like Katrina.

To Grow and Thrive

While the medical care and nutrition interventions create a tangible and powerful outcome for the children here, just as important is the nurturing care they receive from their caregivers, made possible by Holt donors.

Something as simple as a birthday party can show a child that she is loved and cared about. She can feel at peace knowing that loving adults will keep her safe, fed, and meet even her most complex needs. She can know her immense value, in the midst of the challenges she faces. 

“Programs like [this one] give children the chance at life they deserve,” Julia says. “Specialized care helps children know they are safe and that their needs will always be met. This felt safety supports development and growth — and helps them achieve more than ever thought possible.”

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The post The Chance at Life They Deserve appeared first on Holt International.

Two-year-old Kashvi was sick when she first came into care at our partner orphanage in India.

She was small for her age due to malnutrition and was behind in development when it came to talking and walking. But she was soon diagnosed with something even more serious, something that would require lifesaving care…

When Children Come to the Orphanage

Kashvi and her sister first came to our partner organization in Pune, Bharatiya Samaj Seva Kendra (BSSK), because their mother has an intellectual disability that made her unable to safely care for them and meet their basic needs. Children come into orphanage care for a myriad of reasons, each reason heartbreaking. While Holt and Holt’s partner organizations always strive to first keep a child in the care of their birth family, this is sometimes not possible — as was the case for Kashvi and her sister.

Many children are sick when they first enter orphanage care. Sometime this has to do with underlying medical conditions or special needs. Sometimes it has to do with the impoverished conditions they lived in before coming into care. Sometimes it’s because they routinely experienced hunger. Often, it’s a combination of all three. 

“We see that upwards of 40% of children are malnourished when children come into care,” says Emily DeLacey, Holt’s director of nutrition and health services, “with an even higher prevalence of malnutrition among the 25% of children who come into care with a medical need or disability.”

This was true for Kashvi. But thanks to Holt sponsors and donors, there was a place ready to provide her with the medical care, nutritious food and therapies she needed to become healthy again.

High-Standard Medical Care for Orphaned Children in India

BSSK has cared for children for more than 44 years and has high standards of care for the children at their facility. Donors help make it possible for BSSK to maintain a low caregiver-to-child ratio, ensuring that children’s individual needs are noticed and met. Trained cooks prepare nutritious meals. Orphanage staff track children’s nutrition and growth through Holt’s Child Nutrition Program, providing interventions when needed. Safe indoor and outdoor play areas give children a fun place to play and develop. And each child regularly meets with occupational therapists who assess their needs and help them work toward their physical, emotional and developmental goals. There’s even an intensive neonatal care unit on site for the smallest, most fragile babies.

With this attentive care, Kashvi’s health began to improve.

“She not only gained weight, but also started to thrive socially and emotionally,” says Prajakta, BSSK’s childcare program director. “Her integration into age-appropriate activities and interactions with other children reflect her growing confidence and comfort in her surroundings.”

But she still seemed easily tired and out of breath when she played with the other children. Her caregivers took these concerns to Kashvi’s doctor, who quickly found out what was wrong — Kashvi had a hole in her heart.

It’s not uncommon for children to be born with a small hole in their heart, although it often resolves itself within a couple of years. But Kashvi’s heart defect was large, and would need surgery to repair.

Kashvi’s Heart Condition

Kashvi’s heart condition also likely played a large role in why she was malnourished. Her heart was having to work harder than it should – increasing her metabolism and energy requirements. The reduced blood flow can also slow gut motility and decrease stomach size. Her heart’s inefficient pumping also causes fluid to back up into other organs. Often children with heart issues will need specialized diets (such as low fluid or salt), which can also make it hard to ensure a child receives adequate intake.

Because of her heart condition, Kashvi was more at risk for decreased food intake, frequent illnesses, infections, impaired nutrient absorption and increased energy and protein needs. If her condition was not treated early, she would be permanently impacted from malnutrition and poor growth…

But thankfully, with support from generous Holt sponsors and donors, the resources were available to help Kashvi right away.

“Our team, supported by Holt’s generosity, immediately sprang into action,” Prajakta says, “ensuring she received the necessary medical attention and support.”

Medical Resources, Nurturing Care

In order to have a successful surgery, Kashvi needed specialized medical care in the days leading up to the procedure. She had a cardiac catheter that helped determine exactly what was going on in her heart, as well as daily four-hour-long oxygen treatments. But her dedicated orphanage caregivers were there with her every step of the way.

Kashvi received open heart surgery to repair the hole in her heart, and it was successful! Her caregivers say she was strong and in good spirits throughout the whole process. Although her journey was not yet over.

“None of this would have been possible without the steadfast support of Holt [donors]. Their generosity has enabled us to provide Kashvi with the love, care and support she deserves.”

Next came 15 days of intensive post-operative care in the hospital, as Kashvi’s doctors strived to ensure she recovered well. Her caregivers remained at her side while she recovered, and then helped her adjust back to life in the orphanage as soon as she was able to return.

Today, Kashvi is 4 years old and doing so well. Her caregivers and doctors keep close watch on her health, and ensure that she receives the care she needs to continue to recover and grow. She and her sister are both matched with adoptive families, and will unite with them as soon as the adoption process is complete.

“None of this would have been possible without the steadfast support of Holt [donors],” Prajakta says. “Their generosity has enabled us to provide Kashvi with the love, care and support she deserves.”

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I lifted 6-year-old Carlos up off the paved basketball court, just high enough so he could reach the rim. As I looked up at him, the smile on his face said it all — his first slam dunk!

This was one of my favorite moments from my recent, and first, trip to Holt’s programs in Colombia. I traveled with members of Holt’s international programs and Colombia team, and I was so encouraged by all the work Holt sponsors and donors are doing for children there through our partner organizations.

Holt’s Partner Organizations in Colombia

As we visited Foundation for the Assistance of Abandoned Children (FANA) our partner child caring agency in Bogotá, I learned we’d have an opportunity to meet with and play outdoors with some children. I didn’t do so well on the soccer field, but I was more than willing to join kids on the basketball court. I started shooting hoops with a group of children, who I learned was a sibling set of five — Carlos and his siblings.

FANA’s first priority for children in their care is reunification with birth families — a model Holt upholds in every country where we work. However, many children in orphanage care in Colombia have experienced abuse and neglect, and it would not be safe or possible for them to reunite with their families. So for children like Carlos and his siblings, international adoption is their best hope for a permanent, loving family.

FANA also provides free early education, as well as well as specialized therapeutic supports such as physical and occupational therapy, tutoring help and more to over 300 children. It was so special meeting these little ones, knowing that each was receiving the help they needed to thrive.

I was also fortunate to visit two of our other partner organization in Colombia, BAMBI and La Casa.

BAMBI is located up an impossibly steep hill on the outskirts of the city, and provides temporary residential care as well as a free daycare for children whose parents are working to become stable and independent. The care they provide families is so holistic – offering childcare and nutrition to help with children’s immediate needs, while also investing in long-term solutions like parenting classes and vocational training for parents.

At our other Holt-supported child caring agency, La Casa de la Madre y el Niño (La Casa), over 200 children are provided specialized care while in the process of reunification or adoption. Many of these children have special needs or medical conditions, and La Casa provide the nutrition, health, and psychological support needed to prepare them for permanency.

Hope for Children in Colombia

As I lifted little Carlos up for his slam dunk, I couldn’t help but think, if only “uplifting children” were truly this easy! Because the real work is in the committed, everyday services and advocacy that our partners do every day for children — funded generously by Holt donors.

Our wonderful partners in Colombia advocate tirelessly for each child in their programs — whether it’s to help them reunify with their birth family, overcome poverty, or be united with a family through international adoption. This dedication is why I have hope that we can find a permanent, loving family for Carlos and his four siblings. It’s why I’m so excited about all that’s going on in Colombia — and have hope for every child in our programs there.

Learn more about Holt’s work in Colombia!

See how sponsors and donors create a brighter, more hopeful future for children and families in Colombia!

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The post Uplifting Children in Colombia appeared first on Holt International.

Stay tuned for the full-length documentary featuring Holt staff — and hosted by actress Meg Ryan — on PBS this month!

Keep a Child From Growing Up in an Orphanage!

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The post VIDEO: The Disadvantages of Growing Up in an Orphanage appeared first on Holt International.