  
| Boy(s) for Yost family! We recently had the wonderful experience hosting two teen boys from Ukraine through an organization called Host Ukraine. D is 16 years old. We hosted him last summer and this past winter. R is 14 and spent this winter with us as well. It was very evident almost immediately that both boys fit into our family, and we wish to make them a permanent part of our family. Statistically, older orphans do not favor them. Ukraine considers children “graduated” from the orphanage system when they turn 16 (in some cases, children are allowed to stay until age 17). General statistics of children who age out of the system: § At age 16, children are considered “aged out” and are turned into the street § 60% of girls end up being trafficked for prostitution/pornography within 2 years. Orphans are at extremely high risk for being trafficked and exploited. § 50%+ of the girls become pregnant as teenagers, and more than 80% of babies born to former orphans become wards of the state within 3 years, creating the next generation of orphans § 70% of the boys wind up in jail within 2 years of leaving the orphanage § 15% of children commit suicide within 2 years of “graduating” Once a child has been placed in a state care-giving institution, they are viewed socially as having been effectively incarcerated. Children who have been wards of the state will have “ORPHAN” stamped in their national ID papers for the rest of their life. This ensures that they are socially discriminated against at every turn. They are not eligible to enter universities or apply for stable employment. The best that orphan graduates can hope for is to possibly enter a trade school and try to avoid being pimped or trafficked while they survive without a support structure, often living homeless. For those that know us, adoption is not new as our son Andrew was adopted from Russia in 2002 at the age of 9. We were in process to adopt 2 brothers from Belarus in 2004 when the country shut down to adoptions weeks before we were to travel. Belarus has never reopened to the US for adoptions. At the time of the shutdown we found out that we were going to be blessed with our youngest son the following year. We continued to pray that Belarus would reopen and that we would be able to complete that adoption. However, it was evident that it would not reopen. Life continued on, but there was always that nagging feeling that we weren’t done with adding to our family. Russia closed a few years ago, so that option was out for us. Hosting programs didn’t exist when we adopted in 2002, but we had heard about them from some of our friends who are also adoptive parents. We are painfully aware that the older the orphans are, the harder it is for them to be adopted. Statistically, these older teens simply don’t have many opportunities to experience what it means to be part of a loving family, to not want for food, to sleep in a comfortable safe bed, to be tucked in at night, to receive hugs and be loved on. This led us to hosting D in the summer of 2017. We weren’t sure what path this would lead us on, but we know that God put this mission on our hearts and D in our lives for a reason. He instantly became a part of our family. He was here for 11 weeks and when he left to return to Ukraine, it was apparent that he was missed, even the pets kept looking for him for weeks. At 15, these kids have a lot of choices to make about their lives, making decisions that will impact their lives after they leave the orphanage. D asked to come back to us for the holidays, he missed us and we him, and so we agreed to host him again. We also hosted R as well. R had just turned 14 prior to coming for the holidays. The two boys got along well, even though they had not met prior to travelling here in December. They were here for 4 short weeks and the house is definitely empty without them here. It is our desire to make D and R part of our family. D is already 16, which is most cases means that he would not be eligible for US adoption. However, we took the necessary steps prior to his birthday in insure that adoption was still an option for him. But, we need to try and get the process done for both boys as quickly as possible. We have been diligently working on our home study since they left in January, and it is close to completion. We have been able to use the financial resources we have (savings, selling on eBay, cutting back on unnecessary items, eating out less, etc.) to pay for the expenses we’ve incurred here in the US, including USCIS application fees, home study, oversight agency fees, fingerprinting and medical exams, including blood tests, as well as the fees required to bring the boys here to the US during hosting. However, we need assistance with the remaining. Namely, our incountry fees of $19,000 and our travel costs (i.e. airfare for 3 trips to Ukraine, food, lodging, train tickets, drivers, etc.) which are estimated to be around $8,000 - $10,000 total. We are hopeful that our dossier (a compilation of documents that the authorities in Ukraine require us to submit) will be completed and ready for submission while the boys are here for the summer and we will be able to travel for our first appointment in Ukraine shortly after they return in August. Please consider partnering with us to bring the boys home forever, where they will have a warm bed to sleep in, not have to worry about having enough food to eat, not have to worry about war, to have a family that deeply loves them and will care for them, to have an extended family that will greet them with open arms as if they have always belonged. We ask that you pray for their safety while they are not with us and for us as we continue on this journey in bringing these boys home forever. Susan and George Yost Family GOFUNDME Page! Your Gift is NOT Tax Deductible |
