US Adoptions To Halt From Guatemala as of Jan 1, 2008

Reading this brought me to my knees. Yes, you read it correctly. This was a statement issued today by the Joint Council On International Children's Services (JCICS) and National Council For Adoption (NCFA). The following is an excerpt from their statement from the JCICS website:

"September 26, 2007 – According to the U.S. Department of State, during a recent meeting of the international community sponsored by the Hague Permanent Bureau, the Berger administration announced that as of January 1, 2008, the date on which the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption goes into force in Guatemala, all adoptions from Guatemala must meet Hague standards. This new rule affects all adoptions, including even pending adoptions filed before January 1, 2008. As of January 1, 2008, Guatemala will not process any adoptions to non-Hague countries, including the United States.

Guatemala does not currently possess a functioning Hague-compliant adoption process. Even should a Hague-compliant system be established in Guatemala by January 1, 2008, the U.S. is not expected to come into full Hague compliance until April 1, 2008 or later. If Guatemala proceeds as announced, all intercountry adoptions from Guatemala to the U.S. will therefore come to a halt on January 1, 2008, including “pipeline” cases where children and parents have been matched. At this time, the best-case scenario would be a resumption of U.S. adoptions from Guatemala on or after April 1, 2008, under a process with still-unknown procedures or timeline."


I know all of you reading this are wondering about the fate of our case...I can't answer that question. At best our case will be completed by end the end of the year, at second best our case will "stall out" next year until the US becomes Hague compliant, at worst....we lose our child.

Have I given up HOPE? Absolutely not....if I am going down, it's going to be kicking and screaming. For those of you that know me well, you know this won't be a pretty sight. There are so many families impacted by this "threat"...we are not in this alone. This means there are many people acting and advocating for the many pending cases and the many waiting children.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP???
There is an online petition....it takes seconds to sign and submit. I am posting the link....I BEG of you to please do this. Tell everyone you know to come visit our blog page and sign this petition. Click on the link below:
http://www.petitiononline.com/foafoa1/petition.html

I had the chance to visit with our adoption consultant this evening. She has assured me that steps are being taken in Guatemala to advocate for the waiting children and families too. She also said the home is in the process of becoming hague approved. At this point our case continues in process...awaiting PA, hoping to be out of family court soon. Our attorney MAY try to submit our case to PGN without PA once we are out of family court.

I am away from home this evening because of work meetings. As I paused for a moment while typing this, I looked outside my window. It is pitch black outside, at first glance I noticed the light of only street lights and passing cars. Then in the distance, a wondrous light caught my eye. There is a giant white cross surrounded by lights. It's absolutely beautiful...shining in all it's glory in the dark night.

I am reminded once again to hold on to my faith and trust in Him. He has heard my cries, He knows the desires of my heart. He is sovereign and He has great plans for my family....plans of hope and protection, not harm.

I found out this evening that another family, whose son is at the same home as Mason, received PA today. Theirs was issued UNDER the 60 time frame the US Embassy has given. Praise God!

Good night.