Let met start this blog by stating in my family, I’m the total slacker. I see my little sister and I know I am definitely not doing nearly enough. Besides growing up she was the certified genius of the family, as an adult she has six children already, a full time job where she still seeks out advancement and recently earned herself a major promotion, she’s getting another masters and she serves on her school committee as an elected leader. There is nothing that stands in her way when she wants something. (Now I write books, never took any tests for genius levels to be certified, and I’m generally happy… But my sister is the amazing one today.)
My sister Sabrina first adopted her two boys years ago but you’d never guess and she hates to even mention that because they are her boys and she’s their mom. She had 4 natural girls, the younger girls in the picture above. So she’s already had experience blending her family. And you’d never know the boys were adopted as they all work together, whether it’s cleaning the house to do the chores or having an at home dance party where everyone takes turns as DJ.
All of this is background information. For Christmas she opened her home to take in an orphan for the holidays. She signed up to get a boy. At the last second everything fell apart and instead she took this Ukrainian orphan 13 year old girl. (The blonde girl.) Now this is where I’m going to ask for your help. We can’t change the world but we can help one person, and in this case it’s this girl.
After spending Christmas with her, they wanted to keep her forever. However international adoption is different than US adoption. And way more expensive. She hadn’t known this girl, but once she stayed in her house, she wants her to stay forever. This teenager’s parents were murdered. She lives in an orphanage. If she’s not adopted out soon she’s sent to a work camp and most of the orphan girls lives end horribly. My sister wants to bring this girl to Boston, send her to high school and be there for her. As you can see in the picture above, her daughters already want her there. (The boys want her there too, though they are not in the girly pink picture.)
The Ukrainian government doesn’t care if you want a teenager or an infant. The price is the same. The Ukrainian government wants $20,000 dollars for one of their children. So what’s stopping this girl from being with a family that wants to keep her is money. If you can give anything at all to help, it will speed up the process to get her out of the orphanage.
And the money is tax deductible as it’s all going to a company that specializes in foreign adoption costs… no money goes into anyone’s hands at all this way. So if you can help, please do… https://www.purecharity.com/importing-irina?fbclid=IwAR2WGSMlW8nyvmG9JFkjLepDre6dXPw-5qjgEH8mhgKoNKL2gTjdTlB2wfA
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to adopt a child from Ukraine?
The Ukrainian government charges $20,000 to adopt one of their children, regardless of whether the child is a teenager or an infant. This flat fee applies to all international adoptions from Ukraine, making the process significantly more expensive than domestic adoption in the United States, where costs and processes differ considerably.
What happens to Ukrainian orphans who are not adopted by a certain age?
Ukrainian orphans who are not adopted in time are sent to work camps, and according to accounts from those familiar with the system, most girls in that situation face extremely difficult and dangerous outcomes. This urgent timeline is a major reason why families seeking to adopt older Ukrainian children often race to complete the expensive international adoption process quickly.
Is adopting internationally different from adopting a child within the US?
Yes, international adoption is significantly different from domestic US adoption, primarily in cost and complexity. While US adoption processes and fees vary by state and circumstance, international adoption from countries like Ukraine involves fixed government fees — in Ukraine’s case, $20,000 per child — plus additional legal and administrative costs, making it far more financially demanding than most domestic adoptions.
