Eat at Ruby Tuesday on 3/21 to benefit Reece's Rainbow and other local DSAs!

CELEBRATE WORLD DOWN SYNDROME DAY!

Come join Reece’s Rainbow at RUBY TUESDAY for lunch or dinner

on March 21, 2013

In MD/DC/VA, Reece’s Rainbow will earn 20% of your meal total!

In the other metro areas, the *local Down syndrome family support groups* will earn 20% of your meal total!

 We’re so grateful to our friends at Ruby Tuesday for another opportunity to raise awareness for people with Down syndrome in our communities!

In only 6 1/2 years, Reece’s Rainbow has helped find “forever families” for almost 1000 orphaned children with Down syndrome and other special needs around the world!  These children are now living happy, healthy, cherished lives with families in communities all across America!  Join us for lunch or dinner (or both!) on Thursday, March 21, 2013, and show your support for Reece’s Rainbow!  EVERYONE IS WELCOME, not just families of children with Down syndrome.   This is an important opportunity to reach outside of our existing Down syndrome/special needs community, and share the GIFT of Down syndrome as we all know it

A TWIST!  Post on our Facebook page or Tweet photos (@reecesrainbow #downsyndromerubytuesday) of you and your family/friends eating at your local Ruby Tuesday during our “Giveback”, and one random winner will win $1000 to donate to your choice of families adopting a child with Down syndrome with Reece’s Rainbow!

1. See the list below for the participating restaurants in your state.
2. Facebook, tweet, blog, email and invite your friends & family to join you
3. Tweet this event often over the next 2 weeks to celebs and other folks on Twitter!
4. Share this event with your local Down syndrome support groups!
5. Make copies of the flyer and distribute to your local schools, churches, and on cars in parking lots
6. PRINT THE FLYER AND TAKE IT WITH YOU ON MARCH 21.
7. Take lots of pics and post them on our Facebook Page with your names and city/state
8. Tweet us @reecesrainbow with hashtag #downsyndromerubytuesday
9. On Friday, March 22, we will announce the winner!

See below for a complete list of participating restaurants in your state.  Ruby Tuesday does not have stores in every state, and some locations already have other GiveBack events scheduled for this date.  You MUST print out this flier to give to your server for Reece’s Rainbow and your local DS support groups to receive 20% of your purchase!    Click to download or preview then print (if you have the option ‘fit to page’ be sure to select that).

1. Atlanta (Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta)
2. Nashville  (Down Syndrome Association of Middle Tennessee)
3. Memphis (Down Syndrome Association of Memphis & the Mid-South)
4. Knoxville (Down Syndrome Awareness Group of East TN)
5. Raleigh (Triangle Down Syndrome Network) flyer coming soon!
6. Kansas City (Down Syndrome Guild of Greater Kansas City)
7. San Antonio (Down Syndrome Association of South Texas) (March 22 & 23 only)
8. Des Moines  (Gigi’s Playhouse)
9. Baton Rouge (Down Syndrome Awareness Group of Baton Rouge)
10. New Orleans (Down Syndrome Association of Greater New Orleans)
11. Indianapolis (Down Syndrome Indiana)
12. Rhode Island (Down Syndrome Society of Rhode Island)
13. Maryland/DC/Virginia (Reece’s Rainbow)

Grab This!

family welcomes girl with Down syndrome before Russian ban

from Daily Herald by Danny Crivello:
An American Fork family reportedly adopted a 4-year-old Russian girl with Down syndrome just days before Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a bill banning Americans from adopting Russian children -- presumably making the girl, Hazel, one of the last of those now-banned adoptions.
Heather and Jeremy Fillmore welcomed Hazel into their American Fork home only an hour before Christmas began, the Deseret News reports. It took about 11 months for the Fillmores to bring the girl home from Russia prior to her arrival at Salt Lake City International Airport.
“It’s been tough, but worth it, and to have her here and be part of our family, it’s now great,” Jeremy Fillmore told the newspaper. “We feel like we’re complete and we’re excited to have her.”
The Fillmores will be among the last of more than 60,000 American families to bring up a Russian child as their own as Russia signed a bill this week outlawing the process. President Vladimir Putin's approval of the adoption ban will leave nearly 50 Russian children on the verge of adoption by U.S. families now stranded.
The Fillmores found Hazel through a website that advocates for children with special needs called Reece’s Rainbow Down Syndrome Adoption Ministry. She was the family’s second girl they adopted from Russia via the website. Anya, now 7, was adopted in March 2011, the newspaper reports.
Putin on Friday signed a bill banning Americans from adopting Russian children, part of a harsh response to a U.S. law targeting Russians deemed to be human rights violators, the Associated Press reported.
Although some top Russian officials including the foreign minister openly opposed the bill and Putin himself had been noncommittal about it last week, he signed it less than 24 hours after receiving it from Parliament, where both houses passed it overwhelmingly.
Children's rights ombudsman Pavel Astakhov said 52 children who were in the pipeline for U.S. adoption would remain in Russia.
The bill has angered Americans and Russians who argue it victimizes children to make a political point, cutting off a route out of frequently dismal orphanages for thousands.

Russia's lower house approves bill to ban U.S. adoption

from CNN:
Lawmakers in Moscow moved to ban Americans from adopting Russian children Friday, as they passed a bill that imposes a series of sanctions on U.S. interests, state media reported.

Russia is one of the top sources of international adoptions to the United States.

The State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, adopted the bill on its third reading, the state-run RAPSI news agency reported.

The measure will now move to the Federation Council and, if approved there, will go to President Vladimir Putin to be signed into law, the news agency said.

The legislation could affect hundreds of American families seeking to adopt Russian children.

It also bars any political activities by nongovernmental organizations receiving funding from the United States, if such activities may affect Russian interests, the news agency said, and imposes sanctions against U.S. officials thought to have violated human rights.

The move by Russian politicians is widely seen as retaliation to a law that U.S. President Barack Obama signed on December 14. That bill, called the Magnitsky Act, imposes U.S. travel and financial restrictions on human rights abusers in Russia. It was criticized by Russian leaders.

The U.S. act is named after a Russian lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky who uncovered the largest tax fraud in the country's history in the form of rebates claimed by government officials who stole money from the state. After Magnitsky died in a Moscow detention center in 2009, his name became the basis of Washington's list of Russian officials who were involved in the tax fraud and in the deceased lawyer's detention.

The bill passed by the State Duma is named in turn after Dima Yakovlev, a 2-year-old boy who died while in the care of a U.S. adoptive family, RAPSI said.

Its implementation would nullify an agreement between the United States and Russia, in which the countries agreed to additional safeguards to protect children and parties involved in intercountry adoptions.

From 1999 to 2011, there were 45,112 adoptions to the United States from Russia, second to only China, according to the U.S. State Department statistics. However, the number of adoptions from Russia has waned in recent years after a peak in 2005.

Backers of the Russian bill said American adoptive parents have been abusive, citing 19 deaths of Russian children by their foster parents since the 1990s, according to local media.

In 2010, an American woman sent her adopted son back to Russia, saying that the then-7-year-old boy had violent episodes that made the family fear for its safety.

Amnesty International called Thursday on Russian lawmakers to reject a measure it said would "have a chilling effect on human rights defenders and civil society," as well as ending U.S. adoptions.

"There is a huge risk that the vaguely worded provisions in this bill will be used to clamp down on government critics and exposers of abuses. Indeed this would appear to be its real purpose," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International's Europe and Central Asia program director.

"This bill is frankly a childish response to the Magnitsky Act. The Duma should be focusing its efforts on how it can strengthen Russian civil society and not weaken it."

Andrea Roberts Helps Orphans With Down Syndrome Find Homes

By Alicia Dennis and Christina Tapper from People:

Andrea Faris Roberts figured her new son, born in 2002, got his almond-shaped eyes from her husband, Rich.

But when doctors confirmed that Reece had Down syndrome, "I couldn't stop crying," says Andrea, whose prenatal tests were normal. "I thought, 'What's tomorrow going to be like?' "

The answer: Reece has not only enriched his parents' lives but inspired his mom to save kids with Down syndrome around the world. Researching her son's condition, Andrea learned that in many countries, babies born with the disorder are often abandoned and left in orphanages.

Launching Reece's Rainbow in 2004, the former account manager wrote grant applications and networked with adoption agencies, ultimately dispersing over $4 million to fund adoptions of more than 850 children from Russia, China, Mexico and elsewhere.

Parents like John and Charissa Urban of Owasso, Okla., wouldn't know the love of Ava, now 8, adopted from Ukraine in 2008 without the help of Reece's Rainbow. They turned to the organization to help with funds to bring home little Ava – who weighed only 19 lbs. and was unable to roll over at age 3.

Though she initially had to use a walker to get around, Ava is now running, jumping and playing with her six siblings, including two who are adopted also (one of whom also has Down syndrome). "She's the center of our family," Charissa says. "We're so grateful."

Andrea says that families are being built every day.

"What is wonderful about Reece's Rainbow, is that families can go and see children's photos on the website and know that money is being raised to help with the adoption costs," says Andrea. "They see that it is a better possibility for them to be able to afford to adopt without the years of painful heartbreak in waiting to try to raise funds."

Today, 10-year-old Reece is in the 5th grade and loves playing basketball with his little brother, Owen, 7, in the family's yard in Gaithersburg, Maryland. He's also challenging his father at golf.

"He's got a better golf game than my husband any day of the week," laughs Andrea, 40. "He's got a wonderful swing."

Andrea insists that children with Down syndrome in institutions around the world are not forgotten and would be adopted if more families could afford the typical $25,000 fee (which includes home study costs, travel and adoption expenses).

"After six and a half years, all I can say to the world is, 'I told you so. I told you these kids were wanted,' " says Andrea. "Today, 850 children are not hidden away in institutions anymore. We have new connections every single day."

She adds: "If we had a full grant for every child on our website, we would have no children on our website. The cost is what is hard for people but every life is worth it. If we had more sponsors who could write a check for each of these kids and they would all have families. All of them."

And the proud mother says that her son Reece continues to be an inspiration.

"Reece," she says, "has helped so many families begin."

Reece's Rainbow is in the running to win a $50,000 grant

 

If you are new to Reece's Rainbow, we are a 501c3 charity with advocates and fundraises for the international adoption of children with Down syndrome and other special needs exclusively.   In only 6 years, we have found adoptive families for more than 850+ children around the world, and disbursed more than $4 million in adoption grant funding to save them!

Reece's Rainbow is in the running to win a $50,000 grant from Cultivate Wines.  IF we should win, (10) waiting orphans with Down syndrome in (10) different countries will each recieve a $5000 grant towards the cost of their adoption.  (list of children will be revealed at the end!)  Money is the ONLY thing standing in the way for these children to be FOUND and to come home to loving "forever families".

The voting period is between September 19-October 31.  We need EACH OF YOU to vote ONCE A DAY!   Every vote helps, and we can't make up for votes at the last minute like some other contests.

Restrictions:  this contest is open only to voters over the age of 21, and you must have a Facebook account to vote.  (contest rules) 

PLEASE visit this link every day, vote, and share on your Facebook, blog, yahoo groups, Twitter, with your friends and family.   This is an important opportunity for the children and the ministry as a whole for greater visibility as we go into our Angel Tree! (starting November 1)  

Any questions can be directed to me personally at andrea@reecesrainbow.org 

Thank you for your support!

http://www.cultivatewines.com/cause/49260/

Andrea Roberts, Founder & Executive Director
Reece's Rainbow Down Syndrome Adoption Ministry
www.reecesrainbow.org

E-mail:  andrea@reecesrainbow.org

Yahoo Messenger:  luvbama93

Skype:  reecesrainbow

Facebook:  Andrea Faris Roberts

Twitter:  @momtoreece and @reecesrainbow

Dad becomes Ironman for son, orphans with Down syndrome

from KSL.com by Stephanie Grimes:
One of the greatest blessings in Brady Murray's life is having a son with Down syndrome.
It was his 4-year-old son, Nash, who inspired him to tackle the stereotypes surrounding Down syndrome and the challenges faced by those trying to adopt the children.
"Down syndrome in society in most cases is seen as a negative," Murray said. "But these are very special children. They light up a room, and they do things that others aren't able to do. They're able to help individuals feel unconditional love in a way I've never seen other people be able to do."
And some of the worst off of these children — those sent to orphanages shortly after birth due to the condition — are often found in eastern Europe, where they spend their first five to six years in an orphanage before being sent to spend the remainder of their lives in an adult mental institution.
Adoption costs for these children can be upwards of $30,000, unattainable for many who hope to be parents. And that is where Racing for Orphans with Down syndrome comes in.
Murray started the organization after looking at Reece's Rainbow, an organization dedicated to
finding homes for orphaned children with Down syndrome. Murray learned in November that what was stopping the children from finding a home was not a lack of interested adoptive parents, but rather, a lack of funding.
"I said, ‘If money is the only thing keeping these kids from being adopted, we can do something about that,'" Murray said.
He and his wife, Andrea, started off simply. They donated to Reece's Rainbow that year for Christmas instead of buying gifts for friends and family. They told their story at family gatherings and to their friends who had children with Down syndrome. Gradually, the money came in, but Murray said it was a miracle at Christmastime that really got things started.

The Ironman was a challenge — perhaps one of the hardest he had faced — but Murray said it was well worth it, partly because of the opportunities it created.

This year, the Ironman World Championship decided to hold a contest that will allow eight people the chance to compete in the event without qualifying. Hopefuls had to enter a short video showing what inspired them to compete, and Murray chose to highlight RODS Racing. He hopes by competing, he will raise more awareness for the cause.
"I firmly believe that when an individual hears the story, if it's supposed to be, then in their heart of hearts they know they want to help," he said. "So it's simply a matter of creating awareness." Murray hopes others can come to see Down syndrome as he sees it: a blessing that allows people to learn to love and accept others.
"Having Nash has allowed me to see people how we should see them: as people, as children of God," he said. "And to recognize that every single person is very, very special, and that every person has talents and abilities, and has potential."
"Regardless of their background, education or perceived disabilities, they have a divine potential," he continued. "I didn't know that before I had Nash, and that's something he has taught me."
Doug Brasher, at Brasher's Auto Auction, knows Murray and what he was trying to do. So for the company's annual Christmas car auction — the proceeds from which go to charity — Brasher decided to donate the proceeds to Reece's Rainbow to help fund the adoption of a child named Eli, whom the Murrays had chosen as the first child they would help.
"The first dealer bought it, then he donated it back," Murray said. "Then another dealer bought it, and donated it back. This happened eight times. In the end, $13,000 was generated."
Very quickly, the $13,000 in Eli's account became $20,000, and Murray began to think about how else he could raise money for the children on Reece's Rainbow. He had been thinking about participating in an Ironman triathlon for some time, and decided it would be the perfect opportunity to raise awareness for his cause.
"All of those fears and anxieties and doubts for me, thinking whether or not I could do a full Ironman went out the door," he said. "I was going to do it for these kids."
He signed up for the St. George Ironman, at which point he founded Racing for Orphans with Down syndrome, or RODS Racing. The organization focuses on finding funding for one child at a time, raising enough money — usually $15,000-$20,000 — to cover the majority of adoption costs.

traveled halfway around the world to find their son

from The Northwestern by Patricia Wolff:

New father Jake Gibson can barely take his eyes off his beautiful blued-eyed boy, the one he and wife Ashley traveled halfway around the world to find.

The Gibsons, both 27, used the services of Reece’s Rainbow Down Syndrome Ministry, an adoption agency, to find Carter, 3, and bring him back from Ukraine a little more than one month ago.

The last month has been one of pure joy for the couple who sought out a special needs child to be their first. Carter has Down syndrome. It’s that extra chromosome that the Gibsons love so well, Ashley said.

Some people who have babies with Down syndrome grieve the loss of their dream from the perfect child. Not the Gibsons. They volunteered for the job.

These two are joyful; there could be no disguising the level of joy they obviously possess. Jake said he can hardly wait to get home from his sales job at supper time and is ecstatic to arrive home from church youth leadership events to find Carter waiting for him. After than it’s snuggle time on the couch, he said.

“Coming home at night and having a little boy run into my arms is so wonderful,” Jake said. “Fatherhood is different than what I expected, but it’s a better different.”

Where some people see challenge, they see potential. Where some see extra work, they see service to another and obedience to God.

“We’re not special people. We are not these big saviors,” Ashley said. “God just said ‘do this,’ and we said ‘yes.’ It’s as simple as that.”

The couple met at Valley Christian High School and began dating as seniors. They married five years ago. There is no medical reason standing in the way of biological children. They anticipate perhaps having two children that way and adopting at least one more special needs child.

But for now they are concentrating on establishing bonds with Carter, who at 3 and a half is normal on the Down syndrome growth chart but is similar in size and development to a normal 2-year-old.

He loves bath time, is a good eater and likes to explore his world. He recently discovered how fun it is to flip a plastic container of powered sugar around to see it fall and feel its heft as it hits the sides of the container.

At first frightened of Moses, the family’s Springer spaniel, Carter has learned to enjoy his company. “They’re best buds,” Jake said.

He has learned to walk in their care. They are teaching him sign language because they realize children with Down syndrome have trouble with muscle control and learning to talk is more challenging for them.

But, that will come in due time. As will potty training, Ashley said.

Because they said yes to God’s urging them to adopt a special needs child the Gibsons believe God has blessed them with a loving, easy-going child. Ashley, who left her teaching job to be a stay-at-home mother, can’t believe how easy caring for Carter has been so far.

“He sleeps 11 hours at night and takes a three-hour nap during the day,” she said.
The Gibsons are Christians and take the teachings of the Bible to heart.

“God tells us to go help widows and orphans. This world would be a better place if more people would help out,” Jake said.

The Gibsons found that out first hand when their church, Winneconne Christian Fellowship, held a benefit for them in the summer. It raised $24,000 to defray the $30,000 it cost to adopt Carter.

Lisa Gander, a member of the small church, is continually amazed at the generosity of the congregation that numbers right around 100. That the Gibsons are such a loving couple and their mission so pure made it all the more understandable that people rallied around them, she said. “The Gospel, the Bible, we believe it and we believe in following through on the commandments of God. Being generous is one of them.”

But, the Gibsons are human. They had their doubts. In fact when Ashley first suggested they adopt a child with Down syndrome through Reece’s Rainbow, Jake was very skeptical.

“I said absolutely not. Look at the price tag. I don’t have the capabilities,” he told her.

Ashley had already fallen for the little boy she saw on the Reece’s Rainbow site. It turned out to be Carter. Unbeknownst to Ashley, Jake had looked at the site and by chance saw Carter, too. “I fell in love with him,” Jake said.

After that, they never looked back. They immediately began the huge task of applying to adopt him. A mountain a paperwork later and with two trips to Ukraine under their belts, the Gibsons brought their boy home.

They are under no illusions about the work that lay ahead. Parenthood is a huge job. Their immediate goal is to bond with Carter and make sure he feels safe, they said.

His birth parents took him home from the hospital following his birth determined to care for him. The mother had suffered complications in childbirth that would make more children impossible.

Several months later they admitted they were not up for the job and handed him over to the orphanage. They continued to visit him regularly until they adopted another, healthy child.

That breaks the Gibsons hearts. They understand the damage that would have been done to Carter’s psyche. He lost his mother and father and was cared for by a staff.

Orphanages in Ukraine are far from deluxe accommodations, the Gibsons said.

“He has not had one mom; he’s had five nannies a day,” Ashley said.

Carter didn’t stand a chance in Ukraine where Down syndrome is considered a curse. Children born with it are almost always left at the hospital and then go to orphanages. If no one adopts them by age 6, they go to mental institutions. “Some don’t last a year,” Ashley said.

In the Central and Eastern European countries including Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Romania, some 1.5 million children have been abandoned by their families.

The Gibsons’ plan for Carter is that he grow up feeling loved and safe. They realize he will face limitations. He may not know the joy of marriage or fatherhood. But he can lead a fulfilling life. He can hold a job. They expect that one day he may be able to live on his own with minor assistance.

“He is going to know he is different,” Ashley said. “Our job is to teach him there is no weakness in being different.”

waiting to adopt 2 children with Down syndrome

from The Columbian by Paris Achen:


Vancouver residents Mark and Rebecca Jenks agreed to pray for a sign about what kind of child to adopt as they were waiting for a service to begin at Hazel Dell’s Messiah Lutheran Church.

A few minutes later, about a dozen young people with Down syndrome sat in the pew in front of them, Rebecca Jenks said.

 

“Literally, you don’t get a bigger neon sign than that one,” Mark Jenks said.

The Jenkses had researched adopting a child with a disability for about a year before committing to adopt two children with Down syndrome from an orphanage in Eastern Europe: Sydney, a 3-month-old girl, and Lucien, a 2-month-old baby boy. Their names are assigned by the adoption agency; the Jenkses will change them when they take legal custody.

“We said, ‘What if we look into a child who really needs a home rather than healthy children,’” Rebecca Jenks said. “We looked into blind, deaf, cerebral palsy, HIV, Down syndrome. We kept going back to Down syndrome.”

The couple found Sydney first on the Reece’s Rainbow Down syndrome Adoption Ministry website. The nonprofit organization connects American families with children with disabilities or HIV from Third World countries and helps families raise money to pay for the adoption. They later found Lucien through the same site. Sydney’s and Lucien’s adoptions will cost a total of about $30,000. So far, the family has raised $1,301 through its two blogs, the Reece’s Rainbow website and its church community.

Rebecca Jenks’ 15-year-old daughter, Tamara Emler, first spotted Sydney’s photograph.
“Tamara saw her and said, ‘Come look. There’s my sister,’” Rebecca Jenks recounted. “My heart fell out of my chest. That’s our little girl. There was no thought about it.”

The Jenkses were married in 2008. Rebecca Jenks, a preschool teacher, has four children from her previous marriage. Two of them are adults and have moved away from home. The other two children, Tamara and Brandon Emler, 13, live with the Jenkses at their home in Meadow Estates, just north of Walnut Grove. Mark Jenks, a computer help desk technician, has no children of his own. He and Rebecca Jenks said they want to experience having children together.

Having read about the scale and condition of orphaned and abandoned children around the world, the couple opted for adoption. Their search seemed to gravitate toward children with Down syndrome, Rebecca Jenks said.

Reports about the treatment of children with mental disabilities in Eastern Europe added to the family’s certainty that they wanted a child with Down syndrome from that region.

In that region, children with mental disabilities are often given up by their parents for adoption due to the social stigma of having such a child, as well as scarce government resources to help parents raise a child with special needs, said Andrea Roberts, founder of Reece’s Rainbow.

Once they’re surrendered to the state, the children frequently are institutionalized for life, first in an orphanage and later in a mental institution for adults, Roberts said.

Brian and Rachel Davis of Hillsboro, Ore., recently adopted a 2-year-old boy with Down syndrome from Bulgaria. Brian Davis and his mother brought the toddler, Jordan, home Dec. 3.

Rachel Davis, who also has two biological daughters, ages 2 and 4, said raising a child with Down syndrome isn’t dramatically different than bringing up a typical child. The main difference is that children with Down syndrome often have more medical needs and are developmentally delayed, according to the National Association for Down Syndrome. The children are at greater risk of heart defects and infection. They’re also subject to more incidence of respiratory, vision, hearing and thyroid problems.

Rachel Davis said one of the most common questions she gets is “‘Aren’t you worried about how it’ll affect your other children?’”

“We are hoping it will affect our other children because we don’t want our other children to grow up selfish and feeling awkward around people with special needs,” Rachel Davis said. “Jordan is the perfect opportunity to learn how to love unconditionally.”

In the spring, the Jenkses plan to travel to Sydney’s and Lucien’s country to complete their adoptions. They plan to rename her Olivia Ann and him James Antonio.

Rebecca Jenks said some of her friends and family members think she and Mark should enjoy their freedom after Brandon and Tamara leave the house. But she said after researching adoption, she feels passionate about moving forward.

“Knowing there are children out there who live in orphanages and don’t even have a home and we are financially able to give them a good life, how can I sit here and say we can retire in a few years and go off to Bermuda or Hawaii and not help them?” Rebecca Jenks said. “I want to do something to make the world a better place. If I can’t do that, how can I ask my children to do that?”

To make a donation to help pay for Sydney’s and Lucien’s adoptions, visit Mark and Rebecca Jenkses’ blog at orphanrescuemission.blogspot.com.

ABC World News with Diane Sawyer reports on Reece's Rainbow

from ABC News:

Here's more information on the charities mentioned in ABC News' story:

Reece's Rainbow: a Maryland-based non-profit organization headed by Andrea Roberts. Reece's Rainbow lists disabled children that are up for adoption. Most children are from eastern Europe, diagnosed with Down syndrome.

Visit Reece's Rainbow at http://reecesrainbow.org/

To date, they have helped facilitate the adoption of nearly 600 children worldwide and raised more tens of thousands of dollars.

Reece's Rainbow also has donation-based partnerships with Amazon.com, Cars 4 Causes and iGive. Learn more here: http://reecesrainbow.org/waystohelp

Bible Orphan Ministry: a Ukraine-based charitable ministry run by Misha Glazov. He and his team of volunteers minister to approximately 1,000 orphans in Ukraine, many of them disabled and housed in mental institutions.

Their visits often bring the only toys, books, clothes and fruit the children ever see.

WHAT THEY NEED:

- Donations of children's clothing and shoes.

- Winter coats and sweaters

- Donations of children's toys and books written in Russian and Ukrainian

- Cash donations they can use to purchase fruit and vegetables for the orphans and pay for gas for their trips to the institutions.

Learn more here: http://www.bibleorphanministry.com/ and click on the "Donate" tab.

Full Story:

Hidden Angels: American Families Saving Children With Down Syndrome - ABC News

Military family adopts overseas orphan with Down syndrome

from Kitsap Sun:

Children born in Eastern European countries with Down syndrome ( or any other "disability") are viewed as worthless and defects. They are sent to an orphanage shortly after birth. If they are not adopted by the time they turn 4 or 5 years old, they are sent to an adult mental institute where 95% of them die within the first year. They are tied to cribs, left to sit in their waste all day, and then thrown on a hard cold floor to be hosed off. They are starved to death.

This fact is something that Adam and Lauren Evans of Poulsbo cannot ignore. Adam is a United States Marine stationed at Bangor and Lauren is a stay at home mom. Adam and Lauren have three boys, ages 4 years, 3 years, and 17 months.

After much research and time spent on reecesrainbow.org, an advocacy group for such children, and many prayers, Adam and Lauren decided it was God's will for them to adopt a sweet girl with Down Syndrome. In September 2011, they committed to a beautiful little girl listed on RR, named Amanda.

This beautiful little girl turns four in March. Depending on the region she lives in, she could be transferred to an institute that is not even fit for an animal, let alone a CHILD.

The adoption costs range from $25,000-$45,000,with Amanda's ( Adam and Lauren will be naming her Alaina Jo) region costing around $34,000. They took a leap of faith, knowing that God would make sure that every need was met.

Currently on their blog www.yourlovewillcarryme.blogspot.com they are holding several fundraisers, including a silent auction.

Any support you could offer them and this sweet girl this Christmas season would mean the world to them, even if just an encouraging word is shared. For more info on the plight of these children and adoption, please visit www.reecesrainbow.org.

Moms say their children with Down syndrome are ‘gifts’

from rosevillept.com:

On her blog, Christine Sheffield references a poem called “Welcome to Holland,” a place she’s never lived.

The poem was written by a mother about having a child with Down syndrome, an experience Sheffield can relate to since the birth of her son Braden. The poem likens having a baby with a disability to making big plans to visit Italy and ending up in Holland. You buy guidebooks, learn Italian phrases — it’s your dream destination.

So how did I get to Holland?

It’s a question asked by many parents once they find out their baby has Down syndrome. But, it turns out, Holland is a beautiful and majestic place, Sheffield writes. And she wants others who will never go there to know that, too.

“I want to show people that a Down syndrome diagnosis is not the end of the world,” Sheffield, 41, said. “It’s not something to be feared. The more we show we’re a normal family living a normal life, the more acceptance we’ll have in society.”

The Antelope resident has a blog about the joys of raising her 10-month-old son Braden. He has brought lots of surprises, including a trip to New York City Thursday. Sheffield, Braden and her 19-year-old daughter Ashley are attending the annual Buddy Walk event that kicks off October as Down Syndrome Awareness Month.

The family was invited to attend after a photo of Braden was chosen as part of a video that airs in Times Square during the walk.

Both raised in Roseville, Christine and her husband Danny Sheffield graduated from Oakmont High School and have been married 21 years. They already had five children — one died as a baby from sudden infant death syndrome — and Braden was a surprise.

Before learning she was pregnant, Sheffield read a magazine article about a local family adopting a Ukrainian baby with Down syndrome. She and her husband considered adopting a baby with a disability. Then she had her own.

“It’s not much different than being a mom of a baby without Down syndrome, or as we say, a ‘typical’ baby,” Sheffield said.

About 50 percent have a heart defect and Braden has a small hole that doctors expect will close. Some people with Down syndrome will develop vision and hearing loss, and thyroid problems.

Down syndrome is one of the most common genetic birth defects and affects about 3,400, or one in 800, babies in the United States a year, according to the National Down Syndrome Society.

Sheffield said some parents worry about the potential burden of raising a child with Down syndrome, which does involve extra trips to the doctors, extended care when the child ages and lots of future planning. Braden has low muscle tone and is developmentally delayed.

Sheffield says all these challenges are manageable, which doesn’t mean the times have never been tough.

“I don’t want to be negative,” she said. “But to some extent you become ‘that’ family. It’s not a blatant thing. You just feel a little isolated. But you realize you have the same life you had before, just with a new person in it, and it’s really no big deal.”

Sheffield got involved with Reece’s Rainbow ministry and joined The Sisterhood, a support group for moms of kids with Down syndrome in the greater Sacramento region. Another mom involved is Beth Herrington, of Roseville, who has a 13-month-old daughter named Chloe. She also has four other kids, ages 9 to 14 years old.

Chloe was a surprise — Herrington got pregnant at 42. The chance of having a baby with Down syndrome increases with the mother’s age, but 80 percent of babies with the condition are born to women under 35.

“It was this great gift,” Herrington said. “I was excited. I didn’t mourn the loss of the quote-unquote perfect child.”

She describes Chloe — who has a small hole in her heart — as beautiful and larger than life.
“I always compare it to being in public with a celebrity,” Herrington said. “Chloe gets so much attention.”

A few months ago, Herrington convinced her husband that they should adopt a baby with Down syndrome. They found Olivia from Ukraine, who is 7 months old. They hope to bring her home by January.

Herrington also blogs and wants people to realize that babies with Down syndrome are “more alike than different.”

“What an unbelievable joy they are,” Herrington said. “Even for parents who think their world has ended, weeks later they see it’s the best child in the world. It’s not a scary, horrible thing. It’s wonderful.”

vote for Reece’s Rainbow in the Classy Awards

from Reece's Rainbow:

Consider voting for Reece’s Rainbow, in the Classy Awards “Most Innovative Use of Social Media”!

In only 5 years, Reece’s Rainbow has found  “forever families” for more than 500+ orphans with Down syndrome and other special needs….*entirely* in the cyber world and through the exclusive use of social media.

Our website, parent blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and our new Iphone Apps have completely changed the dynamics of this ministry and our ability to raise awareness for these children!

FIVE HUNDRED CHILDREN are home and living the life they deserve to live, while 500 more are still waiting on our site.

Winning the Classy Awards will bring tremendous awareness and exposure for the rest of our waiting children and adopting families, who are all in need of grant donations. As we go into Buddy Walk season and our Christmas Angel Tree Project, this visibility will be critical to that life-saving success in 2011. Reece’s Rainbow is not just a charity…we have grown into a  movement that visually shares the blessing of Down syndrome and special needs across the DS community in the US and worldwide. Each and every adoption makes a global statement…proof of the potential and value of these children…evidence of what families will be missing out on if they terminate their pregnancies…

The need is great, but the opportunity to serve and change the world is even greater…and ACHIEVABLE….with your vote

Please pass on, post on your Facebook and blogs, we only have 3 short weeks of voting left and a monumental opportunity to raise RR to the next level!

Click this link and VOTE NOW! http://classyawards.stayclassy.org/classy-awards/voting

Reece's Rainbow

Reece's Rainbow advocates for children like Andrey through blogs, social networking, and word of mouth. In five short years, with the help of continued donations, the organization has found adoptive families for more than 500+ children with Down syndrome and other special needs around the world. More than $1 million in private donations has been disbursed in the form of adoption grants to make this possible.

Andrea Roberts, founder of Reece's Rainbow draws inspiration from her own experience raising her son Reece who has Down syndrome. Andrea feels that children with Down syndrome invoke reflection on the beauty and innocence that a child brings to the world and that they remind us that the image of God is not confined to our earthly definitions.