FAQ: Common Questions

Can we travel with our host child?  Within the 48 states, yes if travel documents are submitted to NHFC. Outside the USA, no. No cruises, no travel to Hawaii or Alaska. If they leave the USA, they cannot re-enter on their single entry Visa issued to come to the USA.

I understand the need for a host parent training, but the nearest one to us is an 8 hour drive. Can we do it via Skype? No. Is there a video/online training we could watch?  No. We’re licensed foster parents; do we still have to attend?  Yes. We’ve adopted from Russia and already understand the cultural differences; do we still have to attend? Yes, and share with others to help them through your own experiences. The countries we contract to work with, require our families attend one meeting of their choice so we try and offer several dates and locations to accommodate as many families as possible. If they have to drive or fly, then one parent can choose to come. Hosting is very different than adopting and our training is very specific to NHFC and tried and tested and presented after 10 years of doing this. Others who have said the same things in the beginning, came to a training and later stated they learned more from our 6-7 hours than in all their pre adoption training combined and were glad they attended. Similarly, fostering US kids is VERY different than hosting foreign orphan children. Our hosting program is a mission trip and there are very particular rules, guidelines, scenarios, situations that we come across that are not dealt with through adoptions, fostering or having foreign exchange students in your home.

Most families just continue life as normal—especially after the first couple of days. Let your host child catch up on their sleep and adjust a little to the time difference, and then act like they’re one of the family… chores and all.

Instructions are in the full application on page 12

Assuming your background checks clear and personal references are confirmed, and you completed all aspects of the application and made your deposit, you’re generally “approved” for hosting.  You won’t get an official notice from us. You WILL, however, hear from us if you’re not approved. Most people know if there may be an issue with their background check and tell us ahead of time; so as far as “approval” goes, no news is good news. But, if you want to call and check up on papers, application, payments etc, please feel free to call the home office at 678-574-4677 x2 for Renee/Ukraine and China and x4 for Marta/Latvia. Payments and balances can be verified by calling Nicola at x5.

Isn’t their arrival at the airport awkward? How do I break the ice on our way home? Yes, it is usually awkward. No, it is not insurmountable.  You’ll cover this in training, and it’s in the manual as well. The awkwardness can be handled in many ways… lots of smiles, a small gift… before you leave the airport, ask if they need to use the bathroom… find out if they’re hungry. If you have a VERY long drive or will be staying in a hotel overnight, type out something ahead of time and have it translated so they know what’s going on. Some host kids will fall asleep as soon as they’re in the car. Others will just want to look out the window to “see America.” For most, the awkwardness dissipates pretty quickly.

The ministry of NHFC is to bring orphaned children into the home and family life of Americans. Placing a hurt child in yet another "institution" does not foster the goal of NHFC to share family.  Therefore we encourage two-parent working homes to become creative in their vacation scheduling so that at least one parent can be with the child while invited into your home for their summer vacation.  While we do encourage things like soccer camp, Bible School, dance lessons, visits to Grandma's and other things of that nature; continuous day long day care away from the host family is not permitted.

On the photo listing, what do the scholarships mean and how do the children get them?  These are offered by people who feel called to donate to a particular child. This money is usually donated by people who can’t host or don’t want to host, but who want to help an un-hosted child to find a family. Scholarships reduce the hosting fee based upon the amount pledged.

Hosting dates change a little from season to season.  For hosting from Latvia or Ukraine, summer hosting is usually 5 weeks, late June-early August. Winter hosting is usually 4-4.5 weeks, early/mid December-early/mid January.  For China, generally the month of Feb. and mid July - mid August.

Other than getting a room ready, what can we do as a family to better prepare for hosting? Read! We have several recommended books on our website and encourage you to read as many of them as you can. The information contained therein will be INVALUABLE as you prepare for and during hosting. Pray Pay attention at your host parent training. Read your manual and reread and highlight it for later reference. Learn from other host families and join the private Facebook groups.

There are several online translating sites that host families have found to be helpful—Google translate being the most popular. For some, websites like these have been invaluable; for others, not so much. Be prepared for 4-5 weeks of charades.  Also, as they’re learning English, make it a point to learn some of their native language as well. Sometimes they’re not so hesitant to use the little English they know if they hear you fumbling over a bit of Russian.  We also  have paid translators, who work directly with our program,  available to help when these methods do not work.  Our translators are only a phone call away. The translators also work day in and day out with orphans and prove to be an invaluable resource.  (There is no extra charge for you to use the translators, this is part of your hosting fee)

It differs between countries and orphanages. Some will find out several weeks before departure, others just in time to get their traveling paperwork in order.  In most cases, they won’t get your introductory letter until departure day when they arrive at the airport.

There are several places.  Host families in the past have used: EEM.org, Slavic Gospel Association, eBay, Russianpublishing.com, and Multilanguage.com.

Hosting is open nationwide, coast to coast, including Puerto Rico; and is ideal for Christian families who have a heart for orphans, but cannot travel overseas on a mission trip. In this case, we bring the mission into the family and their local church congregation.

1.) All kids - both in the USA and abroad - need to be cared for. This is more than just an admirable endeavor of fighting against the overwhelming tide of faceless numbers; this is a global crisis in which actual names, faces, and souls are in the balance.  Meet some of these kids and find out their stories, and we guarantee that you too will agree that - regardless of which geographical area on the planet into which they were born - we cannot simply leave them to their varied and unacceptable fates.

2.) Christians have a responsibility to stand in the gap and help these children (Matthew 19:14 & 25:31-46, John 14:18, James 1:27) as the Body of Christ and His representation here on Earth (Romans 9:8, Matthew 5:14-16 & 18:3, Galatians 3:26, 1 Corinthians 12:27).

3.) Programs such as Wait No More (an arm of Focus On The Family) are aimed towards helping domestically, while other organizations such as NHFC are focused on regions outside the USA such as Eastern Europe & China.  None of these programs are right nor wrong for their focus. NHFC focuses abroad because the fact is that there are aspects of American society which give kids inherent advantages over those in other countries. Governmental programs exist to care for them and try to make sure they don't slip through the cracks; a decent foster system to provide their basic needs, ample opportunity for adequate nutrition, and a guarantee of a decent & equitable education are just a few examples.

However, these do not exist at such a level in other countries. The likelihood that kids in Eastern Europe will lack a quality education, simple life skills necessary for survival and more is extremely high. About 10%-15% commit suicide by 18-20 years old. Up to 60% of girls are lured into prostitution and about 70% of boys resort to - or are forced into - a life of crime. This region of the world is also one of the highest sources of human trafficking on Earth today; millions of girls are sex slaves today simply because they were unfortunate enough to grow up as orphans in these parts of the world. We could go on and on...

The facts are the facts. We believe wholeheartedly that all these kids need to be fought for, encouraged, and united with their forever families. But while other organizations are doing a great job reaching out to those children in America, we have chosen to show the kids in another part of the world that Americans are not as selfish and materialistic as they've been told, that they are not forgotten by God, and that they are valuable and loved. We believe and have seen kids can come to know Christ through us, and in the end, that is what is most important.

No. In fact, New Horizons is not an adoption agency at all. We are a hosting program, and we need families - both adoption minded and those who are not, to participate.

How do I know if/when my host child will be available for adoption? Ask your regional coordinator , and/or contact one of the adoption agencies listed in your manual.

I know we’re not supposed to mention adoption (The “A” word). But how do I handle it if my host child brings it up, or what if one of my own kids lets it slip? Change the subject! If you’ve already adopted internationally, and it’s obvious that one or more of the children in your home are not biologically yours, show your host child on a map where your kids are originally from—and then talk about how long the flight was, or how different the food was… steer the conversation away from the adoption question.

If a child has aged out of the possibility of adoption (normally age 16), you may find yourself researching a Student Visa.  Student Visas allow a child to come to the U.S. to study for one year.  Ukraine doesn’t have an option to do this. The US Embassy generally declines all student visa applications for orphans from Ukraine.  Latvia has approved several student visas . The first thing needed is to Google “SEVIS approved schools” and see if you have any approved schools in your area.  Then, contact one and find out the cost (if you can afford it) and if they would entertain accepting an orphan with limited English.

My host child is having a birthday a month before he arrives in the US. Can I send him a card/gift before hosting begins? No, because the kids we are offering don’t know they were selected to be offered at this point and the orphanages and foster families have very specific timeframes when they let the kids know who is coming. They don’t know you yet and don’t need to know you based upon getting gifts. There will be plenty of time for this during the program. Next year, yes, please send them something for their birthday.

In many cases, yes; though it’s not always a simple or easy thing considering the language barrier, time difference and lack of access to computers, phones etc. in their homeland.

It is quite normal to desire to know your child's history and why he’s in an orphanage.  However, most times, you’ll have to be satisfied with the information we get on the interview trip.  Sometimes we do know why a child is in an orphanage or foster home; and when we know, we’ll tell you—but it’s not the norm. If you move to adopt, many times that information can be obtained through your adoption agency.  On occasion your host child may freely offer that information, but don’t count on it and it isn’t wise to press them for this information during the program.

Ask your regional coordinator.

How long will it take my host child to acclimate to the time difference? It depends.  Everyone handles it differently. Some will bounce back within a couple of days, others might take a week or more.  A general rule of thumb is: 1 day for every hour of time difference. And speaking of time difference, there’s a 7 hour time difference between the east coast and Latvia and Ukraine. There is a 12 hour time difference between China and the east coast in America.

Isn’t it cruel to bring these kids here, show them the land of plenty and then send them back? The kids that we bring are coming on a visit, or exchange type program. Many orphanages close during the holidays and over summer so all kids must go somewhere. They go other places like Italy, Spain, Holland, other camps in their own countries (former Soviet training camps for kids) and some go to local foster families as well. We are one of the “options” as far as the kids are told, and they are selected to come on our program after being interviewed and after we talk to their caregivers about behavior, school efforts etc. So, everyone goes out of the orphanage for the summer and in our case, we are a 5 week program, so they come here and usually return to a camp type place in their home country or start out at one and come to us from the camp. In Latvia, children are mostly in foster families as they are trying to close traditional orphanages, but the foster families are not able to care for them beyond the monthly low stipend and in many cases, they don’t have indoor plumbing and are very rural with little access to anything for the children to do outside of school or off the farm (most are on farms). Our program shows children what it’s like to be fully and unconditionally loved in a Christian family. It is an experience that many would never have in their lives. Even in the foster families, the foster parents are “workers” and do not treat orphans as their own children. They do this due to culture, poverty and also to keep up some "walls" as they know they cannot provide for a permanent situation even if they so desired. In addition to the ministry aspects of the program, the kids come and gain a new language. Most learn as much English in 4-5 weeks here as they would in a good English class in their schools over 4-5 years. Latvia is a part of the European Union as well and in that, residents are able to move and work in other EU countries. But Latvian is a language that no other country speaks or uses, and English is a very common language in all. So, that alone, would be a good “tool” to give kids now to help them later. However, many of the children who come are also eligible for adoption and after being hosted, about 65% of the eligible children are adopted into a forever and unconditional loving Christian family. Besides participating in a program like ours, they have literally 0-1% chance of ever being considered for adoption through a traditional process. Latvia doesn’t place children under about age 9 as available for adoption unless they have medical issues or are part of sibling sets. And, most families who consider to adopt would not just send a dossier (family adoption package) to Latvia asking for a preteen or teenager sight unseen. So, this does offer them a lot of possibilities beyond just a visit to a nice family in America. Also, most children who are older and have aged out for adoption who come, are learning enough English they can be considered to return on a student visa, which Latvia allows if we find sponsors. Most families who host do not intend to adopt the child they bring. Most consider it as helping a poor orphan child and being sacrificial towards that child. However, in the end, many families do decide they want to adopt or they have friends through church, neighbors etc who meet the child and decide to adopt. Nearly all families say they went into it to bless a child and come out of it feeling like they received the blessing. On the other side, when I talk to children after they have been fully adopted and live in The U.S., none of them state they felt like they were being ripped out of a glorious land and placed into poverty. It was a trip to remember and they returned “home”. When they were offered adoption later, since we don’t speak of it on the host program, they were in most cases, shocked and it took a great deal of thinking to consider it real and accept it. So, in the end, if a child who comes on the program has even 10% chance of being helped through one of these purposes, where they had 0% if they didn’t come; should we decide not to do this, or to do this for them as much as possible? And, that 10% is in reality, much greater for each child who participates…more like 99% gain something important from the program whether it’s Salvation, family, language or love. Lastly, it is interesting to consider that the kids don’t have such the expected “trauma” after having to go back as one would assume. In fact, I have traveled with some of the groups all the way back home and each program I travel with them through security to the plane after we depart parents at the airport in Atlanta. The kids look at this as a vacation. Once they separate from their 4-5 week family, they refocus on friends after we get through security and find familiarity in them. “They are going home”. It is told to them and explained as such and being their “homes” are in Latvia and Ukraine, they don’t expect to stay forever. The things that we see as extreme poverty and necessary things we have to have in life to live… just aren’t seen that way when it’s what you know and come to accept as “life and home”. We are “Disney World” and no one expects to live at Disney World. In fact, there are some kids who go back, are offered adoption and say no. For Americans, we view it as necessary things we need and they see it as waste and extreme, greed and ugly wealth at times. After traveling myself twice a year, to where they live, I tend to feel their viewpoint at times too.  Not having running water in a house doesn’t mean it isn’t a comfortable home that provides attention and a sense of belonging. Safety and security of the “known” is there and that is number one on what humans need in order to consider what things are important. I suppose, considering where they were prior to the orphanages, streets and foster families, which is something none of us has had to see or endure, where they are now is a welcome version of “home”…just not what you and I would think of or ever consider as sufficient to be home. Consider the show Little House on the Prairie? They had little and felt like they had everything. These kids are similar, except they don’t have the “family” and that’s what we aim to offer them.

Treat it. And let the office know so we can send out an email to others to let them know to double check and watch as the incubation time is about 2 weeks from eggs to lice.

What do they eat and what do I do if they won’t eat what I serve them? This is covered in depth in training as well as in the training manual. Fresh fruit, cheese, cottage cheese, juice, milk, deli meats, potato pancakes, ramen noodles, hot dogs, French fries, grilled cheese sandwich, chicken, raw veggies like cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots and onions. When in doubt, bring them shopping with you and let them pick out a few things. Go to a buffet restaurant and take notes on what they choose.

 My host child is from a “special needs” orphanage.  What does that mean? “Special needs” often means something very different in Eastern Europe than what it means here in the US. First, don’t panic. It could be something as insignificant as mild scoliosis, or that they’re behind in school. If we didn’t tell you up-front about a “special need,” it’s something so minor it may not even be on the interview sheet; but call your coordinator to double check. Many times, children who are in orphanages had a lack of opportunity to go to school, and therefore we deem their slowness in education as a lack of opportunity rather than a lack of ability. Time together in your family will tell more about the true issue.

I need to buy some clothes for my host child. How do I know what size they wear? Oh—and boxers or briefs? Base their size on their age or subtract one more size in some situations. We have tried to get sizes when doing interviews but the sizes they wear are not US sizes and clothes can be from many countries that offer all types of sizing charts. We could see a 130 or a 43 on a shirt. Generally most kids are smaller than American kids.  We have tried to measure their height and shoe size, but then they ask, “why?”  The directors asked us to stop doing this as all kids can’t go, and it gets their hopes up.  Measuring can also be mistaken that we are "sizing them up for body parts".  And the boys usually prefer “boxer briefs… but not always. Clean underwear is the most requested style, and some that isn’t shared with others is a treasure.

We don’t list the ages (unless a child is close to aging out) because we don’t want a child immediately dismissed because they’re not the “right” age. Emotionally, many of these kids are a couple of years (or more) behind their American counterparts. So, a 14 year old boy may be 14 age-wise, but only 11 emotionally, and his interests and social interactions would reflect that discrepancy as well. Our Coordinators are more educated on these issues and can discuss them on a case by case basis with interested host families and will have birthdays and ages to share as well.

The interview trip sounds like fun. Can I go with you or meet up with the interview team while you’re there? I want to help distribute gifts. No. The team is comprised of our regional coordinators who are working daily with our host families and trained specifically in working with children from these institutions etc.  Handing out gifts is less than 1% of our overall effort and mission of the trip. The hours are long, work is hard, and time in close knit groups is grueling at times. Culture shock is very real and the team is one that has done this many times and is basically not affected by it and is extremely focused on the processes of interviewing and selecting children and working out plans with our In-Country Directors.

Now that we’ve hosted, we’d like to take a trip to our child's country to really see what it’s like.  Can we go and visit our host child and other orphanages while we’re there?  Not on your own.  You need permission from the Government and Orphanage Director/Orphan Court to gain access to an orphanage or foster family.  Depending on where you want to visit, there may be a local missionary who can help; but you can’t just show up and ask to visit with the kids.  Our interview teams have a local Hosting Program Director in each country where we work.  Her responsibility is to make the arrangements many weeks prior to our arrival and present validation paperwork as to who we are, why we are there, and to prove we have permission to enter these orphanages and foster families.  She spends weeks on making appointments. It is not an easy thing to do, and is not recommended prior to an adoption trip.

Yes, we will begin doing this in 2013 with our new GLove orphanage in Ukraine.

I want to promote New Horizons at my church/MOPS group/Bible Study.  What resources to I have available to me?  The first place to check is our website: www.NewHorizonsForChildren.org and click on “More ways to help.” There you’ll find printable resources, links to videos and more that will help you spread the word about New Horizons.  Second, if you email Nicola: nanton@newhorizonsforchildren.org with your desired amount of pre-printed brochures, she can ship some to you.