Gladney Taiwan Adoption: Ania's Bat Mitzvah Project

Friday, February 24, 2012

Ania's Bat Mitzvah Project

Ania Lewis, adopted from China through Gladney, has been working hard to gather donations for orphanages in China. Below is a letter from Ania explaining her project. We are looking for Gladney families who are traveling to China to complete their adoptions to help Ania deliver her donations. If you are interested in assisting Ania with her project, please be in touch with her parents Bonnie and Greg at blewis@openviewpartners.com and glewis@texasmessaging.com to learn more.

Ania (white shirt) and her friends who have assisted with her project

Hi!

My name is Ania Li Xiang Lewis (Zeng Li Xiang). I was born on December 6, 1998 in Changsha and I met my family on August 16, 1999 at Changsha SW1.

I've just turned 13 and am having my Bat Mitzvah on January 7th. This is a religious service where I become a young adult in the Jewish religion. I've gone through a lot of training which results in a very meaningful religious service (and party!) on January 7th. Also, part of the Bat Mitzvah experience is doing a "Mitzvah Project". A Mitzvah is a charitable act - an act of loving-kindness, a deed of compassion. Many of my classmates are doing volunteer projects but I wanted to do something more meaningful for me so I decided to collect clothes for the little girls at the orphanages.

A few weeks ago we had a big birthday party for all the little girls in the orphanages of China. Everyone brought lots of wonderful gifts for those little girls. I'm now sending these over so that they can enjoy them!

I am very happy and grateful to everyone for my wonderful life here in the U.S. with my loving family. I am hoping to share some of that with others!

Love,

Ania

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LEGISLATIVE UPDATE May 2012

The child welfare laws of Taiwan are undergoing significant revisions. New legislation, “Protection of Children and Youths Welfare and Rights Act,” was passed in November 2011. The legislation has an implementation date of June 1, 2012 and addresses various aspects of child welfare including adoption services.

Expected changes include:
Only government-licensed child welfare organizations will be able to provide adoption services. Child Welfare organizations will be subject to increased requirements and standards in terms of initial licensing and renewals, as well as ongoing agency procedures and services.

Judges will be authorized to require that adoptive parents receive parent training, physical and mental health assessments, alcohol and drug screenings, and/or criminal background clearances.

Domestic placement will be considered a priority, with international adoption becoming an option after efforts have been made to place the child with a local family. All adoptable children will be listed on a country-wide database. After being posted on the database, a child is eligible to be considered for international adoption.