International Older Child Adoption in LDS Church

How old is older? Our daughter was 3 and as much as she loved going to church, the culture of behaving reverently was hard for her to accept for the first few years. Finally had to "ground her from primary" for a few months until she would behave for the teachers (without me in the room). She knew what she felt at church however, and when it was time to be baptised, she was very confident with her decision, because her conversion happened at an early age. I doubt she'll ever question her faith in the LDS church, because she's had alternatives. The big worry was always about behavior. More than the religious aspect, a child from an orphanage is highly likely to have significant attachment issues. PLEASE go read on the "Special Needs" parenting boards about dealing with RAD. It's the thing that was the hardest to handle.

Hi! I am LDS too. My Best friend adopted twins from the Ukraine three years ago (when they were 8) and it was a huge mistake! One of her twins is thriving and doing well. The other one was RAD and only responds to Male authority figures. She has flushed a frog down the toilet and tried to strangle their cat once or twice. She teases kids at school although she never does anything where discipline at school needs to be involved. But beyond that, my friend is at her ropes end. She is placing the one daughter up for re-adoption this weekend. She has asked me to help her find agencies to place with. Apparently Chask.org is a good one. As far as the gospel goes, the twins are wonderful members of the church. They believe in the gospel and act well in church. They are both really sweet girls. If "M" would just listen to her Mother's discipline then there wouldn't be any real issues to worry about. Another friend of my adopted a girl from the Ukraine also. She regrets it because she spends about $20,000 a year on her care. She has to send her to a private school and for electric shock therapy. It has worked but the adopted child really doesn't "fit in" with the rest of the family. They are also LDS and the child does well with the Gospel. She has been sealed to her family. In the area I live, there are many people who have adopted from the Ukraine because of the "Save a Child Foundation." It is a local organization that raises money to send child from Ukrainian orphanages here so they can spend two weeks with a host family. The idea is that the family can bond with the child and go back to the Ukraine to adopt them. I personally did this program. The child I hosted had been horrifically abused and adopting her was not an option. Most people don't see the "REAL" issues for at least 6 months. That is when the child's "behaviors" start showing through. If you have any more questions, I would be happy to answer them. Good luck!