"All children are beautiful when they are loved."---Bertha Holt

We have chosen to adopt through an agency called Holt International. This is a national agency with a main office in Eugene, Oregon and branch offices all over the country. Our home study is being done in the Omaha branch. The experience we have had with this agency so far has been phenomenal! It is so evident that they are committed to putting children into families and have the process streamlined. They are incredibly efficient and helpful.
The founders of Holt are Harry and Bertha Holt, who decided to adopt 8 Korean children back in the 1950's. They quickly found out that international adoption would be impossible unless Congress would pass a special law allowing it. This couple, believing that God wants His children to care for those without families, championed this law and brought their 8 children home. A few years later, Holt Internat'l was incorporated and since have put 40,000 children into homes in the U.S.
One of the things that Micah & I love about Holt is that they have staff abroad as well as domestically. The children who are put into Holt's care in other countries, are considered individually and only when there is no other option than international adoption are they placed with U.S. families. The children being placed in homes are never put up for adoption due to poverty alone--otherwise our money would be better spent providing for the family instead of taking the child away to a different country. In order to be placed in the program, the children have lost one or both parents, are homeless, or have been abandoned. Holt offers assistance and counseling to the birth families if possible. Of course, it is best for a child to stay with their birth families and to stay within their culture, so it is good to know that our son's unique circumstances were considered and being placed up for adoption was absolutely the best option for him. We are also incredibly thankful that he is in good care during the time we will be waiting to go get him!
If you are the least bit interested in adopting a child who needs a home check out www.holtinternational.org.