A coworker of mine is leaving for Russia tomorrow to begin the process of adopting a child. I applaud her efforts for going as far as Siberia to bring home a child, away from institutional care and into a caring home. Coincidentally, the NYTimes.com ran an opinion piece today by Hollee McGinnis about South Korea's large number of orphans and how it's become the largest pool of international adoptees.
"South Korea has the longest running international adoption program and has sent the most children overseas for adoption than any other country in the world to date – 150,944 children between 1953 and 2006 according to official statistics from the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare. Of this total, 104,319 were adopted by American citizens constituting approximately one out of every ten Korean-Americans."It was my coworker who actually brought to my attention that South Korea carried the status of having the most international adoptees. The last time I went to Korean -- many moons ago -- I actually visited an orphanage. I played songs, ate with the kids and played with them. I remember how sad I was leaving them because the group of people I was with brought some joy to their lives that day. I wish all kids didn't have to grow up in an institution, but rather a loving home.
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