Families with Children from China - Northern California News (blog)

Get ready for the Year of the Dragon!

Sun, 08 Jan 2012 01:31:25 GMT

Our 17th annual Between Two New Years Party will be held on Saturday, February 11, 2012 from 1-5pm at the Mill Valley Community Center. Guests will include authors Shirin Bridges (author of Ruby's Wish and publisher of The Thinking Girl's Treasury of Real Princesses) and Natasha Yim (author of Cixi: The Dragon Empress) and Amy Eldridge, founder of Love Without Boundaries. Visit the EVENTS page or the BTNY page (links above) for more details and to register!

Last weekend's campout was fantastic!

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 01:10:53 GMT

The weather could not have been better for our 13th annual FCC N. Calif. Campout in Olema. In spite of the very late rains and the loss of many trees at the campground, the 45 families in attendance enjoyed spectacular weather during Father's Day weekend. The warm, sunny days were filled with bike riding, badminton, kite flying, rock skipping, and many other activities, while the cooler evenings were spent fireside, making S'mores, listening to stories and reconnecting with old friends. Photos are visible on our flickr site; the password was included in a recent e-mail to all Campout attendees as well as posted on the Yahoo! newsgroup for members.

FCV and FCC - N. Calif. announce a Heritage Travel Workshop

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:36:09 GMT

The Northern California chapters of Families with Children from China (FCC) & Families with Children from Vietnam (FCV) have teamed up to offer this Heritage Trip Workshop. Sponsored by Lotus Travel, this educational seminar focuses on empowering families as they prepare for the journey. Also hear from families who have recently returned, and learn of their experiences. With this seminar you can approach this key developmental experience with more knowledge and confidence!

There are many factors to take into consideration prior to planning a return trip. This workshop is educational and focuses on helping families consider if, when and how to plan a birth country visit.

View more details and print/mail a registration form here: FCV-FCC Heritage Trip Workshop.pdf

update on Katie Cramer

Mon, 10 Jan 2011 21:29:07 GMT

Katie Cramer, born in Guangxi Province, China almost 17 years ago, passed away on Thursday, January 6, 2011.

If you or your child would like to send a card, letter, drawing, photograph, or other remembrance to the Cramer family, including parents Michael and Sherrie, sister Anna (12) and brother David (11), also from China, you can find their mailing address in the column on the right at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katiecramer.

Sacramento viewing and discussion of "Long Wait for Home"

Sun, 14 Nov 2010 18:58:45 GMT

Please see this flier for more information: Sacramento Long Wait for Home 11-18-10.pdf

FCC Northern California presents a viewing and discussion of the film "Long Wait for Home" by Dr. Chengfu Chang

Tue, 09 Nov 2010 21:46:12 GMT

For more information, see this flier

International adoption has increasingly become a national phenomenon in the United States. In the last two decades, many American families have gone to China to adopt children and to provide them with loving homes. More than ever, American families are exposed to China’s culture and history, and to the awareness of the social, cultural, and economic conditions that lead to the abandonment of children in China.

Despite a surge in media coverage of adoptions from China, there are many unanswered questions: Who are the birth parents and under what circumstances do they decide to give away their babies? How do children end up in orphanages and what kinds of lives do they live there? Moreover, with so many “foreigners” going to China to pick up these Chinese babies, what do the average Chinese people feel and think about international adoption?

To answer these questions, Dr. Changfu Chang and his team produced the documentary, Long Wait For Home. For the first time, we sit face to face with birth parents who share with us the hard decisions they have made and the emotional toll they have suffered; we go to orphanages and take an intimate look at the living conditions of children usually inaccessible to film crews; we also converse with a wide range of ordinary Chinese citizens and scholars on the subject of international adoption.

Friday, November 19, 2010

7:00-9:00 p.m. (reception following)

300 Wheeler Hall

University of California, Berkeley

Due to the nature of the film and discussion, attendees should be at least 12 years old.

Map of UC Berkeley campus

Orphanage Assistance update, October 2010

Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:29:19 GMT

We received wonderful news that Fenn, one of our previously sponsored babies from Love Without Boundaries' Anhui Cleft Healing Home (ACHH), had his cleft palate repaired yesterday! Love Without Boundaries is in China right now, performing surgery on dozens of babies and children. Read more about the current cleft mission on the LWB blog: http://www.lwbcommunity.org/

FCC - N. California members can log in to view the full reports on our two new babies at the ACHH, found in the Orphanage Assistance section of the Member-Only pages.

Orphanage Assistance update: Fenn has graduated from ACHH!

Thu, 30 Sep 2010 16:53:14 GMT

Fenn, the little boy with multiple medical issues, had his cleft palate repaired and has graduated from the Anhui Cleft Healing Home! Hopefully he will find his forever family soon.

See a photo of the handsome graduate here: Graduation Fenn.pdf

To read about our newest sponsored babies, Lina and Delanie, FCC - N. Calif. members can enter the Member-Only portal by logging in and going to the Orphanage Assistance page.

Katie Cramer update

Thu, 30 Sep 2010 16:47:03 GMT

For those of you who are interested in keeping up with what is going on with
Katie Cramer, the 16 year old with leukemia, originally from Luizhou, please visit her webpage
at www.katiecramer.org. There you will also find information about how your teenager can be tested to see if he or she is a possible match (see the post on "HLA Typing" on Katie's blog).