Twenty Babies

As HOPE has become better known in the community, we are having more and more infants referred to us by nearby clinics.  These babies no longer have a mother or their mother is not able to produce milk to feed her baby.  The babies are sometimes brought to us in desperate and immediate need of milk formula or cow milk in order to survive. 

Baby S (names omitted) entered our program a few months ago after her mother passed away unexpectedly.  Her sweet father brings her every week, carrying her on his back.  It is very rare for a Zimbabwean man to carry a baby in this way and just shows how much he truly loves his daughter. 

Our newest baby, Baby A, was brought early on a Monday morning when she was just three days old.  Her mother had died in childbirth and the relatives had been frantically searching for a way to feed the baby all weekend.

HOPE also has a set of triplets ready to graduate from the milk program in a few months.  Their mother was not able to produce enough milk to keep all three at a healthy weight.  With the supplemental milk they received from HOPE, all three boys are now running, playing and strong.  We will proudly and happily graduate three healthy boys in August when they reach two years of age.

Infants need 6 to 7 tins of milk formula each month until they reach one year of age, at which point we encourage relatives to find cow milk for the children.  We pay the cost of the cow milk, which is considerably cheaper than the milk formula.  Currently, HOPE is spending $600 per month on milk formula and cow milk. 

If you or a group you are a part of would be willing to raise funds to help offset the cost of milk for our babies, this assistance would be greatly appreciated.  We are constantly getting new babies at a higher rate than we are graduating them, so ongoing or one-time donations specifically for milk will always be a need high on our priority list. 

If you decide to assist with this need, please send donations to:

CornerStone International

PO Box 192

Wilmore, KY 40390

Memo: HOPE of Zim/milk

If you donate through Paypal by clicking the link to the right of this posting, just send me a quick email (hopeofzim@gmail.com) so that I know the funds are specifically for milk. 

Thank you in advance!

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine, Abigail and Grace

Grace practicing on the tightrope

Tino enjoying his holiday making his own car!

I hope everyone had a Happy Easter.  The children here at Fairfield enjoyed a weekend of church activities to celebrate here in Zimbabwe.  We have now started a holiday month from school, and the children have kept busy by helping in the fields, reading and playing.  We have two girls from Sweden, Ellinor and Guro, who will be staying for 4 months.  Along with Lina, a student nurse from Norway, they have taught the children to walk on a tightrope, held running races and taught the younger children lots of new songs including the Hokey Pokey!

The HOPE children have been bringing their report cards and so far everyone passed the first term of school with flying colors!  Guro, Ellinor and Lina helped me to take shoes, socks and uniforms to some of the schools during first term.  We also found a huge box of pencils hiding in our storeroom and passed them out to every student at St. James’ Primary School.  There were lots of smiles that day!  It is great to see so much happiness from such a small gesture.

Guro with the children at House 4

Abby and Grace continue to grow taller each month-I can hardly believe that they are now fitting into their 2T clothes!  They are both talking and singing more and more each day.  Grace especially loves to go around the house labeling everything to show off her knowledge.  “Window, door, table, chair, cup, boot.”  Boot is the word both girls use for spoon at the moment and for some reason they both LOVE playing with boots.  Grace uses her “boot” to mix imaginary meals to feed her baby, while Abby can turn any cup, dish or table into a drum using her “boots” as drumsticks…she has perfect rhythm!

I am very grateful to my Social Worker in West Virginia who worked hard over the last month to make sure all my paperwork and state clearances are in order.  She will be filing my first set of adoption paperwork within the next week or so and says it usually takes 8-12 weeks for a response.  Please pray that this first step is approved quickly and that the right people will help me know the next steps to follow in Zimbabwe.  It is my hope that once the US approval is complete, the foster care order can be reinstated and Abby and Grace can move back home! 

Thanks to everyone who has contributed toward the adoption fees through CornerStone.  So far, I have used the funds to pay for the home study and the I-600A filing fees to be approved as an adoptive parent.  Thank you for helping us to become a legal family!

Love, Janine, Abby and Grace

 

The Whole Story

Hello Everyone!

I apologize for my long absence in sending a HOPE update.  Those of you who have seen my Facebook updates over the last months will know part of why there was such a long silence.  I found out at the end of November that my work visa application had been denied.  I had 21 days to make an appeal, at which time I hired an immigration attorney in Zimbabwe to assist.  The appeal was also denied just days before Christmas and I was told I would have to leave the country by January 11.  I flew to South Africa on that day, not knowing what to do next.  In what can only be described as an intervention from God, I found out the very next day that my lawyer had put in a second appeal, which had been approved before immigration closed on my last legal day in the country.  I am now safely home in Zimbabwe for another year.

This ordeal was made much worse by the fact that the adoption process for Abigail and Grace was only in the beginning stages.  When Social Welfare filed the adoption paperwork in September after a mandatory foster care period, it was discovered that we had been following the guidelines to adopt as a Zimbabwean citizen.  I was supposed to apply to adopt as a foreigner and be cleared as an adoptive parent in the US before being allowed to foster or adopt Abby and Grace.  Until this paperwork can be obtained, Social Welfare informed me that the girls would need to be removed from my home.   They were removed on December 28, after living as a family for 1 year and 2 months.

Although this is the hardest thing I have ever been through, I am very grateful to the officers who realized that Abby and Grace are very attached to me as their mother.  They arranged for the girls to be placed at Fairfield Children’s Home where I live and work so that we could continue to see each other every day.  The girls adjusted very quickly and we see each other throughout every day, though they sleep at Fairfield.  It has made me realize what a wonderful home environment Fairfield really is.  The girls are well-cared for and well-loved when I am not able to be with them, which gives me great peace of mind.  The administrators, Luke and Cecillia, were so supportive through the whole situation and helped me to make good decisions about how to best arrange the transition.

I have now begun the adoption process on the US side, and it will take a few months for everything to be processed.  I was fortunate to find two US Social Workers, one living in Zimbabwe and one in West Virginia, who are working together to complete my home study.  Once I am cleared as an adoptive parent, we will be able to resubmit paperwork for guardianship in Zimbabwe.  A US immigration attorney, the US Embassy and my Senator’s office have all been contacted to assist in completing the adoption once the guardianship is granted, but for many reasons this may prove much more difficult than first expected.  There is a definite possibility that I will not be able to complete the adoption, but everything possible will be done to ensure that it proceeds.  Please be in prayer that everything will progress without problems and the girls and I will be reunited as soon as possible. 

If anyone would be willing to contribute to the costs of the adoption, a tax-deductible donation can be made to:

CornerStone International

PO Box 192

Wilmore, KY 40390

Memo: Zimbabwe adoption

I will keep everyone informed of the progress throughout this year.  Currently the home study information is being gathered and then the paperwork will be filed for approval. 

Thank you all for your support and love,

Janine, Abigail and Grace

 

I am now back to work after a wonderful 2 week vacation with my mom, aunt and brother who came to visit me and meet Grace and Abigail for the first time!  For my mom and aunt, it was also their first trip to Africa, so they had a lot of new things thrown at them all at once.  I was so proud watching them kill spiders, battle wasps, and deal with the occasional power outage and water shortage.  They were able to meet some of the children they have supported over the years, as well as meet the little girl their United Methodist Women’s group supports.  Abby instantly chose Uncle Josh as her new best friend, and could even say “Joth” by the end of the trip with her cute little lisp.

We were able to travel to a lot of my favorite spots and meet my favorite people, so it was such a special time.  We spent most of the first week at or near home so the girls could sleep in their own beds, but we did venture out a bit farther the second week with 2 of my friends, Julie and Ruth.  We traveled to Chimanimani Mountains, Mt. Selinda where the girls are from, and the Great Zimbabwe Ruins.  I couldn’t believe all of us made it to the top of the mountain where the kings’ castle used to be!  Abby and Grace had so much fun, but by the end of the trip, I think they were exhausted along with the rest of us! 

The girls turned two years old on October 5.  It was so special to have some of my family there to celebrate.   We had a small party with lots of presents, pretty party dresses, and chocolate cake.  Unfortunately after so much excitement both girls got sick, so we had to send my family to the game park on their last day without us.  It was sad to leave Mom, Nancy and Josh at the airport, but I am happy they arrived safely back home with lots of stories and memories to share with everyone.

During my family’s visit, there was a Prize Giving Day at many of the schools where our HOPE children attend school.  We were proud to find out that many two of our children received prizes, which is a great honor.  Blessing Samushonga, who attends Hartzell Secondary School, had the highest grades of his entire class (hundreds of students!).  Enoch Magombera, from Vumbunu Secondary, received an award for being the most responsible child in his entire class. 

We have 8 children currently writing their 7^th grade exams this month.  The results will determine which school they can attend for junior high/secondary school.  We have 6 more writing their “O” level exams, and 2 writing their “A” level exams which will determine if they will be able to attend college.  We wish them good luck and are looking forward to good results from all of them.  Hopefully we will have more college and university students under the HOPE program in the near future.

I am excited that rainy season is right around the corner, but for now we have to tolerate the heat with no air conditioning!

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine, Abigail and Grace

 

 

 We have officially started the third and last term of school year and it is much quieter at Fairfield during the days!  This past month was a true blessing with the Ream family visiting from my hometown in West Virginia.  They stayed for a full month with their three children.  This was the first time younger children have come to live with us at Fairfield.  The Fairfield children had so much fun studying, playing, doing Bible Study and watching movies with their new friends. 

The Ream family also supports 2 of our HOPE children in the education program.  They were able to spend a few days with them and take them on a special outing that included horseback riding and a stop at the best cake shop in Zimbabwe!  We were also able to travel together to meet one of their sponsor children’s relatives.  They were very helpful passing out food for the nutrition program and school supplies at each of the schools.  Our Vumbunu Primary School children now all have sponsors so we were able to purchase new school shoes and sweaters for them to finish out the year in style!

We attempted to drive my car to visit some of our HOPE children on the nutrition program in their homes.  Halfway to our destination, we realized there was no way the car could continue on the “road” and we had to turn back.  Luckily some of our babies came to visit us this month, including our mother of triplets.  She was carrying them all by herself-one on the back and one on each side.  I decided to no longer complain when carrying twins!

Grace and Abigail are growing, happy and healthy.  They love dancing and singing all day long.  Grace loves to look in the mirror every morning from many angles to ensure her outfit is beautiful enough.  She won’t leave the house without a bow in her hair and carries her stuffed animals around on her back wrapped in a towel.  Abby is my little tomboy.  She can be found running around with all the boys at the daycare center and hurling bouncy balls straight at my head.  She loves to dig in the mud with a stick and going fast-whether it is in her stroller or being spun around the room. 

The girls had their first ice cream party while the Ream family was here.  They ate all of their own ice cream and then moved on to finish what was left in everyone else’s bowls.  By the end the girls were even trying to eat right from the container.  Now I truly know these are my children!

My Mom, brother Josh and Aunt Nancy arrive this coming Sunday for a 2-week visit.  Abby and Grace are so excited to meet Mormor, Uncle Josh and Nan as they know them by the picture we keep next to a map of the world.  The bright purple jacaranda trees have made an appearance just in time for their visit and we are all looking forward to some family time together.

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine

The annual journey has begun to collect sponsor letters and take new photos of all the HOPE children.  This year it has been much more entertaining with the three college students from the US accompanying me on each trip to all the different schools.  This also gives us an opportunity to check up on all the children’s report books and see how they are doing in their classes.  We also find out from these trips which children have changed schools so that we can keep our HOPE records up-to-date.

 The HOPE children are often very transient because they are usually being cared for by a relative.  When that relative is no longer able to keep them, they will be moved to live with another relative, often a long distance away.  We try our very best to follow the children to their new schools and continue paying school fees, but sometimes this is just not possible.  Some will move without informing us of their new destination and others move to very remote areas where we are not able to travel on a regular basis.  For these reasons, sponsors may have multiple children throughout their sponsorship experience.  This is good news because it means even more children have been prayed for and cared for over the years!

So far, we have traveled to Tsvingwe Primary and Secondary Schools, Vumbunu Primary and Secondary Schools and St. James Primary and Secondary Schools.  About 75% of our children attend these schools, so now the hard part will begin of tracking down the other 25% that attend multiple schools all over Zimbabwe!

 

 Grace and Abby are now 21 months old.  It is hard to believe how fast they are growing.  They can now brush their teeth, eat on their own (although sometimes more ends up on the floor than in their mouths!), and love playing with other children from Fairfield and their church.  We have had a visit from our Social Welfare officer this past month who has already filed the first set of paperwork for me to be allowed to adopt as a foreigner.  After he receives the approval letter, he will get my references and set a court date!  He is estimating the Zimbabwean side of the adoption will be completed by the end of October 2012.  That is also the time my visa expires, but hopefully I will receive an extension that will last a year.  Please be in prayer that everything happens in God’s timing and no obstacles will be allowed to get in the way.

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine, Abby and Grace