Orphan Hosting is a life changing event for many adoptable children around the world as they come to temporarily live with an American family for 2-8 weeks. It allows them the opportunity to experience life and unconditional love in a family, travel outside their country and learn about our culture and language. Hundreds of children from countries around the world come to Indiana to be hosted and hopefully, eventually adopted. MLJ Adoptions is offering a Summer Hosting Program this year.
In order to have a host child in your home, your host agency will require you to have an abbreviated home study which is sometimes called a Host Home Safety Check or Host Home Report. This assessment allows your Hosting Agency to be assured that your home is a safe, secure, welcoming and nurturing environment for the child participating in the orphan hosting program. MLJ Adoptions International can complete this Host Home evaluation for you if you live in Indiana!
The MLJ Adoptions’ Social Services staff will contact you to schedule your Host Home Safety Review. We will want to obtain any guidelines or requirements from your host agency so that all information can be included as needed. Prior to the home visit, our staff will need to obtain several documents from you such as basic family information, Driver’s Licenses or Birth Certificates, health examinations, releases for child abuse and sex offender checks, and local police criminal history checks. We will provide you with instructions to complete state police criminal history checks for all household members age 18 or older. A social worker will come to your home to not only meet with you and your family, but will also tour your home to assure it is safe for the host children and will discuss with you your motivation for hosting. Other topics that will be discussed will include but are not limited to: family history; discipline used in the home; your expectations of the child; behaviors associated with institutionalized children; experience with hosting; adoption or fostering in the past; your home and community; and planned activities during hosting. This discussion is to help assure you and your family have clear expectations of the hosting experience and enable our staff to help you identify the opportunities you will be offering to your host child.
The Host Home Safety Review is designed to be a friendly, helpful and informative process. Our goal is to make you feel comfortable about your upcoming hosting experience and assure that the child coming to your home feels welcomed and safe in his or her new temporary environment.
MLJ Adoptions International, Inc. is a licensed Indiana child placing agency and is Hague Accredited. To find out more about having MLJ Adoptions International complete your Host Home evaluation if you live in Indiana, please contact us. We still have openings in our Summer Orphan Hosting Program from Ukraine. For more information, please contact Lydia.
Karlene Edgemon, MS, LSW
Karlene Edgemon works as MLJ Adoptions’ Director of Social Services. Throughout her 25 year social services career, Karlene has been able to watch adoption transform the lives of children and she is always brainstorming new ways to support adoptive families before, during and after their adoption.
Karlene Edgemon, MS, LSW
Karlene Edgemon works as MLJ Adoptions’ Director of Social Services. Throughout her 25 year social services career, Karlene has been able to watch adoption transform the lives of children and she is always brainstorming new ways to support adoptive families before, during and after their adoption.