Adopting in Thailand

[cyrille]

Children age 5 and 6 are just learning to speak English

[MarilynMonroe]

I guess you could research the potential of child education sponsorship, not in a general charity sense, but perhaps a specific child and their development and having an actual relationship without long term commitment.

Great idea!

This is very rewarding speaking from experience. I sponsor school age children to attend private school in the Philippines. My boy who I sponsored to attend school all through primary school, wrote letters to me over the years. He is now going through to be a Filipino teacher at age 24. I also recommend this idea to Stumpy in Thailand.

[MarilynMonroe]

Both now graduated from uni.

With I dare say a better life and future than being left to grow up in a Vietnamese orphanage

Pretty awesome! He must feel very proud!

[katie23]

@stumpy - I don't know the procedures in TH, but here in PH the adoption process is long, AFAIK (but not impossible).

I also know of some people who adopted "directly" (one of them is my neighbor), meaning they didn't go through an orphanage or adoption agency. For that particular neighbor, the child's mother was a teenager and poor - couldn't give the child a good life. The teenager's mom arranged for the baby to be adopted right at the hospital. The baby was adooted by a middle class family (my neighbors), whose kids were already teenagers. The adoptive parents were named as parents in the child's birth certificate. (I guessed money changed hands.) I know of another similar case - the adoptive mom was named as mother in the birth certificate. It's a grey area, but it happens, and the child has a better future, being raised by parents who want them and can afford to.


Now, those situations involved babies/ newborns. In PH, there are some kids who don't have birth certificates until they're 5 or 6 yrs old, when they need BCs to enroll in school. Many cases of "home births", esp in provinces. The parents do a "late registration of birth" to get birth certificates in time for the kid's schooling.

I don't know if you/ your wife are amenable to looking for a 4-5 yr old child in the province/ mountains who still doesn't have a birth certificate and whose parents are willing to let their child be adopted.

[katie23]

@marilyn - good to hear an update about the Filipino child that you supported. He's already 24 and has graduated from college! Congrats to him and to you too!

[YourDaddy]

Too broke for IVF?

[misskit]

Age makes a big difference in adopting. It’s not just being too old to see a child through to adult, but also you must think of how you intend to care for yourself (and partner.)

I’d like to adopt a child who has already completed medical school.

[MarilynMonroe]

@marilyn - good to hear an update about the Filipino child that you supported. He's already 24 and has graduated from college! Congrats to him and to you too!

Thanks Katie, yes he has.. he found me on fb just as he was graduating college. He took the test recently to become a teacher and he is awaiting his results. I hadn't heard from him in a long time. We now talk regularly. I also send him a bit of money every birthday through paypal. I hope so much to visit him one day!

[MarilynMonroe]

Age makes a big difference in adopting. It’s not just being too old to see a child through to adult, but also you must think of how you intend to care for yourself (and partner.)

Yes, it isn't cheap to raise a child in this day and age either. I would have loved to have adopted a child even as a single person. I am too old now, but thought about adopting a child from China or Cambodia/Vietnam once or twice.

[Stumpy]

^

Entirely understandable and sensible. Rather than parenting through adoption, I guess you could research the potential of child education sponsorship, not in a general charity sense, but perhaps a specific child and their development and having an actual relationship without long term commitment.

Thanks PAG. I routinely volunteer locally. Right now lots going on for the upcoming Loy Krathong. Usually every year I help build the float for the parade. Yesterday was down helping clean up the Park. When I retire I am going to donate a nice big Sala area over looking the river. There are 2 that are pretty run down.

As many know in the area, I am always available to help with English tutoring as some contact my wife. I enjoy seeing my Niece working now in a Business environment in BKK using English to help.

[DrWilly]

Thanks Katie, yes he has.. he found me on fb just as he was graduating college. He took the test recently to become a teacher and he is awaiting his results. I hadn't heard from him in a long time. We now talk regularly. I also send him a bit of money every birthday through paypal. I hope so much to visit him one day!

Hard to express words for this post.

[katie23]

@stumpy - as you've mentioned in a previous post, you+wife will also need to decide on who will inherit your properties after you pass on (though you probably still have 20 to 40 yrs more)...

I recently visited the land registration office here in PH and I was surprised to see lots of seniors in the queue. (All of us had envelopes/ folders full of docs, Lol.) Here, it's fairly common for the parents/ grandparents to donate the land (make a Deed of Donation, instead of Deed of Absolute Sale) to their children or grandchildren. This is to avoid the inheritance tax which is to be paid by the heirs.

I don't know if such process (land donation) exists in TH but it wouldn't hurt to find out.

[Chris Daley]

I saw some people shaking a bucket at me in front of the usual 'kids looking sad and trying not to smile for the photo' poverty poster. I asked them if I can adopt one of the kids. They look terrified and ignored me. So they just want the money I guess.

[Stumpy]

Age makes a big difference in adopting. It’s not just being too old to see a child through to adult, but also you must think of how you intend to care for yourself (and partner.)

I’d like to adopt a child who has already completed medical school.

I have a daughter already there.

[Stumpy]

Too broke for IVF?

You continue to be the TD retard YD. How is that Get skinny quick deal working out?

[misskit]

^^Put me on the list if she goes up for adoption.

[Stumpy]

@ Katie. The process here seems to be pretty straight forward but life's timing for my wife and I just doesn't make good sense. My wife totally agrees. We will continue to help in our local area as we have been and it keeps it simple.

[Joe 90]

^^Put me on the list if she goes up for adoption

MM makes some good points worth considering.

At the end of the day the adoption process doesn't prioritise your fitness and finances over age, which is simplistic imho.

You and your wife have a lot to give a young orphan and the orphanages are full of children in need.

Best of luck whatever you decide to do.

[Joe 90]

don't know if you/ your wife are amenable to looking for a 4-5 yr old child in the province/ mountains who still doesn't have a birth certificate and whose parents are willing to let their child be adopted.

I'd advise caution with that.

There's horror stories out there involving extortion once the adoptive parents have become attached.

[katie23]

^yes, there are cases of those too in PH (so caveat emptor). I only suggested that since Stumpy & wife may prefer to adopt a child of that age instead of an infant.

I personally know of 4 cases of "direct adoption" of infants here in PH (adoptive parents were written as mom/ dad in the birth cert). I'm sure there are many more. The infants/ kids involved all live better lives since the adoptive parents had the means to provide for them.

One of those kids is now in his 20s and has graduated from college. When he was in high school, his mom/ parents hadn't told him about his adoption. I don't know if they told him eventually. His birth dad & adoptive dad were brothers (so the kid was raised by the biological uncle). His birth parents were poor, had many kids already & lived in the province. His adoptive parents - they weren't rich but they had regular jobs. They adopted the child (their nephew) since they had problems in conceiving. Such cases occur here in PH...

[Edmond]

Almost forgot that I have an adopted half-brother I never met.

Born 2 years after my older sister and 3 years before me. Ol' Pops was a 28 year old summer life guard at a beach and got a 17 year old school girl up the duff. Dear mum said they would take him in and raise them as their own but pops refused and he was adopted. I was then told about this at age 18 because he would have turned 21 which is the legal age for an adoptive child to be given the details of their real parents if they so wish, so there could have been a knock on the door one day, which I would have opened to presumably see a similar looking bloke with great taste in music and a slight penchant for annoying people.

Never did meet the lad or find out anything about him.

[Molle]

got a 17 year old school girl up the duff

The craving for teenage school girls may be hereditary.

[Edmond]

The craving for teenage school girls may be hereditary.

Heredity?


Unlike diaree-ah, I don't believe it runs in the jeans.

[DrWilly]

Heredity?


Unlike diaree-ah, I don't believe it runs in the jeans.

David does it better.

[Edmond]

#Trufh