Ryan

Boy, Age: 6
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Arthrogryposis
Congenital zika, Microcephaly, Arthrogryposis, Club Foot
Listed: Mar 2023
$40.50
has been donated towards the cost of my adoption!

Your gift will serve ALL of the children, as 10% of each Waiting Child Donation is shared with our Voice of Hope fund, as well!
Ryan is a cute 6-year-old boy, very nice and calm. He can’t see well which makes him very attentive to noise and he has developed a great ability to identify all the sounds he hears.

He likes music, likes to hear the sound of other children playing near him and it makes him smile. He likes to be cradled, and to have his head stroked. He doesn’t like to cry very much, he only cries when he is sick, or when he needs a little attention.

In therapy, he works on range of motion and stretching to prevent further contractures of his limbs, to turn his head to the right, since he tends to lean his head to the left, and to improve functional use of his arms and hands. At school, he uses sensory material and adapted activities to help him develop his academic abilities.

Florence

Girl, Age: 7
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Cerebral palsy
Spastic Cerebral Palsy, g-tube
Listed: Jan 2021
$5,595.00
has been donated towards the cost of my adoption!

Your gift will serve ALL of the children, as 10% of each Waiting Child Donation is shared with our Voice of Hope fund, as well!
Florence is a beautiful, smiley and easy going girl! She thrives with her title of Princess in her foster home.

Florence is nonverbal but uses other ways to communicate. She smiles and arches when she is happy and will cry when she is in pain, hungry or sad. For example, she usually gets sad if others go on a walk and she thinks she’s not going to go. She likes when you give her simple yes/no questions like which outfit she wants to wear for the day. At school, she has been working on different ways to communicate like using an eye gaze program to speak through a dynavox or trying to use her hand to choose answers.

Florence has a g-tube. In the past, she has eaten meals blended by mouth. Her g-tube was used to give her medicine and water. However, currently she is being fed all food and water via her g-tube as her caregivers are assessing what is safe for her. There are not swallow studies available in her home country so it is a little bit challenging to figure out what is best for her. Her diet is being supplemented with a mix of complan, a powdered-milk nutritional supplement, and real food blends. She is doing well. Also, she does take muscle relaxing medication to help with her spasticity.

Her personality has started to shine through even more so. She likes to laugh. She thinks her friends that do silly things are really funny and often they make her snort when laughing a lot.

She attends therapy four times a week currently for stander time, stretching and exercises. The therapists always say she doesn’t complain unless it is a day where she is clearly uncomfortable before she comes.

Florence enjoys being held by her people and especially when they sing to her or dance with her. Even though she cannot talk, she interacts well with her friends in her foster home! Such a joyful, sweet girl she is.

Sasha

Girl, Age: 12
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Deaf / HoH
Developmental delays, deaf, VSD, history of seizures
Listed: Mar 2019
**** I am eligible for a $5000 Older Child Grant ****
Grant funds depend on available funding; the link above, shows the current available amount!
To inquire about this child, email childinquiry@reecesrainbow.org ***
Update October 2022:  Sasha is the cutest, most mischievous 11 yr old! She is deaf, has a hole in her heart, and a global development delay. She understands a lot of things and pays very close attention to so many things but has not learned to sign yet in school. She is very curious and is always wanting to explore (or put in her mouth!) everything around her. She makes our whole house laugh all day long with all the random things she does while playing! She is curious about other kids occasionally but mostly likes to play by herself or wander around by herself. Her favorite thing to do is jump on the trampoline. She is very cuddly and will come up to you and lay her head on your shoulder, climb in your lap, ask for kisses by pressing her forehead repeatedly on your mouth or even give you a kiss! She loves to make silly faces at you and we are trying to get her to copy our silly faces we make back. In school she is working on following simple gesture commands and using the sign “more”, sorting things, and attention to task activities. She loves the sensory activities we do the most! At home she eats (very messily) by herself and is learning to sit on a special toilet seat with a buckle after she eats. She likes to put hats and shoes on by herself but still is learning to do the rest without help. She brings so much joy and laughter into our lives and would thrive in a family! Videos on request!

2021:  Sasha is a spunky, free spirited girl. She has developmental delays, but is very curious about her surroundings. She is constantly walking around and picking things up to examine them, play with them, or chew on them. She loves to interact when you mimic the things she does as well as being tickled. She laughs and has a fun sparkle in her eye. She also loves watching and interacting with herself in the mirror.

Communication with her is limited since she is deaf and has yet to learn sign language. She understands some signs such as “sit” and “no”, but has yet to repeat signs back to us such as “more” and “food.” Sasha continues to work on those both in her foster home and with her teacher at school, but it has been very slow progress. She also has a VSD (hole in her heart), but her body has learned to live with it well. She has been taken off all her heart medicine, and seems to be doing well so far. She has seen doctors about surgery, but none has been needed so far. She is also on medication for seizures, but under the current combination of seizure medication, she has not a had a seizure.

Robert

Boy, Age: 10
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Global developmental delays
global developmental delay, microcephaly
Listed: Apr 2019
**** I am eligible for a $5000 Older Child Grant ****
Grant funds depend on available funding; the link above, shows the current available amount!
To inquire about this child, email childinquiry@reecesrainbow.org ***
Updated bio from Feb 2023:
Robert is much more easy going and independent now. He’s made a lot of progress in the last couple of years! He’s honestly such a happy boy who loves people, hugs, and music. He’s quite good at taking selfies on cell phones too.

He loves to play on his own, not in a way that he doesn’t play with others but meaning he doesn’t need someone to entertain him. He builds with magnetic tiles and enjoys creative play with his dolls/stuffed animals. Sometimes he sets up his stuffed animals and babies to pretend to feed them or do school. Other nights he’s hanging his sheet across the room to make a hammock swing. He makes his foster family laugh a lot!

He’s independent with getting dressed, showering, changing his sheets and etc. Occasionally, accidents at night but they are few and far between. He eats and drinks on his own but he doesn’t chew well. He could use OT for this.

He is such a kind helper and aware of routines or tasks needing to be done. For example, if his foster mom is getting another child ready, without prompting, he will go get clothes and socks/shoes for them too.

He LOVES his big bike! 3 years ago he was scared of a bike but now he rides around on his 24inch bike, no problem! He enjoys jumping on the trampoline and going on walks. He is still drawn to trees and shadows for sensory input.

He may cross his arms and refuse to cooperate. Sometimes shakes his head or cries. This used to happen frequently but it is not frequent anymore. We can work through it much easier now though. He mostly does it when he is trying to express something he needs/wants or doesn’t want. So he is using it to try to communicate where his speech is limited. He makes noises or talks with the handful of phrases he can say. He is learning to expand his vocabulary.

His natural response used to be to run when he was scared but very rarely does he do that now too. For example, medical appointments were always difficult for him, needing days to prepare ahead. Now he is fine to go and doesn’t need much prepping.

He’s such a joy to live with and he would flourish even more in a family!

School update: Robert loves school! He is such a fun student to have because he is excited about everything he does, and other kids too. He is constantly cheering for himself or for his friends and wanting to help them out in any way! He has transitioned to a full day of school easily.

He is very good at sorting. He can match or sort any colors, letters, and numbers. He has delays but we are continuing to work with him. He likes sensory play like kinetic sand, shaving cream, and water beads.

He has so much potential to learn so many things if he were to have access to more services!

Quint

Boy, Age: 11
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Cerebral palsy
cerebral palsy and possible other delays
Listed: Jan 2014
**** I am eligible for a $5000 Older Child Grant ****
Grant funds depend on available funding; the link above, shows the current available amount!
To inquire about this child, email childinquiry@reecesrainbow.org ***
Update Jan 2015: Quint is an adorable little guy. He appears to have cerebral palsy and possible other delays. He can sit up on his own and scoots all over the place. Quint can stand unassisted and has recently started walking on his own. He is very proud of this new skill and practices it often, although scooting is still his primary choice. Quint tends to grab at anything he is close to, whether this is a toy, grass or someone else’s clothing. He will hold on tight, and sometimes put the object he finds in his mouth. Quint currently has trouble making eye contact, but he still loves to interact and play. He is non-verbal, but can often be heard making loud noises as he plays, by himself or with others. These noises are sometimes an expression of frustration and sometimes indicate joy. Quint loves to be tickled and get kisses!

Update Feb 2018: Quint has become quite mobile and is very steady walking, sometimes even trying to run. He hasn’t figured out the pedals, but loves to scoot around on his tricycle. While he still puts everything in his mouth, he does know the difference between food and other things and will always take it back out if it’s not food. He is learning to feed himself and does pretty well with a fork and is getting better with a spoon. He also holds his own sippy cup. We have been working on using the toilet and he still urinated mostly in his diaper but has many bowel movements on the toilet. His problems with making eye contact have greatly improved and he has been able to make some strong connections and attachments. He loves to cuddle and hold hands. One thing he struggles with is sleeping through the night, which has gotten a little better since he started taking melatonin but he’s still a pretty early riser!

Lollie

Girl, Age: 12
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Epilepsy/ seizure disorder
Siezures; other undiagnosed issues
Listed: Jan 2014
**** I am eligible for a $5000 Older Child Grant ****
Grant funds depend on available funding; the link above, shows the current available amount!
To inquire about this child, email childinquiry@reecesrainbow.org ***
Update October 2022: Lollie is a sweet, easy going 11 year old that has been waiting for a family since she was a baby. She has CP, CVI, and epilepsy well controlled with medication. She doesn’t have purposeful movement in her body and it is very difficult to know exactly how much she can see so it is very difficult to tell exactly how much she understands. She has preferences of what she likes to do, but doesn’t really ever get upset or cry unless she is in pain. Her favorite things to do are sensory input activities like going for walks and in a bike trailer on bumpy roads, and using the sensory materials at school. In therapy she is working on range of motion and other stretches to help her muscles be less tight. Recently her contractures have gotten a lot worse and she has had some other skeletal issues like a dislocated hip, and getting pressure sores a lot easier. She is a joy to be around and is loved by all her caregivers! She would thrive in a family! Lollie has videos on request.

Updated August 2019: Lollie is a sweet girl who is almost always happy. She is adored by everyone she meets, and has been the favorite in our house since she arrived! Her favorite thing to do is go for walks and car rides on bumpy roads. When she is happy her laugh can be heard from quite a long way off! The only thing that makes her mad is standing in her stander at therapy. Her nannies love to dress her up and fix her hair. She has a vision impairment, and does not have a lot of purposeful movement.

In school she is working on responding to different stimulation and focusing her eyes on one object at a time, and at therapy she is doing range of motion stretches, standing, and several other things.

Gabi

Girl, Age: 15
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Down syndrome
Listed: Aug 2013
*** I am eligible for a $15,000 Older Child Grant! For more information or to inquire about this child, please email childinquiry@reecesrainbow.org ***
Gabi has been diagnosed with Down syndrome. She loves attending the pre-school at the orphanage, but she has struggled with learning basic concepts such as numbers, letters, etc. However, with more one-on-one instruction, it is believed that she can and will learn. Gabi is well-liked by the other children at the orphanage. She is also a favorite of visitors who come to visit. Gabi can sometimes come across too strongly in her attempts to get attention, but she truly is a delightful little girl!

Frederick

Boy, Age: 13
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Global developmental delays
low muscle tone and has been diagnosed with developmental delays
Listed: Aug 2013
**** I am eligible for a $5000 Older Child Grant ****
Grant funds depend on available funding; the link above, shows the current available amount!
To inquire about this child, email childinquiry@reecesrainbow.org ***
UPDATE JANUARY 2016: Frederick now has a wheelchair that he can move on his own,and he is going to be able to go out to the neighborhood school starting this week! He is making amazing progress.

Frederick has low muscle tone, and he has been diagnosed with developmental delays. He is capable of feeding himself (but he makes a mess!) and just needs more practice to develop that skill. There is concern about core muscle development, but Frederick works hard, so it is believed that he may be able to walk some day.

Frederick is a hard-working little boy who wants to develop his skills. He has developed friendships with some of the other kids in the orphanage (both able-bodied and special-needs kids). He responds well to physical therapy, and in just a couple of months he progressed from simply lying on a mat to attempting to stand and taking small steps. Multiple unrelated children can be adopted together.

Carlton

Boy, Age: 15
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Cerebral palsy
Listed: Jan 2014
**** I am eligible for a $5000 Older Child Grant ****
Grant funds depend on available funding; the link above, shows the current available amount!
To inquire about this child, email childinquiry@reecesrainbow.org ***
Update Nov 2021:   Carlton is a 13 year old boy with cerebral palsy. He is smart, mischevious and always keeping everyone around him entertained!

Carlton can move his wheelchair independently with his one good arm, or can turn around and go backwards using his feet to push (and looking backwards where he is going). He uses a gait trainer to run/walk, and when he is not in one of those he is always scooting or crawling on the floor. He can get in and out of his wheelchair, bed, and shower by himself.

Right now Carlton gets fed by an adult with a spoon. He can put food in his mouth with a fork if you put the food on the fork for him. He can pick up and drink his water by himself. He is a very fast eater, it might take him 5 minutes to eat his whole big bowl of food if it’s something he really likes. He is not a picky eater at all, and can eat all textures but does seem to prefer things that are softer like oatmeal or spaghetti.

Carlton  uses an iPad and a cookie sheet with magnetic letters/numbers/words in school to answer questions and do his work. He is very good at showing people what he wants by pointing to things and “grunting”. He just got an iPad all to himself so will start to use that at home too to communicate!

Carlton picks up on things extremely quickly! He had never worked on reading before, but one day about 6 months into going to school when he was 9 I realized he could read and rearrange letters on a cookie sheet to spell words in creole! After that he needed very little help to learn to read English. He is currently working on about a 6th grade level curriculum and learning algebra so that he has something to challenge him. He has a short attention span and needs to be reminded to stay on task quite often. He has a very low-tech “keyboard” which is just some papers that we can fit all the letters on and he can reach easily with his motor skills and he can type maybe one word at a time in response to a question now. He uses his left hand which he can move a lot less for school activities because when he uses his right hand he tends to get excited and not have as much control when touching answers.

Carlton needs help brushing his teeth, changing, and eating right now. He currently wears cloth diapers but tells us when he needs to be changed and goes down the hall to his room to get his pants and bring them to an adult.  Carlton is extremely healthy. In the almost 4 years I’ve known him he has only had a cold once. He used to have some halitosis but that has improved immensely.

Carlton has a lot of attention seeking behaviors. He plays on a much younger level than a 13 year old. He is always so excited to play with everyone, and receive attention from his friends or adults he loves. Carlton is extremely joyful and excitable! He needs lots of reminders to be gentle because he can get overexcited very easily.

Carlton likes to do anything that you are doing!  He likes helping when he receives a lot of encouragement and hanging out with his friends, foster parent, and nannies. His most favorite activities are singing, dancing, playing in the water at a pool/beach/sprinkler, going for walks in a stroller or his gait trainer, jumping and doing tricks on the trampoline, going for bike rides in his bike trailer, pushing his friends on swings, and chasing people.
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Update August 2019: Carlton has taught himself to read in Creole, and needed very little help learning to read in English. He can do multi-step word problems inside his head. Although school is very easy for him, he is not very motivated to do his schoolwork or find different ways to communicate. He has shown a little interest in a keyboard to type out words, but mostly he prefers to communicate what he wants with signs, gestures, and noises. He loves one on one attention but can also play quietly by himself if he is not competing for attention.

He can get in and out of his chair and bed by himself, and can independently move around in his wheelchair. He wears diapers and still needs help with eating. There is a very funny video of some things Carlton can do if you would like to see more

Breckin

Boy, Age: 12
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Cerebral palsy
Listed: Jan 2014
**** I am eligible for a $5000 Older Child Grant ****
Grant funds depend on available funding; the link above, shows the current available amount!
To inquire about this child, email childinquiry@reecesrainbow.org ***
Update October 2022: Breckin is a happy, silly, 11 year old with CP, sensory processing difficulties, and epilepsy well controlled with medication. He LOVES any sort of 1:1 time with his favorite people and lights up the whole room with his smile and laugh when he sees someone he loves. He gives the best hugs, if it were up to him he would be hugging someone 100% of the day! When he is super happy (most of the time) he has a happy dance that he does with a high pitched laugh. He recently started standing in a stander and walking with a gait trainer and has made so much improvement already! His favorite things are any 1:1 time, singing, school, being bounced around on the trampoline, swimming or any water play, going for bike rides in a bike trailor, playing with shaving cream, and cuddling. He can get out of and into chairs well by himself and likes to scoot around on the floor. Most of the time he scoots himself over to get up on the couch or to look in the wall mirror. He loves his caregivers so much and has so much love to give to his future family! He needs help with putting food into his mouth but can hold his water when he drinks independently. He can help putting his limbs through shirts and pants but needs help getting dressed fully. He is in diapers at the moment. He used to bang his head a lot out of boredom and habit, but when he is engaged or in a chair/stander that is more difficult to hit his head against anything he likes to stim by shaking his head around, putting his hands in his mouth, or grinding his teeth. He listens when told to take his hands out of his mouth and can easily be redirected if he is self stimming inappropriately. Videos on request!

Update July 2020: Breckin is such a fun kid who loves hugs and one on one interaction. If you go in for a hug, be ready to stay awhile because he will want to hold you there. He can currently hold his own bottle to drink on his own. He is spending more time in a walker in therapy. He needs encouragement in it, but is getting better. He will walk with you with support for a little ways as well. With more intense therapy, he would really excel in this area. He loves it when his caregivers sing his favorite songs. He really likes hymns as well as the Goodnight Song sung in his house.

Update Jan 2015: Breckin has cerebral palsy, but he can sit up and stand with assistance. He can even take a few steps if you hold onto his hands. He has been receiving regular therapy and loves this time. Breckin is making great improvements – he now has a modified crawl that he uses to get all around his house and can quickly move to wherever he wants to be. He can also pull himself up to stand and does this often. Breckin does not yet feed himself, but he has practiced holding his own spoon and sippy cup and has made great progress. Breckin is a happy little guy who loves to play.

Bennett

Boy, Age: 9
Country Code: LA-4
Primary Diagnosis: Hydrocephalus
Listed: Aug 2019
$4,445.34
has been donated towards the cost of my adoption!

Your gift will serve ALL of the children, as 10% of each Waiting Child Donation is shared with our Voice of Hope fund, as well!
Bennett is a very social child. Whenever he sees his friends, he eagerly greets them with a smile, a hug, and a “Happy Birthday!” He had hydrocephalus as an infant that was treated with a VP shunt. The shunt was later removed but he still has macrocephaly. He does have a history of seizures which are very well controlled by medication. He receives physical therapy twice a week and has made tremendous progress over the past several years.

He is fully mobile, can feed himself, and go to the bathroom independently. Bennett wears a helmet to protect his head. He has become fond of his helmet though because he can show off his headstand. You will often find him enjoying jumping on the trampoline, playing on the playground or going on a walk. He needs redirection often because he is always on the move. Although he is generally happy, he can get frustrated when people do not do what he wants to do or if he is being asked to do something he is not ready for.

Bennett’s favorite part of school is circle time because he likes to sing songs and answer ALL the questions even if his answer has nothing to do with what was asked. He understands and speaks English as well as his native language. He is known for reciting the four seasons in English quite well. At home, he loves to ask other people to dance and sing with him too. Bennett loves to make people smile!