The Faces of HIV

As I promised on Monday, I have some special people to introduce today.  (If you haven't had a chance to read Monday's post, where I shared some pretty mind-boggling things I've been learning about HIV, please take a couple minutes to check it out.)  I am so excited for you to meet these two cuties who are living with HIV.   These two little ones are healthy, adorable, and full of life, but they have been overlooked for adoption because they are HIV-positive.

UPDATE (9-26-11): Cole has a family working to bring him home - YAY! - so I have removed his picture for their privacy.  Owen also has a family coming for him. :)


This little guy is Cole (not his real name).  He turned six this May.

Cole has been on my heart since last fall when I first started researching special needs adoption.  He is one of the oldest kids in his baby house and will probably be transferred to a orphanage for older children this fall.  The orphanage he is in is a good one.  I'm not sure where he'll end up after he is transferred, but I do know he'll be leaving the home he's probably lived in his entire life.

Cole has three really good buddies from the same baby house.  One of them has already been adopted, and one has a committed family.  Cole and his friend "Owen" are still waiting.

Here's what a family who visited with Cole this spring had to say about him...

Cole is bright, friendly, engaging, inquisitive, helpful, athletic, and charming! Being the oldest child there [at the baby house], Cole is everyone's "big brother". He helps the caregivers keep track of any of the little ones who wander too far, and coaxes them back to where they belong. He can often be seen carrying bags of sand toys that they bring out to play with. He's learned responsibility from a young age. There are also pictures of him on the walls in traditional clothes of his country, performing in a Children's Day program with the biggest smile on his face! So, he clearly enjoys music and dancing, as well as sports. Whenever he sees me, he smiles and waves and yells, "Mama!" As in "Look! Here I am!". The director said that Cole asked my son if we would take him, too. To which my son answered "Yes! You can come too! My mama and papa will bring all of you!" Ouch. How it hurts me to know that within a few days, my son will be the only little boy walking out through those gates, and "Cole" (and "Owen") will be left behind. People are overlooking an absolute gem of a child!

I so want to see this little guy find his family!  I would go get him tomorrow if we felt than an older child would be a good fit for our family right now.  I am sure Cole has seen so many mamas and papas come to his baby house to adopt other children (like the family described above).  I can't even begin to imagine how excited he would be to hear that his very own mama and papa were coming to get him.

I don't know much more about Cole, but I would be happy to answer any questions you might have about adopting from his country (since it's the same country we're adopting from).  If you're interested, you can read more about Cole here.

This little sweetie is Carol Ann (also not her real name).  She turned four in February.

Carol Ann's chubby cheeks and fingers break my heart.  She just looks like she needs to be cuddled up on her mommy or daddy's lap - not living in an orphanage!

Here's what I know about Carol Ann...

Carol Ann is a darling little girl and an orphanage favorite.    Carol Ann is totally normal cognitively.  She is medically and physically healthy in every way outside of her HIV.  She loves to read, sing, dance, and say poems.  She will greatly benefit from a loving family of her own, and access to the medical care she needs to manage her HIV.

Carol Ann is also in the country we hope to adopt from.  Again, I'd be more than happy to answer questions about this country's adoption process.

This post is the first in my "Waiting Child Wednesday" series.  I hope to introduce you to more children who need families each Wednesday. (You can also check out the Waiting Child Slideshow that is always playing on the right side of my blog).  Please feel free to share this post (or information about either of these children) with anyone who might be interested in praying for them or helping them find their families.  

Thanks so much for taking a minute to "meet" these two very special kiddos.  I hope that sometime in the very near future I'll be telling you they both have families coming for them!