Adopting a Thai child

[IHF]

why not try sponsoring a child, so that child gets a full education, you can do from $10 per month.

see our website ihfonline dot org

or contact me for more details

Peter.

IHF

[margaretcarnes]

Sorry but, with respect, I'm always very dubious about 'sponsor' organisations, and I don't think I'll be a lone voice on this. The IHF may well be a genuine organisation. Personally I've never heard of it. But the point here isn't about support for children who the sponsor will never meet, it's about the legalities in Thailand of bringing up a youngster as your own.
In most cases farangs seem happy to be the 'step parent' without going through formal adoption procedures - and in the UK things are usually the same. But I don't know if, with a farang/Thai marriage in LOS, the farang gains step parent recognition.
Clearly Dawns' situation is a difficult one legally there. In the UK the child would usually be fostered first, then adopted, (often by the foster parent) once efforts to trace the missing natural parent had failed.
Given comments earlier (by Buksi I think) about the heavy involvement by Thai welfare authorities in adoptions, I'm surprised they don't seem to have a similar system of fostering first? Or maybe such situations don't often arise due to the more closely knit family structures there?

[IHF]

Sorry but, with respect, I'm always very dubious about 'sponsor' organisations, and I don't think I'll be a lone voice on this. The IHF may well be a genuine organisation. Personally I've never heard of it.

I too felt the same way as you, with many charities worldwide, especially the UK, spending millions of donated money on fancy TV adverts etc and administration.

I wanted to do charity work for a long time, I studied and researched lots of charities(mostly to my disgust and how little actually reaches grass roots) before picking this one, We are 100% run by volunteers worldwide, even myself sponsors a child here in Thailand as most of us do. we do not provide a quick fix,(food,money) our aim is long term to give children an eduction that can help them in the future. to get out of the vicious life of poverty.

The owner Carol Sasaki has won many awards from the United Nations etc for her many years work as an NGO.

[margaretcarnes]

Thanks IHF, thats interesting. So do you have many children in HuaHin and area who can't afford to go to school? I know they all have to have school uniform, which can be expensive for a lot of Thai parents. Do they have to pay school fees as well?

[IHF]

Hi Margret,

The kids are in an Orphanage in Chiang Rai, sponsors pay for school uniforms, school dinners, books and transportation.

they have guardians too who keep in contact with them, give them advice, a friendly ear to listen to their problems.

[margaretcarnes]

Sorry IHF I assumed you were based in HH. This certainly sounds better organised than some of stuff we hear about. (You are right BTW. Too many scams around over here.) But I fear we are straying from the adoption theme!
So are many of the orphans up there adopted? If so, is it a difficult procedure?