Superkids
Superkids Program Expands!
For the last decade, Gladney’s Superkids program has been sending pediatric therapy teams to visit orphanages in China and Taiwan to learn more about children waiting to be matched with adoptive families. The information we learn on these trips helps us to find permanent adoptive families. To date, almost 200 children that were seen by Superkids have been adopted by families in the United States as well as other countries. Many of these children would not have found the love and care of a family, without the Superkids program. This program continues currently with wonderful success in Taiwan.
In 2018, Gladney’s Superkids Program expanded to provide U.S based hosting programs for adoptable children. The first group of children were from Taiwan and hosted by families living in the Southeastern part of the U.S. In a hosting program, prospective adoptive families have a chance to either host a child in their home, or through a “camp-like” experience. Host families interact with children over the course of a 1-2 week stay. All international hosting programs are currently on hold. We will announce any updates on our Superkids blog.
Usually, our Superkids team travels to Taiwan twice a year to meet with waiting children. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our trips abroad have been cancelled, but we didn’t want this to derail all of the amazing advocacy we could do for these amazing children. Therefore, we launched our first ever Virtual Superkids Program!
Gladney’s Superkids team works with both of our partner agencies in Taiwan to facilitate Superkids visits with waiting children from afar. We have already completed several virtual trips can’t wait to share more about each of these awesome kids with you! Be sure to follow the blog and join our private Taiwan Advocacy Facebook group so you don’t miss anything!
If you are considering adoption from Taiwan, or if you are an adoption advocate, and would like information about our Superkids program, please contact superkids@gladney.org
The Superkids Program expansion also continues with Gladney Center beginning to assist prospective adoptive parents on guided visitation trips to China at the invitation of local child social welfare institutes. These trips are part of China’s Ai Xing Da Shi (‘Loving Heart Ambassador’) program. During a guided visitation trip, prospective adoptive parents are able to spend time with children living in social welfare institutes and eligible for international adoption. During the visitation periods, prospective parents will be able to gain an understanding of a child’s abilities, skills, and personality. Through child centered activities, prospective adoptive parents will be able to observe motor, communication, and cognitive skills. Parents will have the opportunity to learn from caregivers more about the child’s physical surroundings, routine for daily activity, physical health, therapeutic care, and education. These visitations provide the prospective adoptive parents with helpful information to proceed with the adoption of a child in a better-informed manner, or conversely, to recognize that a child has more complicated needs than can be met within the parents’ available resources.
If you are considering adoption from China or Taiwan, or if you are an adoption advocate, and would like information about our Superkids program, please contact superkids@gladney.org.
Gladney's Superkids Program Values:
- Every child deserves a loving family.
- Each child is special and is not defined by his/her special need.
- Gladney’s Superkids program cooperates with orphanages for the benefit of waiting children.
- Gladney believes in child-focused advocacy.
- Well-informed prospective adoptive parents are better prepared for caring for their child and for their future family as a whole.
- For children in orphanages who are not available for adoption or who continue to wait for adoptive families, Gladney’s Superkids volunteers train and educate the orphanage caregivers, in order to enrich the children’s lives and futures.
Superkids Team Volunteers with the 2022 Special Olympics:
Gladney Center’s Superkids program was a proud corporate volunteer participant in the June 2022 Special Olympics in Orlando, Florida.
Read about the experience:
