I have spent the entire day on finding a way to communicate with my son's sister that is still in Russia. She doesn't live with her mother. She doesn't live with her father or grandmother. She lives in a children's home SOMEWHERE in the Vladimir Region.
I had to take a break after looking at more than 69 pages of children in the Russian Databank from the Region. That does NOT mean 69 kids. I think there were about 10 children on each page. The online translator did not work on the picture page. I had to cut and paste when I found a girl that was born the same year as "NC" was.
I have contacted Mary from Russian Family Search to help us. I say US because like some of you know, I finally found my son's other siblings in the US after a two year search. They want to contact NC as much as I do. Mary has said she will help us find her.
I have been in contact with my son's birthmother and grandmother in Russia. For some reason I haven't been able to find out which children's home she is in. Maybe they are afraid I will take her home to the US like the rest of the children. NC still goes home for visits.
I would have asked the original searcher that I used before, but with me starting the new BIZ I'm a little short o' cash at the moment. They are awesome but NOT CHEAP. I also don't know WHEN they would go, they have a waiting list. Mary's searcher just happens to be going soon.
So... trying to get this organized over the Internet hasn't been easy. The girls are on the East Coast. I am on the West. Mary is in the middle and none of us really have computers that work well with each other.
I have an idea that I know the home where she is... the earlier searcher has it in his report. The oldest sibling doesn't think NC could be there because her Mom told me she said it was a "bad" place. I am not sure which "bad" she is talking about.
Scanning, e-mailing, cut and paste, trying to read Cyrillic (that I'm starting to understand!), etc etc is time consuming and frustrating but OH SO WORTH IT. Much like the adoption process.
I am also trying to plan a trip out to the East to visit the girls' family. Never been there. Certainly can't go now where I'd probably freeze solid when we stepped off the airplane.
And so, I sign off for now friends, cross eyed with exhaustion.
4 comments:
What an exhausting task, but how wonderful of you.
I hope you find her soon.
Thank you for your comment on my site. I am really interested to learn more about your adoption journey.
I can't imagine how exhausting it is to try and find your child's sibling, I really hope you find her soon.
I'm very impressed with your dedication to these discoveries, working so diligently for your son. Best of Luck to Mary!
If you need help with the database, let me know. I can read it well enough to navigate the databank. I have all the fields memorized at this point -- I still check for Peanut now and then.
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