Help Support Our Work

How often do you get to make a REAL difference in a child’s life? The Bridge of Hope program, established in 1997, is working to save the lives of 6-11 year old children living in Russian orphanages. Older orphans face many challenges, as most families want to adopt infants and toddlers. As a result, once a child turns 6 years of age, they may never be adopted. From that point on they will watch younger, more fortunate children leave the orphanage, until they themselves are released at the age of 18. They are truly the children that have been left behind.

Bridge of Hope 2007 will bring older Russian orphans to the US to participate in our summer program. These children will live with American host families, learn about family life and attend camp during the day. The goal is to have each child matched with a forever family by the end of the program. No one is left behind.

This is a great opportunity for:

You can make a difference in the lives of these children by supporting Bridge of Hope. Make a contribution by sponsoring one child’s travel to the US and participation in the program. Host a summer event for these children and their host families to attend. Bridge of Hope needs volunteer Russian language translators who can help host families and Russian speaking children to bridge the communication gap. Bridge of Hope needs the volunteer help of physicians and dentists who can provide medical or dental care while the children are visiting in the US. Make a donation to the program. Bridge of Hope 2007 needs to raise about $4,500 per child to bring them to the US for one month.

Since its inception, the Bridge of Hope camp program has been directly responsible for the placement of over 400, more than 91%, of the older Russian children who participated. For BOH 2006, just ended, we already have adoptive families for 29 out of 30 children. We continue placement efforts for children who have not yet found their “forever family.”

Our success in finding homes for these older children is directly attributable to the Bridge of Hope program, which enables families and children to spend time together before making life-long commitments.

Bridge of Hope is a mostly volunteer-run program. Support from the communities of all of our Bridge of Hope families is vital to our future success. We are currently seeking the following types of volunteers:

We have established a sponsorship program for individuals, groups or corporations interested in funding the cost for one or more orphans to participate in this summer’s program. A full sponsorship amounts to $4,500 per child and is fully tax-deductible. This covers all direct expenses including airfare, passports, visas and photos, and medical insurance for the summer, as well as Russian domestic travel, hotel and meals en route, and entertainment. Of course, donations in any amount are welcome.

Bridge of Hope children attend day camp for 3 weeks while they are here in the summer. We are in need of camp tuition scholarships or sponsors in the communities where the children live.

If you would like more information about the Bridge of Hope program, please call Patrice Gancie, Director of Bridge of Hope, at 301-587-4400 or e-mail pgancie@cradlehope.org.

© 2006 Cradle of Hope Adoption Center, Inc.