It is time to help rescue Angelina, Elizabeth's best friend, and ensure her the wonderful life and family that she deserves!

The Clark family has met their fundraising goals for their adoption for Elizabeth, and now are working very hard to try and rescue Elizabeth's best friend Angelina! When Nina, Elizabeth's mom, told me she would be working to save Angelina, how on earth could I not jump on board??

E. European Institutions




In Eastern European nations, people with Down Syndrome are immediately labeled as unworthy, unlikely to survive, unable to contribute to society, and worst of all often not wanted by the very mothers and fathers who came together to give them life.  Even if a mother and father do love and want to keep their child, they are pressured by family, doctors and society to "do what is best (read: worst) for their child and institutionalize them.  There is nothing, no help for families that give birth to children with Down Syndrome in Eastern European countries.  Parents face the choice of whether to be shunned by society or give their child away to an orphanage or institution.

The lucky children are given a chance in an orphanage.  They are given usually 5 years to be adopted.  Without an international adoption, these children too are eventually sent to mental institutions to live amongst the criminally insane, the truly mentally incapacitated, etc.  Children! 5 years old! Their only reason is being diagnosed with Down Syndrome.

Having now begun the amazing journey of raising a child with Down Syndrome, I can tell you that there is nothing different about our family's love for her, her love for us, her capability and deserved life.  She deserves all of the same things as a child without Down Syndrome.  Life, Love, and a Family!  The idea of anyone ever thinking sweet Abbie girl, sweet Elizabeth or any other child with Down Syndrome is not worthy of life is so hard to understand.  In fact, I don't.  I don't understand.

Please help get Elizabeth out of this hell and home to her family!

I so hope that Elizabeth is in a place better than what is depicted here in this video made in 2009.  I do not know what institution she is currently "living" in, but it could be like this, and my heart breaks for her and all of the other children who will meet this fate.  I hope that she is one of the better off places and that this is just a worst case scenario, but I fear this may be more the norm than the exception.

Does that make you sick?  Does any human deserve that? Much less a child?

What about this?
This child was in Russia.  Just look at the way his life was described before being rescued.


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