On Monday we had a slow morning. We luckily lounged around our hotel in the morning instead of rushing off to sightsee because we received a call from our social worker here in Korea. She said they had problems again at the Embassy. Bumble was scheduled for his Visa Interview that day but there were issues with our proof of income and they were refusing to issue the Visa. She said we had to get some supporting documentation down to their office that day - or the Visa would not be issued. Panicked and in tears - I called my sister Becky, who has also adopted internationally, and she helped us through the aid of my brother Nick get the documentation they were asking for. We also had brought with us some supporting documentation for Jon's income, as we were told before we left that it would be a good idea - just in case. The issue was that in order to sponsor an immigrant you must reach an income level based on family size and they were saying we didn't meet it. With Jon's income we do exceed this amount but it is not reflected on our tax statements due to our military pay structure, and that only part of our income is taxed. I had talked with our social worker back in the states about this prior to leaving and had sent an earning statement along with our tax statements early on with our acceptance paperwork, but still somehow it wasn't being communicated clearly.
Anyhow, armed with all our documentation and lots of prayer - Jon and I jumped in a taxi and headed to the Holt Korea office. We sat down with our social worker and the Visa worker from the agency and went through all our documentation. The Visa worker seemed pleased and we were told he would take all our paperwork down to the US Embassy and we should return to the office in two hours to find out if it was accepted.
Since we had two hours to burn - and we were starving - we found a great traditional Korean restaurant, recommended to us by our social worker, and had some Galbi (Korean BBQ - cooked right on your table). It was yummy!!! Then we headed over to the Holt Reception Center where some of the babies who are not placed in foster homes, for one reason or another, live - many of them are in the waiting child program, waiting for families. With all that had happened and with missing my kids back home - I needed a baby fix! We were able to go in and hold and play with three little ones. They were a bit scared of Jon, however they don't have any male nannies - so somewhat to be expected, but one of them took to me right away. He was so sweet!! All three of the babies we played with were waiting for families to choose them. We would take them all home if we could! :)
(Pictures To come!)
After visiting for a bit, it was time to return to the Holt office and find out what had happened. We were so relieved to be welcomed by a smile and a cheer of , "everything was accepted - and we are back on track for your meeting to happen on Thursday!" Whew!!! Yeah!!! Another obstacle overcome! Praise God that we were at the hotel to receive the call, I don't want to think about what would have happened otherwise.
On Tuesday we had the wonderful opportunity to visit Holt Ilsan. An orphanage run by Holt. It is not your typical orphanage as it is a sprawling campus and is actually called Holt Ilsan Village. It truly is a village with it's own schools, homes, work program and more. It is an amazing place that I will do a separate post about. All the orphans at Holt Ilsan are special needs and they are cared for so lovingly. We also had the awesome privilege of meeting Molly Holt, the daughter of Harry and Bertha Holt who single handedly began Korean adoption by petitioning the US and personally adopting 8 orphaned children during the Korean War and then going on to establish Holt International one of the largest non-profit International adoption agencies known today, and also Dr. Choi who also live on the premises on Holt Ilsan, helping to care for the residents.
Yesterday we had to pack up our luggage as we were changing hotels. With extending our stay we couldn't continue to get the awesome rate at our hotel that we received through priceline - about a third of the actual cost - so we were moving to the hotel on the Army Base in Seoul. We checked out but were able to store our luggage at the hotel's concierge for the day and hopped a bus to the Korean Folk Village. We spent the day learning and enjoying all about Korea during the 19th century - the time when St. Andrew Kim lived. It was a fun day. We returned to the hotel and the concierge helped us find a taxi that had base access and loaded up to transfer. We ot in at about 8:30 to the Dragon Hill Lodge, found some dinner - Subway (mmm...a touch of home!) and crashed. That is till I woke up at 1:00 am and couldn't sleep anymore! :)
So glad to hear things worked out! We are military as well (Army) and have been worried about the finance side and being above the poverty level.
ReplyDeleteOn another note, I would love to hear more about the Dragon Hill Lodge as that is where we plan to stay when we travel. Cant wait to see pics of your family day!