Family opens home to Colombian sisters
Kidsave program aims to end
institutionalization of children
By Kathleen Folkerth
WEST AKRON — Six weeks might not seem like a long time, but for some children it’s just long enough to change their lives.
That’s the goal of Kidsave, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to end the institutionalization of children living in orphanages and foster care and to give every child the opportunity to grow up in a permanent, loving family. The organization’s Summer Miracles program provides institutionalized children the chance to share in the life of a family, attend day camp and enjoy educational and cultural activities in the United States.
Locally, two Colombian sisters
spent their six weeks at the West Akron home of Teresa
and Jorge Benavides. Yecica, 11, and Zoraya Lopez, 10,
packed their stay with fun
trips to places like the Cleveland Zoo and Build-A-Bear
Workshop and experiences like their first-ever sleepover.
Along the way the two picked
up new skills, like swimming.
“They didn’t know
how to swim when they first arrived,” said Teresa.
“Now they’re learning how to ride bicycles.”
The Benavides were looking for
a program to get involved in earlier this year when
they heard about Kidsave. They volunteered first as
translators, since Teresa, who is of Mexican descent,
and Jorge, who came to the United States from Colombia
when he was 6, are fluent in Spanish. They then decided
to become a host family for one child. When that fell
through, they decided to volunteer however they could.
Then, three days before a group
of children were set to arrive in Cleveland from Colombia,
the family got a call that a host family was suddenly
needed for two children — the Lopez sisters, who
live in a foster home in their native Bogota, Colombia.
“We had three days to get
everything in order,” said Teresa, who works as
a surgical assistant at WRH Health System in Wadsworth.
Jorge, a telecommunications
technician who is in the Air Force Reserves, was away
at training at Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas and
wasn’t home to help, but their daughters Michelle,
24, and Soleil, 19, pitched in and helped get the house
ready for the family’s two guests.
The girls “met” Jorge
by phone and spoke to him every day during the family’s
daily phone calls.
“They wanted to talk to
him every day,” Teresa said.
He returned to Akron about two
weeks ago and finally met the girls face to face.
Even with their host family fluent
in their native tongue, the sisters did get a chance
to learn some English, such as letters, numbers and
even dog commands.
They enjoyed twice-a-week day
camp at The Chapel in Green, where they interacted with
other children in the Kidsave program and local children
as well.
They noted many differences between
their lives and culture and the one they experienced
this summer.
Zoraya said she thought Ohio
would be a lot like Colombia.
“The customs are different,”
she said, as translated by Jorge. “People
don’t walk in the street;
they go around in cars.”
She also found the food to be spicy.
According to Jorge, Colombian cuisine isn’t known
for its heat, unlike others from South America.
Yecica said one big difference
is that their home in Colombia doesn’t have a
pool, unlike the Benavides’ home.
“The houses are simpler
in Bogota,” she said.
The sisters don’t get the
opportunity to shop much at home, so they enjoyed their
trips to Summit Mall while here.
“They said they feel safe
here when they go shopping,” Jorge said. “Security
is a big factor for them.”
While exposing children to a
different culture is one of the main aspects of the
Kidsave program, it also aims to introduce the children
to as many potential adoptive families as possible.
Kidsave is not an adoption agency, but it will help
interested families work with the organizations responsible
for the children to see if an adoption is possible.
The girls have made contact with
many families, and Teresa said there are three that
may be interested in adopting them. According to Kidsave,
since 2003, 107 children, including 10 siblings who
did not travel to the United
States, have participated in the Summer Miracles program.
Of these 107 children, 89 had found a family as of this
past June.
Teresa said 56 children from Colombia
came to the United States this summer, with seven of them
staying in the Cleveland area. The program also brings
children here from Russia and Kazakhstan.
The girls will leave Akron tomorrow,
Aug. 18, to return home. They have missed nearly a month
of school, Teresa said.
The two did not seem anxious
to leave. When asked what they would miss most, they
both responded, “Mama.”
They added they would miss the
whole family but that they particularly bonded with
Teresa.
“They’re great kids,”
Teresa said.
She and Jorge said when they
originally went forward with their efforts they didn’t
plan to adopt, but they are reconsidering their decision.
But Teresa said by opening their home to children in
the program again they might be able to help more children.
“It’s a heartbreaking
experience because they’re children and they deserve
better,” said Jorge. “We went in strictly
as advocates, but it pokes at you and makes it hard.
I really do pray they have
a home.”
The experience has been rewarding,
Teresa said.
“I would encourage people
interested in helping kids that this has been such a
good experience for the kids and for the family,”
she said.
For more information on the Summer
Miracles program, contact Kidsave at (888) KIDSAVE or
go to www.kid save.org.
Sisterly bonds were formed over
the summer between the Benavides and Lopez sisters.
Pictured from left are Soleil Benavides, Zoraya Lopez,
Yecica Lopez and Michelle Benavides.
Photo: Ken Crisafi
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