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In late February of 2004, Tim and Alice Haddick traveled to China to unite with their second daughter, Lara. Accompanying them were the Haddick's first daughter Cathryn and Alice's mother Nancy. They traveled earlier than the rest of their group to visit the orphanage where Cathryn was cared for during her first year of life. While there, Tim installed a UV water purification system and the family renewed their relationships with old friends. Below are some of Tim's words about his family's amazing trip.
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We were quite privileged to visit Cathryn’s orphanage when we adopted her in January 2000. Orphanage visits were rather rare, and they had not planned to have the six families of our travel group come. But they accepted us as extended family, and so we were able to visit the home of our daughters, Lian Jiang Social Welfare Institute.
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 Tim and Cathryn shortly after she was united with her parents in 2000.
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 Cathryn at home in 2000
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Cathryn’s memory of her start in life was limited to the photos and video we took at the orphanage. She has often returned to the subject. I think it was something of a hole for her. She is physically and emotionally not yet five years old, but in other ways she sometimes seems years ahead. She understands her story very well. She has taken it apart and reassembled it many times, usually in conversation with my wife Alice. Some of those times have been tearful, others academic.
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Our return to China to adopt her little sister (Gao Jian Bao, now Lara Jian-Bao Haddick) presented an opportunity to return to Lian Jiang, as well. We hoped to fill in some of that gap for Cathryn, renew a relationship with the orphanage staff, and even provide a water purification system. Alice started an email list some time ago for families with children from Lian Jiang SWI, which has some 80 families as members. Quite a few of those families sent a page or two for a photo album/scrap book, which we hoped to deliver.
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 Leaving Seattle for China
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 LianJiang caregivers looking at the photo album.
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It wasn’t all easy for Cathryn. She tends to take time to warm up to new people and new situations. Such a long trip, on top of jet lag and culture shock, had its effect on her. From her point of view, a phalanx of adults excited to see her--but speaking a now entirely strange language--presented a sizeable challenge. But as the day wore on, she slowly ventured out of her shell until she was running around the courtyard. Soon she accepted her former caretakers holding her, and walking around with her. |
She really turned the corner when one of her favorite ‘Aunties’ carried her upstairs to see the room she was raised in. Although we, as her parents, were allowed in the first floor “public” rooms, we did not have carte blanche to roam upstairs where the children live. Cathryn went to her old room with her caretakers, and without us. It is fitting, perhaps, that she did so, though tinged with an edge of sadness for us. Perhaps the day will come when we will all get to make that trip together. But for that day’s venture into the only other home she has ever known, the comfort of the ones who cared for her as an infant was sufficient.
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 Cathryn with an orphanage official.
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 Tim at work on the purification system
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All this progressed as I lay my hand to the task of installing the ultraviolet water purification system. There were a number of challenges, both expected and unanticipated. By the end of the first day I was half way done, though I had not started until nearly noon. We finished the day with a meal together at a local restaurant. Our hosts were gracious and extravagant with us. We were humbled. They even gave us gifts, such as a wall hanging. |
Cathryn said her final farewell to her caretakers that night, since I would return alone the next day to finish the water project. Jet lag and the long trip conspired to make her one tired little girl, in spite of the nap she had that afternoon. I wondered if she realized the magnitude of the good-byes she was saying, but perhaps it is just as well she did not. Innocence can be a blissful blanket of protection. There will be time to consider it all later.
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 Cathryn saying goodbye.
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 Tim and the first drink from the new system.
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I returned the following day and we finished by early afternoon. When I told them I would take the first drink from the new system, they let out an audible sigh of relief. I had no idea it was weighing on them! But when they saw it produced clean, fresh water and that I drank from it freely, the smiles and laughs swept freely about the room. Soon all were stepping up to try it. I think they could hardly believe it, even though they understood it perfectly well.
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The director and his wife arrived very early the next morning to see us off to the airport. Again, we were honored and rather humbled that they would drive over an hour each way, just to take us on a 20 minute trip to the airport. It was good to say goodbye in a smaller forum, though. We hope to return again some day, and to maintain contact with the director and staff. Many children still live in that orphanage. For most of them, it is the only family they will ever have.
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 Some of the recipients at the LianJiang orphanage.
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 Alice and Lara minutes after they were united.
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The prime reason for our journey lay in Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu province. Gao Jian Bao—soon to be Lara—was waiting for us. The day after our arrival, we finally met her in the lobby of the Civil Affairs Bureau building. She gasped and stiffened when she was first handed to Alice, but she did not cry. She studied us with that furrowed brow we saw so clearly in her referral picture. Within a few minutes, she was relaxing. After meeting her new father, sister, and Nana and drinking in the strange new faces (with pale skin!), colors (blue eyes!), sounds, and smells, she did the most amazing thing. She smiled! And oh, what a smile! |
Within the hour she even giggled for us. We would grow very familiar with that husky laugh and giggle. Perhaps we’re a little biased, but that child’s laugh could light up a dark room. Wow!
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 Lara on the bus to the hotel.
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 Lara and her big sister!
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We returned to the hotel room and unpackaged her—all five layers. I suppose it is only natural for parents to do ‘the inspection’: counting fingers and toes; examining skin, muscle, and bone; monitoring every move and reaction. We took her in like a draught of cold water on a hot summer’s day. She continued to amaze us by not only tolerating us, but bouncing and laughing. |
By the end of the next day, she had decided that Alice was THE ONE. We became familiar with her “I don’t like that” cry when Alice would disappear from her view, and her roar of approval when Alice would pick her up or take her back (I won! She picked me up!). A few minutes with sister or Dad or Nana were tolerable, but it better not be too long. We were delighted to indulge her preference, for showing such a preference this early in the game was well worth encouraging.
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 Mom and her daughters...
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 The happy girl!
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While waiting for her passport, we saw what we could of Nanjing. The Mandarin Garden Hotel was well situated in a great area for walking, shopping, and eating. The weather was cool but pleasant, and we spent much of it wandering through the local streets. We tended to attract attention wherever we went.
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On Friday, her passport arrived and we departed Nanjing for Guangzhou to complete the U.S. portion of the process—getting her visa. The U.S. consulate in Guangzhou is located next to the White Swan Hotel, so scores of American families are staying there at any given time. We found a number of changes in and around the White Swan from our last stay there four years ago. Instead of three small shops catering to the adoptive family crowd, there are perhaps 10 … more if you count individual proprietors who set up shop under one roof. There are more restaurants. The island is still beautiful, and the part of town next to the island is still booming with yet more construction.
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 Lara's first Birthday party.
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 Cathryn and her new friend.
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Cathryn had so warmed to China that she was making friends left and right at shops around the hotel. The goddaughter of one of the owners (Sherry of Sherry’s Place) was about Cathryn’s age, and before we left Fei-fei and Cathryn were exchanging gifts. I watched her run into the arms of a woman from another shop who whirled her around as she screamed with delight. From burying her head in my shoulder around the Aunties at the orphanage, she now had to mind us that she did not walk too far away. Two days before we were due to leave she pronounced “I don’t want to leave China. I want to stay here!”
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Well, if I could live at the White Swan and spend my days strolling, shopping, eating great Chinese food, and having someone else clean my room and make my bed, I’d probably say the same thing.
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 The other children in Lara's group..
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 The Haddick girls!
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“But Cathryn, your brothers are at home with Grandma and Grandpa,” said Alice. “Daddy must go back to work, and you must go back to school. We must go home. But you’ve really enjoyed China, haven’t you?”
Yes, she had. And as she considered it, she came up with a solution. “Well, then I want to take China with us!”
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That caused me to stop and consider. Perhaps that is one reason we came—to bring back some of China with us. The people we’ve met, the relationships we’ve formed, the lives we’ve touched and the lives that have touched us—all of them have shaped us. Even what we’ve seen, heard, smelled, and touched has left its imprint on us. I think we are taking China with us, Cathryn. We’re doing it in ways you’re not even aware of yet.
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 Cathryn and Rebecca, Faith's national guide.
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 Lara back home and in our offices... quite the smiley girl!!
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In the midst of my musing, I cast a glance at our bulging luggage, now loaded with gifts and tokens to remember China by. From the corner of my eye I caught Alice doing the same thing. We looked at each other and had to laugh.
“We’re sure trying, Cathryn!”
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 Tim, Alice, Cathryn, John-Marc, Lara, and Matthew Haddick. |
From all of us here at the Faith offices: Congratulations Tim and Alice!!!
Thank you to everyone who supported the LianJiang project. We routinely do similar projects throughout China. If you are interested in supporting our relief work, or would like to see some of our past work, click here.
If you would like to see more great photos of the Haddick family, see their website.
WELCOME HOME LARA!!
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| Faith International Adoptions • 535 E Dock Street #103 • Tacoma • WA • 98402 • Phone: 253.383.1928 • Fax: 253.572.6662 •faith@faithadopt.org• |
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