The Miracle Foundation

.

The Miracle Foundation's US offices operate out of Austin, Texas. Its adoption headquarters are located in Rourkela, Orissa, India.

The Miracle Foundation is a small 501(c)(3) non profit organization with a large number of volunteers and very few employees. [Fact|date=February 2008] The Miracle Foundation claims that this has helped keep overheads down, resulting in more money being spent directly on the orphans cared for by the charity. [Fact|date=February 2008] In 2007 85% of all donations went towards missions, 11% went on operations and 4% went on fundraising. [Fact|date=February 2008]

The Miracle Foundation (like all charities) relies on public generosity to carry out its work. This can take the form of one time donations or the sponsorship of a child.

Orphan Crisis

In 2006 there were 12.4 million orphans in India, according to CSA (Catalysts for Social Action.) [ Child adoption statistics found on website CSA: Catalysts for Social Action - A Kale Consultants Initiative, Accessed: 10/13/2007URL: http://www.indianngos.com/issue/child/adoption/statistics/] However, only 3,332 adoptions (853 international, 2479 domestic) took place in 2006. [PowerPoint Presentation, "The Miracle Foundation: One Orphan at a Time"] The impact of HIV/AIDS on the orphan population is not yet fully known, but a recent Info Change India news feature claims that "India is home to the largest number of AIDS orphans in the world." [ Info Change India, Info Change India News Feature: "India is home to the largest number of AIDS orphans in the world" by Aditi Sen, Accessed: 10/13/2007URL: http://www.infochangeindia.org/features331.jsp] UNICEF believes that the number of orphans will continue to rise globally due to HIV/AIDS.UNICEF, [http://www.unicef.org/newsline/02pr43brink.htm UNICEF Press Centre: Joint Report details Escalating Global Orphan Crisis Due to AIDS] , Accessed 10/13/2007] UNICEF sees India's increasing orphan population as symptomatic of a global orphan crisis.

The Miracle Foundation's Work

The Miracle Foundation provides immunization for orphans, as a way to improve the children's standard of health. The Miracle Foundation's mission to empower orphans led to the introduction of a comprehensive education plan (including English Lessons, computer lessons and help in choosing and following a career path) for orphans under the charities care. The Miracle Foundation also emphasizes the importance of providing family units for the orphans (both through its child sponsorship program and orphanages.) They believe this enables the children to feel part of a community, receive emotional support and ensures a secure, safe environment in which to grow up.

Unwed pregnancy is still considered taboo in India and, as a result, babies born out of wedlock are frequently abandoned. [http://in.news.yahoo.com/070502/211/6f9ju.html "India 360: Fate of Abandoned babies"] , by IBNlive.com, Thursday May 3 03:15 am, found on Yahoo India News, Accessed 10/16/2007] Indian adoption laws prevent many of these infants from being adopted. The Miracle Foundation promotes its child sponsorship programs as a way to care for these children. The Miracle Foundation also promotes its efforts to help protect unwed, pregnant women in India by ensuring they receive medical care, a safe, emotionally secure environment in which to give birth and, if the mother does not want to keep her child,documents allowing the infant to become adoptable. [ [http://www.miraclefoundation.org/index.php?pid=3 MiracleFoundation] , Accessed 10/13/2007]

The Miracle Foundation Orphanages

The Miracle Foundation offers a phased approach to working with suitable orphanages. In Phase 1, The Miracle Foundation provides a portion of operating costs, immunizations for all children and education fees. In return the orphanage provides financial records, monthly operation reports and access to children's records. If The Miracle Foundation deems that the orphanage has followed Phase 1 appropriately, the orphanage can then enter Phase 2 and become a 'fully fledged' TMF orphanage.The Miracle Foundation Newsletter, August 2007, Volume 4 Issue 3]

The Miracle Foundation believes that "this careful, phased approach ensures that Miracle Foundation orphanages, whether built from the ground up by TMF or not, operate openly and honestly and that each orphan receives nothing but the best care in a loving stable homelike environment."

The Miracle Foundation gives people the opportunity to travel to India and visit Miracle Foundation homes and orphans. The orphanages currently owned or adopted by The Miracle Foundation are:
*Sishu Sadan - Choudwar, Orissa, India
*Rourkela - Rourkela, Orissa, India
*Sunrise Children's Village - Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, India
*Sooch Village - Ranchi, Jharkhand, India
*Bhawani - Rourkela, Orissa, India
*Mariamma - Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu, India

How it Started

In 1999 Caroline Boudreaux (founder) and her friend Chris Monheim set off on a trip around the world.The Miracle Foundation Newsletter, March/April 2006, Volume 2 Issue 2] Chris was the sponsor of a boy (named Manus) through the Christian Children's Fund (CCF), so in May 2000 they traveled to India to meet and check up on him. Although Manus turned out to be receiving sponsorship money and help from the CCF, they were horrified by the sheer extent of the poverty and problems facing the many not-so-lucky orphans of India.

On Mother's day 2000, the director of CCF invited Caroline and Chris into his home for dinner. In the evening an orphan girl named Sheebani came up to Caroline and rested her head on her knee. On putting Sheebani to bed, Caroline discovered that Sheebani slept on wooden slats - she had no pillows, blankets or mattresses. Caroline states that her life changed on hearing Sheebani's bones knock against the wood of her 'bed'. Caroline returned to the US to start the non-profit organization The Miracle Foundation.

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

*CSA: Catalysts for Social Action - A Kale Consultants Initiative, Accessed: 10/13/2007, http://www.indianngos.com/issue/child/adoption/statistics/
*“India 360: Fate of Abandoned babies”, by IBNlive.com, Thursday May 3 03:15 am, found on Yahoo India News, Accessed 10/16/2007, http://in.news.yahoo.com/070502/211/6f9ju.html
*Info Change India, Info Change India News Feature: "India is home to the largest number of AIDS orphans in the world" by Aditi Sen, Accessed: 10/13/2007, http://www.infochangeindia.org/features331.jsp
*MiracleFoundation.org, Accessed 10/13/2007, http://www.miraclefoundation.org/index.php?pid=2
*Mission Network News, Accessed 10/13/2007, http://www.mnnonline.org/article/10366
*PowerPoint Presentation, "The Miracle Foundation: One Orphan at a Time"
*The Miracle Foundation Newsletter, March/April 2006, Volume 2 Issue 2
*The Miracle Foundation Newsletter, August 2007, Volume 4 Issue 3
*UNICEF, UNICEF Press Centre: Joint Report details Escalating Global Orphan Crisis Due to AIDS, Accessed 10/13/2007, http://www.unicef.org/newsline/02pr43brink.htm