We used WHFC and found them to be sicky sweet until they received almost all of our money. THEN, less than one week before we travelled, our "sicky sweet" meeting turned into a nasty one whereby they lied to us to get us into their office and then blindsided us with questions like "Are you asking questions about our agency on online forums because you have to TRUST us...". It was very strange and upsetting. It was much like an interrogation! Then, in country, they called us wee hours of the morning when we turned down our first referral (which our hired medical doctor told us was the thing HE would do - and WHFC TOLD us he was a great medical doctor to hire - so what gives?), flaming us and trying to talk us INTO accepting an unhealthy or at the very least questionable history. We told them we did not want a seriously ill or majorly special needs child and they told us in the states more than once to NOT accept a referral we were not 100% comfortable with! But since turning down this uncomfortable referral ruffled feathers in country, thousands of miles away from home, surrounded by angry officials...(you know the rest of the story).
I would not, could not, recommend WHFC. They left us hanging completely in between trips, also. Communication was horrid. Had it not been for ONE girl in the office who took pity, we'd not have our precious daughter home with us today. And wouldn't you know, that one girl does not work there any longer.
RUN from WHFC, I say. Maybe things have changed since then. I hear they at LEAST have post-adoption services. They were, back then, ONLY all about the money. NOT the child or family!!! It's a big sicky sweet scam (or was back then). I'm still bitter about what they put us through...but I do not discuss this with our daughter (our SECOND referral, btw, who is very healthy, by and large, no thanks to WHFC. Any post-adoption support I got I sought out myself. They were useless!) How they live with themselves is beyond me.
TERRIBLE TERRIBLE TERRIBLE !!
(Guatemala - 2006)
No one in country to help us.
No one called us back while we were in country and our child was sick.
No timely replies to emails or phone calls.
Lies, lies, lies.
Never told about 'summer hours' until we called for help and got closed message.
Didn't care when we got home.
Only wanted money.
Used a different agency for #2 and had the BEST experience ever !!
Keep away! We had a terrible, terrible expeirence with WHFC and other famililes we know have also. They have lied, and not given full disclosure regarding the children they are offering up for adoption. I would not advise anyone, espeically if you are considering older children, do not use this agency.
We worked with Wide Horizons for Children when we adopted our son from Guatemala. Although the Guatemala program is currently (3/2008) closed due to issues with international law, we would work with them again if we were doing another adoption.
The words that I would use to describe them are ETHICAL and GOOD COMMUNICATION. Our first experience with Wide Horizons was when we went to a presentation at our homestudy agency. We were impressed with how they answered questions. The Wide Horizons staff were very honest in their answers and didn't sugarcoat anything or give false promises. They were very factual and at the same time were encouraging, but not in a false way. They were also great in answering my questions, seemed to understand my concerns, picked up quickly on where I was coming from, and were very responsive.
That kind of communication continued throughout the process. While we were working on our dossier we had a few questions and they were always very quick to answer them. I've never had to wait more than one day to get a call back and usually they're there when I've called and have answered my questions immediately. All of my emails were answered the same day I sent them and they never made me feel like I was bothering them. I rarely had questions, though, because Wide Horizons was so good about keeping us informed and explaining things to us. For example, they have their own travel guide that explains exactly what will happen when we travel, which lines to get into at the airport, how to go through customs, cultural practices to be aware of, etc. And before we went to visit our son, their staff called us to have a “travel talk”. They went through exactly what to expect, gave us tips for traveling, and answered any questions we had. We had another talk before we went to pick him up in which they walked us through the embassy procedures, immigration, etc. They were also very thorough with the paperwork. In addition to the detailed instructions they sent us for the dossier, they also checked over our paperwork. As much as anyone can they make sure that their clients don't send in paperwork that will be rejected.
While many agencies may be good at communicating and at the paperwork, the thing about Wide Horizons that really stood out for us is their philosophy and approach to the work. I see this in two ways. The first is their approach toward working with birthmothers. They seem to be one of the few international agencies (actually, the only one I’ve heard of) that really places an emphasis on adoptive and birth parents meeting and sometimes even meeting other members of the birthfamily, too. It happens frequently in their Guatemalan program. Additionally, most of the birthmothers request that updates and photos be sent through the attorney as your child grows up. To me that’s wonderful because it means the birthmothers are being treated with respect and care. It also is good for our child so that he can have a clear sense of his roots, not feel abandoned, etc. The second thing that really stands out is their commitment to humanitarian aid. I really think that Wide Horizons is on the cutting edge with their approach to birthfamilies and humanitarian aid. It’s definitely not a business for them, but a service to children.
We recently brought our son home from Ethiopia using WHFC. We had an excellent experience with them! The program is very ethical and takes children into the orphanage based on need, meaning they have a longer wait time for infants than many agencies. In the orphanage our son was treated very well. The agency set up the meeting with his first family for us, as they do for all families, and treated us very well over in Ethiopia. Even from the start of the process they answered all of our questions quickly and honestly, and our caseworker was always easy to reach and quick to reassure us and find out any information we needed. I've heard of one family that's currently having a difficult time with them, but everyone else that I speak with is extremely happy with the program and the agency.
Very helpful, professional staff. They do a lot of humanitarian work in the areas they facilitate adoptions. They are about helping children find families, and assisting those who cannot be placed.
We adopted both of our daughter's through WHFC's Korea program - one in 2003 and again in 2005. I can't say enough about how fabulous the staff at WHFC is. I am a person who asks a lot of questions and each and every one of my questions was answered without me ever being made to feel like I was being a "pest". I would highly recommend WHFC to anyone who is considering international adoptions!!!
We adopted twice through WHFC's program in eastern europe. Their staff was empathetic, concerned and supportive though the entire process. We are extremely grateful for their support.
We completed two adoptions through Wide Horizons from Eastern Europe and had great support both times. Their staff made sure we knew what was going to happen each step of the way and the in-country support was terrific. We always felt safe and well cared for.
Like many families, our experience took a few minor twists and turns along the way. The wait for our second child was longer than the first, but this was beyond the agency's control. No matter how anxious we became while waiting, we were always able to get a straight story from the agency about what was happening overseas.
We will always be grateful to Wide Horizons for all of their support.
Wide Horizons for Children is unethical and extremely incompetent. 13 years ago, my husband and I were lulled into a false sense of security by this agency and decided to adopt a child with their 'assistance'. The Wide Horizon's social worker assigned to our case asked us to accept a referral 'healthy 6 month old girl, ready to be adopted immediately' in Ecuador. We of course, were thrilled. However, the process was a nightmare, in which Wide Horizons was negligent and caused us severe emotional distress. Even though we had accepted the referral and were asked to pay medical fees for our child, WHFC sent a newsletter out advertising our child as 'available for adoption immediately'. In response to our concern, Vicki Peterson, the Director WHFC, coldly told us that there was no guarantee that we would become a family. We finally travelled to complete our adoption after 11 months of insane complications due to the agency's lack of competence. Wide Horizons offered no agency support to us while in Ecuador and they did not even provide an English translator. We were in the country for 4 weeks (2 more than WHFC told us to expect) because we had to navigate the judicial process independently without agency representation.
Upon our arrival at the orphanage, a caregiver told us that our child had been hospitalized for 6 months with severe malnutrition and almost died. Our 'healthy' child appeared to have severe developmental delays. Wide Horizons staff responded to our concern with 'many of our children appear delayed at first, you'll be amazed at how quickly she catches up'. Our child is now 15 years old and has been diagnosed with moderate mental retardation. Wide Horizons offers stipends for families who voluntarily adopt children with special needs but they offer NOTHING for families who are duped into the situation by them.
Attitudes and laws regarding adoption vary greatly. Whereas all cultures make arrangements whereby children whose own parents are unavailable to rear them to be brought up by others, not all cultures have the concept of adoption, that is treating children who are adopted as though they were the biological children of the adoptive parents. firma webdesign
Not happy at all... My wife and I are too far into the process financially, and otherwise for us to simply quit and go with another agency. It seems to us, that the "full service" option, is a joke. There is nothing that my wife and I could not have done on our own so far. In fact after paying them many thousands of dollars already, we have done most of the paperwork gathering ourselves. Beware of the "full service" option. Also, the classes are no more than do and pony shows. Even some of the other families at our classes, were rolling their eyeas after 3 hours in our uncomfortable chairs. Do most of the paperwork gathering and mailing yourself and save a ton of money. Also, WHFC is very happy with raising prices in our program (Korea), without explanation as to why the prices are going up. They know that they have us hooked so why not?? We can't just walk away, and loose all the money and time put into the process already. After this adoption, we will not even consider using WHFC again, nor would we recommend them to anyone....
WHFC has been great! They are quick to respond to questions and concerns.
We interviewed them for over 2 hours before we selected them as our agency. They have been honest and up front about everything, they never over promised.
I have recommended them to other prospective adoptive parents.
We used Wide Horizons for the first 8 months of our Ethiopian adoption before leaving and starting over with another agency. During the process, no one who worked there ever seemed to know who we were when we contacted them for help (i.e., with our dossier, etc.) and the staff seemed incredibly "green." While we were there, everyone except one person (who was promoted to director of the Ethiopia program) left for "grad school." It seemed very fishy to us. We attended a presentation put on in our state for the program after we'd signed with them and it was the most unprofessional dog and pony show I've ever witnessed--we still laugh about it with the other families we met that day. All of us prospective parents knew more about the process and their agency than the staff did...it wasn't the most confidence instilling event I've ever been to. As will all decisions in adoption, go with your gut. We didn't, things felt wrong and in the end this was the wrong choice for us.
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Reviews
Bad Experience!
We used WHFC and found them to be sicky sweet until they received almost all of our money. THEN, less than one week before we travelled, our "sicky sweet" meeting turned into a nasty one whereby they lied to us to get us into their office and then blindsided us with questions like "Are you asking questions about our agency on online forums because you have to TRUST us...". It was very strange and upsetting. It was much like an interrogation! Then, in country, they called us wee hours of the morning when we turned down our first referral (which our hired medical doctor told us was the thing HE would do - and WHFC TOLD us he was a great medical doctor to hire - so what gives?), flaming us and trying to talk us INTO accepting an unhealthy or at the very least questionable history. We told them we did not want a seriously ill or majorly special needs child and they told us in the states more than once to NOT accept a referral we were not 100% comfortable with! But since turning down this uncomfortable referral ruffled feathers in country, thousands of miles away from home, surrounded by angry officials...(you know the rest of the story).
I would not, could not, recommend WHFC. They left us hanging completely in between trips, also. Communication was horrid. Had it not been for ONE girl in the office who took pity, we'd not have our precious daughter home with us today. And wouldn't you know, that one girl does not work there any longer.
RUN from WHFC, I say. Maybe things have changed since then. I hear they at LEAST have post-adoption services. They were, back then, ONLY all about the money. NOT the child or family!!! It's a big sicky sweet scam (or was back then). I'm still bitter about what they put us through...but I do not discuss this with our daughter (our SECOND referral, btw, who is very healthy, by and large, no thanks to WHFC. Any post-adoption support I got I sought out myself. They were useless!) How they live with themselves is beyond me.
Wide Horizons for Children
TERRIBLE TERRIBLE TERRIBLE !!
(Guatemala - 2006)
No one in country to help us.
No one called us back while we were in country and our child was sick.
No timely replies to emails or phone calls.
Lies, lies, lies.
Never told about 'summer hours' until we called for help and got closed message.
Didn't care when we got home.
Only wanted money.
Used a different agency for #2 and had the BEST experience ever !!
not good
Keep away! We had a terrible, terrible expeirence with WHFC and other famililes we know have also. They have lied, and not given full disclosure regarding the children they are offering up for adoption. I would not advise anyone, espeically if you are considering older children, do not use this agency.
Wide Horizons for Children
We worked with Wide Horizons for Children when we adopted our son from Guatemala. Although the Guatemala program is currently (3/2008) closed due to issues with international law, we would work with them again if we were doing another adoption.
The words that I would use to describe them are ETHICAL and GOOD COMMUNICATION. Our first experience with Wide Horizons was when we went to a presentation at our homestudy agency. We were impressed with how they answered questions. The Wide Horizons staff were very honest in their answers and didn't sugarcoat anything or give false promises. They were very factual and at the same time were encouraging, but not in a false way. They were also great in answering my questions, seemed to understand my concerns, picked up quickly on where I was coming from, and were very responsive.
That kind of communication continued throughout the process. While we were working on our dossier we had a few questions and they were always very quick to answer them. I've never had to wait more than one day to get a call back and usually they're there when I've called and have answered my questions immediately. All of my emails were answered the same day I sent them and they never made me feel like I was bothering them. I rarely had questions, though, because Wide Horizons was so good about keeping us informed and explaining things to us. For example, they have their own travel guide that explains exactly what will happen when we travel, which lines to get into at the airport, how to go through customs, cultural practices to be aware of, etc. And before we went to visit our son, their staff called us to have a “travel talk”. They went through exactly what to expect, gave us tips for traveling, and answered any questions we had. We had another talk before we went to pick him up in which they walked us through the embassy procedures, immigration, etc. They were also very thorough with the paperwork. In addition to the detailed instructions they sent us for the dossier, they also checked over our paperwork. As much as anyone can they make sure that their clients don't send in paperwork that will be rejected.
While many agencies may be good at communicating and at the paperwork, the thing about Wide Horizons that really stood out for us is their philosophy and approach to the work. I see this in two ways. The first is their approach toward working with birthmothers. They seem to be one of the few international agencies (actually, the only one I’ve heard of) that really places an emphasis on adoptive and birth parents meeting and sometimes even meeting other members of the birthfamily, too. It happens frequently in their Guatemalan program. Additionally, most of the birthmothers request that updates and photos be sent through the attorney as your child grows up. To me that’s wonderful because it means the birthmothers are being treated with respect and care. It also is good for our child so that he can have a clear sense of his roots, not feel abandoned, etc. The second thing that really stands out is their commitment to humanitarian aid. I really think that Wide Horizons is on the cutting edge with their approach to birthfamilies and humanitarian aid. It’s definitely not a business for them, but a service to children.
Using this Outstanding Agency for the second time!
Amazing staff, great communication from the central office. Always professional and caring. We love them!
Amy
Great Experience
We recently brought our son home from Ethiopia using WHFC. We had an excellent experience with them! The program is very ethical and takes children into the orphanage based on need, meaning they have a longer wait time for infants than many agencies. In the orphanage our son was treated very well. The agency set up the meeting with his first family for us, as they do for all families, and treated us very well over in Ethiopia. Even from the start of the process they answered all of our questions quickly and honestly, and our caseworker was always easy to reach and quick to reassure us and find out any information we needed. I've heard of one family that's currently having a difficult time with them, but everyone else that I speak with is extremely happy with the program and the agency.
Very ethical
Very helpful, professional staff. They do a lot of humanitarian work in the areas they facilitate adoptions. They are about helping children find families, and assisting those who cannot be placed.
WONDERFUL staff!
We adopted both of our daughter's through WHFC's Korea program - one in 2003 and again in 2005. I can't say enough about how fabulous the staff at WHFC is. I am a person who asks a lot of questions and each and every one of my questions was answered without me ever being made to feel like I was being a "pest". I would highly recommend WHFC to anyone who is considering international adoptions!!!
Very caring, very ethical
We adopted twice through WHFC's program in eastern europe. Their staff was empathetic, concerned and supportive though the entire process. We are extremely grateful for their support.
Highly Ethical, Very Supportive
We completed two adoptions through Wide Horizons from Eastern Europe and had great support both times. Their staff made sure we knew what was going to happen each step of the way and the in-country support was terrific. We always felt safe and well cared for.
Like many families, our experience took a few minor twists and turns along the way. The wait for our second child was longer than the first, but this was beyond the agency's control. No matter how anxious we became while waiting, we were always able to get a straight story from the agency about what was happening overseas.
We will always be grateful to Wide Horizons for all of their support.
Wide Horizons For Children
Wide Horizons for Children is unethical and extremely incompetent. 13 years ago, my husband and I were lulled into a false sense of security by this agency and decided to adopt a child with their 'assistance'. The Wide Horizon's social worker assigned to our case asked us to accept a referral 'healthy 6 month old girl, ready to be adopted immediately' in Ecuador. We of course, were thrilled. However, the process was a nightmare, in which Wide Horizons was negligent and caused us severe emotional distress. Even though we had accepted the referral and were asked to pay medical fees for our child, WHFC sent a newsletter out advertising our child as 'available for adoption immediately'. In response to our concern, Vicki Peterson, the Director WHFC, coldly told us that there was no guarantee that we would become a family. We finally travelled to complete our adoption after 11 months of insane complications due to the agency's lack of competence. Wide Horizons offered no agency support to us while in Ecuador and they did not even provide an English translator. We were in the country for 4 weeks (2 more than WHFC told us to expect) because we had to navigate the judicial process independently without agency representation.
Upon our arrival at the orphanage, a caregiver told us that our child had been hospitalized for 6 months with severe malnutrition and almost died. Our 'healthy' child appeared to have severe developmental delays. Wide Horizons staff responded to our concern with 'many of our children appear delayed at first, you'll be amazed at how quickly she catches up'. Our child is now 15 years old and has been diagnosed with moderate mental retardation. Wide Horizons offers stipends for families who voluntarily adopt children with special needs but they offer NOTHING for families who are duped into the situation by them.
adoption
Attitudes and laws regarding adoption vary greatly. Whereas all cultures make arrangements whereby children whose own parents are unavailable to rear them to be brought up by others, not all cultures have the concept of adoption, that is treating children who are adopted as though they were the biological children of the adoptive parents. firma webdesign
Never again...
Not happy at all... My wife and I are too far into the process financially, and otherwise for us to simply quit and go with another agency. It seems to us, that the "full service" option, is a joke. There is nothing that my wife and I could not have done on our own so far. In fact after paying them many thousands of dollars already, we have done most of the paperwork gathering ourselves. Beware of the "full service" option. Also, the classes are no more than do and pony shows. Even some of the other families at our classes, were rolling their eyeas after 3 hours in our uncomfortable chairs. Do most of the paperwork gathering and mailing yourself and save a ton of money. Also, WHFC is very happy with raising prices in our program (Korea), without explanation as to why the prices are going up. They know that they have us hooked so why not?? We can't just walk away, and loose all the money and time put into the process already. After this adoption, we will not even consider using WHFC again, nor would we recommend them to anyone....
Positive Experience
WHFC has been great! They are quick to respond to questions and concerns.
We interviewed them for over 2 hours before we selected them as our agency. They have been honest and up front about everything, they never over promised.
I have recommended them to other prospective adoptive parents.
Unhappy in Ethiopia Program
We used Wide Horizons for the first 8 months of our Ethiopian adoption before leaving and starting over with another agency. During the process, no one who worked there ever seemed to know who we were when we contacted them for help (i.e., with our dossier, etc.) and the staff seemed incredibly "green." While we were there, everyone except one person (who was promoted to director of the Ethiopia program) left for "grad school." It seemed very fishy to us. We attended a presentation put on in our state for the program after we'd signed with them and it was the most unprofessional dog and pony show I've ever witnessed--we still laugh about it with the other families we met that day. All of us prospective parents knew more about the process and their agency than the staff did...it wasn't the most confidence instilling event I've ever been to. As will all decisions in adoption, go with your gut. We didn't, things felt wrong and in the end this was the wrong choice for us.