INTERESTING PEOPLE

During the course of the past few days, leading up to Adoption Day here in Korea; I had the priviledge of meeting several key people.

Kim Brown grew up in Omaha, Nebraska.  He and his wife Lori are adoptive parents of son, Kyle and daughter, Macie.  They were invited to Korea in 2001 to participate in meetings with the First Lady and Korean government officials regarding their adoption experience, both as an adoptee and as an adoptive parent.  Mr. Brown is a longtime advocate for homeless children and is currently the President and CEO of Holt International Children's Services.

Susan Cox is a nationally recognized presenter and author on international adoption and regularly testifies before Congress on issues regarding adoption and child welfare. Susan has published numerous articles and is editor of the anthology, Voices from Another Place. Ms. Cox was founder of the Gathering for Korean Adoptees; is a member of the Hague Special Commission on Intercountry Adoption; and was appointed by President Clinton as a Commissioner on Asian Pacific Islanders. She was awarded an Honorary Citizen of Seoul in 2005.

Steve Morrison has been a long time advocate for homeless children and is the founder of Mission to Promote Adoption in Korea (MPAK).  Through MPAK, he has elevated the status of domestic adoption in Korea and has been honored for his work both in the U.S. and Korea.  In 2005 he was honored by the Mayor of Seoul with the Honorary Citizen of Seoul Award. 

Dr. Cho Byung-Kuk is the godmother of adopted children.  She has checked the health of adoptees for Holt Children's Services Pediatric Clinic and Holt Ilsan Town for five decades.  She actually retired in 1993.  But she couldn't stop caring for children, so she continued the job.  She has treated more than 50,000 adoptees to date. 

Mrs. Seol Eun-Hee, Holt Social Worker, Post Adoption Service Center for U.S. 

She helped me with my F-4 Visa, and will assisting me with a birth family search. 

Steve Morrison, Dr. Cho, Susan Cox

Here is a picture of all of us Holt Adoptee's from the U.S. with Molly! 

from the left:  Steve- CA, myself, Jeff-OR, Courtney-CA, Keren-CA, Judy-MN, Liz-NJ, Kate-FL, Susan-OR

At the American Embassy in Seoul, we met:

George W. Lynn, Consul

George is the Chief of the Petition-based Visa Unit, Consular Section, U.S. Embassy, Seoul.  George has rich experiences in education as a teacher in his early years, and also worked as a Refugee Caseworker in Pakistan and Thailand for many years.  Now, he's also the foreign Service Officer, U.S. Dept. of State with previous assignments in Manila, Athens and Washington DC.  

Mark L. Strege, Deputy Consul General First Secretary

Mark is the U.S. Embassy's Immigrant Visa Chief.