Two girls, both Russian-born teenage adoptees have become friends through these blogs. These are two of the most amazing girls, older child adoptees, bent on now giving back to other children without families. I’ve been absolutely inspired by both of them.

A month ago, Virginia wrote on the Russian Adoption blog about her meeting with a fascinating young woman named Katya. Let me remind you a bit about Virginia’s introduction and also include a little bit of new information:

Katya is from Yekaterinburg, Russia. Her birth parents died when she was young; she was adopted at age 11 and is now 17. Two years after she came to the United States, she had already begun one of her many projects designed to help children. She’s continued from there, never taking much of a break at all, and is still heavily involved in several projects going on at once. Some of these projects are public speaking to earn money for children through a local adoption agency (over $5000 so far), Heart and Sole (to get sport shoes to foster children so they can participate like other children), and a chair on the Mayor’s Youth Council with over 3000 service hours logged in ONE YEAR! She has also started a program called Baggage Claim to get luggage to foster children so they won’t have to move around in those dreaded black plastic bags. This inspiring girl has lists of achievements and honors.

From Katya’s own public speaking paper, she tells us: I want to start a revolution of the heart….. I know what it’s like to be a child and be alone. She seems to be doing just that, starting a revolution of the heart.

The day after Virginia’s blog, my own 17yr old, Russian-born, adopted daughter came to me to discuss a school assignment called “The Hero Project”. She was not allowed to select a family member, religious or political figure. She described to me the sort of person that would be her hero, but claimed she didn’t know anyone who fit the bill. Her description matched very closely with the one I’d read about Katya. My daughter agreed. We were able to get in touch with Katya and her mother, Jan Scholl.

Katya has very much in common with my adopted daughter, Elena – they are both from Russia, similar birth family history, same age at adoption and move to America, even same height/weight and similar features, and they are just a couple of months apart in age. Both are very dedicated to giving back to homeless and orphaned children, as well as helping them to find families.

Since the initial contact, my Elena has used Katya as her personal hero for her "Hero Project" at school. Partly spurred on by that project - and partly spurred on by really just being motivated by "another person like her", Elena is now starting a branch of Katya's "Baggage Claim" project here in Arizona.

The two girls are brainstorming some other ideas as well. It's wonderful for me, as the mom, to see such cute, normal exchanges - such as the two girls sending text messages to each other during the day and working out their individual friend issues - and also amazing to see two girls, both adopted, both reaching out to other children, on their own and with each other.

I am grateful, as I have been so many other times, for the Internet and it’s ability to bring people together for good.

If you would like to start your own branch of “Baggage Claim”, Katya has prepared a booklet on how to get started. “Last year I added Baggage Claim to my program. I saw a foster child on TV who was packing all her things in a trash bag. It reminded me of my past and of how it feels to have to carry all you have with you. Baggage Claim (now in 11 states!) is a program that collects new and gently used luggage and backpacks
for foster children. It’s my way of helping to give them back their self-esteem.” E-mail me at stshowell@hotmail.com and I will get you in contact with one of these two amazing girls!