edition #25
you are
valuable
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from the editor
“There is a plan and a purpose, a value to every life, no matter what its location, age, gender or disability.” — Sharron Angle Recently I watched some news about New York’s new law. It is heartbreaking. As a media, we want to say that EVERY LIFE IS VALUABLE. YOU are valuable. It does not matter what people think or say about you, the truth is you are valuable and your life is significant. There is only you in this world. Even identical twins do not have matching fingerprints. How special you are! In this edition, we especially want to highlight people who have been adopted or fostered. We are honored to feature Melissa Ohden. She was an abortion attempt survivor and adopted as a child. Today, she is a speaker, author and most importantly she is a voice to the voiceless. Melissa encourages you with her life-giving words on page 8. 4
Rodrigo is an 8-year-old from Southern California. You might know his dad, Michael Ketterer, who was an “America’s Got Talent” finalist in 2018. Michael and Ivey Ketterer adopted four boys including Rodrigo “Rodee”. Rodee and his mom Ivey share about Rodee’s adoption story and what family means to Rodee. Mylee Zhao Lu-Ann Y. is a teenager from Indiana, USA. She shares her journey, when she was adopted from China at 2 years old. Don’t miss out Desi Trisnawati’s egg custard recipe and also beautiful artworks created by the children living at Pattani Home for Girls, Thailand.
xo, Mia
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you are valuable
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chosen and loved
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rodee's story
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pattani home for girls
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egg custard
this edition’s contributors:
MIA SETYAWAN | AUSTRALIA EDITOR & FOUNDER of KIDS NATION MAG kidsnationmag.com Mia is a mother of two boys and owns an award winning graphic design studio in Australia. She is passionate about imparting positive values to the next generation. Mia has been a volunteer at a local children program for over 10 years.
Melissa Ohden | usa Pro-life speaker, writer and advocate melissaohden.com Melissa is an abortion attempt survivor and voice to the voiceless. She is a Master’s level prepared Social Worker and the author of You Carried Me: A Daughter's Memoir. She is the Founder and Director of The Abortion Survivors Network. Melissa is a frequent contributor to pro-life news outlets and a regular guest on radio and television programs around the world.
Desi Trisnawati | INDONESIA food artist & chef consultant inspirational-chef.com Desi is the winner of Masterchef Indonesia 2012 and the first female Masterchef Indonesia. She is the author of 20 Fun Recipes of Strong Heart and creator of the Indonesia's first culinary board game Cooking with Inspirational Chef Desi.
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this edition’s contributors:
Mylee Zhao Lu-Ann Y. | usa My name is Mylee. I’m 13 and I live in Indiana. I have 12, yes 12 siblings. I like to swim, play outside, shoot rifles and hang out with my friends. My dream is to be a doctor someday, specifically an orthopedic surgeon. When I was 2 I was adopted from China.
jane arnott | thailand project manager, care for children thailand www.careforchildren.com Jane Arnott is Care for Children’s Project Manager in Thailand, having spent over twenty years working alongside orphaned and abandoned children. As a foster parent herself, she has cared for 64 children in her own home.
ivey & rodrigo ketterer | usa We are mom & son .. and partners in crime. Ivey lives in Southern California with her husband Michael, daughter Sofia and five boys through adoption (Jared, Chase, Jeriah, Rodrigo and Shawn). The Ketterers love going to the beach.
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You are valuable words: melissa ohden | artwork: mia setyawan
Hello, I'm melissa. today, i want to tell you that ...
You have intrinsic value!
...YES, you!
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Intrinsic value means that
your worth
your value
is innate or, in other words
it’s with you from the very beginning of
your life. You don’t have to earn it.
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You don’t have to act a certain way or impress a certain person.
You don’t have to wear a particular type of clothes, listen to a particular type of music, or have the newest or coolest things.
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No matter if you’re raised by both of your biological parents ...
... or none of them, because you’re adopted, like me, you have value.
No matter how other people treat you, no matter what other people think about the experiences you have had in your life and the things that you believe in ... you have value.
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You have value because you are you! And there will never be another you. Ever. Just think about that. That’s how special you are. That’s how much value you have. There can never be another you. So, the next time you feel down about yourself… the next time you wish you were someone different… (I felt that way when I was younger because I was ashamed of how I was actually born through an abortion that failed)... Can you do something really important? remember this one, very important thing: You have intrinsic value.
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There will never be another you. The world needs you to be you. Just like the world needed me to be me. ... And you set the world on fire with your incredible, valuable self.
Melissa Ohden
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story
rodee's story by: ivey and rodrigo ketterer | photo: Micah Francisco
Ivey Rodrigo
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Ivey, can you tell us briefly about Rodrigo’s adoption story?
Rodrigo, in a short sentence what does family mean to you?
#Rodrigoisapieceofheaven is my favorite subject to talk about. It is as if one day a stork dropped this little angel off on my front porch!
"Jesus, thank You for my family. Amen!"
Rodee was shaken by his caregiver at that time, when he was 1½ years old. As a result, it caused severe damage to his head. Rodee was blind, mute, had a feeding tube and was wheelchair-bound. My husband (Michael) is a registered nurse, so the foster care system asked us if we could take Rodee in. My husband and I both believe that God is bigger than all Rodee’s challenges.
Ivey: If Rodee could communicate his kisses into words, I think he would say something like what Mr. Ketterer painted in our living room: “Being a family means you will love and be loved for the rest of your life!”
So now we have had Rodee, our little angel for 8 years now. Rodee can now see, talk, eat and walk (all with assistance)! How is that for miracles!
Click to watch the video
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photo: mandi yager
chosen and lo ed words: Mylee Zhao Lu-Ann Y. | artwork: mia setyawan
hi I'm mylee! I’m 13 and I live in Indiana. When I was 2, I was adopted from China. this is my adoption story ...
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My adoption story is like most kids from China. I was abandoned at about 1 day old and found on February 16th, 2006 in a shopping mall.
Milk
According to my file that was given to my parents, I was found wrapped in a blanket and left with some formula, money and a Buddhist prayer card, which was given to my mom on my adoption day.
Prayer card
Money
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Growing up my mom always wanted to have a “cute little Chinese girl”. She says the moment she saw my picture for the first time she knew instantly that I was the little girl she had dreamed of for so many years.
"You're my little girl..."
After visiting my orphanage she knew that God had a bigger plan for her and our family and that she would return to China. Since adopting me in 2008, my parents have adopted six other kids from China. My adoptive parents have helped me embrace my story by continuously talking about China and the reasons why they think my birth parents abandoned me. I may never really know the real reason but in my heart I know that they loved me and abandoning me was probably their only option based on my medical condition.
Just knowing that I was left in a populated area wrapped in a blanket with formula and money tells me that I was loved. I may never really know or understand, by they will always have a place in my heart.
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This past summer I was able to go back to China with my mom to adopt my 5 year old sister. We were able to spend the first week in China visiting our orphanages and cities. My orphanage was recently torn down so I had to visit the new one but all my caretakers were still working there.
On the day we visited there were two nannies and a doctor that were there on the day I was found. There was also a nanny that had retired that they facetimed who treated me like her own daughter.
One of the stories they told me was how whenever I had a bottle I would always try to share it with the cat. It was also pretty cool to hear how impressed they were with my legs and how well I am doing.
While we were there, they kept having me walk back and forth in the room because they could net believe how well I was walking.
When naming me, my adoptive parents wanted to keep my Chinese name as my middle name so my name is Mylee Zhao Lu-Ann. They kept my Chinese name as a way to honor my culture.
I have arthrogryposis and when I was adopted I could not bend my knees or ankles so it was really hard for me to walk. They were all so excited to see me. Going back and being able to visit the people who cared for me as their own for two years was a special moment. Even though I don’t remember them it was really fun hanging out with them and listening to the stories they had to share about me.
While we were at the orphanage, they let me look at my original adoption file. When we were going through my file there was a scrap piece of paper with the name my birthparents gave me. Zhao Lu was not given to me by the orphanage but by my birthparents! Knowing that my middle name was actually chosen by my birthparents and that I was able to keep it because of my adoptive parents means so much to me. 19
God has used my adoption by opening my parents’ hearts and home to more kids from China. My mom says all the time, “What started as a dream for her became a reality and so much more when Mylee was placed in my arms.” My adoption started my parents on a journey they never would have expected or imagined. They get asked all the time about adoption and have been able to share their story which has encouraged others to adopt. Adoption has shaped my life in so many ways. I’m only 13 but I know that, because of my medical issues, if I would have stayed in China I would not have the opportunities I have and will have. I have been given a family that millions of kids may never have. I was literally chosen by my parents because they answered a call from God to adopt. I cannot imagine not having the family that I have. If I didn’t have them I wouldn’t have such a great life with an even greater family who cares about me so much. I wouldn’t have all the things I have now, and I wouldn’t have a family who will love me forever no matter what.
Mylee
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pattani home for girls words: jane arnott photo: care for children
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P
attani Home for Girls is located in the deep south of Thailand and is home for 142 girls who are aged between 6-24. The girls come into the home because of a variety of reasons – poverty, parents imprisoned, sick, separated or passed away; they are some of the most vulnerable in society. When a new Superintendent arrived at Pattani, she could see that many of the girls seemed very unhappy, and they often had cases of girls sneaking out or running away. Years of research shows that children can experience a lack of nurture, stimulation and care which is only found in a loving family. The Superintendent wanted to do something to make their stay at the home more positive, to give them some hope and some skills, so she found volunteers and hired staff who had special skills that they could teach the girls.
The girls had a chance to learn art, contemporary music, band and lion dancing; a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune. “The girls loved learning these new skills and the Superintendent said it really changed the whole atmosphere of the home. The girls not only have new skills but they also have such a sense of pride.” Says Jane Arnott, Care for Children Thailand Country Manager. “Their artwork is really amazing. They even produced a little notebook with the artwork throughout it and they have been distributed as gifts at government functions.” Since launching the Thai project in 2012, Care for Children has been working with the government to train the staff in the children’s homes to start foster care projects. Over 300 children are now being cared for in Thai foster families and the hope is that many more families will be found and trained to be foster parents.
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The Thai government recognizes that the best place for children to grow up is in a loving family, so they are doing all they can to find ways that children can be in family-based care. Some children are able to be adopted and others can be supported to live with relatives. The children across the country who are being fostered love being part of a family.
One little girl in foster care in Chiang Mai told us how different it is for her because she feels valued by her parents; she can go to the market with her foster mother and together they talk about what they want to eat for dinner and they buy the ingredients. Her foster mother has taught her to cook lots of different meals and now she feels confident to make some of them on her own. The artwork created by the girls in Pattani Home for Girls shows why each child living in institutional care deserves the opportunity to live in a loving family environment. Children thrive in families because they are known, loved and valued, so we’re working hard to find more families to welcome children into their homes.
*to find out more about Care for Children’s work with orphaned and abandoned children across Asia, visit www.careforchildren.com.
"Children thrive in families because they are known, loved and valued..." — Jane arnott
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photo: desi trisnawati
cook
Egg custard by: desi trisnawati
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INGREDIENTS: 2 eggs 1 cup of chicken stock 1/4 cup carrot, julienned 1 stalk of spring onion Prawns or chicken cut into small pieces A pinch of pepper A pinch of salt
METHOD: 1. Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl. Whisk in the chicken stock and season with salt and pepper, then strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a baking dish. 2. Top with prawns or chicken pieces, carrots and green onion. 3. Steam for around 10 minutes until the egg set.
For more recipes, follow Desi on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
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