She even had her U.S. passport on her.

ICE agents kidnapped a U.S. citizen in Chicago who had just finished working a double shift because she didn’t “look” American to them.

Maria Greeley, 44, was on her way home from her job at Beach Bar earlier this month when she was surrounded, seized, and zip-tied by three ICE masked agents without cause or warning and interrogated for an hour. ICE determined she was an undocumented immigrant because she didn’t “look like” a Greeley. Greeley, who was born in Illinois, is Latina and adopted. She had her U.S. passport on her when she was detained.

“I am Latina and I am a service worker,” Greeley said. “I fit the description of what they’re looking for now.... They said this isn’t real, they kept telling me I’m lying, I’m a liar,” she told The Chicago Tribune. “I told them to look in the rest of my wallet, I have my credit cards, my insurance.”

HELP a child eV – Children find parents – was founded by adoptive parents at the founding meeting on January 24, 2004.

All board members have adopted one or more children from abroad.

To achieve goals large and small, we need strong employees who, with their personal commitment, guarantee that an organization such as HELP a child eV - Children find parents - which pursues exclusively non-profit and charitable purposes, can operate and exist successfully.

All work on the association's board is carried out on a voluntary basis and is supported by numerous members and adoptive parents who volunteer.

Terrence McBride finds himself stuck.

He longs for his friends and family in Georgia and Texas, along with the job he was supposed to start at a golf course in Atlanta.

But the 63-year-old is recovering from a heart attack while living in a cramped rooming house in Saint John, N.B. — a city that’s unfamiliar. He says he feels emotionally and physically drained, just like his bank account.

His troubles began after he pulled up to the U.S. border in Calais, Maine on April 10. He told officials he’s an American citizen, but carries a Canadian passport.

It is with a heavy heart that we announce that the Association for Adopted Children and Families (VAG) will definitively cease its operations as of January 1, 2026.

Social developments, policy choices in the adoption landscape, and a sharp decline in membership in recent years have resulted in the Association for Adopted Children and Families' financial viability steadily declining. Unfortunately, the number of active volunteers has also steadily decreased, making this decision unavoidable.

We thank the loyal VAG members who have supported us over the years. We also extend a special thanks to the (former and current) volunteers who have selflessly dedicated themselves to the Association for Adopted Children and Families, often for many years. We worked entirely with volunteers who shared their experience as adoptees or (prospective) adoptive parents.

For over 30 years, the Association for Adopted Children and Families has been advocating for open information provision, honest preparation for prospective adoptive parents, and professional (after)care for adoptees and adoptive families. They have achieved this by organizing accessible training and meetings, featuring the VAG magazine, the VAG book service, VAG contact persons, training evenings, adoption cafés, family activities, and more.

Meeting, learning from each other's stories, and recognition are crucial for adoptees, adoptive parents, and prospective adoptees. This is what made our decision so difficult. But without structured and financial support from our volunteer association, offering high-quality activities and training for adoptive families, adoptees, and prospective adoptees is unfortunately no longer possible.

Herdecke: Emergency personnel stand next to a rescue helicopter. The newly elected mayor of Herdecke, Iris Stalzer (SPD), was found in her apartment with life-threatening injuries.dpa

Shocking new details have emerged in the case of the knife attack on Herdecke's mayor-elect, Iris Stalzer. It's now known what drove the adopted daughter to commit the horrific act. Stalzer's behavior is unusual in one respect.

Shocking details of the investigation are emerging in the drama surrounding the knife attack on the mayor-elect of Herdecke. According to the report, the bloody conflict between the newly elected SPD politician Iris Stalzer and her 17-year-old adopted daughter in the basement of their apartment building is said to have lasted for an extended period. 

New details: Iris Stalzer didn't want to betray her daughter

Iris Stalzer had apparently felt threatened by her adopted daughter for some time. According to a report, the mayor of Herdecke visited a police station one day before the knife attack. The incident was again related to domestic violence.

Iris Stalzer, the mayor-elect of Herdecke, who was seriously injured in a knife attack, apparently contacted the police for help the day before the attack. According to information from the "Bild" newspaper, the 57-year-old SPD politician felt threatened by her adopted daughter and feared for her life.

On Monday, Stalzer reportedly appeared in person at the police station in Wetter/Ruhr. Her husband was away on a business trip at the time. "There were two personal contacts that day," a police spokesperson confirmed to the newspaper. "A case has been opened, and all necessary measures have been taken."

German doctors arrive in Haiti +++ UN staff rescued after 120 hours +++ 10,000 US soldiers to ensure security More than 1.8 million minors are traumatized, suffering from hunger and disease. Adopted children are being flown out

Every second victim is a child

An orphanage in Delmas, not far from Port-au-Prince. "When we arrived, dozens of children stretched out their arms to us," says James Addis of the aid organization World Vision. "I'll never forget that image. They had gone two days without water."

The shelter is already completely overcrowded, but is still trying to provide additional shelter for children from destroyed homes. There is no electricity, no food, and – worst of all – no clean drinking water. In desperation, the shelter's management fetched water from the nearby river and boiled it as a makeshift measure. "Many of the children are suffering from illnesses such as diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and rashes," says James Addis. The earthquake-hit children of Haiti – no one has been hit harder by the disaster. "Of the total 3 million people affected, around 1.8 million are children and young people," estimated Rudi Tarneden, spokesperson for the children's aid organization UNICEF, to the BZ. This means that more than half of the victims are children. "Many of them are completely on their own and traumatized, in shock," says Tarneden. UNICEF plans to set up two emergency shelters for them in Port-au-Prince, where they will receive psychological support. "After what happened, the girls and boys don't know what to do with their ignorance and grief," says trauma expert Dr. Unni Krishan of the organization Plan International. "They're looking for their parents and siblings – their distress is almost incomprehensible." But the emergency shelters are meant to not only care for the children, but also protect them. Hunger and disease aren't the only dangers they face. "In a desperately poor country like Haiti, child trafficking and sexual exploitation have always existed," Stephan Beschle of the organization "Save the Children" told the BZ. "And we know that situations like this are particularly vulnerable to unscrupulous human traffickers." Therefore, the UN has commissioned "Save the Children" to establish safe havens for the children. But no one knows when this will happen. At least a small number of the children can hope to escape this hell: France and the Netherlands plan to bring adopted children out of the country as quickly as possible in the coming days. However, all the paperwork would have to be in order for this to happen, said State Secretary for Development Aid Alain Joyandet. "We cannot allow mass quantities of children to come from Haiti if we are not sure that the dossiers have already been reviewed." According to parent associations, there are currently 1,200 to 1,500 adoption applications pending in France. "We are very worried and want to get the children out as quickly as possible," said Letje Vermunt, spokesperson for the Dutch Foundation for Adoption. These include 109 girls and boys whose adoptions had been approved by the authorities before the earthquake. "Parents for Children" and "Help a Child," the only German associations that place children from Haiti, are also planning similar measures. "Our discussions with the Federal Foreign Office are going very positively," Bea Garnier-Merz, chairwoman of "Help a Child," told the BZ. These are exclusively children,for whom adoption applications are already in the final stages, said Garnier-Merz. "We are striving for a swift, unbureaucratic, and humane solution," a spokeswoman for the Foreign Office confirmed the talks to the BZ. It is hope for a few. Hundreds of thousands of other children remain behind in the hell of Haiti.

German doctors arrive in Haiti +++ UN staff rescued after 120 hours +++ 10,000 US soldiers to ensure security More than 1.8 million minors are traumatized, suffering from hunger and disease. Adopted children are being flown out

Every second victim is a child

An orphanage in Delmas, not far from Port-au-Prince. "When we arrived, dozens of children stretched out their arms to us," says James Addis of the aid organization World Vision. "I'll never forget that image. They had gone two days without water."

The shelter is already completely overcrowded, but is still trying to provide additional shelter for children from destroyed homes. There is no electricity, no food, and – worst of all – no clean drinking water. In desperation, the shelter's management fetched water from the nearby river and boiled it as a makeshift measure. "Many of the children are suffering from illnesses such as diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and rashes," says James Addis. The earthquake-hit children of Haiti – no one has been hit harder by the disaster. "Of the total 3 million people affected, around 1.8 million are children and young people," estimated Rudi Tarneden, spokesperson for the children's aid organization UNICEF, to the BZ. This means that more than half of the victims are children. "Many of them are completely on their own and traumatized, in shock," says Tarneden. UNICEF plans to set up two emergency shelters for them in Port-au-Prince, where they will receive psychological support. "After what happened, the girls and boys don't know what to do with their ignorance and grief," says trauma expert Dr. Unni Krishan of the organization Plan International. "They're looking for their parents and siblings – their distress is almost incomprehensible." But the emergency shelters are meant to not only care for the children, but also protect them. Hunger and disease aren't the only dangers they face. "In a desperately poor country like Haiti, child trafficking and sexual exploitation have always existed," Stephan Beschle of the organization "Save the Children" told the BZ. "And we know that situations like this are particularly vulnerable to unscrupulous human traffickers." Therefore, the UN has commissioned "Save the Children" to establish safe havens for the children. But no one knows when this will happen. At least a small number of the children can hope to escape this hell: France and the Netherlands plan to bring adopted children out of the country as quickly as possible in the coming days. However, all the paperwork would have to be in order for this to happen, said State Secretary for Development Aid Alain Joyandet. "We cannot allow mass quantities of children to come from Haiti if we are not sure that the dossiers have already been reviewed." According to parent associations, there are currently 1,200 to 1,500 adoption applications pending in France. "We are very worried and want to get the children out as quickly as possible," said Letje Vermunt, spokesperson for the Dutch Foundation for Adoption. These include 109 girls and boys whose adoptions had been approved by the authorities before the earthquake. "Parents for Children" and "Help a Child," the only German associations that place children from Haiti, are also planning similar measures. "Our discussions with the Federal Foreign Office are going very positively," Bea Garnier-Merz, chairwoman of "Help a Child," told the BZ. These are exclusively children,for whom adoption applications are already in the final stages, said Garnier-Merz. "We are striving for a swift, unbureaucratic, and humane solution," a spokeswoman for the Foreign Office confirmed the talks to the BZ. It is hope for a few. Hundreds of thousands of other children remain behind in the hell of Haiti.

The adoption organization "Help a Child eV" hosted Minister Pascaline Tamini in Germany from October 30 to November 1, 2009. The purpose was to give the minister an insight into the social environment of Burkinabe children adopted to Germany. For this purpose, schools, kindergartens, and daycare centers were visited, and families with their Burkinabe children were invited to a meeting.

Chairwoman Bea Garnier-Merz also asked Starke Kinder eV to give a presentation about our projects in Burkina Faso and our work here on the ground. Our presentation to approximately 100 interested parents and the delegation from the West African country was all the more effective because Madame Tamini, in her speech beforehand, emphasized how well the children here in Germany are doing, but that we shouldn't forget the many other children in Burkina Faso who aren't so fortunate.

South Korea on Wednesday launched a committee to oversee domestic adoption policy, as well as individual adoption cases, in accordance with new legislation.

The 15-member adoption policy committee, chaired by Health and Welfare Minister Jeong Eun-kyeong, includes experts on adoption, medicine and law as well as academics.

It will review adoption policy plans, set standards for pre-adoption parental training and rule on the suitability of prospective parent-child pairings.

Two eight-member subcommittees will separately handle domestic and international adoption cases, with their rulings carrying the weight of the main committee.

At its first meeting, the panel discussed operating guidelines and the implementation of the new public adoption system, which transfers oversight of the process from private agencies to local governments and the state.

Jeong said the committee would be the “driving force” behind a transparent public adoption system focused on the best interests of children.