thoughts on a second honeymoon from the fringe of hell
Call us crazy, but our idea of a mid-life crisis is having more children. Okay, I'll be honest; that's my idea of a mid-life crisis. My husband just happens to be good-natured enough to go along with the half-witted notions I embrace as we travel together through life. What can I say except that he's a swell guy? I, on the other hand, go off half-cocked beyond the rubble of what was once the Iron Curtain, dragging my husband behind as we travel on a quest built on the flimsy foundation of a deceitful international adoption agency named Yunona.
We now facetiously refer to this company as Yu-(k)no(w)-nathing.
Our quest? To retrieve two daughters, ages 8 & 11, from an orphanage in the region of Donetsk. Yunona's repeated promise? That these girls were indeed available, that they had received our letters and were aware we were coming, and that they (Yunona) could provide for their adoption.
We had gone the route taken by the majority of parents: spying on a photolisting endearing kids, our hearts and consciences wrenched by the thought of their childhoods being lived out in a dismal impoverished orphanage while we relished the relative materialistic ease of middle class American life. We did not know until we arrived in Kiev that Yunona purchases the photos they place on the Internet. We learned that the photos are taken by the orphanages to update binders filled with child profiles lining the shelves at Ukraine's National Adoption Center (NAC), but for a dip in Yunona's pockets, certain workers at the NAC will instead sell those photos. The effect of this practice leaves the binders filled with grossly out-dated profiles of children waiting to be adopted and fills the Internet with the faces of children about whom Yunona in truth knows nothing.
Parents aren't told – at least not until they arrive overseas — that they must not mention the name "Yunona" and that they must never mention they "pre-selected" the children they have come to adopt. Suddenly, parents become a part of the conspiracy, taken to the NAC to scramble through countless binders (or at least those selected to be shown to them) — only able to hope they'll come across the face of the child whom they thought had already been arranged to be theirs.
It is quite a shock.
Putting aside all the bureaucratic hoops and financial strains that precede such a trip for willing parents, it is heinous for Yunona and agencies like them to issue contracts for children over whose fate they in fact have neither knowledge or control. The owner of Yunona, one Ivan Jerdev, fancies himself a sort of Cyrillic Robin Hood, justifying his questionable means by the common end: that of having nevertheless brought about the adoption of orphans.
Article comments
1 - Jeanne
First of all-you are indeed a wonderful writer.I am sure that I would not be able to resist any of your literary adventures but since this subject is close to my heart I was all the more intralled.I adopted my daughter from Kazakhstan in 1999 at the tender age of 10 months.I did not use Yunona but I certainly have learned some lessons regarding International adoption through my journey and through the experiences of friends.One friend went to Russia to adopt 2 children and when she arrived was told that their parents had decided to keep them.She fainted and became hysterical when she came to.She and her husband "picked" out 2 different children who are now 8 and 10 and yet she continues to mourn the children she lost and yet she never really had.When I visited my daughter's baby house to meet her for the first time I was brought a three year old rather than a small baby.For a period of time I waited while they looked for her in quite a panick.Luckily she was there and seemed to be waiting for me.
2 - garrie
Thank you for writing, Jeanne. One thing that's been rewarding for me through all of this has been hearing from many wonderful adoptive parents out there who take a few moments to share their personal thoughts and stories in return.
Congratulations on your adoption. Sounds like our adopted daughters are about the same age.
And thank you for the compliment on my writing. Next to my husband and children, writing is the most important thing in my life.
-- gk
3 - Crystal
I only wished that I would have read this 5 months ago. We have lost over $10,000.00 since 1-2006 to Yunona USA (and what ever else they decided to use as a name for there illegal scams).
They are currently under investigation and the coward Ivan Jerdev is curreently hidding in Russia. I can not beleive people are out there that take advantage of desperate parents!
If you are the lucky few that had a positive experience with Yunona, concider yourselves very blessed to not be taken advantage of. Unlike the MANY that are heart broker and not to mention broke because of this.
If you have been a victim of Yunona or any other affiliate to them, please call the NAPA Police Dept in California. Thay are trying to get all the people who were scammed by Yunona invovled so that they have enough evidence to charge all people involved and hopefully reimburse all our money back.
Please don't speak out negatively to all those who were scammed. We are hurting and we do not need the persecution of others to stick up for a company that has lied to ALL of us from the beginning.
4 - Crystal
I only wished that I would have read this 5 months ago. We have lost over $10,000.00 since 1-2006 to Yunona USA (and what ever else they decided to use as a name for there illegal scams).
They are currently under investigation and the coward Ivan Jerdev is currently hiding in Russia. I can not believe people are out there that take advantage of desperate parents!
If you are the lucky few that had a positive experience with Yunona, consider yourselves very blessed to not be taken advantage of. Unlike the MANY that are heart broker and not to mention broke because of this.
If you have been a victim of Yunona or any other affiliate to them, please call the NAPA Police Dept in California. They are trying to get all the people who were scammed by Yunona involved so that they have enough evidence to charge all people involved and hopefully reimburse all our money back.
Please don't speak out negatively to all those who were scammed. We are hurting and we do not need the persecution of others to stick up for a company that has lied to ALL of us from the beginning.
5 - RLD
Ivan Jerdev is very much a crook. We were referred to a child in Rostov on Don and discovered upon our arrival there that the agency has never even worked there. It was a horror story from there...................We have adopted through 2 previous agencies and realize adoption is not a cut and dried procedure but Yunona is plain crooked.
6 - John Eucare
I adopted through Yunona in Kazakhstan in Sep 2000 and was warned that life in Russia and all surrounding countries was risky because they were all corrupt. But when weighing the options which are TERRIBLE in the US we decided to take the chance. EVERY adoption is risky here or there and there is ALWAYS the chance the adoption will not go through. I have to admit it took a few days to get used to the fact that you have to bribe EVERYONE to get through this but considering how poor most of these countries are it doesn't take much . I think I spent about 400 total at border crossing airports and hospitals. But we returned with a beautiful healthy baby girl that's about to turn 11 now and is the absolute apple of my eye. August-Sep 2000 is when we traveled and we had 3 different translators/interpreters who's only fault on the entire trip was they misspelled my daughter new name on the birth certificate but it was simply a matter of her name needing to be corrected at the social security office so it read right on the card...lol. Otherwise no hitches delays.. TIP dont change your money till AFTER you are through customs.. you may need to just give it customs officials and you really DON'T want then to know you have a large amount of US cash on you.. better to always have 30-100 in whatever currency that country deals in so you can say " here take ALL my money and pleas let us pass!" Its funny but not funny but that life in the now defunct USSR. Almost every Int Adoption agency must bend or break rules to get things done... don't be naive... my daughter would probably be an 11 year old prostitute or dead if we didn't bring her back... the ends DOES justify the means.. unless you plan on single handedly UN CORRUPTING these 3rd world countries then play ball and be prepared to come home empty handed.. the reason we chose Kazakhstan BTW is only 1 trip and 2 weeks spent there for the entire process. Obviously Yunona no longer operates here but you should consider Kazakhstan for beautiful Caucasian and Mongolian babies. The only thing I was really upset about with the whole trip is we found out very late in the game why the orphanages want cash.. so they can buy narcotics like codiene to keep the kids volume turned down... I was really worried it might have caused brain problems but shes my lil straight A princess, so there ya go. Total cost there and back including all travel and paperwork... $32000 and I got 11000 in tax credits for foreign adoption.. Soooo only cost 21k net... 21k to change her and our lives forever.. thats a deal if you ask me. Yunona? well they have great intentions but it looks like they were a victim of over promising and under delivering and some people got caught in the muck as a result.. but please don't give up on the kids... its sooooooo WORTH IT.