Adoptions another facet of life halted by war in Ukraine

LEEDS, Maine — The ripple effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have been devastating for families of all kinds — including those who have seen their prospective adoptions put on hold.

Ukraine was once one of the U.S.’s most frequent partners on international adoptions, but the war changed all that: The embattled country has halted all international adoptions as the country copes with the turmoil unleashed on its courts and social services. Many children, including orphans, have also fled or been displaced.

When the war started, there were more than 300 Ukrainian children previously hosted by American families that were seeking to formally adopt them, said Ryan Hanlon, chief executive officer and president of the National Council For Adoption. Representatives for adoption agencies said that means at least 200 families were at some point of the adoption process, which takes between two to three years in ideal circumstances.

But, the National Council For Adoption made clear in a statement, “this is not the appropriate time or context to be considering adoption by U.S. citizens.”

That is because adoptions can only proceed with children who are clearly orphaned or for whom parental rights have been terminated, the group said, and establishing identities and family statuses is impossible for many Ukrainian children right now.

Jessica Pflumm, a stay-athome mom who runs a smoothie business and has two daughters in the suburbs of Kansas City, is one prospective adoptive parent. She hopes to adopt Maks, a younger teen — Pflumm was reluctant to reveal his exact age because of safety concerns — whom they hosted for four weeks in December and January. Maks is now back in Ukraine, where his orphanage’s director has moved him to relatively safety in the country’s west.

“Every day is hard. We pray a lot and we try to think of what he is experiencing versus what we’re experiencing,” Pflumm said. “For us, it’s hard, but nothing compared to what he’s experiencing.”