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Adopting Ridho

  • Home sweet home!

      12 June 2022
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    We’re pleased to announce that Ridho is now safe and sound back in New Zealand. Looking back over this past year, it’s very surreal to believe that we’re now at this point. While the adoption process itself was a rollercoaster of emotions, we’re fairly certain that our adventure is only just beginning!

    We had a bit of a false start getting Ridho out of Indonesia when he and Alia were stopped at immigration trying to board their original flight home. This led to a nervous week of waiting as we jumped through all the hoops that materialised to have all the necessary documentation and authorisations to leave Indonesia. Luckily the second attempt went much smoother to everyone's relief.

    Ridho has been home for a week now and is slowly settling into our family and Kiwi life. Temperature has been a big shock, although we keep trying to tell him it’s only been a mild winter so far. The fire has been cranking day and night to keep it a tropical temperature inside.

    Although it’s only early days, it’s been a real pleasure to watch Ridho’s personality grow over the week. Initially, he was very shy and on alert. As the week has progressed he’s relaxed and his quirky personality has started to show through. It’s nice just seeing him be a kid after everything he’s been through.

    Ridho is all signed up for school and will begin from next week. He’s very excited about this as he’s been in and out of schooling for the last couple of years. The children in his class and school are also very excited to meet him as they’ve been following his adoption journey via his brothers. School is a huge milestone for us all as we try to implement some structure and routine into what has been a very disrupted few years for Ridho.

    As our next adventure begins, we will be wrapping up our Givealittle page. We want to thank you for all your support. We genuinely couldn’t have done this without you all and hope that you take joy in the fact that your contribution has changed Ridho’s life so much for the better. Words seem to fall flat for expressing our gratitude but thank you thank you thank you :)

    Much love,

    The Eckfords

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    • 12/06/2022 by Tori

      Thank you for the updates. I'm happy to see the end of this long and at times frustrating process that you've all been through. Wishing you all a wonderful and delightful life together❤️❤️❤️

  • Hello Mum

      15 May 2022
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    Adoption order ✔

    Birth certificate ✔

    Passport ✔

    Flights booked ✔

    Negative PCR test ✔

    Travel to Jakarta ✔

    “Hello mum”

    It’s amazing how these simple words can have such a huge impact when they’re said face to face.

    We’ve had another busy month getting organised for Ridho’s arrival which culminated in Alia heading off to Indonesia earlier this week to pick him up. There were plenty of tears and hugs at their first meeting as mother and son finally got to embrace. For Dad and the boys left at home, it’s all a bit surreal still but the smile on both of their faces gets us right in the feels.

    It wasn’t all a Hollywood storyline with shyness, nerves and moments of overwhelmingness. There’s plenty of work ahead to build a relationship and trust as we wrap Ridho up in love. Already over the couple of days that they have spent together, Alia has noticed him becoming more at ease and the stories and questions starting to flow, as you would expect from an excited young man.

    The plan from here is for Alia to spend some time with Ridho and extended family which have cared for him at some point in the journey. This gives us an opportunity to thank these people and gives Ridho a chance to say goodbye.

    Alia is then going to spend a few days with just Ridho, to ease him into a new family dynamic while still in a familiar environment. Then comes the big change as they’ll head back to New Zealand (and the cold!) to start Ridho’s new life. We’re all excited for the adventures to come!

    Thank you for your support to get us to the point we’re at now. We couldn’t have done it without you. We hope you can sit back with a cup of tea/lemonade/beer/wine and celebrate with us, knowing that you’ve contributed to changing someone’s life for the better. Also, thank you for the continued words of encouragement, meals and clothes for Ridho. It’s all appreciated.

    Much love,

    The Eckfords

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    • 15/05/2022 by Debbie

      Sooo excited for you guys, can't wait to meet the little dude some time.

      You're doing such a wonderful thing, be proud.

      Debbie Maxted

  • OFFICIALLY ADOPTED!!!!

      10 April 2022

    Hi Team,

    We’re very excited to let you know that our adoption of Ridho has been approved and he is now officially part of our family! This is a life-changing milestone for everyone involved and we still can’t quite believe it, given the highs and lows we’ve been through. There were tears and relief as we put an end to months of uncertainty.

    We want to thank all of you for supporting us to get to this point and we feel like we’re almost at the finishing line. From here we need to create a NZ birth certificate and then a NZ passport for Ridho, and then we’re off to Indonesia to pick him up.

    Ridho was extremely happy when we told him the news and can’t wait to get here. For a number of months, all we’ve been able to tell him is that we’re working on getting him here and that it will be soon. This latest news is certainty that he’s legally part of our family and that we’re only a few weeks away from starting a new chapter in our lives.

    We look forward to being able to share more good news with you shortly when we’ve got some travel dates locked in.

    Much love,

    The Eckfords

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  • Adoption Update - March 2022

      13 March 2022
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    Hi Everyone,

    We’ve had a good couple of months on the adoption front and are cautiously optimistic that we’re getting close to being able to make plans to pick Ridho up.

    Due to his change in living circumstances, going from our extended family to his mothers and then back to family friends, we had to repeat the social worker check in Indonesia to confirm that the adoption was still in Ridho’s best interests. This report came back all positive and we’re in the final stages of Oranga Tamariki (OT) approval.

    If everything gets approved from OT then we will be able to move ahead with a court hearing. If the court approves our adoption application then everything becomes official then and there. Ridho becomes our son and a New Zealand citizen. We’re then able to apply for a NZ passport and make arrangements to bring him home from Indonesia.

    Both New Zealand and Bali (Indonesia) have recently relaxed their isolation requirements for travellers so this will make the logistics of collecting Ridho a lot more straightforward than when we originally began this process at the height of the Delta pandemic. The adoption process has been a rollercoaster of emotions so far so we’re trying to keep a lid on our emotions until we’ve got him home safely.

    With Ridho back living with family friends we’re able to talk much more regularly. It’s a huge relief to see him having access to basics again such as safe shelter, sufficient food and clean clothing. He’s in good spirits despite the events of the past few months and is looking forward to coming to New Zealand as much as we are.

    When we’ve got some certainty on the court hearing date we’ll share another update and then fingers crossed, we’ll be off to Indonesia!

    Much love,

    The Eckfords

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  • Adoption Update - January 2022

      23 January 2022

    Hi Everyone,

    We hope you had a safe and enjoyable Christmas break and managed to get some much needed rest and relaxation after another tough year.

    We wanted to share an update with you on our progress with adopting Ridho. It's been awhile between updates as it's been a particularly tough few months. Every time we've felt like we were making progress and could share some good news, there has been a set back that has shaken our confidence.

    Getting things done in Indonesia has been particularly difficult with Covid still placing restrictions on day to day activities. Finding people to help has also been hard as we've fallen out with a number of extended family members. Some have slowed/delayed the adoption process because they don't support it, or to keep the financial support we've been providing for Ridho flowing.

    As New Zealanders, I know you will find this hard to comprehend. We certainly did at first too. However, it has been an eye opening experience into just how lucky we are in New Zealand, especially in a pandemic situation with wage subsidies and government support for food and housing. It's a "dog eat dog world" for the poor in Indonesia and we have felt the pure desperation from people at times.

    Another source of uncertainty has been Ridho's birth mother. While initially supporting the adoption and signing all the adoption paperwork, she changed her mind and decided she wanted to keep Ridho. We were unable to stop her from taking him as the adoption consent forms aren't legally recognised in Indonesia. Ridho has been staying with her family. However, the reality of caring for Ridho has struck home after an initial honeymoon period and she has returned to supporting the adoption.

    Communication has been limited but is improving. Ridho's basic needs are being met but we want to get him out of there as quickly as possible. Our focus is firmly on Ridho's welfare, but our training from Oranga Tamariki (OT) has also given us insight into how difficult the process can be from the otherside for the person giving up the child. We will have to continue to navigate this spider web of emotions for all involved and hope that Ridho's birth mother can continue to be involved in his life in New Zealand, if it's what Ridho wants.

    On the adoption process and legal side of things, progress has been steady. All our paperwork has been submitted and with an Indonesian child study in support of the adoption OT can now start working on a visa to get Ridho here. Omicron and MIQ may be a spanner in the works but we're focusing for now on the next step of a visa due to the ever changing travel environment. Nothing is certain, but we're targeting the first half of 2022 to get him here.

    Thank you again for your ongoing support. We certainly feel like we're on the home stretch and hope to be able to share more good news updates with you soon.

    Much love,

    The Eckfords

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  • Adoption updates

      15 October 2021
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    Hi Everyone,

    First of all we want to say thank you for being patient and continue to follow our adoption journey. As you can see here, Ridho have been busy learning English privately while waiting for his Visa.

    Thank you again for your generous contributions!

    While we waited for months and while we were stuck during Lockdown, our lawyer and Oranga Tamariki have been busy with our adoption application.

    We are happy to share with you our joy that our adoption application have been approved by the family court and now the adoption case is officially in the hand of Oranga Tamariki.

    I can’t thank them enough for all their hard work and for supporting us through this anxious times.

    Thank you thank you all for being behind us through this! Definitely couldn’t do this without every single one of you.

    Our goal is to have Ridho here in time for Christmas, which will be his first. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers.. we certainly need it..

    Blessings,

    Alia and Will Eckford

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  • Ridhos Adoption process

      16 August 2021
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    Hello everyone,

    We hope you’re keeping safe and well during lockdown and wanted to provide you with a bit of an update on our progress with Ridho. Again, we would like to thank you for your ongoing support throughout our journey.

    As we expected, it hasn’t been an easy breezy process getting our paperwork sorted. Ridho, his grandmother and his birth parents didn’t have official identification documents so we’ve had to create these.

    The documents have to be created by the city council from the region you were born in. With Covid ravaging Indonesia it’s taken time to get these documents sorted from the regions outside of Jakarta.

    However, we now have everything we need and were able to get the adoption consent forms signed by Ridho’s birth parents and witnessed this week in Indonesia. This then meant our application to the family court in New Zealand has been able to be submitted which is a huge milestone in the process.

    We are now working on creating Ridho a passport and seeing what options are available to get him here while the adoption paperwork is before the court and Oranga Tamariki.

    Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers and we appreciate your kind messages of support and encouragement.

    The Eckfords

    PS: the photo included is of Ridho trying fish and chips for the first time. He wanted to try the kind of foods we eat in New Zealand. He was a big fan!

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  • Ridhos Letter for us

      20 July 2021
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    Letter to Everyone

    Name: Ridho Alifqy Ramadhan

    Age: 10

    Birth of place and date: Jakarta-24/8/2010

    I am prepared to be adopted by Mama Alia and Daddy Will because I would like to see snow, I would like to see dolphin and I am looking forward to play with Ethan and William.

    I am so excited to come to New Zealand and I can’t wait to be there. Thank you everybody for all your help to get me there.

    When I am in New Zealand, I will to study hard and work hard to achieve my dream as an animator.

    Thank you so much for your attention and I hope to have the opportunity to see you soon

    Respectfully,

    Ridho Alifqy Ramadhan

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    • 20/07/2021 by Keely

      My daughter is studying a Bachelor of Animation ... she practices her drawing all the time ... all the best achieving your dreams ...

  • Ridhos Dream

      16 July 2021
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    Hi everyone,

    We are in awe by all your generosity and support. There were moments of being speechless, tears and joy!

    We can’t wait to have Ridho here with us. We spoke to him twice a day and last night we told him that he’s famous for being brave.

    He was very surprised of course, as he doesn’t consider his situation as bravery or a choice.

    We hope that his dream to see snow will come sooner! We asked him to draw us a picture of him skiing in New Zealand beautiful mountains. We would like to share this with you, to show you that you’re all a family to us!

    Family stands together in time of need and adversity, you all have done that with us.

    This journey will continue on and will keep you posted.

    Terima Kasih banyak untuk semua

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    • 16/07/2021 by Simon

      What a champion! Such a great artist!

    • 11/04/2022 by Keely

      So very very happy for you and your whānau. All the best to you all for the next stage of the journey. Such a long and anxious time but almost there.