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| Richard and his May birthday buddies: Gloria & Francis |
Guess who turns 11 years old today?! Yep, you guessed it! Richard Xie Minyu! 11 years ago today, May 25, Richard was born and I'm oh so glad he was! I love this boy so much! How has the time gone so fast? When did he get so old? Richard is one of the coolest, happiest and best kids I've ever met. I know, I know....I'm biased, but I'm being honest. He's so incredible. He has an amazing sense of humor, servants heart, and is always looking out for his friends, brothers and classmates. In November of last year, I wrote an advocacy post about him. Here is an updated excerpt of that post....
"Richard came to SFCV from his orphanage in Fuzhou when he was 6 years old. He has Unilateral Cerebral Palsy, meaning he has high tone and spasticity that effects only the left side of his body. Over the last 5 years that he's lived here, he's made incredible gains socially, emotionally, and physically. I know I wasn't here when he first arrived, but I've heard that when Richard got here, he was very introverted, quiet and limited by his physical abilities. He was the smallest of all the boys in his house and was a bit intimidated; yet the more he realized that SFCV was a safe home, he began to open up. Now, he's one of the most influential young men on our campus. He's still not even close to being the biggest boy in his house, or even on our campus, but Richard is one of the very influential kids that drives and energizes the culture around campus and definitely in the House of Blessings. He's a big brother, helper, and friend. He's a little guy with a HUGE personality! Richard has made a lot of emotional progress as well, he's learning the importance of having friends, helping those in need, being a leader, and giving and accepting love. Growing up is hard, but he's got this down!
Richard attends 2nd/3rd grade at Little Lambs School and does very well. He's definitely a front runner in the competition for "Class Clown", but deep down Richard is a true learner. He's inquisitive and very intelligent. Despite his physical limitations, he's excelled in school especially in his language skills. Richard speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese, but has also learned a great deal of English of which he is learning to both read and write. He's a leader in the class room too, always willing to help his teachers and his classmates.
Physically, Richard has come a very long way. When I first met him 3 years ago, he was struggling with his gait, tripping constantly, and almost completely unaware that his left arm even existed. Over the last few years, we've put Richard through quite a bit of aggressive physical and occupational therapy treatments that focused on the use of his left side. It's been a good ride, with a lot of fluctuations, but the end result has been positive. Richard can now walk with a fluid gate, he's very aware of his left arm and is even able to use his hand for some activities like, holding Zai's leash when they go on walks. I know I've said this about every one of my kids, but really, he's such a hard worker! Richard does need some incentives to help him accomplish his tasks, but the truth is most kids his age do and deep down he wants to progress and be more independent. Don't get me wrong, he's VERY independent already, he can bathe, clothe, and feed himself, put on/off his shoes, write, and speak quite a bit of English....this kids is capable of anything. Personally, I think it's his age, most young boys his age hit a stage where they want more rewards for their efforts, if you know what I mean? Trust me, I'm more than happy to reward hard work! Like other boys his age, Richard LOVES playing games on the iPad/iPod, legos, trucks, dinosaurs, practical jokes, model airplanes, and anything that makes a "fart" noise or something similar.... really anything ANY other boy loves. He loves his SFCV family too. Like I said before, he's become a big brother and protector in his house, even though he's small in stature, Richard is always looking out for the other kids in his house. He always makes sure the little ones are taken care of, and helping his Nannies with the house work.
Like all of the kids here at SFCV, Richard's dream is to have a forever family of his own. Over the last 5 years he's unofficially taken on the role of "protector" of his house, however he needs a protector of his own! I can't tell you how many times I've looked into his sparkling eyes and beaming smile and thought to myself, "Man, your family is going to be so lucky to have a kid like you!" And it's the honest truth! Richard is the perfect son, brother, cousin, friend....he's the perfect addition to a family!"
These words are still so true. Richard is growing, maturing, learning and still longing. He's 11 years old today, and still longing for people he can call Mama and Baba.
My hope and prayer in writing and sharing this post is that together by SHARING THIS POST and Richard's Story, we can help find him a home and Forever Family!
I also have more good news: Richard's Adoption papers are done!
If you have questions, please email me at: naomi.preedin@chinaorphans.org
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