From the Founder
The Philip Hayden Foundation Board of Directors is made up of 12 members from many different walks of life, who have a common compassion for vulnerable orphaned children from around the world. Our board members together have adopted 15 children – they’re dedicated to our mission of providing love, medical care, therapy and education with compassion to at-risk orphans and children with disabilities.
Meet the 2021 Board of Directors
Tim & Pam Baker are our founders and have served on the PHF Board since 1996. They have seven children, four of whom were adopted from China. The Bakers have lived in China since 1988, helping orphaned children with disabilities for nearly 30 years. They volunteered in China’s state-run orphanages in the early 1990s and established Philip Hayden Foundation (PHF) in 1995. Their foster home for orphans with disabilities – called Langfang Children’s Village (LCV) – operated from 1999-2008. Shepherd’s Field Children’s Village (SFCV) started in 2006. Their family has grown to include three sons-in-law, one daughter-in-law and four beautiful grandchildren.
Charlie Bronaugh is Executive Vice President of California Bank & Trust in Los Angeles, and has more than 30 years of experience in banking and finance. He currently holds the position of Commercial Banking Manager. He earned a degree in Finance from the University of Texas at Tyler. Charlie is married to his childhood sweetheart, Vickie who also serves on the Board.
Vickie Bronaugh is an award-winning producer, director and writer. She’s worked extensively in the television and film industry, and has written and directed two award-winning short films. Vickie also has more than 30 commercials to her credit.
The Bronaughs have two beautiful daughters, both adopted from China. They met the Bakers in 1998 after their first adoption, and there was an instant connection between the families, who shared a common passion for the orphaned children of China. Since that first meeting, Charlie and Vickie have supported PHF through prayer, giving and trips to Langfang Children’s Village and Shepherd’s Field.
Daniel Padden is the Senior Partner at the CPA firm, Padden Cooper CPAs in Medford, N.J. He has more than 30 years of experience in public accounting, and earned a degree in Accounting from Grove City College in Grove City, Penn. Part of his practice is dedicated to helping nonprofits in the U.S. and abroad with their accounting and tax needs. Dan and his wife Deb have seven children, three of whom were adopted from China – in fact, their youngest son, Eli was adopted from Shepherd’s Field. Deb has been a volunteer as well, helping to guide interested families across the sometimes-complicated process of adoption. Through the Padden’s past work of hosting needy orphans from the Tianjin orphanage who needed medical care, Dan and Deb were introduced to Shepherd’s Field.
Charles Hill was born and raised in Southern California. He has 30 years of experience working with young people both professionally and personally. As a youth pastor he has taken several teams on short-term humanitarian service trips abroad. In the summer of 2011, he took a team to Shepherd’s Field to volunteer and fell in love with the children as well as the organization because of the selfless work. During this trip he and his wife Gretchen also met Henry at Shepherd’s Field whom they adopted two years later. Charles and Gretchen also have two biological children. Passionate about advocating for orphans, Charles is excited to personally be a part of that awareness.
Kim Kramer is a native of San Diego, Calif., and has degrees from Cal State Fullerton and Talbot Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Chrissy have made Austin, Texas, their home since 1991 where they raised two children. Kim is an ordained pastor and has served churches for more than 30 years in California, Minnesota and Texas. He first met Tim Baker one Sunday morning at his church in Austin, and they became fast friends. He paid a visit to Shepherd’s Field shortly thereafter. Kim returned to China three more times over the years, and continues to be an enthusiastic supporter. In his spare time, he plays guitar, enjoys the outdoors and roots for the Boston Red Sox.
Randy & Julie Watson have two now teenage sons adopted from China. They started volunteering at PHF when they lived in China in the early 2000’s. After their return to the US, they sponsored and led several volunteer trips to PHF from their home church in Cincinnati, OH. They continue to raise up prayer and financial supporters for PHF. Randy is a PhD chemist who recently retired after a 30-year R&D career with an international consumer goods company. He is now part-time pastor at Branches Church in Loveland, OH, Market Development Director with a healthcare startup, and consults with non-profit leaders. Julie works with Coalition of Care, a local non-profit that raises up and enables local churches to care for at risk children and families.
Tommy Thompson is an entrepreneur who runs his own heating and cooling business. Laura Thompson, also serving on the board, is an elementary school teacher. After getting married in 2009, Laura and Tommy moved to China to teach English. While there, they met Tim Baker and instantly connected with him and the work at Shepherd’s Field. Having fallen in love with the Chinese people, their culture, and PHF’s vision to help orphans, the Thompsons dreamed of returning after their move home in 2010. In 2016, the door opened and they moved to Shepherd’s Field to do child advocacy work, education, maintenance and campus oversight work. The Thompsons have three young daughters, one of which is adopted from Shepherd’s Field. They now call Denver home, but have a heart for the Chinese people and hope they can return someday.
Andy Ackermann is a tax partner with a CPA firm in Indianapolis, IN. Andy began working with PHF in 2005 after hearing Tim Baker tell the story of PHF. After hearing about Levi and all the other children in China, he felt led by God to offer his accounting talents to PHF. Andy and his wife, Rebecca, traveled to China to volunteer at SFCV. While there, they met a little boy, Chi, that they adopted in 2007. Andy truly believes it has been a great honor to be a part of such a wonderful organization that has impacted so many lives around the world. In addition to their son Chi, Andy and Rebecca have a son, Noah, who was adopted from Cambodia, and two daughters, Malia and Saige.
Katy’s Occupation? Therapy!
In honor of Occupational Therapist Month, we’d like to highlight our very own Katy Everhart, MOT. Katy joined our Shepherd’s Field family when she and her husband Dustin moved to our campus in 2018. Katy served as the Occupational Therapist (OT) for our Bright Stars Therapy Program, and was an amazing addition.
What is an Occupation?
An occupation is what you spend time doing, either for pleasure or because it needs to be done. In many respects, the primary occupation of a child is play! The focus of a pediatric OT is to help a child learn or develop skills needed for everyday living – from eating and moving safely, to self-care, to regulating emotions, to social skills. OTs really work hard to make learning fun, though!
Through her time with us, Katy changed many lives for the better. She trained orphanage staff not only here, but across China in other orphanages, and we’re very grateful to her. Thank you, Katy, for your amazing work as an Occupational Therapist and as a part of our family.
April is Autism Acceptance Month
Over the past ten years there has been increased awareness about Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The Center For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes ASD this way. “ASD is a developmental disability that can cause significant social, communication and behavioral challenges. There is often nothing about how people with ASD look that sets them apart from other people, but people with ASD may communicate, interact, behave, and learn in ways that are different from most other people. The learning, thinking, and problem-solving abilities of people with ASD can range from gifted to severely challenged. Some people with ASD need a lot of help in their daily lives; others need less.” The Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) has even more information here.
Acceptance = love and value
So why acceptance and not awareness? Do you know someone who is autistic? Most people do, and also have an idea about what it is – but their idea can be wrong. Often, awareness emphasizes our differences while acceptance emphasizes our commonalities. Sometimes awareness makes it harder for those who are autistic. Acceptance is more about seeing the whole person and embracing who they are. This concept of acceptance – not tolerance – is part of our human connection, a piece of our value to others. At Philip Hayden Foundation, we want every orphan to be loved and valued.
Many orphans on the China Waiting Child list are listed as autistic. But that can mean many different things, from non-verbal to gifted. Learn about autism by asking questions, particularly of those with first-hand experience. Maybe your family will be a forever family for a waiting child! Check out our Facebook and Instagram posts in April for other great resources!
Adoption Creates a Beautiful Family
As a family, we knew early on that we were being called to adopt, and began that process in the U.S. Through that journey, God led us to adopt a baby boy with Down syndrome, who opened our hearts and minds to the needs of little ones with special needs. Then God widened the door to include China, where we knew there were many more babies with Down syndrome who needed Forever Families. As we began praying through the decision to begin an international adoption, a friend we’d met through the adoption community created an advocacy post on social media with the picture of Jordy Song Yinglin, the cutest little fella. We knew then that he was our son and that we would be heading to China to bring Cody home.
During the months we were completing paperwork, we found out that he was living at Shepherd’s Field Children’s Village (SFCV). We were relieved and excited to find out that he was there, especially as we learned more about the programs and therapies they were providing to the orphans in their care. And eagerly followed their Facebook page to catch glimpses of our Cody participating in the various activities they held for the kids. We loved seeing the monthly birthday parties and Children’s Day celebrations, and we also saw pictures of him working with the therapists who taught him to walk. Seeing so many smiles helped ease the heartache of waiting on the stacks of paperwork to be approved.
Bright Stars Therapy gives Cody a Head Start
When we finished all of our adoption paperwork and completed that last step of getting travel approval, we were excited that it worked out to visit SFCV and meet so many of the caregivers who loved Cody so thoroughly. Seeing them in person felt a lot like meeting celebrities after having followed them online for months. We saw firsthand how well the children were taken care of and loved on through daily care and games and activities. We know that because Cody was cared for at SFCV, he had a head start in learning to adapt to a family and communicate his needs with us. Because he had loving nannies and caregivers, he was better able to connect with us.
Cody has been home for six years, and has made many gains, including an increased vocabulary and knowing when to ask for things he needs. He’s the big brother to our son who we adopted as a baby, and we also traveled back to China a couple of years later to bring his other little brother home. The boys share a room and have a blast playing together. Cody has learned to initiate new games with his brothers, and they’re all learning more about using their imaginations as they play. He also has five older sisters wrapped around his little finger. He enjoys cuddling with them and talking them into getting him snacks. They adore him.
Adoption is a Journey
Cody is an amazing boy, and we’ve loved watching him grow and learn new things. While he’s changed in many ways over the past six years, he’s also found his voice and gained confidence in his own skills. It’s amazing how well he fit into our family from the day we met him – he just somehow knew we were meant to be together. While we understand that there was great loss in his past, we’re thankful for Cody’s time at Shepherd’s Field and for the journey that led us to China and to him. Adoption has taught us many things, but the most important one is how to create a beautiful family.
~ Julie Jarrard
Anthony May Just Steal Your Heart
This sweet boy with the mischievous smile was born in August 2014. You may remember him from being part of our Shepherd’s Field Children’s Village (SFCV) family! He was born with myelomeningocele/hydrocephalus, and underwent a mass reduction operation in March 2015. He had a VP shunt placement in April 2015 and a hernia repair in May of the same year – 2015 was a very busy year for him!
Anthony is unable to walk, but scoots around quite speedily in his wheelchair. He has a very bubbly personality and can sometimes be a ‘troublemaker’ in the funniest ways. But really he just wants to play and be your friend. He receives special education onsite in the orphanage school, including art, music and dancing, which he enjoys. On our staff’s last visit to his orphanage, Anthony was amazing, flying around in his wheelchair with a huge smile on his face – he even busted a few moves on the dance floor with his wheels. Will you help us find a loving family for Anthony? He’d love to run rings around you!
Contact Madison Adoption Associates for more information on adopting Anthony!
MAA Introduces Zoey
Madison Adoption Associates (MAA) wants you to meet Zoey, a beautiful four-year-old who is blind in both eyes, and was listed as having some motor delays. Zoey is quiet, but is always smiling and loves being hugged – especially by her main caretaker and teacher. At the time Zoey’s file was prepared (March of 2018), she could sit alone and was almost crawling. She could grab toys and food with her hands without a problem, and slept well after a few nighttime cuddles!
As an infant Zoey was making “yiyiyaya” sounds, then failed a hearing screening in her right ear. A majority of her motor delays were typical delays found in blind children who have grown up in orphanages or institutions. We’re hoping to have new information soon. In the meantime, will you help us find sweet Zoey a Forever Family? She needs someone who can provide the love and resources needed for her to thrive.
If you or someone you know wants to adopt a child mentioned in this newsletter, please contact us at info@chinaorphans.org. Contact Madison Adoption Associates for more information on adopting Zoey!