• Our Beginnings in Saigon

    Orphan Care

    In 1972, Massachusetts couple Don and Marilyn Scott, relief workers in Vietnam, build My Friend’s House (MFH) in war-torn Saigon and establish a nutrition center to help starving, abandoned children. The Scotts also engage Pam Larsen, an adoptive parent, to pursue licensing for adoptions in Massachusetts.

  • Our Start in the U.S.

    Adoption

    MFH becomes licensed for adoptions in Massachusetts as International Adoptions — the first secular adoption agency in the state. This marks our start in the U.S.

  • The Fall of Saigon

    Orphan Care

    Tom and Diane Palmeri, colleagues of the Scotts who run the nutrition center, leave Vietnam on one of the last commercial flights out before the fall of Saigon. MFH ceases to exist—but not until administrator Faith Pham returns every child to their family, and places orphaned or abandoned children in foster homes.

  • India Adoption Program Starts

    Adoption

    International Adoptions places the first child from India. By the time the India program stopped, we had placed 300 children in loving families in the U.S.

  • Colombia Adoption Program Starts

    Adoption

    International Adoptions opens its Colombia adoption program. Today, Wide Horizons For Children has placed 1,750 children from South and Central American countries — including 400 children from Colombia — with loving adoptive families. Learn more about adopting from Colombia.

  • U.S. Domestic Adoption Program Starts

    Adoption

    International Adoptions opens its U.S. (domestic) adoption program and begins to counsel expectant birth parents. Today, Wide Horizons For Children has placed almost 900 children with loving adoptive families.

  • South Korea Adoption Program Starts

    International Adoptions opens its South Korea adoption program. By the time our partner, Holt Children’s Services, closed this program in 2023, we had placed more than 4,500 children with loving, U.S.-based adoptive families.

  • Guatemala Adoption Program Starts

    International Adoptions starts its Guatemala adoption program. By the time the Guatemala program ended in 2009, we had placed 250 children in their forever families

  • Philippines Adoption Program Starts

    International Adoptions opens its Philippines adoption program. It is one of the very first US organizations to work in adoption from the Philippines.

  • Post Adoption Services Begin

    International Adoptions begins to offer post-adoption services to its adoptive families, which today includes support and counseling, search and reunion services, and networking and cultural opportunities.

  • Wide Horizons For Children is born

    International Adoptions changes its name to Wide Horizons For Children to better reflect expanding programs in family preservation, orphan care, adoption and post-adoption support.

  • China Adoption Program Starts

    Wide Horizons For Children opens its China adoption program. To date, Wide Horizons For Children has placed almost 2,037 children from China with loving adoptive families.

  • Russia Adoption Program Starts

    Wide Horizons For Children places its first child from Moldova. Over the years, we placed 100 children from Moldova in loving adoptive families in the US.

  • We offer subsidies for Special Needs adoptions

    Wide Horizons For Children begins to offer subsidies to families who are adopting children with special needs.

  • Family Preservation Programming Starts

    In partnership with Family Service Centre, Wide Horizons For Children starts a Child Sponsorship program in India.

  • Guatemala Orphanage Support Starts

    Wide Horizons begins to support two family orphanages, called hogares, in Guatemala.

  • Our Work in Ethiopia Starts

    Wide Horizons For Children begins to work in Ethiopia with an initial focus on adoption and family preservation. Today, the Child Sponsorship program supports families and children living in poverty.

  • Launch of Waiting Children Program

    Adoption

  • Family Preservation Starts in India

    In partnership with Family Service Centre, Wide Horizons For Children launches a Community Development program in India to preserve and strengthen vulnerable families.

  • Vocational Training Program Starts in Moldova

    Wide Horizons For Children begins its support of vocational training for orphans aging out of institutional care in Moldova.

  • Family Preservation Starts in Guatemala

    Wide Horizons For Children begins its Child Sponsorship program in Guatemala to support families living in poverty and their children who are at risk for abandonment.

  • Burundi Adoption Program Starts

    Wide Horizons For Children opens its Burundi adoption program.

  • WHFC Builds Health Clinic in Ethiopia

    Wide Horizons For Children builds Adwa Health Clinic in Ethiopia, giving the community their first access to medical care and treatment.

  • WHFC Builds Hospital in Ethiopia

    Wide Horizons For Children builds the Leku Primary Hospital in Ethiopia to help reduce maternal mortality and prevent children from becoming orphans.

  • Jannice Hoffman becomes CEO

  • School Nutrition Program Starts in Ethiopia

    The Education through Wellness School Nutrition program began, providing school lunch and holiday rations to 40 school children in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. At its peak, it served more than 150 children. It was discontinued in 2021 when the Ethiopian government instituted its own school-nutrition program in Addis.

  • WHFC Creates Accelerated Learning for Africa program

    Wide Horizons begins our partnership with Geneva Global to implement Accelerated Learning for Africa program in northern Ethiopia. The project continued until 2021.

  • WHFC Starts Granny Program in Moldova

    Granny program opens with 80 children in 2 orphanages in Chisinau, Moldova.

  • We Award our first small business grant

    Wide Horizons gives first small business grant to sponsorship family in Ethiopia, catapulting them out of poverty.

  • Last Adoptive Child placed from Ethiopia

    Our last adoptive child from Ethiopia is placed in their forever family in the US.

  • Leku Hosptial recognized

    Leku Hospital is recognized as a leading training and teaching hospital in Ethiopia, providing support for other hospitals in the region.

  • Emergency Aid Response to COVID

    WHFC begins emergency feeding campaign to support families in Ethiopia during the COVID pandemic and civil war in the north.

  • Family Preservation Program Starts in Guatemala

    Child Sponsorship program in the rural community of Las Minas, Guatemala, starts up.

  • Orphan Care Feeding ProgramStarts in Burundi Orphanage

    Wide Horizons puts feeding program in place in orphanage in Busiga, Burundi

  • Community Center Opens in Las Minas, Guatemala

    Las Minas Community Center opens in Las Minas, Guatemala, providing educational and nutritional support for the community.

  • Emergency Food Reaches Tigray

    Wide Horizons expands emergency feeding initiative to stave off starvation for families in Tigray during the civil war. This stays in place until early 2023.

  • Medical Center Opens in Las Minas, Guatemala

    Las Minas Medical Clinic opens in Guatemala, providing medical access to this community – for many, for the first time ever.

  • Family Preservation Program Starts in Busiga, Burundi

    Wide Horizons starts our Family Preservation program with 7 families in Busiga, Burundi. Designed to help families at high risk of complete collapse survive and start on the path to self-sufficiency.