Our Chinese Daughters Foundation was founded in 1995 by Dr. Jane Liedtke as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization committed to supporting families who have adopted children from China.
Mission: To provide the highest quality Chinese culture programs, orphan support programs, and publications to adoptive families, support organizations, and educational institutions serving the wider community.
OCDF's Key Initiatives
Since OCDF's first Chinese Culture Camp for kids and their families in 1996, OCDF has grown to offer many programs for children, families, students, and community leaders hoping to better understand China and Chinese culture.
OCDF has led tours in China for over 1,000 families from the U.S., U.K, Canada, and Australia. Additionally, OCDF coordinates internships for students and faculty from academic institutions, as well as helping mission groups and students interested in volunteering for Chinese orphanages and foster homes.
OCDF is currently developing several book series aimed at providing accurate and high-quality educational materials for those wishing to cover Chinese culture in their school curriculum, among other publishing initiatives.
OCDF's nonprofit status means that most of our revenue goes toward funding our various orphan support programs, as well as toward grants to local and regional adoption support groups.
OCDF takes its mission to improve the lives of both adopted children and children still living in orphanages in China very seriously.
OCDF China Tours annual programs include: Panda Hugs, Orphanage Reunion, Explore-A-Province, "No Frills," Teen Leadership Program, Language and Culture Program, Artisans and Crafts Program, Holidays and Festivals - Chinese New Year in Beijing, Holidays and Festivals International Kite Festival, and Customized Travel Programs. See the
tours page for more information.
OCDF publications include a full-color quarterly newsletter, China for Children Magazine, and China Adoption Books. We also offer Chinese Culture Arts & Crafts Kits, which provide families and schools an opportunity to facilitate the learning of Chinese culture with artisan-designed traditional Chinese arts and crafts kits. In addition, OCDF publications has recently begun a large co-publishing project with Dolphin Books to prepare three series of books:
Chinese Culture Active Learning Series, a planned series of 40+ full-color thematic books with CD-Rom for elementary & middle-school teachers, homeschoolers, and parents wanting to introduce children to Chinese culture, literature, historic sites, and more;
Explore-A-Province in China Series, full-color books which target high school students, high school and college level teachers, homeschoolers, and parents looking for in-depth information about each province and municipality in China; and the
Children's Book Series, 8-10 full-color books blending an understanding of the life of a rural girl growing up in China with Mandarin language development. See the
Publications page for more information, including descriptions of each book and ordering information.
OCDF's charitable projects have expanded rapidly over the past several years. We sponsor two programs to assist adoptive families in giving directly to orphanages in China: Orphanage Care Packages (baby/toddler supplies, medical supplies, books, developmental toys, etc.) and the School Sponsor Project (school tuition, books, clothing, eye exams, music lessons, etc.). Additionally, we sponsor four other projects:
Coal for Kids provides much-needed heating for non-government orphanages in Hebei Province;
Building on Dreams supports a new orphanage for special needs children built outside the city of Xuanhua with the help of OCDF donors and volunteers;
900 Backpacks provides school supplies and toys to orphan children in Henan Province who have lost their parents to AIDS; and, our newest program,
See the Stars, which supports Tibetan orphans in remote Western Sichuan Province. See the
Orphan Support page for more information on each of these projects, including information about how you can help.
Located in Bloomington, Illinois, OCDF institute provides Chinese culture seminars, workshops, teacher in service programs for k-12 educators, adoptive family programs, and Chinese heritage/culture events (such as weekend programs). Programs for adults, teachers, home-schoolers, and children are available. A speakers bureau for China-adoption topics is also provided. OCDF Chinese Culture Learning Center includes a meeting space for adult programs, childrens activities, and the Betty Chandler Lending Library. OCDF Institute offers annual Chinese Culture Camps - these are one-day and multi-day events throughout the USA that include adult and children's programs. We can provide programs in your area! See the
Institute page for more information.
OCDF Charity Gift Shop is located at 109 W. Monroe St. in historic downtown Bloomington, IL. OCDF commissions paintings, papercuts, jewelry, clothing, embroideries, quilts, dolls and other items from artisans in Beijing, Suzhou, Shanghai, and Weihai. OCDF also sells museum shop items on behalf of the Shanghai Museum and the Forbidden City Museum in Beijing. No child labor nor prison labor are used in the production of items sold by OCDF. Marketplace and Fundraising Items purchased in bulk quantities are available at a discount to non-profit organizations or are available on consignment for fundraising purposes. OCDF is available to be a vendor at your Chinese culture event! See the
Marketplace page for more information, including a peek at some of our merchandise!
OCDF Adoptions provides experienced adoption facilitation services through a consortium of 10+ adoption agencies. OCDF facilitates China adoptions including document processing and travel in China. OCDF also offers complete adoption services for expat couples/families living in China. See the
adoption page for more information.
This program is for those wishing to volunteer in non-government foster homes and orphanages. This program provides adoptive families and youth or community service groups the chance to give back to children in need in China. We select positive environments for our volunteers.
See the
Volunteer China page for more information.
China for students and faculty, academic programs, research connections, internships for undergraduate/graduate students and faculty
with corporations and NGOs in Beijing. See the
Academic Connections page for more information.
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