Why we need your help:
For many internationally adopted people finding our way back to our roots is a lifelong and complicated journey. Reconnecting with where we come from helps to heal the parts of us that have been lost as it relates to our identity, health, and our sense of belonging and self. My name is Elena Di Giovanna Serrato, I am a Colombian adoptee, and I founded and run Healing Puentes, a non-profit that serves the adult Colombian adoptee community.
We are a small and effective team made up of Colombian adoptees. Although some of my biological family unfortunately passed before we could establish a relationship, I have been living in Colombia since 2008, reclaiming my roots and guiding other adoptees in their own journeys. An adoptee-centered support network is desperately needed, especially as it supports a Latine immigrant community. International adoptees can be more vulnerable to some mental health difficulties compared with non-adoptees, including eating disorders, depression, and anxiety disorders (APA). As adoptees age, there are barriers to accessing medical history from their first family which can lead to delayed medical or health care (APA).
What we do
Our mission is to guide adoptees in the biological family search and/or reunion process during the pre-search, active search, and post-search with emotional support/accompaniment. In addition to family reunion guidance, Healing Puentes provides post-adoption services such as support groups for adoptees and birth/first mothers, cultural homeland tours and meet-ups, and guidance in reclamation of Colombian citizenship.
- We have located 37 first/biological families, and conducted 38 family reunions between the adoptee and their birth family.
- We facilitated the processing of 21 Colombian ID cards for adoptees to reclaim their Colombian citizenship.
- We held 2 annual Colombian Adoptee Homeland Meet Up’s in Bogotá, with the third coming this July 2026.
- We operated 6 in-person workshops for our First/Birth Mother’s Peer Support Group, a safe and confidential space for first mothers in reunion to find support, listen and share their experiences.
"From the very beginning, Elena and Healing Puentes approached my search and reunion journey with such care, caution, and deep intentionality. Elena became more than just a guide; she became a true safeguard of the reconnection process, offering an open ear for both my birth mother and I as we navigated something so emotionally complex." - Anna
"The adoptee support network calls really brought me out of a depressingly & isolating space, providing community and chosen family to feel truly seen by." - Andrew Alvaro
We need your help:
We need to raise 25k to continue our services in 2027, and we need your help!
YOU CAN HOST:
- 1 Birth/First Mothers Group session - $120
- 1 Adoptee at the Adoptee Homeland Meet Up - $125
- 1 Citizen Reclamation - $125
- 1 Family Reunion on average - $500 (some last multiple days)
- 1 First/Birth Mother Peer Support Group - $50
- 1 month of General Operations - $1200
We also are anxiously waiting till we can announce some big news in relation to our services! We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for our loved ones, friends, and communities. This is a direct way to show your support. Thank you SO much, muchísimas gracias for your kindness, generosity and solidarity in continuing to serve our collective. Our impact would not be possible without you, and please remember, any amount helps, THANK YOU!
Learn more about us or reach out via our website https://www.healingpuentes.com
Picture Descriptions:
- The First/Birth Mother’s Peer Support Group in Bogotá.
- A birth family/adoptee reunion, sisters.
- Reclamation of Colombian citizenship documentation.
- A mural designed and painted by the Colombian adoptees at our 2nd Annual Adoptee Meet Up in Bogotá. It represents the different aspects of who we are, and the traveling between cultures and identities.
- Baby Elena in Colombia pre-adoption.
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If you are an adoptee and reading this, just know this fundraiser is meant to be supported primarily by friends, families, and support networks of adoptees; not adoptees themselves as we overwhelmingly support our own cause. So Share Share Share! We love you.
Healing Puentes is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit in the US & Colombia.
US EIN: 61-2052930
Organizer
