During the past year, Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn has promoted an effort to help families of guard members and reservists by supporting the fund. His office has raised more than $83,000 in voluntary donations from corporations, community groups and students.
Quinn maintains a Web site, www. operationhomefront.org, that describes how Illinois residents can help the troops and their families.
The ISBA Committee on Military Affairs has a program in which lawyer volunteers may assist Illinois Guard and Reserve members and their families with legal problems growing out of military service.
Approximately 350 lawyers have volunteered to help if called upon by JAG officers at Illinois military bases. For more information, access the Web site, www.isba.org/volunteer.htm.
35-day adoption trek to Kazakhstan 'a true leap of faith'
By Hilary Anderson
Helaine L. Berger became a mother last summer, something she had dreamed would happen one day. She adopted a child from Kazakhstan, and she couldn't be happier.
An associate judge in Cook County's Domestic Relations Division, Berger took that big step after realizing that her life had been professionally fulfilled.
She had met her goals of graduating from law school and establishing herself in the legal profession. She had been president of the Women's Bar Association of Illinois. "I did all the things I wanted, including traveling," she said.
It was time for Berger to fulfill another personal desire. "Becoming a parent is a big decision," she said. "The thought was scary, but I had always wanted to be a mother and felt if I didn't do it now, it would never happen."
She began the long process of adoption in early 2002. She focused her attention on Kazakhstan, one of the former Soviet republics. Her maternal grandfather had emigrated from Russia when he was 16 years old.
"I stayed up late at night and worked very hard researching information and determining what my alternatives were," she said. "I was attracted to Russian countries, particularly Kazakhstan, and heard such wonderful things about their baby houses (orphanages)."
Next, Berger researched adoption agencies, selected one and applied in July 2002. Her application was accepted. In January 2003, the agency told her about a female toddler who might be up for adoption.
"Waiting for approval seemed as though it took 10 years," she said. "Actually it was a very short time. After approval, they suggest a child to you. If you accept, you receive the child's medical and developmental information."
The information she received was on two-year-old Victoria, whose nickname was Vika. She began to make plans to travel to Kazakhstan and pick up her new daughter in June.
The half-day trip to a country is not far from the China border was long and tiring. Berger and her mother flew from Chicago to Frankfurt, Germany, changed planes and flew to Almaty, where the baby house was located.
The adoption agency hired a local Kazak to be their driver, translator and facilitator.
"We stayed in an apartment in a nice area that was a walkup without air-conditioning," Berger said. "We had a hard time figuring out how to use the washing machine. There was no dryer so you had to hang out your laundry. But they had cable television."
Using the phone system was difficult, too. "You needed a little device to attach because their system doesn't use tones," she said. "There also was a 12-hour difference between Kazakhstan and the Chicago area."
Berger visited the baby house, where 50 to 60 children lived, and found that Vika was one of the oldest of the group.
"I visited with her for two hours at a time, twice a day," she said. "We had an interpreter the first day. We all spoke English, while Kazak was the language at the baby house. We'd point to something and they'd understand us."
Vika seemed frightened at first, even though the staff had explained to her that she was going to have a new mother. "I was nervous, too," Berger recalls.
She brought clothes and toys for Vika. She had packed medications, hats and other donations for the baby house. She also brought gifts for the caregivers, which is traditional.
"My duffle bag was full," Berger said. "The adoption agency gives you suggestions. There seems to be a shortage of toothpaste for the children so we brought some of that. We gave the caregivers makeup and pencils and paper."
In retrospect, Berger wishes she had taken fewer books. Instead, she should have taken more music and things from Chicago, such as T-shirts and caps with the city logo or pictures.
She expected to stay 17 days, but the whole experience lasted 35 days. Her mother could not stay the entire time. Those extra days gave Helaine and Vika time to get to know each other better.
Berger went sightseeing with other families who were there to pick up soon-to-be adopted children. "There were spectacular mountains," she said. "We'd drive up them and look at the beautiful view, then stop to eat somewhere. Shish kabob was one of our favorite dishes."
They bought food from little markets scattered around the city. Their driver would tell them what different food labels meant. There were few big American-style grocery supermarkets.
When Berger's waiting time elapsed, she went to the Almaty court to adopt Vika legally. "Until the court formally approves the adoption, you never know if you can take the child home with you," she pointed out.
After she received court approval, Berger threw a party for all the children at the baby house before leaving June 27 to return to Chicago.
"We spent the first week at home getting to know each other," she said, and they celebrated Vika's third birthday on July 15. "After Labor Day, I enrolled her in pre-school. Now she's talking up a storm and has become a very social child."
Berger has some advice for others thinking about foreign adoption.
"I would suggest they first be honest with themselves about the reasons why they want to adopt," she began. "They should decide what type of child they'd like - culturally, racially, age and gender - and whether they would be willing to accept those with certain medical or psychological challenges."
Prospective parents should research adoption groups and check on them through different regulatory agencies. They are usually licensed within a state.
"Look on the Internet for information," Berger continued. "Check out adoption chat rooms. Have those who do adoption home studies help you select an agency. Foremost, go with your gut instinct."
International adoption is not cheap, she warned. Expect to pay from $15,000 to $30,000 in expenses of travel to the foreign country, living expenses, home study and immigration fees.
"On the bright side, our federal government provides a tax credit of up to $10,000 for expenses incurred in adopting a child," Berger noted. Some businesses even provide adoption expenses.
"Whatever the costs, it's well worth the true leap of faith you take," she said. "I couldn't be happier."
John Marshall alumni to give Freedom Award to Sen. Durbin
U.S. Sen. Richard J. Durbin of Springfield will receive the 2004 Freedom Award from the John Marshall Law School Alumni Association during a luncheon Friday, May 21, at the Palmer House Hilton, Chicago.
A former Illinois legislator, Durbin served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1982 until 1996, when he was elected to the Senate to succeed retiring Sen. Paul Simon.
"Sen. Durbin has been admired by many of us for his positions on various issues, including protecting consumers and improving health care," said alumni President Celia G. Gamrath, a member of the ISBA Assembly and chair of the Committee on Women and the Law.
"He is a strong voice not only for Illinois, but also for the nation, and his efforts are ensuring that freedom and our democratic ideals remain strong," she said.
John Marshall also will present Distinguished Service Awards to six alumni and one professor in recognition of their contributions to the law school and the legal profession. They are:
* William Bates Jr., executive vice president and general counsel of Seaway National Bank of Chicago.
* Cheryl D. Cesario of Chicago, assistant director of The John Marshall Law School Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution, a member of the Illinois Coalition for Equal Justice and the ISBA Committee on Cable Television Programming.
* Franco A. Coladipietro of Amari & Locallo, Chicago, a member of the ISBA Assembly and past chair of the Young Lawyers Division Council.
* Michael V. Favia of Chicago, a member of the ISBA Assembly, past chair of the Health Care Section Council and past president of the Justinian Society.
* Robert A. Glaves, executive director of the Chicago Bar Foundation.
* Jill P. O'Brien of Laner, Muchin, Dombrow, Becker, Levin & Tominberg, Chicago, chair of the ISBA Labor and Employment Law Section Council and member of the Committee on Women and the Law.
* Prof. Leonard Jay Schrager, a past president of the Chicago Bar Association.
Reservations for the award luncheon may be made by calling (312) 987-1420.
Chicago attorney Joseph A. Power Jr. has been designated as the recipient of the Distinguished Award for Excellence that will be presented during the Illinois Bar Foundation Gala on Friday, Oct. 1, at the Four Seasons Hotel, Chicago.
A partner in Power, Rogers & Smith, Power received the ISBA Medal of Merit last year during the Midyear Meeting in Chicago for his exemplary accomplishments during a career of service to the profession and public.
The Gala is chaired by IBF board members Enrico J. Mirabelli, also a member of the ISBA Board of Governors, and Christine M. Ory, chair of the Task Force on the Unauthorized Practice of Law.
For more information on the annual benefit, opportunities for making financial contributions, or providing items for the auctions, call executive director Susan M. Lewers at (312) 726-6072.
Lester, Judy Munson meet Bohemian Lawyers' criteria
When Lester E. Munson Jr., associate editor of Sports Illustrated, agreed to speak to the Bohemian Lawyers Association of Chicago on Feb. 26, he had no idea he and his wife, Judith W. Munson, would leave the Klas Restaurant in Cicero that night as members of the organization.
An attorney and past president of the DuPage County Bar Association, Munson has no Czech, Slovak or Moravian ancestors, but as he told his hosts, "I have Czech progeny."
Lester and Judy W. Munson have a son Max, a daughter-in-law Marcela and a grandson Maxicek (little Max) who live in Prague, capital city of the Czech Republic. For 10 years, Max has owned a restaurant, Jama, that members of the Bohemian Lawyers have frequented during visits to Prague.
Although three members of their family live in Prague and speak Czech, the Munsons were technically disqualified from membership in the association.
That changed when the Bohemian Lawyers voted Feb. 26 to change the bylaws to admit, as a non-voting associate member, any lawyer "who has an interest in the culture and heritage of the Czech Republic or Slovakia."
A few minutes later, Secretary Carol J. Belshaw presented membership forms to both Munsons. Their completed applications were quickly approved by acclamation.
Lester Munson's subsequent presentation regaled the audience with graphic analyses of the legal travails of sports figures like Kobe Bryant, Mike Tyson, Pete Rose and baseball players who have used steroids and other performance-enhancing substances.
He said that reporting on the escapades of athletes who run afoul of the law and the rules of sports could be called the proctology of journalism.
Scholarships offered
A deadline of April 1 has been set for applications for Bohemian Lawyers Association scholarships that will be awarded during the installation dinner Thursday, May 20, at Butterfield Country Club.
Inaugurated in 1998 during the tenure of Mark E. Becker as president, the scholarship fund has grown steadily from an initial contribution of $1,000 to as many as four grants of $1,500 each.
To obtain an application form or more information, call Joseph F. Vosicky at (312) 332-0116 or John Marshall Law Prof. Michael P. Seng at (312) 987-1446. Financial contributions to the fund are also welcomed.
The next two meetings of the ISBA Board of Governors will take place at 9 a.m. Friday, March 26, in the Park Hyatt Hotel, Chicago, and Friday, May 14, in the Westin Hotel, St. Louis.
The 128th ISBA Annual Meeting is scheduled Thursday through Sunday, June 17-20, at The Abbey on Lake Geneva, Fontana, Wis., where Ole Bly Pace III of Sterling will succeed Terrence J. Lavin of Chicago as president.
The first meeting of the new Board of Governors will be held Friday, July 16, in the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The 30th annual board alumni dinner will follow.
Fall board meetings are scheduled Fridays, Oct. 8, at Eagle Ridge Inn, Galena, and Nov. 12 at the Four Seasons Hotel, Chicago.
Dates of the ISBA Midyear Meeting at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel are Dec. 9 to 11.
Dreams can be nightmares for house buyers
That American dream of home ownership, which may become more attainable through recent federal legislation, could turn out to be a nightmare without the help of an attorney.
Westmont attorney Joseph R. Fortunato Jr., president of the 1,200-member Illinois Real Estate Lawyers Association, has expressed a note of caution for first-time purchasers who qualify for assistance under the American Dream Down Payment Act that was signed into law last Dec. 16.
"An estimated 40,000 families a year are expected to receive help with their down payments and closing costs," said Fortunato, a member of the ISBA Assembly and secretary of the Real Estate Law Section Council.
"Unfortunately, the new law may lead buyers to believe that the government is looking out for them," he warned, "but first-time buyers need to be careful because buying a home is not only a major investment but a very complex process."
Fortunato urged eligible families to use the services of attorneys to make sure their real estate transactions go smoothly and all aspects of a purchase meet legal requirements and customary practices.
Health care update is April 23 in Chicago
The ISBA Health Care Section will join forces with two Southern Illinois University entities to present a Law Ed Series seminar, "Keeping Current: Health Care Transactions and Litigation," on Friday, April 23, in the Chicago Regional Office.
Co-sponsors are the SIU School of Law and the Department of Medical Humanities of the School of Medicine. Section council chair Thomas P. Conley of Arnstein & Lehr, Chicago, is program coordinator and moderator. His opening remarks at 9 a.m. will be followed by these presentations.
9:05 a.m. Fraud and Abuse Hot Topics, with assistant U.S. attorney Linda A. Wawzenski of Chicago, deputy chief of the Northern District Civil Division.