“Between Chinese adoptees, there is this special connection, even if you have never met them in real life. "
Adopted from Guangzhou, Guangdong Province in 1996, Lia Walton has recently worked to connect the Chinese adoptee community. In college, she co-founded and was president of an adoption organization. While looking for other resources, she found CCI. “Between Chinese adoptees, there is this special connection, even if you have never met them in real life. Understanding their journey and to see how many [adoptees] there actually are is great”. Lia has returned to China once, as a high school graduation gift. “My mom and I took a tour group throughout China, hitting places like Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong. At the last leg of the trip, we went to two orphanages in my hometown”. For Lia, this experience was very moving and was beneficial in connecting to her birth culture: “I saw how my life could have been like and how different it is in China”.
Lia, now living in Richmond, Virginia, recently graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University and is still discovering what she is passionate about. In the meantime, she kickboxes, hangs out with her friends, or naps, depending on the day. As for the adoptee community, “I guess I hope CCI and other organizations continue to support each other, and that adoptees that currently can’t or don’t find an interest in the Chinese adoption community will discover this community that is so unique”.
Humans of CCI profiled on Facebook in 2017.