Feb 07, 2012
Adoption Guide
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St. Louis/Home Office

Dwyatt Gantt

Dwyatt Gantt
Executive Director

Nothing I have ever done has been more fulfilling than to see a child that needs a home find a home that needs a child. And we see it happen many hundreds of times each year. God has wonderfully blessed us and allowed us to be in the very forefront of international adoption. Annually we assist about 800 families all over the United States and other countries as well to adopt that wonderful child that seems so especially made for them. It is to us a position of trust and responsibility - a sacred trust to us which prescribes the way we must carry on this work. With integrity and service. There is a saying emphasizing the necessity of walking on two feet. Our two feet are giving homes to children who can be adopted and health and hope to those who cannot. We are happy to be partners with you in either of these.

 

Meloday Zhang

Melody Zhang
Associate Director

Melody was born in China, raised in Beijing and had been involved with China adoptions before the beginning of Children's Hope International / China's Children Division in 1992. Since 1993 she has given vigorous and compassionate leadership to Children's Hope as Associate Director in St. Louis while traveling frequently to China as well as Russia, Thailand, Guatemala and Colombia. Because of her fervent compassion for children that are older or with special medical needs, literally hundreds of such children have been adopted and found loving homes. She is equally well known for the love and attention she gives to "our" adoptive families. Even while working full-time at Children's Hope, Melody completed her MSW at George Warren Brown School of Social Work in Washington University in St. Louis. Melody is fully and passionately involved in every aspect of the work - including foster care and Helping Hands projects in China and everywhere there is an opportunity. She and her husband Kevin are parents of three adopted teenagers and two biological daughters. Melody and Kevin and their children are living in Beijing for a period of time to oversee the growing work of adoption and aid in China.

 

Cory Barron

Cory Barron
Outreach Director

Born and raised in Kansas, Barron was a television-journalist for over 20 years. From 1995 until 2003 he was the morning and noon weather anchor for KMOV-TV in St. Louis, Missouri. Prior to his position in St. Louis, from 1991 to 1995, he was the noon and five p.m. weather anchor for KWCH-TV in Wichita, Kansas. And from 1984 to 1991, Barron was a feature reporter and the 5/6 & 10 weekday weather anchor at KFSM-TV in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Barron is an adoptive parent of twin girls from China. He and his wife Marlene adopted through Children’s Hope International in 1999.

 

Jennifer Newcomb

Jennifer Newcomb
Communications Coordinator

Jennifer recently joined the staff of Children’s Hope in winter 2006 to write for the Children’s Hope Newsletter and provide web/print content and editing. She came to St. Louis from Illinois to complete a BS in Communications and a Writing Certificate at Missouri Baptist University, where she later served in the Office of Public Relations. After pursuing a desire to travel with Doctors without Borders, Jennifer has found within Children’s Hope an avenue to write about both the struggles and the victories of orphaned children worldwide.