On the evening of July 21, 2003, nine incredible children arrived at St. Charles Borromeo's Keeley Center in Livermore California.

Each child is participating in the 2003 Bridge of Hope project. The children are all Russian orphans, ages 6 to 11.

In contrast to orphans in the United States, orphans in Russia are rarely adopted. When they reach the age of 18, Russian orphans are typically released to fend for themselves... without money, help, family or resources. To survive, many released orphans turn to crime and prostitution.

The Bridge of Hope project provides a unique opportunity for a few orphans from Russia. Interested U.S. families sign-up to host one or two orphans for four weeks during the summer. In addition to staying with their U.S. "families", the orphans attend summer camp (in this case, "Camp Serendipity", hosted by Livermore's Catholic Community of St. Charles Borromeo).

At camp, the children are scheduled for lots of fun time... arts & crafts, music and English lessons. The children also get to visit museums, swim in swimming pools and ride the waterslides.

What the children may not know is that they are also, in a sense, auditioning for their chance of a lifetime - a chance to be adopted by their host family. This is most likely to be the child's last chance to be adopted, and to be loved by a family, ever. The stories about to unfold are likely to be both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Stay tuned...