Lower Hudson Valley Ladybug Picnic

Chinese-adoptees event to be held in Congers
For Pamela Thomas, the Ladybug Picnic began as a way for her daughter Lianna to connect with a few other Rockland families that had adopted children from China.

Now in its 10th year, the event, to take place next month at Congers Memorial Park, gives nearly 100 families "a wonderful opportunity to connect or reconnect," said Thomas, the executive director of the Congers-based Homeland Adoption Services.

"In the beginning, it was just a get-together with a few other families, but it grew," said Thomas. "Year by year, it just gets bigger."

[...]

Thomas, who adopted Lianna in 1996, said the value of the picnic and other social gatherings could not be overstated.

"For the children, it's especially important to see other families that look like theirs," she said. "Some of the children were in adjoining cribs in China. They knew each other before they knew their parents."

I have to admit, even though I'm from New York, I had to look up where Congers was.

The picnic is September 9.