Miracle Foundation was founded in May 2000 by Caroline Boudreaux. After a chance encounter with an orphaned toddler in rural India during a vacation in 2000, Boudreaux left her TV advertising career. With no experience in management or fundraising, Boudreaux invested all her life savings and founded Miracle Foundation to ensure orphans receive all of their rights, per the United NationsConvention on the Rights of the Child, so they can reach their full potential. Miracle Foundation reunites children with their families whenever possible, and guarantees children a quality education, a safe and loving environment, and personalized care as they transition into family care.
Miracle Foundation has codified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and works with local leaders and caregivers to improve the quality of care for orphaned children around the world. The organization's measurement tool is called the Thrive Scale, measures progress over time, and helps organizations develop a specific and practical plan to improve.
Programs
The nonprofit's stated mission is to "empower orphans to reach their full potential." They do this by reuniting children with their families whenever possible and guaranteeing children a quality education, a safe and loving environment, and personalized care as they transition into family care. The organization has supported more than 13,539 children since 2000 and has transitioned 25% of the children to family care by using their "Child-First" approach in 3 focus areas:
Ensure Each Child Thrives. All children deserve an education, nutrition, health, and protective services—no matter where they live. That’s why we developed and implemented the Thrive Scale, a proven care model based on the UN Rights of the Child. Currently, we are working alongside hundreds of orphanages to reunite children with their families and to provide each child with the quality of care and dignity that is their right.
Strengthen The Childcare System.Every day around the world, social workers, caregivers, and government officials make decisions that impact millions of orphaned children. They are the “boots on the ground.” Together with UNICEF, we provide training and educational resources that empower workers in the childcare ecosystem to give children a better future.
Keep Families Together.Separation of families happens primarily because of family crisis and poverty, not for lack of love. We partner with community programs that identify at-risk children and offer support to vulnerable families long before an orphanage becomes a necessity. Prevention is the key.
Miracle Foundation mentors and monitors orphanages, providing capacity building training for leaders and caregivers to improve the quality of care for children. The organization helps orphanages transition into Centers for Excellence, where local leaders can learn about the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and how to move their children to family-based care through kinship care, foster care, or adoption. Miracle Foundation created the Child First Digital Toolkit, an online resource for anyone caring for or supporting vulnerable children around the world. Topics include child rights, attachment, child protection, preventing abuse, healthcare, nutrition and more.
Awards & Media Recognition
Miracle Foundation Founder Caroline Boudreaux was honored as one of UBS' Global Visionaries in February 2017, and the organization was awarded the Humanitarian Award by the Austin Chapter of the United Nations Association in October 2017. In February 2015, Miracle Foundation Founder Caroline Boudreaux gave a TEDx talk called "Engineering a Miracle," about the global orphan crisis and the work of Miracle Foundation. Miracle Foundation has been featured in a wide range of media, including Forbes, People.com, Rolling Stone, Forty Women to Watch over 40, CNN, , and “One Peace at a Time,” a 2009 film by Turk Pipkin.
