Note: The authors of the testimonials with an email address have consented to be contacted as references.
"We contacted Mr. Sazhin after reading about his service as a "locater" of birth families for children adopted from Russian and the Ukraine on the FRUA web site. We initially had only his email address and sent him an inquiry about the possibility of finding our 18 year old daughter's birth family in a remote area off the coast of Russian on Sakhalin Island. He responded to our email in a timely manner and described clearly his services and the fees involved. He explained what information he would need in order to conduct his search. It was very easy to scan and email him all necessary copies of adoption documents he needed. Within a few weeks of our initial contact, he had our paperwork, pictures, and letters and was headed to Sakhalin. He was able to find our daughter's birth family and have a very positive visit with them. He copied their pictures of our daughter at a young age and also copied birth family pictures for us. I feel that all the interactions that he had with the birth family were very professional and very compassionate. I am sure that they feel as we now do, that they have a trusted friend and contact for future communications between the families. I would recommend his service to everyone considering making contact with birth families in Russian and the Ukraine."
Toby Mahan
tobymahan@gmail.com
"I hired Gene when my son and I visited Ukraine to reconnect with his bio-family, and we were very happy with his services. He was able to arrange transportation and housing for difficult, out-of-the-way places, and he worked tirelessly as a translator during the flurry of introductions, conversations, and dinners. He also served as a cultural advisor, guiding us through the differences between American and Ukrainian culture. I would hire him again in a moment."
Steven Harper Piziks
spiziks@sff.net
"I discovered Gene by chance during an internet search and decided to use his services. I couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome! The process was simple, painless and quick! Gene was able to locate our boys’ bio-mom in just a matter of days. He was able to get answers to our list of questions, provide pictures, and so much more. Throughout our dealings with Gene he proved himself to not only be professional, but genuinely kind and caring too. It takes a special kind of person to be able to knock on someone’s door with unexpected news and gather sensitive information. Gene was able to accomplish this with the highest degree of respect for both parties. I highly recommend him! "
Nancy McCloskey, mom to bio-brothers from Ukraine
miensasis@gmail.com
"I am writing this to formally recommend Gene Sagin. I used him in February 2010 to find the bio parents of the children we adopted from Ukraine (thru Cathy Harris)in September 2003. He did a wonderful job for us. He was very fast and although it is always scary to wire money to someone you do not know, I trusted that he would do the work. He sent me photos and a good history. I feel he is an honest man and I would be happy to tell anyone who is considering using him that they should. His fee was very reasonable and I had checked with Cathy prior to using him. She said he is who she uses. Although it was difficult to read the real story of what happened to my children prior to our adopting them becasue is was so sad, it is good to know. I will let them see the photos and their history when they are 18. I know Gene was not making it up because the mother looks like my oldest and relatives described scars they should have on their bodies which they do, so they could only have known if they were the real people.
If you want help finding bio parents in Ukraine, use this man. I would be glad to talk to anyone who has questions."
Vera Harris
South Carolina
vdharris32@aol.com
"We have been contemplating finding our daughter's bio-family and just really didn't think it was possible in Ukraine until I found Gene's website. I wrote to him on 11-24-09 and got a response back the same day. We decided to move forward, and we got his report and everything we asked for by 12-3-09! And he had to travel quite a distance for us. He is respectful and helpful. The fee is reasonable. We would recommend him and if you want to ask questions, you can email me.
Thanks again Gene!"
Tina from Illinois
perukrainemom03@hotmail.com
"Our kids Ira & Dima, 6 & 4, have been with us for a year and because Ira started to talk about her 'mama Natasha' with whom she lived for almost 3 years, we thought it prudent to obtain some background information. It is important for any kid but especially for adopted kids to have their early history filled in as good as possible. The court decision was sketchy about some family issues so we had lots of questions we put to Gene.
He drove all the way from Donetsk to Izmail in the Odessa oblast and found the father, to our big surprise because we believed he was dead. A decent man, we were glad to learn. Something good to tell the kids later on in their lives. Bio-mom turned out to be awol for the time being but Gene arranged that some sort of contact would be established if she ever shows up again.
All that for a reasonable fee so we have no hesitation to recommend Gene Sagin if you want to do a similar thing for your adopted children."
Jochem Rebel & Josja Zijlstra
Amsterdam, Holland
"We were lucky enough to have Gene as our translator while adopting our daughter Olena from Ukraine. During our 6 week stay in country we lived with Gene and it gave us time to discover who he really is. He has passion for the children of Ukraine, he devotes himself to his "families" and is a true friend. After returning home, Gene also completed a bio search for us, which turned out to be the best decision we ever made during this journey. Not only did we learn things about her birth-parents, we were reunited with Olena's brother whom was adopted by a Spanish couple several years earlier. Gene put in lots of hard work, and made many connections where I think maybe others would have given up. He knew what we were hoping for, and he did everything he could to try and get those answers. Gene is and always will be part of our family and I couldn't imagine anyone more dedicated to the families of Ukraine."
The Warchols
candjwarchol@yahoo.com
"We contacted Gene to do a bio-family search for our boys and he completed it in a very timely manner and with great professionalism! We were thrilled to have the results so quickly and all his details were exactly we were hoping for. We later decided to meet with the bio-family in Ukraine and Gene handled all of the arrangements and translation. He handled the situation very delicately and the information and contacts we've made are invaluable to us and our children. We've made a great friend in him and cannot say enough to thank him."
Sean & Crystal Renfro - Littleton, CO
screnfro@comcast.net
"I highly recommend everyone to use Gene for their bio-searches. Gene is fast, thorough, and discreet with information. I was impressed with how fast he was able to get my daughters bio search done. And I really liked the idea that he asked what I wanted disclosed to the bio family.
Its hard to contact someone about a child they gave up, you always worry about giving out too much information. Gene is a professional and does what he can to help families connect with each other. I was able to get valuable information about my daughters past and have a positive connection with her family.
Thanks Gene, for helping families find bio families! I know some people don't get what they are seeking, but at least they tried, and when their children are older, it will mean a lot to them. I know my daughter will be able to have a relationship with her bio Mom and Grandma -- this is priceless."
Angie
eyeoweu@yahoo.com
"Since adopting from Ukraine, we have made a couple of trips back to visit the bio-families of our children. Each time, Gene has been right there to make our trips the best they can possibly be. He is always waiting with a smile for us when we get off the airplane. Then he transports us safely to the region where the bio-families live in a comfortable manner. Once there, Gene really works hard at translating and always tells us when someone says something funny or interesting, even if we didn't ask. Gene is not only good at taking care of us, but is just an all around great person to hang out with! We highly recommend him for any of the services that he offers because he is honest, trustworthy and will do his best for you!
James & Kimberly Wypychowski-Motley, AZ
jamesmotley@cox.net
"We used Gene for a birth family search last year and we were extremely happy with the service he provided. Not only was he thorough, but I had the information I was looking for within 1 week of contacting him.
Gene was courteous, professional and very conscious of protecting us as his clients. He went out of his way to understand how much contact we wanted with our daughters' birth mother and exactly what information we wanted him to obtain from her.
I contacted several people who specialize in this type of work and Gene was offering the best service at the right price. I also felt very comfortable using him because he has such an excellent command of the English language."
Lisa Rockway, NJ
lisasicilian@yahoo.com