Imagine you're in a place where you can't understand even one word being spoken, every sight and smell is new, and your only ally is someone you met for the first time just weeks ago. By the way, you're only 6 years old and people keep calling you by a name you've never heard before.

Welcome to the world of Lennah and Oleg Welch. Fortunately for these Ukraine-born immigrants, the one person they know is Dr. Nancy Welch, director of the Chesapeake Health Department, and their new mother.

The 53-year-old Welch adopted the orphans in August and, after jumping through hoops overseas, finally was able to bring them home at the beginning of September.

Fortunately for the new family, Welch's colleagues at work, at church and in the neighborhood are eager to help the first-time mom. "I have a huge, huge village," Welch said with appreciation. "There is no way, absolutely no way, I would be able to do this without [them]."

Her life-changing journey began several years ago when Welch, a pediatrician and preventative medicine specialist, applied to adopt an infant. After several possibilities were unsuccessful, she withdrew her name from the rolls. Then, last February, she was invited to Ukraine by a humanitarian organization. There she saw hundreds of children who were wards of the state, many who were abandoned by parents who could not afford to feed or clothe them.

As she traveled to various facilities, vaccinating children and experiencing the substandard conditions, Welch began to consider the possibility of becoming a first-time mom for an older child. As a single person with a demanding career, she was forced to evaluate whether she really could be a good parent to an adopted older child.

That decision came fairly easily, however, and she ended up adopting two children instead of one. While this provided each child with a companion, it also doubled the amount of responsibility and patience Welch would need. Coming from an environment where they were forced to compete for attention, it took the children time to adjust. Welch had a rough few weeks dealing with some serious behavioral problems.

"Their world was the orphanage," Welch said. "They don't have a sense of security." This has made it difficult for her to go to work or drop the children at school - for they are fearful she may not return.

Welch used family and medical leave and vacation time to provide extra attention to the children in the first few months. Co-workers even drove to her house for meetings so she could still be close to them.

The extra attention has started to pay off. Now that they've had time to adjust, work on their English skills and meet with a counselor who helps them deal with their emotions, the change has been dramatic. "I see phenomenal progress," said Welch. "They're just wonderfully delightful, charming, fun children."

There is a danger that the newness of everything will be overstimulating, but Lennah and Oleg's reaction to their new environment has affected Welch in ways she didn't expect. "They are reminding me about the joys of life in the world," she said. "Recognizing the grandeur of what's all around you helps reassess your priorities."

- Elizabeth V. Harders