We have EXCITING news!!! We are adopting a child!
Kenny and Joe both met each other in the summer of 2012, through Kenny's sister, who set them up on a blind date. Within the first five minutes of meeting each other, they knew they were meant to spend the rest of their lives together. As their date continued, and upon learning more about each other, the subject of children began to be introduced. Neither wanted to continue any further with a relationship if children were not in their future. Joe's first inclination was to have a biological child, as he has dreamt of children and raising them with his partner for life, however Kenny's thought was to adopt or foster a child. Kenny explained to Joe that he had a hereditary condition that if he did have a biological child, then the risk of passing along this gene is 50%. You see, Kenny has Neurofibromatosis (NF), which is a genetic disorder that causes tumors to grow on nerve endings. This condition could either be as severe as cancerous tumors throughout the body, with the biggest impact happening during adolescence, or it could have minimal impact on the life of a child. Unfortunately, the impact of this disease was more severe on Kenny, resulting in multiple hospital stays, along with many surgeries that impacted his quality of life as a child.
Knowing the risk, Kenny was deadset on not passing his genetic disorder to another human, but knew that he still wanted children; therefore adoption was the best option for him to continue giving his generous love to a child. Kenny then further explained to Joe that whether or not the child is biologically his, the love that he would have for a child would not be impacted, if they chose adoption. Through soul-searching and deep consideration, Joe realized that his past experience with adoption would actually be beneficial to his future children, as he would be able to relate to them in a way.
Kenny and I wrote the story that you have read above in the third person perspective, in hopes that the grant committee connects to our lives and can see how a child would be loved unconditionally, throughout their life. We also find that the third person perspective is more objective and allows us to tell you the facts, rather than twisting them to cast ourselves in a better light.
As part of our adoption process, we have started a crowdfunding campaign. It may surprise you to hear that adoption related costs can easily total up to $35,000 or more. This is why we have set a goal to help ease the financial burden that often overwhelms adoptive parents.
We hope that by inviting you into this process, you will see yourself as part of the community we hope to build around our child as he/she grows up.
With love,
Joe and Kenny
