We have BIG news!
We are adopting a child! At least, that's the theory.
We are beyond excited and are doing everything we can to be prepared to welcome a phenomenal new teenager, permanently, into our home. We've enjoyed being a place of rest/refuge/opportunity for many teens and young adults in the past, including the high school senior we've had living with us for the past year, and we are completely thrilled to be able to have the opportunity to provide a forever home to a sweet kid who just wants a family.
As of the end of July, we've been awarded temporary guardianship of the young man, pending this adoption process. It won't be quick, and it won't be smooth (we've learned that, already) but he's anxious to come home to his new room and family, and we're anxious to get him settled and growing roots.
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Given that you're seeing this, you can see that, as part of our adoption process, we have started a crowdfunding campaign. Did you know that sometimes, adoption related costs can easily total up to $35,000 or more? Ours will probably not be that high, although it will not be free since there are bumps in the foster-adoption road, so we set a goal of $5,000 to help ease the financial burden that often overwhelms adoptive parents.
This amount will cover the private homestudy, and at least part of the cost of the attorney we will need to pay to finalize the adoption once it is complete. Unlike an infant adoption, this is for a child with whom we are already familiar, who already sends us letters and cards, and calls us multiple times a week.
There's bound to be some twists and turns, but we aren't waiting on a child, or on our training (both of those are done deals), and we've passed all of our background checks and fingerprint screenings, filled out all of our paperwork, and are preparing to run a homestudy through a private adoption agency, all while working with the child's lawyer.
So if you can give us a hand, we'd appreciate it. Teens have a particularly difficult time finding adoptive homes, and this dude has been in the system longer than anyone is comfortable with already. Help us bring him home, and keep him home, if you can.
*Donations made through this site are tax-deductible as Pure Charity and AdoptTogether are both federally recognized 501(c)(3) charitable organizations.
