This has been quite a journey for us!
We initially started our adoption adventure pursuing a 13 year old boy in China back in January of 2020. With the global COVID lockdown, we have been "On-Hold" with him for 4 years, now nearing his 18th birthday, still waiting. During this time, we have continued to pay for documentation that keeps our case current and active.
Half-way into that process with China, we decided that we were meant to open our home, and we weren't letting COVID stand in our way any longer, so we opened a second adoption in Liberia for a 9 year old girl.
It was supposed to be a quick process, but complications on both the Liberian and US sides have delayed our hopes.
We were able to make a visit to see our daughter, Hannah, this past December 2023. We took our 3 biological children with us on the adventure so that they could see and experience the world in which their new sister lived.
Due to some additional bureaucratic hurdles, we are now Hannah's adoptive parents per Liberian law but must make a second trip back to Liberia in order to complete US paperwork to finally bring Hannah home.
The money we are hoping to raise will help to fund the completion of these two adoptions that are in progress.
We are working with a nonprofit organization called PhillTheBox which collects used clothing and other goods which they will then donate funding back to our adoption in exchange for the bags of clothes. We are collecting those bags at our home and hoping to find a location to place a collection bin soon. If you have any extra clothing that you are planning on getting rid of, please contact us and we will be more than happy to come pick it up from you!
Here is a video from our trip to Liberia to visit Hannah: https://photos.app.goo.gl/BsJpEqaw3ihiUrty6
Hi Everyone,
I wanted to share a quick update
To our surprise on Feb 20th, after submitting for DNA testing at the beginning of February (starting from the day that we last saw Hannah on Dec 22nd) and we got the results (of course showing Hannah as the biological daughter of her mother), the embassy approved Hannah's I600 without further delay!
Michelle and I immediately scheduled the earliest flights we could in order to get back to Liberia.
We are currently here now with Hannah!
We flew in on the night of Thursday 29th, picked up Hannah Friday morning, and went directly to the Embassy to drop off some remaining documents (jet-legged and all!). To our surprise, they behaved 180* differently then during our last meeting. Our agent was even joking around with us about traveling difficulty and government form ridiculousness. In a sea of fomented frustration and anger that are the direct result of their actions, it was a pleasant interaction.
They have asked us to come back on Monday (now today as I write this!) to pick up Hannah's exit visa!!!
Once we have our appointment later today for that pick-up, we have one more Exit step on the Liberian gov't side before we are official cleared to depart with Hannah to come home.
The emotions of actually writing that out shake me as I type it.
We are so thankful, but know that so many other waiting families are still fighting and still have so many unanswered questions from the US Embassy. We are so fortunate.
Tomorrow on Tuesday, we (Michelle, Hannah and I) plan on going with our orphanage director to the Liberian Ministry of Gender (oversight Dept for adoptions) to meet with them. Our intentions is to stand as a representative example of the good that is happening with these adoptions, and to implore them to continue to have faith that these adoptions are in the best interest of the children in the orphanages here.
As of last Thursday, there were 38 children in the Small World orphanage home here in Liberia. But today, there are 37. This means that one more child may have a chance at a better life because the adoption process continues to move forward. We will stand by our orphanage director and be that voice of support to the Liberian Government, asking them to do everything they can to support these programs.
Thank you for YOUR support in helping to bring Hannah home!
