We have some EXCITING news to share!
The Soriano family is GROWING once again!
Hi there! We are Ricardo and Jennifer Soriano. We live in Phoenix, Arizona and together we have 5 beautiful children ages 20, 15, 9, 7, and 5. We have been married for 7 years and are members of Emmaus Lutheran Church, also located in Phoenix. Ricardo is a General Contractor and Skilled Handyman while Jennifer is a Professional Housekeeper.
In late 2020, we became aware of a group of siblings (ages 15, 11, and 4) who were in need of a forever home after their parents were brutally murdered by gang members in El Salvador. Our immediate desire was to begin the adoption process but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, international adoptions were on hold. Instead, we began getting to know the siblings through phone calls, text messages, and video chats while also providing for them financially. In September 2023, we were finally able to begin the adoption process which can take anywhere from 15 months – 2.5 years.
Many people don’t realize how expensive international adoptions can be. We certainly didn’t! Adding to the fact that we are adopting not one, or two, but THREE young girls, makes the adoption costs significantly higher than our original expectations. Our adoption agency has estimated the overall costs will run around $65k for the entire process from the first application to bringing the girls through our front door.
Under normal circumstances, we would have plenty of time to take on extra work to earn the funds we need to cover the entire adoption. But unfortunately, life seems to always toss in a curve ball or two. After visiting with the girls over Christmas, we discovered that there are people living in their home that are an immediate threat to their safety and wellbeing. Their great grandmother, who is currently their only legal guardian, is doing the best she can to protect them but at 92-years old, there is only so much she can do.
We have paid about $13k from our own pocket thus far and are in desperate need for YOUR help in securing the remaining funds needed to officially get the ball rolling on El Salvador’s side of things so that we can bring these girls home to safety. Our immediate financial need is only $21650 of the remaining $52k. This amount will cover the next step of the adoption process but we only have a couple of weeks to secure these funds in order to ensure the oldest of the 3 girls is included in the adoption before her safety is further compromised or she ages out.
AdoptTogether enables your donation to be tax deductible while also helping us with these adoption costs. We realize that almost $22k is a lot of money to earn in less than a month’s time. But we serve a God who is Almighty, who can make possible the most impossible task. I am asking everyone who reads this, please, join with us to help rescue these girls so we can give them the unconditional love and support they deserve and a safe place of their own to call home.
We have been blessed beyond measure with the kindness shown to our family from AdoptTogether, the adoption community, as well as our friends and family. We have received the full $20900 that was needed to file the dossier (the dossier is basically what we needed to get the ball rolling on El Salvador’s side of things), which was time sensitive and seemed impossible to accomplish. We are infinitely grateful to AT and all the people behind the scenes who helped make our fundraising drive a successful one. Not only did the dossier funds arrive in time to allow the oldest of the 3 girls to be included in the adoption, our I-800a immigration petition was processed and approved in less than 5 weeks (the processing time is usually a few months)! The girls are beyond excited for the adoption process to continue and are eagerly looking forward to the day when they can officially join our family.
As we wait for the Office of Adoptions in El Salvador to complete their investigation and relay the results to the courts, we humbly ask everyone for their continued prayers and well wishes. The process from here can typically take around 15 months which seems like an eternity but we’ve witnessed miracles already so it may be much sooner. With that being said, please feel free to continue to share our story and our AT fundraising profile. While we don’t need additional funds immediately, we will eventually need to spend a full 5 weeks in El Salvador toward the end of the adoption process for the finalization hearings. We have already started saving up our hotel points to cover as many days as possible, but we will have other expenses, such as food, required medical appointments, visa applications and interviews, as well as our airfare back home. So if you know anyone who would like to make a tax-deductible donation, please don’t hesitate to send them our way as every little bit helps. On behalf of our entire family and our 3 future daughters, we thank you for your kindness, generosity, and support!!
Hello everyone! We just wanted to take a quick moment to say THANK YOU to all those who have made a donation, prayed a prayer, and/or shared our story! The outpouring of love and kindness our family has received in the last week has far exceeded our wildest dreams and we are so grateful for each and every one of you! We have been sharing the progress with the sisters we will be adopting and for the first time in several years, they finally have hope in their hearts for a better future.
Currently we are $1610 short of the exact dollar amount we need in order to submit our dossier to El Salvador. The donation window has been extended to March 24th in hopes that we will get a few last-minute donations in before Adopt Together sends the money raised to our adoption agency in Georgia. This is where you come in! We have been challenged to reach out and collect 161 $10 donations over the next three days. Although that amount seems daunting, we know that as a community we can do this! Please consider reaching out to anyone you know (friends, churches, family members, local businesses, etc) and asking them to donate just $10. This amount might not seem like very much to most people but to these girls, this means a safer, loving home is finally within their reach. On behalf of our entire family, thank you so much!
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