Hello! We are so excited to finally be starting the adoption process. If you know me (Jess), you know I have wanted to be a mom since I was about 5. We have really worked through a lot to be here, but we are so excited to be officially contracted with Everlasting Adoptions based in California! https://everlastingadoptions.com/
As we begin this process, I am trying to finish my Master's at lightning speed, which we have been paying for out of pocket. We put down a $5,000 deposit with Everlasting Adoptions and will be paying about $2,800 for our home study in just a few short weeks. We feel confident that we will be able to pay the rest of the fees that will be associated with our adoption (attorney fees, birth mother fees, more agency fees, finalization fees), but we are needing help with the rest of the agency fees so that they can market us to birth mothers!
That is why we are seeking help with $10,000. We went with Everlasting Adoptions, in large part, because they keep their costs VERY low in comparison to many other organizations. If you have other questions about the process of adopting and the finances of it, please feel free to reach out to one of us! We would love your support and also understand that this is a tough time for many. We are actively applying for scholarships, grants, and low-to-no interest loans as well, so hopefully, this number will go down, but rest assured that your money will not go to anything other than our adoption.
Thanks for your consideration, support, love, and celebration! -Jess and Sam
It has been a busy 3 months over here as I worked through my most strenuous quarter of school. But a huge bright light has been that we were FULLY funded by all of you for our $7,000 goal for our adoption. Thank you does not even begin to feel like enough, but that's really all we can offer. Your money was sent directly to Everlasting Adoption from Adopt Together to go toward our agency fees, which puts us so close to being through this tough first stage. We have also been chipping away at our home study paperwork, and we will be sending that in within a couple days! We are just tying up a few loose ends and are so excited to have all of those details out of our minds.
Thank you for supporting our family. Thank you for giving us hope and joy in this exhausting process/season. There isn't any new, fun news to share yet, but our hope is that we will get through the rest of the home study process fairly quickly and can be matched with a brave mama and baby within the next few months. But we also hold that that is not a guarantee. We will wait as long as it takes!
Thank you again. I did raise the fundraising goal because we have had some people asking how they can still help and support. There are so many more expenses for us that we will be paying out of pocket, so the support means so much more than we can express. THANK YOU!
With gratitude,
The Vanderlindens
