“Children are the hands by which we take hold of heaven.” Henry Wald Beecher. These words by a 19th Century preacher ring true to my heart. As a pastor and christian my life’s vocation has been about the work of making “things on earth as they are in heaven.” Children are one way in which I believe we experience God and the divine. I have always wanted to be a mom and get a front row seat in helping a kid grow. In October 2022 I experienced the call to adopt. For a few years I had been pondering as to how I would have a family. I am a single woman, now in my forties. I knew I wanted to begin but not sure how. One day at lunch a close friend asked why I was waiting. She encouraged me to be a mom if I wanted to be a mom. She listed a few ways this could happen. I got into my car and heard God’s voice say, “you are going to adopt and this is why you are going to South Africa.” This is one of the only times I have heard God’s audible voice. I was planning to go to South Africa for the tenth time to visit some of the missionary partners my church and me support. So I went to South Africa and while I was there I explored options and visited a few baby homes. While in South Africa many people mentioned Holt International and that they work with Wandisa in South Africa. When I came back home to the United States I explored many options to adopt including foster care and domestic adoption. I met with families who had adopted in these ways. After hearing many stories I knew that the domestic adoption journey and foster journey may be too difficult for me as a single parent due to the matching processes. All doors kept opening to continue to God’s calling to adopt from South Africa and go through Holt International. I started the application process in March 2023 and submitted my dossier in August 2023. May 7, 2024 I received a referral and I have accepted the referral. I was matched with a tenth month old girl. She is seemingly healthy but did experience prenatal alcohol exposure. Wandisa has currently put the process on hold for three different matches made that week. I hope the process will continue and I anticipate traveling at the end of the summer or early fall. The program in South Africa requires a stay of 2-3 months and this is a large part of the remaining funds that I will need to complete the adoption. My budget for the entire adoption is $43,669.00. So far I have used $23,000 from my savings towards the adoption. I am saving $1000 each month to continue to pay towards the adoption. I have started a fundraising campaign and hope to raise funds for plane tickets and transportation which should total close to $5000. Adopting as a single person can be intimidating some days but I know that God has called me to be a mother in this way and God is continually providing a village to support this calling and gift. I am grateful for the ways that Adopting Together can help be part of the work of bringing heaven to earth for me through the adoption of a precious child.
