THE FAMILY LETTER

We wrote this to our family today and wanted it to be the first message on our blog:


Dear family,
We have some news for all of you. After Julia came back from India in 2007, we talked about and believed that we would either adopt or do foster care. We planned on waiting until the boys were older, and especially in light of the massive curriculum project we’ve undertaken, (we are writing a homeschooling history curriculum) later was better than sooner. The economy and poor business prospects also made us believe that delaying was for the best.
Sometimes God has other plans. About three weeks ago Julia saw a picture of a little boy on a website, http://www.reesesrainbow.com/. He was being featured because he had just been transferred to a mental institute for special needs children. His name was Aaron and he was born in 2004. In the Eastern European countries, when a special needs child reaches the age of 4 or 5, he or she is transferred out of the orphanage and placed in a mental institute. For the majority of these kids it is a death sentence. This little boy caught Julia’s eye because he was cognitively normal, considered high functioning and looked a bit like Rob with the deep dimples. He suffered from a condition called arthrogryposis, which limits the movement of his hands; but from the description, his case seemed fairly mild. We e-mailed Reeces’s Rainbow to see where he was located. While waiting for a response we stated emphatically that if he was from one particular country, we weren’t interested. This particular countries adoptions are tough, expensive and require a lot of travel. The e-mail came back within a few minutes, and he was indeed from exactly where we didn't want to go. We walked away thinking that was it.
Within a day, Julia came across a blog of a college student named Molly who was advocating for the adoption OF THIS SAME CHILD! Molly was passionate about finding him a family and trying in her own way to raise money for his ‘forever family.’ For the next week Julia was haunted by Aaron’s face and his need. After several completely sleepless nights and periods of intermittent weeping it was clear that God was moving in her heart. Last Sunday night at 3:00 she woke up sobbing. Rob was downstairs sleeping in his chair (back pains drive him out of bed most nights) and after thirty minutes of crying and praying alone Julia knew she needed to dump it all in Rob’s lap. We spent the rest of that night and the next several nights talking, processing and praying. By the end of the week we came to the realization that Aaron needed to be part of our family despite the huge financial hurdle set before us (24-26,000 dollars), the reality that Aaron could be damaged beyond repair where he is currently located, the medical issues associated with his condition and the toll it will take on our family. We both strongly believe that God has moved in our hearts and we have decided to step out in the biggest leap of faith either of us has ever taken. We are going to try adopt Aaron. We submitted our first form today.
We know this is a bit of a shock. It is for us too. All four of us feel overwhelmed, scared, and excited. We definitely feel a deep need for support from our families in this decision. It has an element of foolishness - crossing the globe to save one little boy who we only know through a picture and a paragraph. Why him, why now and why there?
We need you to pray. First and foremost that Aaron will be protected where he is located. All that we have heard about the institutes in Eastern Europe is horrific. We know that the orphanage he was in loved him because they approached Reece’s Rainbow to find Aaron a family. This was the first time that particular orphanage had had any contact with Reese’s Rainbow, so that speaks volumes. We need you to pray that our little guy will have people in the mental institute where he now lives who will guard him, take care of him and make sure that he is fed. So many of these children die of starvation. Please pray!
We also need you to pray that we can move through the paperwork quickly. We have been told that we could have him as early as late summer if all goes well. The less time he is stuck in a crib, the better! We had friends who just went through an adoption from this same country, and their experience was rough. Their difficulties made us reluctant to pursue adoption there. For Aaron’s long-term mental and physical health, it is important that we get him as soon as possible.
We need prayers that God will provide, financially and emotionally. This is going to take a toll on us in both realms.

We are trusting in God and excited to see what He is going to reveal to us through the life of this one little boy. We are hoping that next Thanksgiving and Christmas, his little dimples will grace our family gatherings!
In Christ’s abiding love,
Rob and Julia
http://www.reecesrainbow.com/newsite/otherangels.html