I'm going to copy it to the blog, but you can check it out at the actual Observer site here.
They've decided to share the love
Family works to adopt child with Down syndrome from Ukraine.
The Maddex family: Bryan and Laurie Maddex with sons Ian (left), Chase (center) and Gavin. COURTESY OF LAURIE MADDEX
Life took an unexpected turn for Laurie and Bryan Maddex when their son, Chase, was born with Down syndrome, nearly four years ago.
"We didn't know anything about Down syndrome," Laurie said. "We were just not prepared. And scared and worried. We absolutely loved him, but he wasn't the baby we were expecting."
Now their lives are taking another unexpected turn: They are adopting a child with Down syndrome from a Ukrainian orphanage. The couple is thrilled for their whole family, and for Danil, the boy who's stolen their hearts.
It took a while for Laurie and Bryan to reach this point.
Laurie, a former schoolteacher, remembers the days after Chase's diagnosis as "a hard time." She and Bryan, whose oldest son, Ian, was just a toddler, reached out to the Down Syndrome Association of Charlotte, for education and support.
She also turned to the blogging world, where she found similarly challenged parents whose stories and wisdom made her feel less alone. She and Bryan became more active in DSAC, with Bryan serving on the board and Laurie serving as a facilitator for families with children with Down syndrome age 3 and younger.
Laurie and Bryan had another son, Gavin, when Chase was 2. With three sons and a home filled with warmth and love, they were happy.
Through blogs, Laurie learned of the website Reece's Rainbow: International Down Syndrome Orphan Ministry (reecesrainbow.org). She began reading about children with Down syndrome in orphanages overseas, worrying whether they would ever find loving homes.
The faces on Reece's Rainbow tugged at Laurie. The pull grew stronger after one of the families whose blog she follows shared their story of adopting a Ukrainian girl with Down syndrome. Looking through Reece's Rainbow, she saw Danil's photo and recognized "something about his little face and his bio that told me that he belonged in our family," she said in her own blog, titled "Adding to the Maddness."
"His energy is Maddex boy energy - affectionate, spunky, awesome. ... I just know it, and I was drawn to him," she said.
Laurie learned Danil was born five days before Chase, "so they're like twins."
Bryan, however, wasn't convinced adopting Danil was right for their family.
Laurie says he struggled for months with the decision before he had a conversation with a co-worker, who mentioned she'd just visited her family in the Ukraine. When he told her his family was thinking about adopting a Ukrainian child, the co-worker shared firsthand stories of the conditions at orphanages.
That timely exchange in early January sealed Bryan's decision. The Maddexes have begun the process for international adoptions. The first home visit by international adoption officials is this month. The couple is trying to raise $25,000 to pay fees and expenses.
"We've had such an outpouring," Laurie says. "Two weeks ago, my brother - a college student who delivers pizza - gave us $500. I know the money will come from somewhere."
If all goes well, the Maddexes hope to bring Danil home in September.
"I felt called to this little boy," Laurie said while sitting at her kitchen table on a recent afternoon. She looks around, her gaze settling lovingly on each child. Chase is sitting quietly, watching a movie. Gavin is playing noisily, charging around the kitchen. And Ian is running in and out of the house with a friend.
"I can completely imagine him in our circus," she says.
A statement she made in her blog seems to sum it up: "It is not because of an emptiness in my heart that I feel we need Danil. It is because of a fullness. We have more to give."
Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/02/06/2033397/theyve-decided-to-share-the-love.html#ixzz1DF7MIqQE
What a great story! I'm so happy for your family :)
ReplyDeleteThat's fantastic! I'm psyched!!!!!
ReplyDelete