ADOPTION
We have a dream to adopt two children and provide them with a loving home.
Sow a seed into the lives of children who are waiting to find their forever family!
Help us cover our Nightlight Christian Adoption Agency Fees:
$26,100
Help us cover our Home Study, Legal Fees, Document Fees, and Travel Costs:
$25,890
You can donate to us through Adoption Bridge by clicking the button below.
All donations are tax deductible.
Hello, friends and family!
We have some exciting news!
Some of you may know that for many years, we have longed to have children of our own, but were never able to do so. Adoption has also been a dream of ours, and we have decided to take a leap of faith toward that dream!
We have recently been accepted into Nightlight Christian Adoptions Bulgaria program!
Bulgaria has a high population of Roma children who are waiting to be adopted. The Roma people, sometimes referred to in a derogatory sense as Gypsies, originally come from Northern India in the Punjab region. Over a thousand years ago, they began migrating out of India towards Persia and then into Europe. They have been persecuted for centuries and were targeted by Hitler and his regime during the Holocaust. The Roma people still endure persecution to this day and often struggle with poverty, as well as lack of access to education and resources that many of us take for granted in America.
We have a tender place in our hearts for Roma children for several reasons. We were married in Scotland and have traveled to Europe many times over the years. I (Alison) also had family who lived in Spain, and I spent quite a bit of time in Europe because of that. My aunt Stephanie and uncle Patrick lived in Mallorca, Spain, and during one of my visits, they took me to see a group of Roma people doing traditional folk dancing. This was my first introduction to the amazing talent and rich cultural traditions of the Roma people. My uncle Patrick also exposed me to flamenco music performed by very talented Roma musicians and dancers. Patrick described the kind of persecution that Roma people endured as being similar to what African American people experienced before the Civil Rights movement. During our travels to Europe, Evan and I encountered many impoverished Roma people begging on the streets for help. There were times when we would stop to pray for them, buy them food and speak with them if they spoke English or Spanish. There was one time when we were living in Barcelona, where Evan gave a barefoot Roma man a pair of his shoes.
Evan and Alison in Madrid, Spain 2016
Alison and Evan in Barcelona, Spain 2014
National Flag of the Republic of Bulgaria
Bulgaria has one of the highest Roma populations in Europe. Bulgarian orphanages are filled with Roma children because of the social stigma against them; most Europeans do not want to adopt Roma children. Older sibling groups are particularly vulnerable and not as likely to get adopted. There are not many great options for Roma children who do not get adopted. It is not an easy thing for Roma people to get good jobs because of the prejudice against them. It is for this reason that we have decided to adopt an older Roma sibling group. Our dream is to be able to keep two siblings together and provide them with a loving home and all the opportunities that becoming Americans would have to offer them.
If your heart is moved by our dream and you feel called to help, we would be so very grateful for your support. Your gifts will help cover the many legal fees and administrative costs of adoption.
We also have to travel to Bulgaria twice in order to be able to adopt, and you can help us fund our travel costs to bring our children home. Your generosity will help with a very long list of the many costs associated with adoption.
We will be updating our journey on our blog and sharing all the fees we will be seeking help with funding.
Your donations are tax deductible and are for a great cause to impact the lives of two siblings who just want to be able to stay together and become part of a loving family.
We thank you all so much for your love, prayers and support in this journey!
The LORD bless you and keep you,
Evan and Alison
“He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing.”
-Deuteronomy 10:18 (New International Version)
“External religious worship [religion as it is expressed in outward acts] that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.”
–James 1:27 (Amplified Bible, Classic Edition)