Adoptive Parents are Grateful to the Birthparents of their Sons who are now 24, 21, and 18 Years Old

“When we married in our early 20’s we both had dreams of raising a large family, as we are from large families ourselves. After six years of trying, including repeated unsuccessful fertility treatments, we decided to adopt a newborn infant. Unsure of how to go about this process, we conducted some research and chose a private adoption agency, we had a chance to meet and speak with birthmothers who had placed children, adoptive parents and adult adoptees to learn about adoption from several perspectives.

Three years after adopting Blake, we adopted our second son, Reilly, who is now 21 years old, with the help of Kirsh & Kirsh. Three years after that, also with the assistance of Kirsh & Kirsh, we adopted Will, our youngest son, who is now 18. The circumstances around all three of our adoptions were quite different, but the core of it was all the same, for it was the courage and unselfishness of the birth parents that enabled us to have a family and fulfill our lifelong dreams of being parents.

Each of our adoptions were “open”, meaning we had the privilege of meeting our sons’ birthparents. We had the chance to speak with them about the reasons for placing their babies for adoption and the hopes and dreams they had for themselves as well as for the beautiful children that they were placing. We have been able to share these stories with our boys as they have grown, assuring them of how much they are loved and how blessed we have been to have the opportunity to parent them and raise a family. We have also tried to keep our sons in their birthparents’ lives through annual update letters and photos on the boys’ birthdays. Our oldest son, Blake, had an opportunity to meet his birthmother, birth grandmother and half siblings when he turned 21 and has continued to have his birth family in his life. Our youngest son, Will, has recently corresponded with his birth mother for the first time and is contemplating plans for meeting her and her family in the coming months.

For us, adoption has been nothing short of a miracle. We have had the opportunity to raise a family through the grace of God when we otherwise would not have. Our sons have had the chance to grow up in a loving household and know that they are blessed to have two sets of parents to have touched their lives. We are so thankful to have been given the chance to have these beautiful boys in our lives and appreciate the strength and courage their birth parents demonstrated in entrusting them to us. We thank God every day for this miracle.

Jim and Colleen”

www.IndianaAdoption.com

Reprinted with permission of the adoptive parents by Steven M. Kirsh on Monday, December 9, 2013.