After leading two service trips to the Philippines since 2016, Joel and I felt sure of the call to grow our family through adoption. We were particularly drawn to the adoption of an older child after connecting well with many young teens who did not have a forever family to walk with them into adulthood. 

Having decided to first share the news about adoption with our two young sons, Aedan (6) and Clark (4), our call was affirmed and ignited when Aedan's first response was, "You mean we're getting a big brother?!". In February we began the adoption process, not just as two parents, but as a family ready to bring in a brother (or sister, but the boys still talk in terms of big bro), son, teammate, and friend. 

We are beyond excited and are doing everything we can to be prepared to welcome a beautiful new life into our home. To this point, we have used personal savings as well as a few donations to move through the home study process and into paperwork preparation. As part of our continued adoption process, we have started a crowdfunding campaign. It may surprise you to hear that Filipino adoption related costs can easily total up to $25,000 or more. This is why we have set a goal of $25,000 to help ease the financial burden that often overwhelms adoptive parents. 

We hope that by inviting you into this process, you will see yourself as part of the community we hope to build around our child as he/she grows up.