Hi everyone,
It’s been a while since I’ve
posted. Did you miss me?
As some of you know, I’ve had a
lot going on. (My book is almost ready. Woot! Woot! Hence, the reason for my
absence.) But when I heard about the following adoption story, I just had to
bring this to your attention.
This is the Burch family – Lance, Amy, Hannah (18),
Rachel (16) and Chloe (11). Aren’t they a beautiful bunch? (Don’t ask me why,
but the Brady Bunch just came to
mind. Except this family would be the Burch Bunch.) :-)
After looking at this photo, you might think, But, Deb, you only mentioned five people in
this family, not seven.
Exactly, but that’s because two of the girls, Tatiana and
Karen, aren’t home yet. This picture was taken during a visit. But with your
help, the Burch Bunch, I mean, this family can be together—permanently—in time
for their next holiday photo. Wouldn’t that be awesome?
Oh, in case you’re wondering which ones Tatiana and Karen
are, here’s a snapshot of them.
Aren’t they beautiful? Tatiana, 14, is pictured on the
left. To the right is Karen, age 13.
I’m so jealous. Do you know how many hours I’d have to
lay out in the sun to get such a beautiful complexion? And because I’m much
older now, well, it wouldn’t be a good idea.
Sorry, I’m getting off track.
Here’s Amy’s words, which will be much better than mine.
A
Family's Adoption Story
By
Amy
Burch
Our adoption journey began years ago as we talked and
dreamed about some day adopting children. Then, in July 2010, Lance spent time
in an orphanage in Ukraine and returned home with an increased desire to adopt.
We decided that it was time to begin the process. Since each member of our
family speaks some Spanish and we have always loved Latin American culture, we
were interested in adopting from a Latin American country. In August 2010, we
applied and were accepted to adopt from Peru.
We decided early on that we were interested in adopting
older children who would not have as many options as those who are younger. We
worked toward—and invested over $7,000 from our savings—the adoption of 12-year-old
Natalia. Two years later, we were given the devastating news that we would not
be able to adopt from Peru. Even though our dossier had been in this country
and all of our paperwork was in order, the Peruvian government was making
changes and decreasing their number of international adoptions. We filed an
appeal, but they refused to change their decision. We also weren’t able to
recover the money we’d spent from our savings.
But our family decided that this would not be the end of
our journey, and that as painful as it was to lose Natalia, we would press on.
We were not sure how we would be able to afford the process again, but we
decided to trust that God would provide if we continued to follow him.
We immediately applied to adopt from Colombia. After a
year of hard work, our dossier was in this country. In August 2013, we were
approved. In the same month, we were given information on two sisters, Tatiana
(14) and Karen (13). We decided to pursue their adoption. Through a hosting
program for older children, the girls were able to travel from Colombia to
spend 3 weeks with us at our home in Omaha the following December. Here are a
few pictures of them. The first shows Tatiana making a snow angel. In the next,
Karen is playing in the snow.
Participating in the hosting program was the only way
that we could pursue the adoption of Tatiana and Karen. And, although it cost
us over $7,000 more than we were planning to spend, it proved to be an amazing
time of bonding for our family and for our Colombian girls. Another benefit was
that now, because we have hosted Tatiana and Karen, we will be able to bring
them home within seven months from the time of our referral instead of the
usual two years. After having them here with us, we know that these girls are
our daughters and that they belong in our family. We love them, miss them
terribly, and cannot wait to bring them home.
We received our official referral of Tatiana and Karen in
March, and should be traveling to Colombia to finish out the girls’ adoptions
by July. Lance and I will be in Colombia with the girls for 2-3 weeks. Then
Lance will return home to go back to work and I’ll stay in Colombia for another
5-6 weeks to finish the adoption process before coming home with Tatiana and
Karen.
Thank you, Amy. Like I said, you put it much better than
I could have.
Okay, y’all. Can you help to bring the Burch’s daughters
home? Any amount will be appreciated. If you can’t afford to give, would you
please pray for this family?
Thank you so much. The fundraising details are listed below.
Reunite the Burch Bunch! Reunite the Burch Bunch! (Sorry,
Amy, I couldn’t resist.)
Options for giving:
Note: We just received a $2,500 matching grant from
Lifesong for Orphans. This will greatly help with our travel expenses. We have
until we get home with the girls (about 3 months or less from now) to raise the
$2,500 that will be matched.
Checks should be payable to “Lifesong for Orphans."
In the memo, note “Burch Family" and account number "Burch
#4412" to assure it goes to the correct account. Please mail to Lifesong
for Orphans, PO Box 40, Gridley, IL 61744. Lifesong has been blessed with a
partner that underwrites all U.S. administrative and fund-raising costs (TMG
Foundation and other partners). That means 100% of your donation will go
directly to the adoption.
To pay online, go to www.lifesongfororphans.org/give/donate.
Select “Give to an Adoptive Family.” Complete the online form and fill in
“Family Account Number” field with "Burch #4412" and “Family Name”
field with "Burch". Note: PayPal charges an administrative fee (2.9%
+ $.30 USD per transaction). Your donation will be decreased by the amount of
this fee.
Elizabeth Maddrey began writing stories as soon as she could form the letters properly and has never looked back. Though her practical nature and love of math and organization steered her into computer science for college and graduate school, she has always had one or more stories in progress to occupy her free time.
When she isn’t writing, Elizabeth is a voracious consumer of books and has mastered the art of reading while undertaking just about any other activity. Elizabeth is a member of ACFW and lives in the suburbs of Washington D.C. with her husband and their two incredibly active little boys.
