Adoption 2012

November is National Adoption Month

In honor of Orphans near and far....

Adoption is all around me. I encounter it at work daily. My family has been touched personally by adoption. I have dear friends in various stages of fostering and adopting. And....I {pray} everyday that our house would one day be blessed by little adopted jewels...

But that day is not TOday. 

A few months ago, I was introduced to Reese's Rainbow. RR is an adoption ministry that advocates to link special needs(primarily Down Syndrom, CP, HIV+) orphans overseas with forever families here in the States and Canada. It seeks to raise funds for families who want to step out in faith and committ to adopting these children. Adopting overseas can be expensive, RR seeks to lessen the financial burden.

Naturally, this intrigued me. I began to fall in love with so many of their faces. Its different when you look into the eyes of an actual orphan living with no mom, no dad, and little hope. Life is particularly difficult for an orphan with obvious special needs in developing nations around the world and in Eastern Europe. Most orphans with Down Syndrome in these countries don't make it due to lack of medical care, quality of care due to social stigmas, and worst yet....many are killed shortly after birth. If they are lucky enough to make it to age 4 in Eastern Europe, they are then transferred to an ADULT mental institution. 

MY heart breaks for these kids.

Babies with Down Syndrome 

CHOOSE LIFE

It is not their fault society sees fit to discard them as if they don't have value or exist.

So...

...after several break-down-sob-fest-feeling-sorry/mad-we-cant-adopt-yet parties i have...

    i reading a post from one of my fav-o bloggers who recently brought her daughter Hazel home from Eastern Europe i was inspired! you can check out her blog at www.anothertexasfamily.com .

I asked her if i could copy her idea to raise $$ for 

ONE WAITING ORPHAN

So with that, here we go!

I cant do a lot to make financial impact on my own, but with your help we CAN help one orphan! One little girl i pray daily for is....

{C O R R I N E}

With a smile like that I just don't understand why no one has chosen her as their own...yet

Corrine, is 2.5 years old...which is getting to the age where lots of families will no longer consider her because she is "old". Corrine is living in an orphanage in Eastern Europe and time is quickly running out. If she is not adopted in the next year and a half, she will be transferred to an adult mental institution because she has Down Syndrome.

This makes me sick.

So in honor of CORRINE and Adoption Month

I am asking for **20** people to 

pledge 

25 cents

(an itty bitty quarter)

for every mile i run in November

Now, before you get scared thinking that will be ooooodels of $$$. Its not! Lets do the math...

I am going to TRY my hardest to run an average of 

4 miles,

 5 days a week

that is 20 miles a week

(X)

4

=

approximately $20!

If we can get 20 people to pledge what will be approximately $20 

Its basically like signing up for a 5k without having to actually run! (my friend Rachel will love this!)

That will be $400 to her grant when a family picks her!

What is $20 to you? Coffee and a muffin 3x/week for a month. A fun new dress from Target. A large specialty pizza and pop delivered to your home! A trip with your kids to McDonald's. A fraction of the cost to get your hair did every other month....and on and on...

But to sweet little 

Corrine

IT CAN SAVE HER WHOLE

**LIFE**

And isn't that what we are called to do as Christians?! To look and care out for the "least of these"? The Lord is very clear throughout the ENTIRE Bible-old and new. Through and through we are instructed to care for orphans and widows in their distress...it does not mean that we all must adopt. But it DOES mean we need to do what is within our means tho. 

SOOOOOOO....

Whose in??

Comment on my blog below and I will start logging miles on Thursday :)

Please visit http://reecesrainbow.org 

to find all sorts of sweeties waiting for a 

mommy

daddy

brother

sister

gpa and gma....

and on and on.

Just a peek of those waiting....

Tabitha

Judy 

Sean... abandoned by the riverside at age 4mo.

Ralph...facing imminent transfer to adult facility...at age 5

Megan....I have almost a FULL grant to fund my adoption, if only someone would

CHOOSE ME

Much love,

Manda