Sunday, April 28, 2013

Why We Walk for the Waiting

Once upon a time, two sisters and their two brothers were waiting for their forever family.

And once upon a time, a family was waiting to be made whole.

And so the mom spent a crazy insane amount of time scouring Heart Galleries, making phone calls, and sending email inquiries about sibling groups of all sizes, shapes, and colors in almost every state.

One day, not too long after her search started, the mom saw the two sisters and their two brothers in the Arkansas Heart Gallery.


And she thought they were beautiful!

But no one could give her information because the family's home was not open for adoption yet.

Then someone told her about a video series, A Place to Call Home, that highlighted foster kids who were waiting to be adopted.

She watched every video. But this one she watched over and over.



And she fell in love with the two sisters and two brothers who were waiting for their forever family.

Their picture and their video were made in September 2010.

The mom saw them in the spring of 2011.

The family completed the adoption approval process that summer.

In January of 2012, the mom and the dad met the two sisters and their two brothers in person.

And knew they were the perfect four to grow their family of four into a family of eight.

What the mom and dad didn't know was how long the two sisters and their two brothers had been waiting for their forever family.

For you see, the oldest children entered the foster care system in March of 2007 with the youngest following in May of 2009.

When they did the math, it broke their hearts.

Have you done it yet?

Let me help you.

Almost four years passed from the time the two sisters and their two brothers became foster kids until they met their forever family.

And don't forget to add in the two months until visits began, as well as the additional six months of living together as a family before the adoption was finalized in November of 2012.

That's almost five years.

Five years of waiting for their forever family.

Five years of waiting to be home with us.




This is why we will Walk for the Waiting on May 18th in Little Rock.

But we need your help.

(edited excerpt from Walk for the Waiting's website)
Our orphans are in distress.
An average of 12 children enter Arkansas' foster care system every day, joining the other 4,000 children already waiting in the system.
Today, nearly 500 children in Arkansas are waiting for a family to adopt them.
This year, almost 250 children will age out of the system without every being adopted.
What if there was one simple thing you could do to care for these waiting children? 
What if it was as simple as walking?
On May 18, 2013, three leading local orphan care ministries, The CALLProject Zero, and Immerse Arkansas are uniting forces to invite individuals, families, schools, businesses, and churches to Walk for the Waiting. 
We are working toward a solution where the Church leads the way to caring for these orphans that live hidden in our midst and we are inviting you to join us in this endeavor!

So what can you do?

You can sign up to be a sponsored walker and/or form your own team at Walk for the Waiting.

You can join our team, West Family, and raise your own funds or you can sponsor us.

You can buy this awesome tshirt for $20. 


Sale ends 4/30. Our goal is to sell 50 shirts!
Graphic Designer: Chris Hill

All proceeds go to raise funds to benefit the local orphan care ministries of Project Zero, The CALLand Immerse Arkansas under the umbrella of the Walk for the Waiting.
How will the funds be used?
1) To increase the visibility of children waiting for adoption by expanding the Heart Gallery statewide through the efforts of Project Zero.
2) To mobilize the church by recruiting, training, and supporting Christian foster and adoptive families and volunteers from local churches to serve children in foster care, both in Pulaski County and in 25 other counties around the state through The CALL.
3) To provide a third transitional home in Little Rock for youth aging out of foster care through Immerse Arkansas.

Buy a shirt, donate, walk, or do all 3! 
You have the opportunity to make a HUGE difference in the lives of waiting children right here at home in Arkansas TODAY!


3 comments:

  1. What a beautiful family you have! I think I could use another t-shirt.

    ReplyDelete
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