Her name is Shae . . . she's been with us for a little over two weeks . . . she'll be staying here until she's able to move to her adoptive family . . . and she's probably cuter than anything you got. ;)
Showing posts with label foster care. Show all posts
Showing posts with label foster care. Show all posts
Monday, December 31, 2012
stocking stuffer
Oh, by the way, Santa brought us an early Christmas present.
Her name is Shae . . . she's been with us for a little over two weeks . . . she'll be staying here until she's able to move to her adoptive family . . . and she's probably cuter than anything you got. ;)
Her name is Shae . . . she's been with us for a little over two weeks . . . she'll be staying here until she's able to move to her adoptive family . . . and she's probably cuter than anything you got. ;)
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Saturday, June 23, 2012
how lucky I am.
Mom captured some photos of our very happy reunion.
Leaving her in Iowa the next day was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. It was ten times harder than the first time I had to say goodbye to her - for both of us.
"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." -Carol Sobieski and Thomas Meehan, Annie
This foster care stuff is not for the faint of heart.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
the one who started it all
By the way, we're still Christmasing with family in Arkansas, so it's totally acceptable for me to be writing Christmas posts, just in case you were wondering.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
home for Christmas
Our sweet Olivia, now named Haley Grace, went home with her forever family on Tuesday! Say a prayer of thanksgiving for this Christmas miracle!
Saturday, December 17, 2011
advent
ad·vent/ˈadˌvent/ noun. an arrival or coming, especially one which is awaited.
Meet Olivia Hope. She's been awaited. She has arrived. And, unbeknownst to some very blessed family out there, she is COMING!
As you may have already heard, Olivia's staying with us until she's able to go to her adoptive family. We are so thrilled to get to love on her for a little while! The above picture is from the day Trish and I brought her home from the hospital. She was a tiny 5 pounds, 3 ounces. When she went to the doctor for her check-up a week later, she was 6 pounds, 2 ounces! What can I say? We know how to grow babies around here. Olivia's two weeks old now and getting a little closer to chubby every day.
Though she's only been with us for about a week and a half, baby Olivia has quickly become the golden child of the family. She eats well, she sleeps well, she doesn't cry much, she doesn't spit up, she doesn't whine, she doesn't talk back, she doesn't take my shoes without asking . . . you get the idea. The words "she's perfect" come out of our mouths multiple times a day. She's pretty much an angel. In fact, if you ever see her doing something less than angelic, you should probably call 911 - she might be dying or something. Oh, and she's also gorgeous, which only adds to her angel persona.
And now that I've totally jinxed myself, I'm off to be on baby duty for the night! (edited to add: I wasn't feeling great and was exhausted from working four 12-hour shifts this week, so Trish offered to do last night's feedings - just another of the many reasons I'm so glad Trish is better!)
But first a few pictures for your viewing pleasure . . .
Now tell me that's not an angel . . .
Say a prayer for sweet Olivia and everyone involved in her journey, most notably her birth family and the special family that is being prepared for a different kind of advent this Christmas!
Meet Olivia Hope. She's been awaited. She has arrived. And, unbeknownst to some very blessed family out there, she is COMING!
As you may have already heard, Olivia's staying with us until she's able to go to her adoptive family. We are so thrilled to get to love on her for a little while! The above picture is from the day Trish and I brought her home from the hospital. She was a tiny 5 pounds, 3 ounces. When she went to the doctor for her check-up a week later, she was 6 pounds, 2 ounces! What can I say? We know how to grow babies around here. Olivia's two weeks old now and getting a little closer to chubby every day.
Though she's only been with us for about a week and a half, baby Olivia has quickly become the golden child of the family. She eats well, she sleeps well, she doesn't cry much, she doesn't spit up, she doesn't whine, she doesn't talk back, she doesn't take my shoes without asking . . . you get the idea. The words "she's perfect" come out of our mouths multiple times a day. She's pretty much an angel. In fact, if you ever see her doing something less than angelic, you should probably call 911 - she might be dying or something. Oh, and she's also gorgeous, which only adds to her angel persona.
And now that I've totally jinxed myself, I'm off to be on baby duty for the night! (edited to add: I wasn't feeling great and was exhausted from working four 12-hour shifts this week, so Trish offered to do last night's feedings - just another of the many reasons I'm so glad Trish is better!)
But first a few pictures for your viewing pleasure . . .
Now tell me that's not an angel . . .
Say a prayer for sweet Olivia and everyone involved in her journey, most notably her birth family and the special family that is being prepared for a different kind of advent this Christmas!
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
God says YES.
If you need a reminder of God's faithfulness today, look no further. I've got a great God story for you. This post is a long one, but it's worth the read - I promise. Plus, there's a super-adorable slideshow at the end. Anyway, here's the story.
In June of 2009, I met a woman named Yvonne at Halle/Niva Grace's adoption ceremony. Yvonne was there with her little boy, Wynton, who had spent the first few weeks of his life in pre-adopt foster care with Halle's mom. It was there that someone gave Yvonne a link to this blog, and she decided to visit (to see pictures of the beautiful Halle, of course!). She left a nice comment for me (oh, look, here it is). I replied. The end.
Or not. It was over a year later before I "met" Yvonne again. My family was in the middle of the greatest trial we've ever faced. You remember. It was October 2010, and my mom was a month out from what many medical professionals describe as the worst surgery ever. She was starting chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer. One day, out of the blue, my friend Claire sent me an email about Yvonne. Claire had been the case worker for Yvonne's son Wynton (as well as several of our foster babies). She told me a little bit about Yvonne and her husband Petrick's story...they'd suffered the loss of multiple biological children...they'd experienced several failed adoptions...their newest baby girl Lauren had recently lived and died in my NICU. Claire also told me that Yvonne was still reading my blog, and that the way I'd written about our family's trials had been helpful to Yvonne as she faced the premature birth and loss of her daughter. She also shared with me a link to Yvonne's blog, which I promptly visited.
I went to Yvonne's blog and read about the children she'd loved, most of whom she'd lost...her sons Peter and Peyton who were born too early at 15 and 16 weeks...several babies that she and Petrick had planned to adopt but whose birth mothers ultimately decided to parent them...her little boy Wynton who was the best Christmas present she ever received...and finally, her daughter Lauren Victoria who was also born too soon at 23 weeks. Yvonne spent a month in the hospital before delivering Lauren, and Lauren spent four days in the NICU before going to be with Jesus. I was off work taking care of my mom during this time, so unfortunately I never knew Lauren.
You know how you sometimes feel like you know a person after reading their blog? Well, after reading Yvonne's blog and knowing that she'd been reading mine, that's how I felt. I felt like I knew her, and, as strange as it may sound, I wished I could've been there to be her daughter's nurse. I watched videos of Lauren and listened to the voices of my co-workers as they cared for her, and I wished I could've been the one caring for her. I looked at her pictures, and I wished I had been the one taking them (because you know how I feel about babies and pictures, right?). I wish I could've stamped her tiny footprints on pink paper, and I wished I could've placed her in her mama's arms for the first time.
I ended up emailing Yvonne, just to share those thoughts with her, tell her I was praying for her, and tell her how precious her baby girl was. She told me that she knew I worked in the NICU and that she had hoped I'd be taking care of Lauren, too. She also told me that she'd been praying for my mom (and has since shared with me that, while she was on bedrest last year, she checked my blog daily for Tricia updates) and that my faith throughout Mom's cancer journey had really ministered to her in her pain. And then she said these words, "Even after Lauren died, I still knew that someway, somehow God was going to make things better. I'm still waiting, but I know he is going to do it."
If I didn't have this exchange saved in my inbox, I probably wouldn't believe it happened. I never could've imagined where God would take mine and Yvonne's relationship next.
My mom spent most of her winter months cooped up in the house, so weak and sick that she rarely left her recliner. By springtime, she was starting to feel more like herself again and was still cancer-free! And then summer brought something (or someone) that we never thought we'd have at our house again...a foster baby. Keeping foster babies was something my mom so missed doing while she was sick and something she prayed she would one day be able to do again. Little Patricia was an answer to prayer for our family. Her presence in our home meant things were normal again (or at least as "normal" as things ever are at our house). Trish and I took turns doing all the mom things with Little P...bathing, feeding, getting up with her at night, etc. And everyone else enjoyed loving on her when she wasn't crying, spitting, or pooping. 😉 Mom had a special bond with Little P. Possibly because they shared the same name, but probably because Little P was a such a beautiful reminder of God's faithfulness to our family.
We prayed often that God would provide just the right family to raise Little P. We tried to guess who that family might be and dreamed about who we wished it could be. But God surprised us with a better idea than any of us could've dreamed up on our own.
You see, a year ago, I emailed Yvonne and told her I wished I could've taken care of her baby girl. As it turns out, nine months later, I did. I wished I could've taken her pictures and made her footprints. Nine months later, I did. I wished I could've placed her in her mama's arms for the first time. Nine months later, I did. A year ago, Yvonne was grieving her firstborn daughter. She was also praying for healing for a woman she didn't even know. Nine months later, that same woman was caring for the baby who would become Yvonne's second daughter.
On August 8, Mom placed Little P, now named Madison Grace, into the arms of Yvonne, her mama forever.
So many prayers were prayed in each of these situations...prayers by Yvonne for my mom, prayers by Yvonne and Petrick for God to "make things better", prayers by me for Yvonne and Petrick, prayers by my family for baby Madison. And God, in all of His glorious genius, heard these cries for help, threw them all together, and said YES. He has the best ideas.
So the moral of the story is...read my blog and pray for my family today, and in a couple years, we might give you a baby.
(Just kidding. Maybe.)
In June of 2009, I met a woman named Yvonne at Halle/Niva Grace's adoption ceremony. Yvonne was there with her little boy, Wynton, who had spent the first few weeks of his life in pre-adopt foster care with Halle's mom. It was there that someone gave Yvonne a link to this blog, and she decided to visit (to see pictures of the beautiful Halle, of course!). She left a nice comment for me (oh, look, here it is). I replied. The end.
Or not. It was over a year later before I "met" Yvonne again. My family was in the middle of the greatest trial we've ever faced. You remember. It was October 2010, and my mom was a month out from what many medical professionals describe as the worst surgery ever. She was starting chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer. One day, out of the blue, my friend Claire sent me an email about Yvonne. Claire had been the case worker for Yvonne's son Wynton (as well as several of our foster babies). She told me a little bit about Yvonne and her husband Petrick's story...they'd suffered the loss of multiple biological children...they'd experienced several failed adoptions...their newest baby girl Lauren had recently lived and died in my NICU. Claire also told me that Yvonne was still reading my blog, and that the way I'd written about our family's trials had been helpful to Yvonne as she faced the premature birth and loss of her daughter. She also shared with me a link to Yvonne's blog, which I promptly visited.
I went to Yvonne's blog and read about the children she'd loved, most of whom she'd lost...her sons Peter and Peyton who were born too early at 15 and 16 weeks...several babies that she and Petrick had planned to adopt but whose birth mothers ultimately decided to parent them...her little boy Wynton who was the best Christmas present she ever received...and finally, her daughter Lauren Victoria who was also born too soon at 23 weeks. Yvonne spent a month in the hospital before delivering Lauren, and Lauren spent four days in the NICU before going to be with Jesus. I was off work taking care of my mom during this time, so unfortunately I never knew Lauren.
You know how you sometimes feel like you know a person after reading their blog? Well, after reading Yvonne's blog and knowing that she'd been reading mine, that's how I felt. I felt like I knew her, and, as strange as it may sound, I wished I could've been there to be her daughter's nurse. I watched videos of Lauren and listened to the voices of my co-workers as they cared for her, and I wished I could've been the one caring for her. I looked at her pictures, and I wished I had been the one taking them (because you know how I feel about babies and pictures, right?). I wish I could've stamped her tiny footprints on pink paper, and I wished I could've placed her in her mama's arms for the first time.
I ended up emailing Yvonne, just to share those thoughts with her, tell her I was praying for her, and tell her how precious her baby girl was. She told me that she knew I worked in the NICU and that she had hoped I'd be taking care of Lauren, too. She also told me that she'd been praying for my mom (and has since shared with me that, while she was on bedrest last year, she checked my blog daily for Tricia updates) and that my faith throughout Mom's cancer journey had really ministered to her in her pain. And then she said these words, "Even after Lauren died, I still knew that someway, somehow God was going to make things better. I'm still waiting, but I know he is going to do it."
If I didn't have this exchange saved in my inbox, I probably wouldn't believe it happened. I never could've imagined where God would take mine and Yvonne's relationship next.
My mom spent most of her winter months cooped up in the house, so weak and sick that she rarely left her recliner. By springtime, she was starting to feel more like herself again and was still cancer-free! And then summer brought something (or someone) that we never thought we'd have at our house again...a foster baby. Keeping foster babies was something my mom so missed doing while she was sick and something she prayed she would one day be able to do again. Little Patricia was an answer to prayer for our family. Her presence in our home meant things were normal again (or at least as "normal" as things ever are at our house). Trish and I took turns doing all the mom things with Little P...bathing, feeding, getting up with her at night, etc. And everyone else enjoyed loving on her when she wasn't crying, spitting, or pooping. 😉 Mom had a special bond with Little P. Possibly because they shared the same name, but probably because Little P was a such a beautiful reminder of God's faithfulness to our family.
We prayed often that God would provide just the right family to raise Little P. We tried to guess who that family might be and dreamed about who we wished it could be. But God surprised us with a better idea than any of us could've dreamed up on our own.
You see, a year ago, I emailed Yvonne and told her I wished I could've taken care of her baby girl. As it turns out, nine months later, I did. I wished I could've taken her pictures and made her footprints. Nine months later, I did. I wished I could've placed her in her mama's arms for the first time. Nine months later, I did. A year ago, Yvonne was grieving her firstborn daughter. She was also praying for healing for a woman she didn't even know. Nine months later, that same woman was caring for the baby who would become Yvonne's second daughter.
On August 8, Mom placed Little P, now named Madison Grace, into the arms of Yvonne, her mama forever.
 |
| I don't think there has ever been a big brother so in love with his little sister! |
So many prayers were prayed in each of these situations...prayers by Yvonne for my mom, prayers by Yvonne and Petrick for God to "make things better", prayers by me for Yvonne and Petrick, prayers by my family for baby Madison. And God, in all of His glorious genius, heard these cries for help, threw them all together, and said YES. He has the best ideas.
So the moral of the story is...read my blog and pray for my family today, and in a couple years, we might give you a baby.
(Just kidding. Maybe.)
Wednesday, October 05, 2011
Halle is three.
I got a surprise phone call a couple of days ago, and a tiny voice on the other end of the line said, "I want to see you."
The sweetest little girl in Iowa turned three today (did I mention they moved to Iowa? They did. In May. Hence her wanting to see me.). Not a day goes by that I don't think of her, miss her, and pray for her.
It's hard to believe that three October 5th's ago, I'd never even heard of her.
The sweetest little girl in Iowa turned three today (did I mention they moved to Iowa? They did. In May. Hence her wanting to see me.). Not a day goes by that I don't think of her, miss her, and pray for her.
It's hard to believe that three October 5th's ago, I'd never even heard of her.
Saturday, August 06, 2011
a little about a little p
Yes, Little P is still with us. Yes, she over a month old now. Yes, I've only dedicated one post to her (and even that one post she had to share with Trish).
Usually when we have a foster baby, his/her pictures and updates are plastered all over my blog on a pretty regular basis. Unfortunately, due to vacations and cancer and just general summer craziness, I'm afraid Little P has gotten the short end of the stick in the blog department.
I don't think she's too happy about it, either.
It's okay, Little P. I promise you are just as adorable and have been just as photographed as all of our other babies. See?
Little P (or maybe I should say Not-so-little P) went to the doctor this week and weighed a whopping 9 lbs, 1 oz! She was 6 lbs, 12 oz at birth. What can I say? The girl likes her food. Just what kind of food she likes has yet to be determined. Due to fussiness and spitting up issues (and possibly some diva issues?), we're on our third formula, and she seems to like it the best so far. In fact, she likes it so much that she wants to wake up every four hours and eat some. I know what you're thinking - "Callie, she's a newborn. Of course she wants to eat every four hours." You don't know this newborn. This newborn started sleeping all night (we're talking 7-8 hours) on her second night home from the hospital! She's advanced. And, while she is a bit of a diva sometimes, we think that just gives her more character.
Oh, yeah, and she smiles now. And every once in a while she'll let out a little coo. I've yet to get a picture that showcases her adorable dimples, but I'm not giving up.
By far the most exciting news in the life of Little P is that she met her family last week! I can't wait to tell you all about her mom, dad, and big brother. I'll post pictures and share details when things are a little more official. I'll also share her new name! She's glad to finally be called something that doesn't sound like a child rap star. ;-)
Little P's "Gotcha Day" is set for Monday! Until then, we're soaking up every second we can. :-)
Friday, July 29, 2011
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
back in the saddle again
In the notes section of my phone, there is still a to-do list labeled "BW", which stands for "Before Whipple." Little did I know when I entitled that list that is exactly how time would be measured over the next several months. Before Whipple. After Whipple. Everything was normal before the Whipple, before my mom got pancreatic cancer. So much was not normal afterward, for so much longer than we expected. However, little by little, normalcy (or something like it) has crept back into our lives and we (mainly Mom) have found ourselves experiencing so many things for the first time again.
First day home. First trip to church. First time to go out to eat. First time to go shopping. First time to sleep all night. First time to stay awake all day. First Christmas. First time to hold a baby. First time to celebrate a birthday. First time to eat lunch with Tekia at school. First garden.
We had another first last week - our first vacation! (our trip was amazing, we made so many great friends, and I'll blog about it soon!) Trish did awesome. So awesome, in fact, that two days after getting home she added another first to the list.
First foster baby.
Yep, seriously. Are we crazy or what?
Foster care was one of the many "normal" things that cancer took from us. Last fall, we weren't sure that Mom would ever have the opportunity or the ability to care for another baby (and neither would Dad or I, as we'd be taking care of her and the kids). But after her last clear CT scan back in April, one of the first things I did was send our social worker a text from the chemo room telling her she could put us back on her "list." :-)
So here we are. Meet Little P.
A sweet baby girl who was born last week and needs a place to stay for a little while. Maybe a few days. Maybe a few weeks. Whatev.
Wanna guess what the P stands for? Oh, you know, just Patricia. As in, my mom's first name. How great is that? We hadn't planned on taking any babies until we were done with our summer traveling (we're going on our original family vacation with the whole family next week) . . . but how could we say no to a Patricia?? Especially a Patricia who didn't have anywhere to go? So we didn't say no, because that would've been silly.
We originally thought she'd move to her new family by the end of this week, but now it's looking like she'll be around a little longer. So she'll stay with another family while we're on our trip and will likely return to our house when we get back (unless she's able to go to her adoptive family before then, which would, of course, be great for her). For now we're enjoying getting to love on her while we can! Jamal and Kia are at camp this week, so Little P has our undivided attention.
On the schedule for tomorrow is her first photo shoot. But right now I'm headed up to my area of the house with a baby, a bottle, and a binkie (normally I prefer paci, but obviously binkie sounded cooler here). I'm off work tomorrow, so I'm on baby duty tonight.
We are so happy to be back. Can't believe we've been blessed enough to get to do this again. :-)
First day home. First trip to church. First time to go out to eat. First time to go shopping. First time to sleep all night. First time to stay awake all day. First Christmas. First time to hold a baby. First time to celebrate a birthday. First time to eat lunch with Tekia at school. First garden.
We had another first last week - our first vacation! (our trip was amazing, we made so many great friends, and I'll blog about it soon!) Trish did awesome. So awesome, in fact, that two days after getting home she added another first to the list.
First foster baby.
Yep, seriously. Are we crazy or what?
Foster care was one of the many "normal" things that cancer took from us. Last fall, we weren't sure that Mom would ever have the opportunity or the ability to care for another baby (and neither would Dad or I, as we'd be taking care of her and the kids). But after her last clear CT scan back in April, one of the first things I did was send our social worker a text from the chemo room telling her she could put us back on her "list." :-)
So here we are. Meet Little P.
A sweet baby girl who was born last week and needs a place to stay for a little while. Maybe a few days. Maybe a few weeks. Whatev.
Wanna guess what the P stands for? Oh, you know, just Patricia. As in, my mom's first name. How great is that? We hadn't planned on taking any babies until we were done with our summer traveling (we're going on our original family vacation with the whole family next week) . . . but how could we say no to a Patricia?? Especially a Patricia who didn't have anywhere to go? So we didn't say no, because that would've been silly.
We originally thought she'd move to her new family by the end of this week, but now it's looking like she'll be around a little longer. So she'll stay with another family while we're on our trip and will likely return to our house when we get back (unless she's able to go to her adoptive family before then, which would, of course, be great for her). For now we're enjoying getting to love on her while we can! Jamal and Kia are at camp this week, so Little P has our undivided attention.
On the schedule for tomorrow is her first photo shoot. But right now I'm headed up to my area of the house with a baby, a bottle, and a binkie (normally I prefer paci, but obviously binkie sounded cooler here). I'm off work tomorrow, so I'm on baby duty tonight.
We are so happy to be back. Can't believe we've been blessed enough to get to do this again. :-)
Thursday, March 24, 2011
a post in which I ramble about birth families, brokenness, and beautiful
So I guess some of you might be interested to hear about Tekia's recent visit with her birth family. It all started a few weeks ago when my mom and I discovered that Tekia's birth mother, QT, was on facebook. During the first year and half of Tekia's life, QT was like a part of our family. She was trying to regain custody of her kids and we were trying to help her in any way we could. Obviously, that didn't happen, and we lost touch. While we've kept in touch with her family, we haven't seen or heard from QT in nine years.
Long story short, we reconnected through facebook, and last Friday, Mom, Tekia, and I met QT, her mom, two of her sisters, and her sons at a park for a little family reunion. Tekia has seen her grandmother, aunts, and older brother several times throughout the last six years or so, but she hasn't had any kind of relationship with her birth mother since she was a year old. I'm sure everyone was a little nervous, but it went really well. Tekia mostly played with her brother Antonio, who's 14 months older than she is. They've always gotten along great and he absolutely adores her. Their little brother Christian is 18 months old and looks nothing like them, with the exception of the really adorable dimples that everyone in their family shares (Tekia and Antonio, on the other hand, could pass for twins). And, just in case you're wondering, Antonio lives with his and Kia's paternal grandmother, and Christian lives with QT.
A lot of adoptive parents would cringe at the thought of their 10-year-old spending time with the birth mother who ultimately chose not to parent her, especially when that mother is living a life that's far from the one they envision for their child. My mom has always said that if a mother can love more than one child, why can't a child love more than one mother? And how can we expect that child to learn to love the broken and the lost if "the broken and the lost" include her own flesh and blood and we choose to ignore them? QT may not be a part of our family like she was nine years ago, but the fact remains that she will always be a part of our family. There's no denying that. We couldn't forget her even if we wanted to - Tekia reminds us of her every day in so many ways. We've never stopped thinking of QT or praying that she will allow God to make her what He wants her to be, and that prayer remains the same. I think my mom and I were more excited to see her than Kia was!
Anyway, enough of my rambling . . . here are some pics!
Antonio and Tekia. Are they cute or what?
Antonio's sidewalk art. It breaks my heart that these two don't live under the same roof.
Christian. Adorable.
"Come get me, Kia!"
Tekia with her first family
Mom, Landu/"Mama Bebe" (aka QT's mom), me, Christian, and QT . . . QT and I were distracted by the baby
These photos are both heartwarming and heartbreaking to me, for they are a reminder that, although adoption is a beautiful thing, it is not without its brokenness. My family as I know it only exists because the one in these pictures does not. Tekia is ours only because she cannot be theirs. QT has never watched her only daughter dance in a recital, score a goal in a soccer game, or sing in the Christmas musical. Antonio doesn't get to spend every day with the sister he craves to know. Tekia doesn't understand the phrases that her African grandmother has taught to her other grandchildren in her native tongue. Christian just thinks his sister is some stranger he met at the park. There's another child somewhere in Memphis who doesn't even know that these three kids are his siblings, too. Things are broken here. And yet, God found a way to make them beautiful. Because one day, not so long ago, there was a baby girl left sleeping on a couch in a social worker's office, and a few hours later she was home. That's broken turned beautiful, people. And I'm so grateful.
Still, I hope for a day when everyone who loves Tekia will live together in a perfect home where nothing is broken and we all belong to one family. That will be truly beautiful.
Monday, January 17, 2011
dangerous unselfishness (blog recycling)
I'm recycling an old blog post today. I don't usually do that, but, since today is my dad's birthday and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, this old post seemed like the perfect one for today. Two birds. One stone. I'm super-pleased with myself. :-)
Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness. One day a man came to Jesus, and he wanted to raise some questions about some vital matters of life. At points he wanted to trick Jesus, and show him that he knew a little more than Jesus knew and throw him off base.
Now that question could have easily ended up in a philosophical and theological debate. But Jesus immediately pulled that question from mid-air, and placed it on a dangerous curve between Jerusalem and Jericho. And he talked about a certain man, who fell among thieves. You remember that a Levite and a priest passed by on the other side. They didn't stop to help him. And finally a man of another race came by. He got down from his beast, decided not to be compassionate by proxy. But he got down with him, administered first aid, and helped the man in need. Jesus ended up saying, this was the good man, this was the great man, because he had the capacity to project the "I" into the "thou," and to be concerned about his brother.
Now you know, we use our imagination a great deal to try to determine why the priest and the Levite didn't stop. . . . But I'm going to tell you what my imagination tells me. It's possible that those men were afraid. You see, the Jericho road is a dangerous road. . . . And you know, it's possible that the priest and the Levite looked over that man on the ground and wondered if the robbers were still around. Or it's possible that they felt that the man on the ground was merely faking. And he was acting like he had been robbed and hurt, in order to seize them over there, lure them there for quick and easy seizure. And so the first question that the priest asked -- the first question that the Levite asked was, "If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?" But then the Good Samaritan came by. And he reversed the question: "If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?"
--Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee on April 3, 1968
A few days before the 40th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination, my parents and I attended the 2008 Jefferson Awards dinner. The first sentence of the above excerpt (from the "Promised Land" speech) was quoted at the dinner. You may not be familiar with these awards (I wasn't before my parents were nominated). They originally started in 1972, when Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Senator Robert Taft, Jr., and Sam Beard founded the American Institute for Public Service; they wanted to create a "Nobel Prize" for community and public service.
To quote The Commercial Appeal, "Recipients are individuals who recognize and give new meaning to the old phrase that 'one person can make a difference.' These unsung heroes encounter problems in their communities, believe they can help and create innovative solutions - all without concern for personal recognition or reward."
There are national and local Jefferson Awards, and The Commercial Appeal started sponsoring the program here nine years ago. I'm not sure how many people were nominated this year, but I do know that 700+ people have been nominated over the last nine years. The judges narrow the nominees to around 30 finalists, who are invited to the dinner and awards ceremony. Ten local winners are then selected from the finalists. It will probably come as no surprise to you that my mom was nominated for a Jefferson Award in 2001 and was ultimately selected as one of the ten winners (I wasn't blogging back then . . . sorry, Mom). This year it was Dad's turn. He was nominated for the award by his good friend, David, who is the executive director of AGAPE. He was also selected as one of 31 finalists. We didn't find out until the awards ceremony that he was one of the winners! He received a medallion and, more importantly, $500 to be donated to the charity of his choice.
It was really amazing and humbling to listen to the stories of the winners' service to their community. There was a Jefferson Awards insert in the paper the following Sunday, with the stories of each of the ten winners. However, I don't think that's online. Click here to read a short article about the awards and winners.
Here's Dad's section from the Sunday paper. I think my parents would agree with me when I say that this article is a little . . . dramatic. For instance, I wouldn't say their decision to adopt two children was "easy" (more like "much prayed-over"). But it's a good article nonetheless. :-)
Randy was nominated not only for his servant leadership as a 12-year board member and 6-year board chairman of AGAPE Child & Family Services, but also for his personal commitment to the ministry of foster care.
AGAPE is a Christian-based non-profit organization that serves children, adults and families through foster care, adoption, parenting services and counseling.
Randy does not just sit as a board member. Since 1991, he and his wife, Tricia, have fostered more than 20 children. At two different times, an adoptive family could not be found for foster children in their care. On both occasions, the solution was easy. They adopted them.
In 2001, his wife was diagnosed with cancer. Randy persevered and continued to foster and to parent their two adopted children.
Randy helped AGAPE grow from serving 139 children and families in 1995 to 11,283 children and families in 2007.
He has not only served the foster children in his home, but also served the birth parents and relatives of these children by mentoring and assisting them whenever possible. He and his wife, despite their many personal struggles, have opened their home to young mothers in order to teach parenting skills, to encourage bonding, and to give them a sense of family.
Under his leadership, AGAPE launched "Families in Touch," a ministry that serves homeless, pregnant mothers and their children by providing apartments and supportive services. He helped initiate the "Family Permanency Model," which successfully moved 88% of foster children in AGAPE foster homes out of foster care and into safe and permanent homes within 15 months or less. He also helped start AGAPE's Counseling Center, which served nearly 1,000 children in 2007.
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Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness. One day a man came to Jesus, and he wanted to raise some questions about some vital matters of life. At points he wanted to trick Jesus, and show him that he knew a little more than Jesus knew and throw him off base.
Now that question could have easily ended up in a philosophical and theological debate. But Jesus immediately pulled that question from mid-air, and placed it on a dangerous curve between Jerusalem and Jericho. And he talked about a certain man, who fell among thieves. You remember that a Levite and a priest passed by on the other side. They didn't stop to help him. And finally a man of another race came by. He got down from his beast, decided not to be compassionate by proxy. But he got down with him, administered first aid, and helped the man in need. Jesus ended up saying, this was the good man, this was the great man, because he had the capacity to project the "I" into the "thou," and to be concerned about his brother.
Now you know, we use our imagination a great deal to try to determine why the priest and the Levite didn't stop. . . . But I'm going to tell you what my imagination tells me. It's possible that those men were afraid. You see, the Jericho road is a dangerous road. . . . And you know, it's possible that the priest and the Levite looked over that man on the ground and wondered if the robbers were still around. Or it's possible that they felt that the man on the ground was merely faking. And he was acting like he had been robbed and hurt, in order to seize them over there, lure them there for quick and easy seizure. And so the first question that the priest asked -- the first question that the Levite asked was, "If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?" But then the Good Samaritan came by. And he reversed the question: "If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?"
--Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee on April 3, 1968
A few days before the 40th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination, my parents and I attended the 2008 Jefferson Awards dinner. The first sentence of the above excerpt (from the "Promised Land" speech) was quoted at the dinner. You may not be familiar with these awards (I wasn't before my parents were nominated). They originally started in 1972, when Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Senator Robert Taft, Jr., and Sam Beard founded the American Institute for Public Service; they wanted to create a "Nobel Prize" for community and public service.
To quote The Commercial Appeal, "Recipients are individuals who recognize and give new meaning to the old phrase that 'one person can make a difference.' These unsung heroes encounter problems in their communities, believe they can help and create innovative solutions - all without concern for personal recognition or reward."
There are national and local Jefferson Awards, and The Commercial Appeal started sponsoring the program here nine years ago. I'm not sure how many people were nominated this year, but I do know that 700+ people have been nominated over the last nine years. The judges narrow the nominees to around 30 finalists, who are invited to the dinner and awards ceremony. Ten local winners are then selected from the finalists. It will probably come as no surprise to you that my mom was nominated for a Jefferson Award in 2001 and was ultimately selected as one of the ten winners (I wasn't blogging back then . . . sorry, Mom). This year it was Dad's turn. He was nominated for the award by his good friend, David, who is the executive director of AGAPE. He was also selected as one of 31 finalists. We didn't find out until the awards ceremony that he was one of the winners! He received a medallion and, more importantly, $500 to be donated to the charity of his choice.
Congratulations, Dad!
It was really amazing and humbling to listen to the stories of the winners' service to their community. There was a Jefferson Awards insert in the paper the following Sunday, with the stories of each of the ten winners. However, I don't think that's online. Click here to read a short article about the awards and winners.
Here's Dad's section from the Sunday paper. I think my parents would agree with me when I say that this article is a little . . . dramatic. For instance, I wouldn't say their decision to adopt two children was "easy" (more like "much prayed-over"). But it's a good article nonetheless. :-)
Randy was nominated not only for his servant leadership as a 12-year board member and 6-year board chairman of AGAPE Child & Family Services, but also for his personal commitment to the ministry of foster care.
AGAPE is a Christian-based non-profit organization that serves children, adults and families through foster care, adoption, parenting services and counseling.
Randy does not just sit as a board member. Since 1991, he and his wife, Tricia, have fostered more than 20 children. At two different times, an adoptive family could not be found for foster children in their care. On both occasions, the solution was easy. They adopted them.
In 2001, his wife was diagnosed with cancer. Randy persevered and continued to foster and to parent their two adopted children.
Randy helped AGAPE grow from serving 139 children and families in 1995 to 11,283 children and families in 2007.
He has not only served the foster children in his home, but also served the birth parents and relatives of these children by mentoring and assisting them whenever possible. He and his wife, despite their many personal struggles, have opened their home to young mothers in order to teach parenting skills, to encourage bonding, and to give them a sense of family.
Under his leadership, AGAPE launched "Families in Touch," a ministry that serves homeless, pregnant mothers and their children by providing apartments and supportive services. He helped initiate the "Family Permanency Model," which successfully moved 88% of foster children in AGAPE foster homes out of foster care and into safe and permanent homes within 15 months or less. He also helped start AGAPE's Counseling Center, which served nearly 1,000 children in 2007.
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Happy Birthday, Dad! Thanks for always showing me how to live "the dream." Love you.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
out on the town
HeartLight was last night. It was awesome. Over $325,000 was raised to help children and families in Memphis. Children like Halle and Layla and Nate and Tekia and Jamal and Jamier. Families like the one who lives here. It was truly a blessed evening. And my whole family was there.
That's right - my whole family.
My whole family was also together with our church family this morning . . . for the first time in a long time. Needless to say, it was a good weekend. God answered a lot of prayers.
And my mother is positively exhausted! Maybe that means she'll sleep well tonight? We'll see . . .
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