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A Family’s “Thank You” to SNAF Donors

Adoptive family with son in wheelchair

The Court family expresses their gratitude to those who donated to Holt’s Special Needs Adoption Fund (SNAF), which helped them to bring their son, Eric, home in 2015. 

THANK YOU to everyone whose generous donations to the Special Needs Adoption Fund made it possible for us to meet the costs necessary for us to bring our son, Eric, home. We are so grateful that he is here with us now and we are together as a family!

One year ago, we learned about Eric for the first time through Holt International Children’s Services. My wife discovered Eric on their waiting child list. She felt immediately drawn to him and told me with tears in her eyes that he needed to be in our family. We talked with a representative from Holt and we both wanted to apply for adoption, but I really didn’t see how we could meet the costs. In fact, just a few weeks after discovering Eric, I was in the midst of writing an email to Holt explaining that we couldn’t proceed with the adoption because of finances when I was suddenly struck with a very forceful thought. The thought was, “If you walk away from this child, then you’re abandoning him.” I couldn’t press “Send.” I deleted the message. The next day we agreed to do everything we could to become Eric’s parents.

We witnessed many miracles in the weeks and months following our decision. The financial barriers that always seemed like insurmountable, snow-capped mountains looming before us melted slowly before our eyes. Thanks to a merciful Heavenly Father and your generous donations, we have been able to meet all of the necessary costs.

EricCourt

And now, at the beginning of 2016, he is here and we are together as a family! Our son is from Northeast China and he has been waiting for a forever family of his own for more than ten years. As I said, this past year we witnessed many miracles — one of the miracles is that we talked with wonderful people who had personally met Eric in China and had since been working hard to advocate for his adoption. They told us that he was a very special boy. They said he was very smart, thoughtful and communicated very well. They said that although he was in a wheelchair and had special medical needs, he just needed a loving family and access to good medical care to help him unlock his huge potential. What they couldn’t tell us is HOW HUGE his potential is!! They couldn’t tell us HOW SMART he is!! They couldn’t tell us HOW THOUGHTFUL and CARING he is! They couldn’t tell us HOW BRAVE he is! They couldn’t tell us that he has a smile that can light up the whole sky! They couldn’t tell us what a keen wit and a sharp sense of humor he has! They couldn’t tell us how resilient he is and how he meets life’s challenges with a maturity and grace and dignity that is nothing short of astonishing! And so we’re telling you, we are SO GRATEFUL that he is our SON!

Now, when he calls me “Baba” and my wife “Mama” in a way that sounds just right to my ears and my heart, I shudder to think what would have happened if I had pressed “Send” on that email or if I had lost hope or courage along the way. We are grateful to God that Eric is here. We are grateful for donations like yours that made it possible for us to bring him home. What can we say, but THANK YOU, THANK YOU ! ! !

The Court Family 

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