Why adopt international? Why not adopt domestically?
Sometimes, I have people question why we would adopt internationally instead of adopting domestically. There are really several answers to this for our family, but the main reason for our personal choice is this:
We LOVE the United States of America. Both Dustin and I have served honorably in the United States Marine Corps, and, of course, the option to adopt domestically is one that we have considered and prayed about in the past.
Having served in the military and traveled for mission trips, we have witnessed children in third world countries living on the streets with little to no hope of finding a home or loving family. These children do not have access to clean water or to food, they don't even have access to medical care or an education. Their poverty and desolation are beyond anything we have witnessed within the US.
While we know that a foster home isn't every child's best option, the children in US foster homes do have access to food, clean water, medical care, public education, and even a home and foster family rather than being in orphanages and on the street.
However, in many third world countries, these necessities are not available to orphans and street children. Many times these orphans end up starving to death or involved in human trafficking. Seeing the children first hand in third world countries living on the streets in such atrocious conditions absolutely broke our hearts. For us, it was clear that God had placed these other countries on our hearts.
If someone feels very strongly that domestic adoption is "better" or what we "should" have done, I would definitely urge those individuals to follow that calling and begin the process to adopt or foster within the US! There is definitely a need here too.
We know that EVERY child deserves a family! While our children came to us from a different country, perhaps yours will be from the US!
Here are some alarming statistics:
"Every 3.6 seconds one person dies of starvation. Usually it is a child under the age of 5." (UNICEF.org)
"Every year, an estimated 9.7 million children under the age of five die from largely preventable causes. The world knows what it takes to improve child health and survival but millions still die because they lack access to these basic services." (UNICEF.org)
"Worldwide, almost 20% of all trafficking victims are children." (UNODC.org)
"Over 1 billion children suffer from at least one form of severe deprivation of basic needs like water, food, and sanitation."(SOS-USA.org)
"We learned that orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they're not real before you hold them in your arms. But once you do, everything changes." David Platt "Radical"
Sometimes, I have people question why we would adopt internationally instead of adopting domestically. There are really several answers to this for our family, but the main reason for our personal choice is this:
We LOVE the United States of America. Both Dustin and I have served honorably in the United States Marine Corps, and, of course, the option to adopt domestically is one that we have considered and prayed about in the past.
Having served in the military and traveled for mission trips, we have witnessed children in third world countries living on the streets with little to no hope of finding a home or loving family. These children do not have access to clean water or to food, they don't even have access to medical care or an education. Their poverty and desolation are beyond anything we have witnessed within the US.
While we know that a foster home isn't every child's best option, the children in US foster homes do have access to food, clean water, medical care, public education, and even a home and foster family rather than being in orphanages and on the street.
However, in many third world countries, these necessities are not available to orphans and street children. Many times these orphans end up starving to death or involved in human trafficking. Seeing the children first hand in third world countries living on the streets in such atrocious conditions absolutely broke our hearts. For us, it was clear that God had placed these other countries on our hearts.
If someone feels very strongly that domestic adoption is "better" or what we "should" have done, I would definitely urge those individuals to follow that calling and begin the process to adopt or foster within the US! There is definitely a need here too.
We know that EVERY child deserves a family! While our children came to us from a different country, perhaps yours will be from the US!
Here are some alarming statistics:
"Every 3.6 seconds one person dies of starvation. Usually it is a child under the age of 5." (UNICEF.org)
"Every year, an estimated 9.7 million children under the age of five die from largely preventable causes. The world knows what it takes to improve child health and survival but millions still die because they lack access to these basic services." (UNICEF.org)
"Worldwide, almost 20% of all trafficking victims are children." (UNODC.org)
"Over 1 billion children suffer from at least one form of severe deprivation of basic needs like water, food, and sanitation."(SOS-USA.org)
"We learned that orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they're not real before you hold them in your arms. But once you do, everything changes." David Platt "Radical"
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