Commentary: Consider adoption - Symposium to be held March 16

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Mark Reuss
  • 421st Air Base Squadron
RAF MENWITH HILL, England --  It is possible that you know of someone who has adopted before. Along with their adoption story, will likely come even more stories of remarkable sacrifices or unbelievable endings.

Take for example the story of Michelle. Michelle lived in San Antonio and at the age of 33 was about six-months pregnant. One night, she had a dream that a beautiful girl with short brown hair walked up to her bed and tapped her on the hand. In her dream, Michelle recalled how the child waved goodbye and then disappeared in just a few seconds. Michelle woke up with tremendous pain all over her body. Upon arrival to the emergency room, Michelle and her husband learned that she had miscarried.

Devastated by the news for many months, Michelle tried everything to have a child again but nothing worked. Finally, a woman she knew talked to her about adoption. It wasn't anything that interested her at first, but after several months, Michelle and her husband attended an adoption seminar held by an adoption agency. About two years later, they had a beautiful infant boy from China.

Several months later, the adoption was working out very well. Next door, Michelle had a neighbor that, quite honestly, she really didn't get along with. They barely even spoke, but Michelle did notice something. The lady next to her seemed to have a lot of kids in her home, and they were always different ones there that seemed to be hanging around for a while. One of them was a 10-year-old boy who had "the sweetest disposition."

One day, Michelle struck up a conversation with the woman, and four hours later, she learned that the 10-year-old boy was going to be returned to state foster care. As it turned out, the woman was a foster mom who found out that she was pregnant now. Michelle went home, spoke to her husband, and found herself thinking about the boy very much over the next few days. They decided to adopt him, and everything was finalized in about a year.

With two children in her home, and at the age of 38, Michelle met a young lady at her church who attended college at Incarnate Word in San Antonio. The young lady found out that she was pregnant and extremely confused about life. She had a promising career ahead of her and saw motherhood as a potential roadblock to career goals. When she spoke to Michelle, the girl began praying about what to do. One day after church, she asked Michelle and her husband if they would consider adopting her child. The news was shocking to them, but they both discussed it and prayed about it for several weeks. They agreed to it and adopted the boy when he was born.

Just when you thought the story couldn't handle any more children, guess what happened to Michelle? At the age of 42, she finally became pregnant.

Michelle has adopted in nearly every fashion. Based on her experience and vast knowledge, she has committed her life to telling others. In fact, she has organized seminars all across Central Texas and has helped countless numbers of families with vital information. She has become a great ambassador for adoption, but the key for seminars is finding people who are interested in learning more about it.

If you are interested in adoption, we hope you can join March 16 for a seminar on all the various aspects of adoption. The adoption seminar will be held at the RAF Menwith Hill Community Club from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. If you are from out of town and have heard about the seminar, there are some special billeting arrangements that can be made for you.

For more information about the seminar or to register, e-mail Master Sgt. Mark Reuss at mark.reuss@menwithhill.af.mil or call DSN 262-7471.