Wow. Looking for new word, but still wow. There are amazing people, who do quietly do amazing things. Sometimes you have to look closely (or have someone point you in the right direction) to see those things that have been sitting in front of you all along.
Snoqualmie Mayor Matt Larson, his wife Jennifer and their four children made the news last night.
It had nothing to do with small Snoqualmie Valley town happenings and everything to do with Russia- and a bill signed today by Russian President Putin that blocks the adoption of Russian children by U.S. families. According to The Washington Post, “The adoption bill is seen as retaliation against a U.S. law that targets corrupt Russian officials.”
Thousands of miles away, our small town mayor shared the story of his family and the four children he and Jennifer adopted from Russian orphanages. One son, Eddie, was 6 when they brought him home to Snoqualmie and gave him a life beyond that orphanage.
This is a small town. Our kids are friends. We know each other, and yet sometimes we just don’t know everything until a WOW moment hits us. That’s when you learn things about people you thought you already knew.
You can watch the story for yourself HERE.
Comments
Unfortunately and with a heavy heart, I’m sad to say that, in my experience in adoptions and child protection services, it’s perhaps for the best that adoptions are blocked. Children coming from Russia (and all parts of the former USSR) are extreme and in need of intense services for years if not for a lifetime. Many children have been returned, many attempts to return children have been refused by the former SSRs. Do more research before forming a “Oh poor children” conclusion!
I wish people would adopt American babies and not the kids from foreign countries. Considering the stories, sometimes I think it’s a plot to rid the other countries of their “problem” or “embarrassment”. We have plenty of kids languishing in the foster system … adopt them why doncha!