Michael and Ashley Johnson decided to adopt on June 23, 2015, after coming across the following post and video on Facebook created by an orphanage volunteer: Aging out in October 2015!!!
Ward ages out in October 2015! That’s three short months away. I’m generally not the begging type, but being an advocate sometimes requires stepping outside of one’s comfort zone, so that’s where I am now. Out of desperation for this child, I am begging for a family to please step forward for Wang, and give him the gift of his very own family.
Ward knows that his 14th birthday will mean the end of his dream to be a son and have a family to call his own. Ward knows that he still waits while his orphanage brothers and sisters have gone home with their forever families. Can you imagine how it must feel to be thirteen years old and knowing that all your friends have been chosen, but no one has chosen you.
In China, as hundreds of millions of Chinese nationals make their way back to their hometowns to spend Chinese New Year with loved ones, thirteen-year-old Ward sits alone in front of a computer screen at his orphanage. With the exception of a few ayis caring for those in their charge, the orphanage is deserted. Most of the workers are away celebrating this special time of year with their families, while Ward, and a few of his orphanage buddies, are left behind.
Ward has always lived at the orphanage and never had the privilege of being a foster child and living the life of a son. Ward has watched as many of his orphanage siblings have been adopted, and he has expressed a desire for a family of his own. Ward WANTS a family!
After watching the video of Ward, both Michael and Ashley knew that he was meant to be their child. They answered God’s call, and have worked diligently to find an agency and complete all paperwork from scratch to have their dossier ready to submit to China in six weeks. Michael and Ashley have a biological son (13) and daughter (9), and the entire family is excited to be growing through adoption!
8/17/15—LOA RECEIVED; HOPING TO TRAVEL 9/11