You Don't Have to Give Big.

I guess that most of you do not know us personally, but those that do know us know how hard we’ve been working to save and make money to bring Alec and Zhenya home. It has not been easy. The temptation is to try and do everything without having to ask for help. I guess that I went into this adoption assuming that people would offer to donate to our cause. We were very low key to begin with. We didn’t want to turn people off. Naïve, I know.

I look back on the past four months and I realize how many mistakes we have made in our rush to get things completed fast. We wasted time waiting on FBI background checks when it wasn’t necessary. We messed up paperwork, over and over again. And we didn’t ask for help right off the bat.

Part of the problem is the pace of our adoption. Alec was in danger of being sent to the asylum on his 4th birthday. We had to move lightning fast. It has been only a month since we applied for immigration approval. We’ll probably travel in less than a month. That’s not much time to orchestrate fundraisers and apply for grants.

I could not live the rest of my life knowing that Alec lived and died in a mental asylum because I was too frightened of the cost of adoption. I would always wonder if I had really given my everything. It is a steep price to be sure. Many loving families are scared away from saving children like Alec and Zhenya because it is so costly.

I want to give a quick shout out to some of our supporters. I know that you are helping the best that you can. Thank you to FMBC, Mom’s Carelink, Cathy, Jana, Ruth, Lisa, Marilyn, Renee (enchilada queen!), Becky, Kristin and others who would prefer to be anonymous! You have helped the best that you can. I know that many others plan to help us with the children while we are both away. You have made us feel so loved! You have helped us to get this far and we won’t forget it.

But, we could use some more help. We have so many generous friends! Like hundreds! I’ll bet they think that $5 or $10 wouldn’t help. It would only be a drop in the bucket, right? Wrong! I’ve seen God multiply every gift that we have been given so far. I can’t explain how much that has boosted my faith. You don’t have to give big to make a big difference.

Alec and Zhenya have a loving family and home waiting for them. A big sister that prayed and cried over them right along side me for months. A brother with Down Syndrome who will understand them in a way that no one else ever will. A bunch of other brothers to teach them and protect them. A daddy to wrestle with them and teach them how to play baseball. And a mommy to snuggle with and kiss their little piggies. We just need some more help to make this happen.

We thank you for sharing this on your blog, for posting this on your face book page and on twitter. Right now we can use the exposure. The more people we can reach the better, right? We are saving the lives of two special boys.

Tax deductible donations can be made through our family sponsorship page: http://www.reecesrainbow.org/sponsornance.html

If you want that tax deduction but you are not comfortable making a contribution online, checks can be mailed to:

Reece’s Rainbow
P.O. Box 4024
Gaithersburg, MD 20885

If you don’t care about a tax deduction you can contribute through the chip-in at the top of the page.

Your gifts of encouragement, time, prayer, and yes, funds, mean so very much to us. We could not accomplish this without you. Thank you for helping to save and transform the lives of two special boys. We look forward to caring for them as sons and helping them reach their full potential!