I just wanted to take a minute to put an update on our trip to Orlando this week.
We left Central at 2:00 am. We drove through the night and the next morning, arriving at the airport around 11:00. Upon arriving, we learned that the only thing we could do was wait... possibly up to 24 hours for processing. The primary reason for the long processing (we later found out for ourselves) was that there were so many different government departments involved. There was instant frustration when we learned that Beth and Justin couldn't get back to see Will (the orphan they are adopting) or Beth's mom (who had escorted Will from Haiti). We were told we would have to wait in a designated area (near the baggage claim and "food court").
Once we were directed to where we were supposed to wait at the airport, we were joined by a few other families in the same situation. A PR representative from one of the governing departments came by and tried to explain what was going on at that point. We were told that the incoming orphans were classified into 1 of 3 categories. Category 1 meant that the adoption had been finalized before the earthquake... all the paperwork has been previously filed (by both Haitian and American governments) and once it was processed at the airport, the child would be released to his/her new parents. Category 2 meant that all the paperwork was finished but had not yet been processed. As long as the papers were all together (with the parents at the airport), a criminal background check would be performed and the child would probably be released to the new parents. Category 3 was a little less promising... if the child was categorized as a 3 it meant that the paperwork had not been finished, and even with a background check of the parents, the child would probably be sent to a temporary housing situation (even if the new parents were there).
Will was somewhere between Category 2 and 3. Beth and Justin had everything together and with them, but part of the problem was that their home study was out-of-date. The frustrating part of that situation was that they had a home study done, but the lady who had performed the study had not yet finished putting it together and submitting it. So, while we waited, Beth frantically called everyone she could thing of to try to get the home study sent to the airport. Having things sent and copied also seemed to be a problem... for several hours, we didn't have a fax number to get things sent directly to the Department of Homeland Security at the airport. So our plan started to change from waiting to Justin and I planning on coming back to SC.
Justin and I decided that we would hang out until around 5:00, and the plan was that if we didn't hear anything at that point, we would head home and Beth would stay in Orlando with her uncle (who had been at the airport with us all day). Shortly after making that decision... things started to change.
Around 4:30, from out of nowhere, and without any updates prior to that point... a representative came out and said they were ready to release Will to Beth and Justin's custody! With that, the entire mood changed, and excitement started to spread! It was incredible to see families who had been waiting for a couple of days come out of the "holding area" with their newly adopted children! And then, it was Beth and Justin's turn to reunite with Will!
They went back, and with the minor hiccup of Beth having to come back out for her ID, they soon came out themselves with their child and Beth's mom! Will was adorable! He only spoke creole, so Beth's mom translated for him. But he continued to say "Goodbye!" to everyone he passed on his way down the hall toward the door! Everyone had smiles stretched from ear to ear and eyes that were filled with beautiful tears of joy!
The long day wasn't quite over with the extremely long ride home... especially for a child who had been awake for nearly 36 hours and had never had to ride in a restricting car seat. But the tears and struggle of getting home couldn't have been more rewarding because Will was with us! It's the excitement he showed to be with his new mommy and daddy that will never leave my memory or my heart!
Welcome home Will!
No comments:
Post a Comment