Tim and I continued to crunch numbers and realized that we would still come up short for this adoption, and we didn’t think we could get approved for another loan. It was at this point I turned to Google, and the idea of adoption fund-raising was born.
We would pull together all of the resources we had and then see if we could find more.
One thing we could do was approach both of our employers to ask if they would provide adoption assistance. The Dave Thomas Foundation provided a really impressive package to put in front of our employers. I girded my loins and talked to all three members of our executive committee personally to see if I could get them to consider offering this benefit. The jury is still out.
Their initial response was very positive, but when I followed up, they said they hadn’t reviewed or considered my proposal at all. We’ve had about the same amount of luck with Tim’s job. Tim’s employer is taking their time reviewing the information, but we’re still holding out hope. Personally, I would just be happy if my employer could provide paid maternity leave for six weeks after the adoption. Unpaid time off, in addition to the adoption expenses, will be tricky, but we’ll find a way.
Our next step was to set up a youcaring.com page. This allows friends, families, and even strangers to donate directly to our cause. It also allows us to accept debit and credit cards for any fundraisers that we do. I’ll admit, it’s awkward having to beg friends and family to donate money or buy your wares so that you can have a family.
Most people don’t have to pay to have children and I’m sure they find it odd that we do.
We considered asking for assistance when we were going through treatments, but since no one offered to help with the costs, we figured it was our load to carry. Adoption tends to be viewed more favorably than undergoing fertility treatments, and we’ve been part of other successful adoption fund-raisers. We hoped that this path might be a way for us to help cover the expenses of the adoption.
The heart of our adoption fund-raising involved evaluating the skills and resources we had at our disposal. I can decorate a mean cupcake and also put together really nice “jar cookies.” I just need to find a way to get out into the community at several different events to do fund-raising. My thought is to help friends organize bake sales through their churches and community groups, in addition to the ones that we are able to organize so that we can have multiple fund-raisers and expand the group of possible donors. From everything I’ve read, it’s possible.
We are determined to make this happen, and we have beautiful ultrasound pictures to remind us what we are working towards. We just need to focus on the end result and have faith that we will figure out a way to get there. We also get to meet the birth mother soon!!!!! For now, we will just take each day one at a time and keep our eye on the prize- our son.
Cancer Ever After 
[…] I’ve had some good ones. But it was an amazing day. If you recall, a few months ago, I girded my loins and approached the c-suite at my new employer to ask for adoption benefits. I had contacted the […]
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