Hope

Born:  October 8, 2009
Arrived at HOH:  October 22, 2009
Status:  Orphaned at birth; abandoned by family - Adopted!

First Photo

Recent Photo (when Hopey left with her mama)

Hope's birth mother died at childbirth. Her biological family went to the hospital to collect the mother's body but abandoned the baby due to her possible heart defect. She was retained at the hospital until stabilized and was then released to Children Services. Trena "just happened" to be at the government childrens home the day Hope was taken there and was asked to take her. Knowing that there was no possibility of anyone from the government home taking her to the hospital to find out about and tend to her unknown hear condition, there was no way she was able to leave baby Hope there.

Trena took Hope home to Haven of Hope and pursued medical attention. Her heart "condition" turned out to be a very strong murmur that eventually closed completely. She is now a very healthy baby girl! She is still small, but growing. Since she is so small, it sometimes seems strange that she holds herself up so well and is so alert and aware of her surroundings. She is beginning to be a very expressive little baby, discovering her voice and learning to interact with others. She is truly a little baby of Hope....and she has a future.

Hope's Update: Hope has been adopted and is happily living with her mama in a rural village in Kenya! When I (Trena) received a number of prospective parent files to choose from for Hope's adoptive family, God spoke very clearly. Sweet Hopey girl was a little cuddlier who loved to be held while she sucked on her one finger. When talking about Hope's greatest need in a family, we always said, "Hope just needs a mommy who will want to sit and hold and love her."

Well, we found in our prospective family files a single mother who had lost her husband, had lost two babies in childbirth, and then suffered a ruptured uterus. Living in a very rural, Kenyan fashion, she was undoubtedly deemed as "unmarriable" as a result. What was astounding about her story is that even in this rural village family, her husband's family had kept her as part of their family! They allowed her to keep her husband's land, live in the community with the family, and continued to support her as she farmed their plot of land and sold the vegetables to make a living and provide for herself and her future family. This is practically unheard of in her culture! Even more, it was the husband's family who helped her raise money to adopt and help her through the process, even bringing her to Nakuru to pursue each step. This was a family truly committed to helping this single village woman become a mother to her own baby girl! Truly, a unique family and a significantly unique situation!

It seemed obvious that this was to be Hopey's family! All she needed was a mommy to hold her. And that is what she got! You can see from the picture above that it was a match waiting to happen, as they fell into each others' arms and bonded deeply.

We miss you, little Hopey, but we know that you are safe in your mama's arms, in your "forever family," and that God has sweet plans for your life!