It's Urgent!

Earlier today I received an email asking me if receiving the money for the adoption was urgent or if we had some time before the money was needed.  My first reaction was to simply say, "No, it isn't urgent."  Then I began to think a little more.  You see, the reality is that, no, it isn't urgent and yet it is.  When you adopt, particularly when it is an international adoption, there are many fees that you have to pay.  There is the immigration/fingerprinting fees, the agency fees, the country's fees from where you are adopting, the shipping fees, the fees to have your paperwork authenticated, the fees to order the numerous certificates (birth, marriage, etc.), and so on and so forth.  These fees all come at different times and different stages of the adoption process.  This is why, in our latest fundraising efforts we focused on the $830.00 that was needed for the immigration paperwork and fingerprinting (which, by the way, we did receive).  Now we have to get ready to pay for our homestudy which will be $1800.00.  Plus there are physicals for everyone in the family, TB test, state authentication of paperwork, and so on.  As you can see it begins to add up.

The question remains, is there an urgent need?  Well again, adoption is a process of steps and they have to be done in order and they have to be paid for along the way.  This means that our son will continue to wait in an orphanage in Ethiopia until we have everything here done and paid for.  In addition there is the matter of his age and his limited time left in order to be eligible for adoption.  In realistic terms we have about a year to complete this.  In realistic terms it takes about a year to complete this - if you have the money to pay for everything to get it completed.

So is there an urgency to this?  Yes and no.  As a father who desires to bring his son home, it is the most urgent thing in my world.  As a often too proud man who hates asking for help, I'm begging for it now.  I wish I could tell you more of the young boy we long to adopt.  I wish I could show you a picture of his wonderful face with his bright eyes that reflect such hope and such joy.  Then you too would fall in love.  Thank you for your help and God bless.

Adoption Funds

Hey everybody,
As you all know we are currently in the long process of adopting 2 children from Ethiopia. As you may also know this is one very costly adventure. In order to both help with the expenses of the adoption and to provide an opportunity for others to be involved in this wonderful mission we will be doing various fundraisers throughout the process.

One fund-raising idea that has come our way is through Current. You may recognize Current as the company that prints checks as well as other paper products such as wrapping paper, cards, and stationary. If you wish to participate simply:
1. Go to www.currentfun.com
2. Click on "Start Shopping Now" and shop.
3. When you are done shopping and "Proceed to Checkout"
4. You will be asked for what state. Click on "North Carolina"
5. When the list of organizations come up, scroll down to "Raymer's Adoption Fund".
6. Finally, just finish up your order.

Please understand that we in no way want people to feel obligated to do this. Honestly, I really don't like the idea of fund-raising. However, I do like the idea of involving as many people as possible in this incredible life changing event for not only our current family but for the our two children currently in an Ethiopian orphanage. This is just one way to get involved. If you want to help with the adoption but aren't into "Current" stuff, we will have other opportunities. And by the way, we only will be getting a check from Current. We will have no idea who bought something or what they chose to get.

We thank you all for your support and above all for you prayers during this time.
John and Dottie Raymer