National Adoption Month: Thankful for a Forever Family

Op-Ed

The holiday season has officially arrived. Like many in America, every November, my wife Angela and I gather around the dining room table with our kids to enjoy a homemade Thanksgiving feast. We give thanks for the many blessings in our lives, including one of the greatest blessings of all -- the gift of being a family.

Some know me as the as chairman of the Tea Party Caucus, or as a farmer from western Kansas, but few know that all four of our beautiful children are adopted. Two are from Haiti, and two are from the United States. We've given each other the greatest gift, a forever family.I've been involved in the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI) for several years, but I recently joined their board to take on a greater role in helping more know the love and support a family provides.

November is National Adoption Month, and I'd like to use this chance to shed light on those in need of a Forever Family and those in our country that devote endless time and energy on behalf of children in need of loving homes.

Many children are not so fortunate as to be able to join loved ones at the dinner table during the holidays. In the U.S., nearly 400,000 children are living without permanent families, waiting for some stability in their lives.

The average child in foster care waits three years to be adopted, often jumping from house to house to house while waiting. This volatility affects their long-term health and education. Family truly is the fundamental building block of our society.

The adoption and foster processes are not easy or cheap. They come with stress and much paperwork. One of the opportunities afforded to me with my role with CCAI is to recognize a family that, despite the challenges, has made an extraordinary contribution on behalf of children in need of loving homes.

I had the honor to recognize the Lightners of Scott County, Kansas this year. Already with three children ages six, four, and two, Matt and Emily Lightner still felt called to become adoptive parents. This longing became a reality with the adoption of their two twin boys, Ezekiel and Elijah. Beyond providing a loving, permanent home for their sons, this couple decided to further their commitment to help vulnerable children and their birthmothers in need. With the help of their community and friends, they partnered with a local maternity home to provide a rural place of refuge for birthmothers in their region.

Inspired by our own experience as adoptive parents, as well as the many amazing adoptive families Angela and I have met, I am working hard for legislative policies that simplify and ease the financial burden of the adoption process for couples waiting to become mothers and fathers for children in need.

In light of National Adoption Awareness month and Thanksgiving, I hope you join me in doing whatever you can, big or small, to tackle this problem.

There are many ways to make a difference. For example, earlier this year I learned about an initiative in Washington D.C. called the Healthy Babies Project. They connect pregnant women to health care, social services, and educational opportunities. Volunteering an hour of time at a local nonprofit to babysit helps more than one would know.

And, I encourage those families who feel called to adopt, to step forward and prayerfully consider this loving option. Follow your heart.

Now is the best time to celebrate the gift of life and family.

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