Expecting Evangeline
Written by: Kirk
You may notice the new “logo” in the top right corner of our blog. It will be there for a while, but hopefully not TOO long. Let me tell you about it.
One of the first couples we met when moving to Saint Joseph, MI we met while we were in Iowa and they were in the Ukraine.
Four days before Ella was born, Sergei & Gillian Marchenko delivered their youngest daughter Polly in a hospital in the Ukraine. We both learned at their births that our daughters have Down syndrome. We “met” online through the Michiana Down Syndrome Support group. Having another family who had a new daughter with Down syndrome was such a great blessing to Bonnie and I when we moved, and we are so thankful for their support and friendship, and we discovered after moving that we were attending the same church!
Well, our amazing friends, who are now in Chicago where Sergi pastors a church in the Wrigleyville area, are adopting another little girl with Down syndrome from Eastern Europe. Their newest little angel will be named, upon adoption, Evangeline1.
Evangeline turned two in October. She is living in an orphanage and we hear she has grown to be a healthy, sweet, social little girl. Her adoptive paternal grandmother recently visited little Evangeline and I hear is enamored with her.
Children with DS in her country typically transition from the orphanage to an institution when they are four years old. Devastatingly, a staggering number of children who are institutionalized in her country do not make it to adulthood2.
Sergei and Gillian share that as soon as they saw Evangeline’s sweet face they knew she was meant to be their daughter. Their older daughters Elaina and Zoya are very excited about having another sister to love - even volunteering to do without Christmas presents to help bring Evangeline home to them!
International adoption is a huge financial obligation and the Marchenko’s have recently started a “fund raiser” asking those who can to donate $10 (or more) to Evangeline for Christmas.
I know money is tight and you all don’t know Sergei and Gillian personally, but this small gift will be the world to our friends, their family and little Evangeline. If you would like to help bring Evangeline home to her new family you can donate online here through Reece’s Rainbow. Reece’s Rainbow has received their 501(3)c tax deductible status, so these contributions are deductible3. See their website for more information. Alternatively, you can send a check4 to them at:
The Marchenko Family
c/o Reece’s Rainbow
PO Box 2055
Dacula, GA 30019
Whether you can or not donate, please keep this family and future newest member in your prayers! Follow their adoption process at Expecting Evangeline.
God Bless,
Kirk and Bonnie
- Evangeline is Greek for “Angel” [↩]
- Yes, I am intentionally being vague on the country to avoid potentially upsetting the country who’s controlling this adoption process [↩]
- They qualify as a public charity under IRS code 170(b)(a)(A)(vi) [↩]
- and save the Paypal fees [↩]
