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Jim and Debbie  Dear Birth Parents, We had the privilege of working with the staff at ECFA in the past to adopt our two daughters, and it is the prayer and desire of our family to adopt more children that we can welcome into our hearts and home. Jim and I met in seventh grade and got married after college. We always wanted to have children, but after ten years we were unable to conceive. The Lord answered our prayers and the desire of our hearts for having children by allowing us to adopt our two daughters who are just three months apart. We adopted them when they were infants, so it has been like having twins. We love both of them very much and could not think of our life without them.  Jim is currently a teacher, athletic director and assistant
administrator at a private school. Jim loves to exercise. He especially
loves to run and has run in several marathons. We all love to go to his
races and cheer him on. Debbie worked as a secretary up until we adopted
our daughters. Now she is a stay-at-home mom and loves being able to
help out at school when our daughters have special activities. She also
loves to cook, sew and scrapbook.Our first daughter’s name is Jessica. She is very quiet and easy going. Her favorite color is pink. She loves to dress up in costumes and play with her dolls. Our second daughter is Nicole she loves to talk and is always on the go. Her favorite color is purple. She also loves to sing, read, and play the piano. Both of the girls love to swim, ride bikes, play outside, help mom bake, and spend time with their dad doing just about anything. We also have a dog named Max. He is a Westin-terrier mix. He is a very calm dog and is great with the girls.  We pray that the Lord will show you His perfect will for your life during this very difficult time of decision making. If you would like to see more pictures or find out more details about our family, please contact someone at ECFA. Thank you for taking the time to consider our family as a possible adoptive family for your child. Love, Jim, Debbie, Jessica, Nicole, and Max |
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| Dan and Rachel
Dear Birth Mom,  We
are so excited about becoming parents through adoption! We have
wanted to be parents for our entire lives- it is one of the
strongest desires of our hearts. It is our dream to have a big
family, and believe that adoption will be a significant part of
our experience as parents. The decision you can make to be a
part of our lives through this process is a decision that we
have the utmost admiration and respect for. Adoption is
something that we have considered since the very beginning of
our marriage, and believe that this is the right time for us to
pursue this dream. We believe that God weaves our lives together in ways that we cannot anticipate or plan for. Our faith in His perfect plan gives us hope for our lives because we believe that He “…is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us…” - Ephesians 3:20  We
have witnessed the power that open adoptions have to enrich and
bless the lives of all involved: the mother, the child, and the
birth and adoptive families. One of our closest friends gave
her son up through adoption over 10 years ago. The strong and
vibrant relationship that has developed between their two
families is an example that we intend to follow. Hopefully this will let you see a glimpse of the fun and love that we share with our family and friends. We are looking forward to meeting you and planning for the future together! Dan and Rachel |
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| David and Diane Dear Friend,  Thank you reading our letter. We are David and Diane. We feel like we know a little about you, just because you are reading this letter. You are a loving, giving, and unselfish person who is willing to take courageous steps. We imagine that you have a dream of a safe, secure, and happy family where your baby (or babies in the case of twins) can grow up and be cared for and loved. Perhaps you also dream of your baby growing up with brothers and sisters. We can guarantee one of each! So let us tell you about ourselves, so you can see if we are the family you are looking for. David is a kind of quiet guy with a romantic streak. He enjoys reading, and spends a lot of his time on the train to work reading. He enjoys science fiction, fantasy, sailing ships, etc. Another hobby is coin collecting; David collects coins of Panama and has even written articles for a coin collectors magazine. David was raised in the country of Panama where his parents were missionaries. He speaks fluent Spanish. He is detail-oriented which helps in his job, which is working with computers.  David is a strong, loving, Christian man. He treats other people gently and with respect, and spends lots of time with his family, including our daughter Gabrielle and our son Malachi. At church David sings each Sunday on the Worship Team, which he greatly enjoys. Diane greatly enjoys the outdoors. She likes to take lots of walks. When we make weekend plans, Diane suggests things like visiting forest preserves, river walks and parks, especially parks with water. Diane is a very loving and giving woman, especially where children are concerned. After graduating from college she worked in a day care center and a preschool. Later on, she got a job as a teacher's aide for preschoolers with special needs. Not everyone can do that kind of work but Diane excelled at it. She enthusiastically worked as a teacher's aide for several years until we adopted Gabrielle. Now she is a stay-at-home Mom and loves it. She loves to spend most of her time interacting with, playing with and teaching our son and daughter.  We have two children, both adopted through ECFA. Gabrielle was born in the summer of 2003. She is a happy and playful little girl, and enjoys interacting with people. Gabrielle loves being a big sister and spends a lot of time playing with Malachi. Malachi was born in the spring of 2006. Like his sister, Malachi is a happy little boy who enjoys people. He loves to smile, play and spend time with his family. We want to thank you again for reading our letter. We can only imagine the difficult decision you are making, but we pray that God will support you through it all with his love. We look forward to raising children and giving them a supportive and stable loving home, and we hope that we are that special family that you choose to trust with the future of your child. To find out more about us and see a lot more photos, please contact ECFA. God Bless You! David and Diane |
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Jason and Sue Dear Birth Parent(s),  We are grateful that you are taking the time to meet us. Our names are Jason, Sue, and Malachi and we hope that this letter will allow you to get to know us a little better. We understand that this is an extremely important decision in your life. We have so much admiration for you and we know it takes a very special person with a lot of strength and courage to consider placing your child for adoption. There are many circumstances that have been instrumental in leading us to desire to adopt a second time. We adopted our son in 2006 and have enjoyed every minute of his life. We have watched friends and relatives adopt and raise their children. Through our church and youth group, we have tried to promote awareness of the orphan crisis that is present around the world today. After praying about expanding our family, we know that God is leading us to adopt again. We are excited about the possibility and privilege to be able to be Godly parents to a newly added member of our family. We greatly anticipate adopting another child and would like our home to be filled with faith, support, encouragement and joy. We know that adopting a child will be a positive addition to our lives, our relationship, and our home. We look forward to sharing our interests in traveling, sports, and creativity with your child. Sue is a full-time mom and is excited about being able to nurture and teach your child each day. Because Jason works from home most days as the associate pastor at the church we attend in Chicago, he will also be there every step of the way. Malachi loves to play with other children and we know that he will make a great big brother. Sue's cousins, who are also adopted, look forward to sharing their experiences and becoming friends with your child. Our parents and grandparents are thrilled about being a positive influence in the life of your child.  When
we adopted Malachi, we did not realize that having a relationship
with his birth mom and her family would be such a blessing in our
lives. We feel that having an open adoption is important because
Malachi is able to learn about his birth family, his culture, and
their traditions. We also have gained an amazing extended family! We
discussed what our open adoption would look like with his birth mom.
We all meet together in June and December and Malachi sends her and
his birthfather pictures and letters in March and September. We look
forward to talking with you about your thoughts regarding open
adoption and how experiencing an open adoption has changed our
lives.Thank you for reading our letter. We, along with our family and friends, are praying for you and your child. May God give you wisdom, health, and encouragement during this time in your life. God bless you! Jason, Sue, and Malachi |
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Les and Margie Dear Birth Parents, Thank you for taking the time to get to know us as you are planning for your baby's future. Our names are Les and Margie and we have a son named John Gabriel whom we had the privilege to adopt as a newborn in July 2006. We would love to adopt another child! We are committed to creating a happy home, filled with laughter and joy. We have both received significant love and sacrifice from our own families and we wish to share these blessings with a growing family of our own! Les is a pediatrician and adult medicine doctor, and he works at a Christian health center. Margie is a maternal/child nurse who is now a stay-at-home mom. A little about us. . . We met during college through a group called InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, and we were married in 1997 after dating for 3 years. Even though we've been married for over 10 years, we are still very much in love. We have a lot in common, including our values and our free time activities. We really enjoy spending time together as a family, and getting to be John's parents has brought us even closer. Between the two of us we have 19 nieces and nephews - most within an hour's drive. We love to spend time with them - they are all a source of joy, and they want more cousins! As a family we love to go hiking and camping together! Before becoming parents we climbed mountains and did rock climbing. Although we still love the outdoors, our activities are a bit more tame because we want to do things that include our son! We would miss him too much otherwise! We ride bikes often with John in the backseat. We also go running in the forest preserves near our home and church. John went to his first national park in California at 6 weeks. We had our first backcountry camping trip with John and his grandparents just after his first birthday - he very much enjoys the outdoors!  A
little about Les. . .I am a pediatrician and adult medicine physician. I finished my training in 2002. That was a demanding and difficult process but my faith and my relationship with Margie grew through that period. At my current job, I am privileged to have a schedule that allows me to spend significant time with my wife and son. Margie and I are very involved with our church where I serve as an elder and help with the kids' Awana program. I enjoy many activities - particularly hiking, camping, reading, rock climbing, and most sports. My family lives nearby and we often do fun things together as an extended family like camping trips, water park trips, and birthday parties. My parents are active and devoted grandparents who love John immensely and look forward to more grandchildren to spoil! We attend the same church and often spend Sunday afternoons together. A little about Margie. . . Being a full-time Mom is the best job I've ever had! I spent several years working as a maternal-child/labor and delivery nurse prior to becoming a mom, so to finally have the chance to take care of my own baby is wonderful! I love getting John dressed, changing him, feeding him, and playing with him! I enjoy reading, running, sewing, and hiking. At church, I teach the junior high Sunday School class and direct the preschool Cubbies program on Wednesday nights. I love to sing on the worship team on Sunday mornings and I play some piano. During the week I get together with other stay-at-home moms and their kids to go running or walking or to just spend time together. I grew up in a large, Christian family with 6 kids. Both of my parents are immigrants from Germany - so our home life was old-fashioned and traditional. I love getting together with my siblings and all their kids, all but one live within an hour of our home. My mom makes up games to play and always has a little treat for the grandchildren. My father passed away in 2005. A little about John. . .  John was born in July 2006 and his sweet smile has been a blessing and delight to all who meet him. John's birth mom chose us to raise her son because she wanted a stable home for her baby. She loves him very much and we are so very grateful everyday for her courageous choice. We send her pictures and write letters. We were able to meet her and her whole family at the time of John's birth and then again at six months. John is very social and likes to be around other kids very much. He easily gives hugs and attention to those around him. He tries to be helpful around the house and we think will be a good big brother! Right now he loves balls, trucks, dogs, and books, but mostly wants to spend his time interacting with us. John is dearly loved by our extended families and spoiled by nearly everyone at church. Our church and community. . . We attend a medium-sized non-denominational Bible church where there are lots of other kids and young families. Our church has Sunday School classes for all ages and a midweek Awana program. We love the people that go there! We believe that the most important Christian education is what a child sees at home. We aim to be what we want our children to become. We live in a two-story home in a friendly, suburban, multi-cultural area. Our home is within walking distance of blue ribbon schools for all 12 grades - plus, a library and ice cream shop downtown! We participate in many of the community programs including baby-swimming, toddler music, and infant lap-sit time at the library. Our plans for the future. . . If you do chose us for your child, we will be open and honest about his background and origin. We will share about your courage and sacrificial love. We are happy to share pictures and letters with you as your child matures, and look forward to meeting you. We want our children to grow up in a caring and nurturing environment where their own unique personality and talents will flourish. Margie plans to continuing being a full-time mom. We hope that getting to know us a bit will help you in your decision. We are praying for you to have the courage and wisdom to make the best plan for your precious baby. Les and Margie |
the right child for our family. When we met in 1995, we shared a
whirlwind romance and were engaged after two weeks of dating. On May
10th '07 we celebrated our 10- year wedding anniversary and continue to
grow daily as a couple. Life is a journey, relationships are work,
change is a process, and love is a gift.
visit his biological family, they thank us for all the love and care
we provide for Reece. It is clear to everyone that he is a very happy,
well cared for little boy, and our hearts are full of gratitude, pride
and joy. Our two families have become close and we have faithfully
maintained a relationship with Reece's biological family. We have had
numerous visits in person, exchange photos, and maintain phone contact.
We recognize that not every biological mother may want this degree of
relationship, so we remain open and sensitive to the specific hopes and
desires of each individual. 
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