Meet the Williams Family!
In the seven years before we married, my husband Ty and I (Nancy) frequently talked about adopting. After we had one biological son, God’s message to us through secondary infertility was that it was time to adopt! Our son Zane was then four years old. Never did we imagine that we would eventually have eight forever children!
The first child placed with us was Annika, aged 14 months. The attachment was almost instant, and after only a few visits it was clear that she wanted to stay with us. Over the years we taught her how to be an assertive young lady. She is now 26 years old and a proud graduate of the University of Arizona.
The next time we attended family camp, we heard about a little guy who had a hearing impairment, which interested me because I had been an interpreter for the deaf in college. After several visits with Devin, he moved in with us at age 19 months. He is now 24 and we are his guardians. We love him so much.
A few years later, I learned about Sean, an eight-year-old who loved to do the same things as Zane—mostly sports! He joined our family, and is now 28 and shares an apartment with Zane.
After having four kids, we learned that babies were being placed into group homes due to a lack of foster homes. Ty and I decided that he would become a stay-at-home dad so we could foster babies. We did not plan to adopt again, but it is so easy to get attached! This is how our next four children came along.
Jacob was three months old when he was placed with us. He had some challenges, but with needed supports he was able to be super successful in school. Now 18, he just graduated from high school! He wants to be an electrician.
Joseph came to us at three days old. He has to keep his body moving at all times, and he has found a way to focus that into the sports arena. With his love of sports, he plans to be an athletic trainer. He is also 18 and graduating from high school this year.
Now 11, Reesa also came to us when she was 3 days old. She is known for her mature sense of purpose and her creativity. Her future career will probably involve painting.
Roman is just two months younger than Reesa. A medically fragile infant, he spent three months in the neonatal intensive care unit before coming to us at 3 months. After several years of medical struggles, Roman has grown into a happy and healthy boy.
For the children we have cared for during 25 years of fostering and adopting, drugs have been the most common reason for removal from their birth families. The drug epidemic harms children and families. We wish policymakers would fund more prevention and treatment services so children have a healthy start and families can stay together.
