Tony and Mary Kay had suffered some significant losses before adoption brought Joel into their lives. Their daughter Maria was just 3.5 months old when a drunk driver slammed into Mary Kay’s car, injuring her and killing their daughter who was in a car seat in the back.   The accident left a big hole in their hearts, and they grieved immensely. To cope with her loss, Mary Kay started creating jeweled mobiles for gifts. Each mobile was a hand-crafted jeweled star connected to two other stars, symbolizing Maria as the bright start that she was.

Tony and Mary Kay didn’t want their daughter, Nora, to grow up without a sibling.  So in 2005, Tony and Mary Kay signed with A Child’s Hope to adopt another child. They were very open about race and gender and special needs, and they had a brief wait before a birth mother chose them to parent her child.  In 2005, a newborn boy was placed with them for adoption, and they named him Joel.

Today Joel is 6 years old, active and spirited, and he loves to dance.  Although the family will never forget the child they lost so suddenly, giving unconditional love to Joel has helped them heal and grow as a family.

Thanks to Tony, Mary Kay, Nora and Joel for allowing us to tell the story of their adoptive family.

Do you have a story you’d like to tell?  Email us at blog.ach@foryourlife.com.  Visit us at www.AChildsHope.com, or call our Birth Mother Hotline at 1-877-890-HOPE (4976) so one of our adoption counselors can answer your questions confidentially.

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