AUGUST 2020 Adoption of the Month:
Hello! We are Tom, Jin, Kihana (Kiki), and Kolton. Tom and I met in 2005 after I moved in next door to him in an apartment and 6 years later we got married in Maui. We’ve always wanted children but never expected we would struggle with infertility. After much research and discussion with family and friends that have adopted, we knew this is our path. Three years ago, we adopted our first baby girl. She came to us at 2 months old. She is now 3 and is a dream come true for us. She is full of personality, funny, beautiful, and smart. Kiki has made a huge impact on our lives and we feel very lucky and blessed to have her and to call her our daughter. During this process, we met with Mark and his team at the office. We didn’t know what to expect and were actually fairly nervous and he sat us down and explained to us his part of the process and even told us personal stories about his own adoptions. It definitely made us more at ease.
Family is very important to both of us. We both have a large family that lives nearby in the area. We want to expand our family and give Kiki a sibling that she can bond with and share her memories. We had been waiting for our next baby for about seven months and three months ago, we got a phone call from the adoption agency saying a birth mom wanted to meet us and so we met her and baby that same weekend and we instantly fell in love with baby. We finally took him home a few days later. Kolton was just 3 months old. It felt like it was meant to be. He is now 6 months.
Our baby boy is an active, happy little baby and very social. He (we all) adjusted very quickly and well as a family. Kiki loves to make him laugh and he adores her. We again feel very lucky and blessed to have him in our family and to call him our son. It’s definitely another dream come true for us. Mark and Sarah once again helped us with our finalization process. This time it was even simpler having been through this before and the finalization happened quicker than the last time. We also had the same judge that presided over our daughter’s finalization. Overall, we are very happy with of our experiences with Mark and Sarah. They are very easy to communicate with and very personable.
Thank you again for all you do to help us finalize the adoption of both of our babies!
Tom and Jin
JULY 2020 ADOPTION OF THE MONTH:
My husband and I decided to become foster parents when we learned of the thousands of children in need of a safe home. We agreed we wanted to help. We were licensed for less than 48hrs when we received a phone call about a 22-month-old little boy in need of an emergency placement for “3 weeks.” It was 5pm when we received this call and by 7pm we had a new little boy in our home! We fell in love with him immediately. We were thrilled to have our first placement so quickly! But the sadness of why this baby was with us could not be ignored. He was scared and had the typical challenging behaviors that come from a history of trauma. He also has speech delays and could not always communicate what he wanted. We all worked hard to adapt and learn.
Every day we made progress and grew into a stronger and more connected family. Jackson spreads joy wherever he goes and he fit in perfectly with our family! He took a particular liking to my husband right away. The three boys bonded over cars, dirt and all things “boy.” My daughter and I reveled in the love and affection this adorable toddler offered us and we took every chance to dote on him. He made us laugh and smile endlessly. We rooted for his biological family to get healthy again and one day get him back. We knew it would be unimaginably hard to say goodbye but we have always wanted what is best for him. Well, 3 weeks turned in to 3 months which turned in to forever.
The foster care journey was hard, very hard. We all had to be vulnerable in a way no other experience requires. We chose to embrace the uncertainty and risk loving this sweet boy with all our hearts even though we did not know how long he would be with us. The reality that we could lose a child is hard to face every single day as a parent. In December 2019, there was an incident and the primary permanency plan switched from reunification to adoption quickly.
We started working with new social workers and adoption support workers and Mark Iverson’s office. Mark and his team were a great comfort to me as we moved through the adoption. I am a Type A planner! I like to know when, what, who, why, where... did I say when? Well, adoption from foster care does not answer these questions so easily! Mark and his office put my mind at ease on several occasions. I called often with questions and always felt supported. They gave me very helpful information and clear direction on what was going to happen next. They worked quickly along with our adoption social worker to get our son adopted!
June 19th was one of the best days of my life! Our son officially became our son! The relief was indescribable. Our family was stretched thin throughout fostering and we all came out closer, stronger and able to love in a whole new way! We thank God for the privilege of being called mom and dad by our sweet James Jackson Heydorn! I wouldn’t trade one second of this journey for anything in the world because this finish line is worth it all!
June 2020 Adoption of the Month:
Mark Iverson and his associates were so helpful in the adoption of our son. We could not be more impressed with their assistance from day one until the adoption was finalized. His associates were at the hospital the day after the birth to help us gain guardianship. From there, the group was communicative and guided us until the legal process was completed. Most impressively, Mr. Iverson and his group were able to finalize our adoption during the pandemic and actually got us in with the judge much quicker than we expected. We have nothing but good things to say about Adoption and Surrogacy Services of Spokane.
September 2020 Adoption of the Month:
After two and a half years of infertility and the heartache of unexpected challenges that it can bring, we took a leap into adoption. Although we had always desired to adopt, we didn’t know we would adopt our first child. But God always has better plans!
After lots of prayer and discussion with family members and trusted friends, we were a full "go” on domestic infant adoption by May 2019. We were flooded with peace and excitement the moment we gave our hearts fully to adoption. Our longing to become parents was not an “if” but now a “when.”
We began working with our agency, Adoption Services of Spokane, in June 2019. By July we completed our home study, and by mid-August we drove five hours to Spokane to meet with our agency. We were officially in the waiting pool September 1st! Although there were moments when waiting for “the call” felt like years, sure enough on January 30th we received news that changed our lives forever. A birth mom had chosen us to be adoptive parents!
After meeting with the birth mom in February and spending the weekend with her early March, our baby girl was born on March 21st, 2020. We are so thankful for the courageous and selfless act of the birthmother, and we are proud, happy parents to a beautiful little girl who makes our hearts absolutely come undone! Our lives are forever changed, and we would do this entire journey endless amounts of times for her!
Mark Iverson and his associates were extremely helpful after the birth and through finalization. They answered our questions, exuded patience through the process, and despite the finalization happening over the phone due to COVID-19, they made the official “Adoption Day” very special. We are grateful for their experience, knowledge, and kindness throughout the process.
Mr. Mark Iverson and his team were incredibly helpful during what could have been a stressful situation. They were kind, professional, and handled us with care as they walked us through the adoption process. Every question that we had was answered clearly and in a timely manner. Sarah was incredible as well! We are very thankful for everything that was done for our family!
November 2020 Adoption of the Month:
October 9, 2020 is the day we finally adopted our grandson, Mason. This amazing young man came to live with us when he was only 3 years old and spent the next 9 years patiently waiting for his birth parents to pick him up and move him into their new home. As a 12 year old, he found the strength to deal with the reality of his absentee parents and the realization that they would not be coming for him. He asked us to adopt him. We whole-heartedly welcome this opportunity to make him our forever child.
Many thanks to Mark and Sarah Iverson for making this a smooth and comfortable process, in spite of the pandemic and inability to locate the birth parents.
