Haiti flashback and some news . . .

This was the sunset from our beach view on Montrouis, Haiti. This was taken by Leif Andersen the first evening we were there.  Such a beautiful place.

Since coming back from Haiti, there has been some awesome news about certain members of our group that I have waited to tell about till the most opportune time.  I have been given the go-ahead so . . .

See the lovely lady with the long turquoise t-shirt hugging a girl with the really tall gentleman behind her?  Some of you know them.  They are Leif and Heather.  They have decided to adopt Elvy, one of the orphans.  She is the one being hugged by Heather. :)

Leif and Heather do not yet have children of their own, but they fell in love with Elvy and by the last day that we were there, they knew they just had to make her their daughter.

Elvy is 9 years old and from what I understand of her story, her mother already had too many children to try and feed, and Elvy was left to fend for herself on the streets.  Dina gave her the opportunity to join the orphanage.  Elvy is one of the sweetest and most kind hearted children you'll ever meet.  She is extremely helpful with the younger orphans and has the most stunning smile.  She's such a beautiful person, I was overjoyed that Heather and Leif couldn't leave her without coming back to get her permanently. :)

Here's a close up picture:

Elvy in on the right holding onto her new mommy.

When Heather and Leif asked Dina if they could adopt Elvy, they sat down and asked Elvy if she would like to go home with them.  I guess she broke down into tears she was so happy to be given a home.  It was absolutely darling watching them as a family when Dina brought Elvy to take the trip with us to the airport on our final day.  They hugged and kissed and were seriously the sweetest mental picture of the entire trip.  Many tears were shed when they had to say goodbye, not knowing exactly when they'd be able to come back.

She started to call them "mummy" and "puppy" the day they asked for her and the language barrier seemed to pose absolutely no problems in their ability to communicate their love for each other as a family.  (Elvy doesn't know any English yet, and Heather and Leif know very little Creole or French)

Now, I'm sure Heather and Leif are getting their fair share of annoyances with paperwork and whatever other complications an adoption affords.  I'm praying that everything goes smoothly and quickly so that they can go get Elvy and bring her home.

I'm so thrilled for this family and we all as a group were overjoyed to hear their news.  I've been bursting at the seems for a while now, so it's lovely to be able to share their story.  Not many go on a mission trip with a mind to adopt. ;)

If I could talk to Elvy now I would say "Congrats Elvy for finding a new family.  You couldn't ask for better, more loving parents!"