Saving Shea: The Rainbow

You know those moments in your life when you feel time stop.

Whether it be that split-second when you thought that car was going to hit you.

Or the minutes you hold your breath before the doctor says "everything looks fine."

The moment that follows when you first see the ring in his hand.

And that first glimpse that you get of your newborn baby's face.

We all have them.

They can be terrifying or exciting.

The scariest or most beautiful thing you've ever experienced.

But whatever the emotion - you're shaken.

Whatever the outcome - you're changed.

And you know it was important.

And however long the moment actually lasted - you can remember how you felt at that exact moment...forever.

This is one of those moments for me.

The past 3 days all combined together in one, big, all-encompassing moment that just keeps going on and on.

And it all started when I saw his face.

This is Shea.

Shea - isn't that a beautiful name?

A beautiful name to match his soulful eyes and cropped, blonde hair.

I'm not sure how I found him. Just one of those series of events where you're reading a familiar blog, that leads you to another new and exciting blog, that tells you a story, that leads you to a rainbow, and at the end of that rainbow ...is something very special.

And 3 days ago, at the end of a beautiful rainbow - I found Shea.

And once I found him - I realized it wasn't just some series of events.

I was brought there.

My family was brought there.

And though I'm am still asking and praying and waiting to know exactly why we were brought there -

But there is one thing I am sure of.

Shea needs us.

And we are going to save him.

You may ask..why does Shea need saving?

Well, when I found Shea, I didn't just find a picture - I found a few sentences underneath the picture.

Boy, Born October 17, 2006

Shea only became cleared for adoption very recently, so we are so hopeful he will find a family quickly. He is facing the institution very soon because of his age.

From his medical records: primary hydrocephaly, shunt dependent (has one in now), disorder of function of pelvic organs, paralytic clubfoot of both feet, spina bifida. Very good and smart boy. He can speak very well, he can only sit - he is in plaster cast so he cannot stand and walk.

Shea will remain bedridden the rest of his life once he is transferred.

That's right.

Shea is an orphan.

An orphan who is 4 years old.

An orphan facing an institution in Ukraine.

An orphan born with Spina Bifida.

Do you see now why Shea needs saving? I'm sure it's not hard to guess why this little angel has grabbed a hold of my heart and won't let go -so closely connected to the story of my own sweet little angel. It's probably not a mystery as to why David and I have stayed up late for 3 days talking about what to do...what this means to our family...how we can save him. And like I said, I don't have all the answers right now - but I did contact the people at Reece's Rainbow and we signed up to be Prayer Warriors for Shea as well as volunteered to help raise money for his adoption grant. There is no obligation from Reece's Rainbow - they don't call you up or keep tabs on your efforts. It is all up to the individual. It was up to me to contact them - and it is up to us how much we help. On the right margin of the blog you will see a "chipin" link allowing anyone and everyone to donate toward Shea in his journey finding his family. As you can see on the "chipin" link - Shea's funds are nothing. He has nothing. And adoption in Shea's country is 25,000 dollars on average. This is where we need your help.

Please.

You can help us save him.

The woman who inadvertently led me to Shea, is hosting a fundraiser for another little baby named Cliff. In her plead for help she expressed perfectly what I would say to you about Shea.

Please read it here.

It is exactly what I want to say.

Hopefully soon I will have a blog button to display our mission for Shea and link back to this post. When I do, I would be so grateful if my fellow bloggers would add it to their as well.

If you don't blog, please copy and paste the link to this post (in the web address bar above) on facebook or copy the post itself to an email. We need as many helpers as we can get to raise enough funds to make it possible for Shea to be adopted as soon as possible. He needs money. Any amount you can give is enough. It will make a difference. We can't be sure how long he has before he will be forced to leave the orphanage and be committed to an institution and far from any help.

And please, pray for us.

Pray that God will continue to guide us and use our family for His glory.

Pray that His will for will be done for Shea and that He will keep Shea safe until he is able to be adopted.

Pray that Shea will be given healing and strength and peace every day, and feel God's love upon him.

Thank you so much, and may God bless you.

- David, Joanna and Jet