Inspirations

fostering faith Nightlight Christian Adoptions’ Leesa Del Rio, Mother To 14, Helps Lexington Grow Its Families

by Peter Chawaga

The process of adopting and fostering children is one rife with challenges and inspirations — from the hardships imposed on children and prospective parents, to the miraculous forging of family among those who have found each other in this serendipitous way. Nightlight Christian Adoptions, which has offices in ten locations around the country, seeks to support families taking on this unique and rewarding challenge by counseling parents facing unplanned pregnancies as well as offering domestic, international and embryo adoption services. Leesa Del Rio, who works as an administrative assistant and post-adoption coordinator in Nightlight’s Lexington office, is a uniquely inspirational part of this support team, as she has forged a personal connection to this work through. “I was directly impacted by adoption for the first time

21 years ago, when my sister adopted a baby boy after having several miscarriages,” Del Rio told TOPS. “The birth mother in their story made a selfless and loving decision when she realized that she wouldn’t be able to provide her baby with the life she wanted him to have. My sister has since adopted four daughters internationally. Each of their stories are equal parts brokenness and beauty, and stirred in me an intense passion for orphan care.” Del Rio is uniquely positioned to help others on their challenging and rewarding path toward adoption and foster care — the experiences of her sister inspired Del Rio and her husband to foster 11 children over the past 12 years, adopting three of them and providing for them as they do their three biological children. In this way, Del Rio sees her role at Nightlight as a calling. She can offer firsthand perspective on overcoming the many challenges involved in the process, and remind prospective parents of the worthwhile light at the end of the tunnel.

“Paperwork, financial sacrifice, court hearings, emotions, time, so many unknowns, saying goodbye and parenting kids from hard places doesn’t come without struggle,” Del Rio said. “But we also have to consider what it’s costing these kids when we say no to the hard things. The joy and blessings for our family truly outweigh the costs and I didn’t expect that to be the case... I would say [to prospective foster parents], hold on for a wild ride. The rewards are going to be amazing!”

Building Families Through Faith To many, it may be hard to imagine finding the time and patience to serve as a mother to 14 children while helping others on their paths to becoming parents at the same time. In fact, it was something that Del Rio herself struggled with at first. But she found that her faith in God and a deeper perspective about the things she wants to impart to her children gave her an infinite supply of the one thing she wants her family to always have more than enough of: love. “The truth is, our kids don’t need or even want perfect parents,” she explained. “What they really want is love and there is never a shortage of that. I’m not saying it’s always easy or that we don’t have our moments, like every other family. There are days when my patience is thin and my energy seems nonexistent. But we always get through those days and again, the rewards outweigh the costs by far.” Nightlight operates with a similar emphasis on Christian faith, leaning on a cornerstone belief that, as members of God’s family, Christians have an instilled example for adoption. However, it does not discriminate among those who seek its help on their parenting journeys and Del Rio emphasized that there is a potential role for anyone, anywhere with the desire to play in helping children find the family support they deserve. “I think it’s important for people to understand that although not everyone is called to adopt, everyone can do something,” she said. “If you can’t adopt, you can foster. If you can’t foster, you can mentor, advocate, educate or donate your time or finances to help a family that is in the process.”

A State Of Loving Families Nightlife’s office in Kentucky recently obtained a foster care license and wants more families in the state to open their homes to local and international children. Del Rio said that Kentucky has the highest rate of child neglect and abuse in the country, and that with 140 million orphans worldwide, there is a great need that this state can work toward filling. But despite the daunting challenge, she’s confident that there are more than enough loving families to help children from all around the globe and that the Lexington area is an ideal place to continue that work.

“When adopting a child of an ethnicity different from your own, it is extremely important to know that they are going to want to connect with their race, ethnicity, country and culture of origin,” Del Rio explained. “It takes some work to preserve elements of their culture and the city of Lexington offers many opportunities to do that.” But as Del Rio has learned and demonstrated herself, love is the one thing that is needed to overcome the many challenges in becoming a foster or adoptive parent. “The need is great, but we believe there are more than enough loving families, and many right here in Kentucky,” she concluded.