| The Sloan's Journey to Bring Viktors to Tennessee |
| "Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me." Matthew 18:5 |
In January, we connected with Viktors' Christmas host family. From the moment we saw his face and read about him, we felt an undeniable pull to Viktors. Initially, we thought we would come alongside his host family to advocate for him, to pray for him, and to help him find his forever family. However, God was writing a different story. God has blessed us with the incredible opportunity to host Viktors for 5 weeks this summer! His Christmas host mom said this about Viktors: "Viktors is an amazing young man. Our family was so blessed to have him for 4 weeks at Christmas. He was easy, laid back, and up for anything. He is very social and loves to be around people. He loved us spending time with family friends and got along well with every single person he came in contact with. He is active and loves all things boy. He loves to ride bikes, play sports, and do anything outside. He is eager to try anything. He has no problem at all bonding. He is easily affectionate and bonded well will everyone in our family, including our children. I particularly recommend him to be hosted by a family looking to adopt. Viktors would really come alive with a loving family and he is available for adoption. He would do well in a family with any age children." Sadly, the future is bleak for an orphaned child in Latvia. When they leave the orphanage, they are left to make their way in life with minimal education, few practical skills, and no guidance in one of the poorest countries in the European Union. Is it any wonder current UNICEF reports show more than 70% of orphan boys end up as criminals by the time they reach 18? That 60% of the girls become prostitutes? Or that 15% will commit suicide within two years of leaving the orphanage? Latvia has one of Europe’s lowest life expectancies, one of the world’s highest suicide rates, and the fourth highest rate of HIV/AIDS in all of Europe. These statistics tell us that like so many others, Viktors doesn’t stand much of a chance without intervention. But Viktors' needs go even further beyond the practical, and physical needs he has; Viktors needs a family. He needs love, home, acceptance, and hope. He needs to know he is not alone in this world, that he has the support of a loving family, and he has a soft place to fall. He needs to be a kid - the young boy that God created him to be. We believe that Viktors will come alive in the love of a forever family. We are hosting Viktors with the intentions of pursuing his adoption. Not all hosting families adopt, but many are adopted by their host families or by someone they meet while they are here. To learn more about NHFC, read about their program here: http://www.newhorizonsforchildren.org Please pray for our family as we embark on this adventure to bring Viktors home. Your prayers for us and Viktors are coveted! Our first need is to raise his hosting fees. You can donate through our active page RIGHT HERE and it will go directly to NHFC for Viktors' hosting fees (and your donations are tax deductible). Or you can donate to our Paypal Account (just click the button on the top right of our blog). Please be part of this boy's journey home. Every contribution brings us one step closer; no gift is too small. Thank you for your support on this journey! I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. - John 14:18
~Paula
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Hope you have a great hosting experience and end up adopting him! You are so brave and kind to do this!
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