Eric and his wife met back in junior high at a small Christian school in Kansas, two awkward teenagers who somehow ended up side by side through graduation. Love blossomed quietly, the kind that feels predestined, and after college, they returned home ready to start life together. But there was a gap in their happiness, a hole in their arms where children should have been. Miscarriage after miscarriage, nights spent crying quietly in the hospital, wondering why life kept breaking their hearts. They held onto faith, believing there was a plan, even when it felt impossible to see.
Then came September of 2014, a whisper of a new path. A friend told them about the Wait No More Conference, a gathering meant to encourage adoption, and at first, they laughed nervously. Foster or adopt children? Teenagers, no less? They had never considered it seriously. But something about that conference, the testimonies from young adults rescued from broken homes, hit differently. One girl’s story lingered in their minds, how adoptive parents had saved her from abuse, given her love and stability, and how she now had a home and a family that cared. Eric and his wife left in stunned silence, the kind where you can feel your life quietly tilting toward something larger than yourself.
The paperwork, classes, and waiting game all blurred together. Then, while attending a youth conference in Oklahoma City, the call came. Four siblings, a brother and a sister, needed a foster home. Four kids at once. Eric laughed nervously at the thought, then realized he was sweating through the palms of his hands. Ages nine, twelve, fourteen, fifteen. Not exactly what he expected. Not exactly what anyone expects, and then came the heartbreaking truth: if they didn’t take all four together, the kids would be split apart. The choice was painfully clear, even if terrifying. They said yes.
Meeting the children for the first time was nerve-wracking. Their lives had been chaotic, filled with physical abuse, neglect, and drug exposure. Their trust was fragile, their fear palpable. And yet, the moment they walked into Eric and his wife’s home, something shifted. Cody, the ornery twelve-year-old, tested patience like a seasoned pro, but even he had a heart so big it practically glowed. Alisia, Bradley, and Emma carried their own quiet strength, the resilience of kids who had endured more than most adults could imagine. Love didn’t just arrive in that house; it exploded slowly, quietly, in laughter, in the way the kids started calling the house home, in the way they let themselves trust again.
They expected a short-term arrangement, reintegration with their mom, maybe a few months. But the parents failed to comply with court requirements, and reintegration fell apart. The choice was stark: let the kids drift through foster care again, or give them a permanent home. Adoption felt like the only answer, a forever decision, and they embraced it wholeheartedly. On the day the adoption was finalized, the joy was overwhelming. The children, who had known so much uncertainty, finally had a home that would never let them go.
Eric and his wife share their story not to boast, but to show the messy, human, emotional reality of fostering and adopting children in need. It is not neat or easy, but it is transformative. There are tears, there is fear, there is laughter that comes too late at night when you realize you can’t imagine life any other way. They know thousands of kids, children, and teenagers waiting, hoping, praying for someone to step up. Their story, now shared nationally, is a reminder that families come in all shapes, ages, and numbers, and that sometimes the most challenging path, the one that feels impossible at first, is precisely the one you were meant to walk.
Life is fuller, louder, and infinitely brighter for Eric, his wife, and the four siblings they now call their own. A foster family took a sibling set of four kids and gave them a forever home, and in doing so, their lives were changed, enriched, and made immeasurably better. There are no perfect families, no flawless journeys, just love, patience, and the courage to say yes when life asks you to step outside your comfort zone.
