“He was just 2 years old. I watched his family suffer the unimaginable. I needed to prevent tragedies like this from happening.”
‘The pool was cold, green, and dirty. He was in the water for 20 minutes.’: Teenaged friend of drowning victim starts nonprofit for awareness
‘Were you baked too long?’ Tears ran down my face. ‘You’re EXTRA black.’: Transracial adoptee urges ‘family comes in all different ways’
“’Is she an exchange student? HOW is she your daughter?’ FAMILY comes in all different shapes and colors.”
Sweet Second Child, My Attention Is Always Divided—But My Boy, I See You
“I see you growing and changing right before my eyes. Your teeny tiny baby-ness is slipping away, and you’re learning so, so much. It excites me and breaks my heart all at the same time.”
‘You need to get her to the hospital, but it might not be enough.’ I didn’t know how close to death she was.’: Mom says adoptive daughter is ‘walking miracle’
“She was almost a year old and weighed 9 and a half pounds. She didn’t have much strength left. I knew I’d move the world to save her tiny life.”
‘I received a call. ‘We have a 14-year-old boy. He really needs to leave the home he is in.’: Single mom becomes foster parent to help other families battling addiction, adopts teenager
“After a 3-day binge, I told my husband he needed to choose. He could go to rehab and get sober, or he needed to leave. He chose to leave. I was a single mom with two heartbroken little boys. I knew I wanted to help other kids out there going through the same thing.”
‘I wanted you to graduate without worrying about me.’ It had spread to his brain.’: Woman describes grief of losing both parents to cancer
“After finals, my family came to visit me on campus. My dad was very somber. ‘I didn’t want to hide this from you.’ I can’t describe the pain.”
‘Her 9-pound body flopped back lifelessly. She died in my arms at 2 weeks old.’: Mom shares daughter’s journey with rare genetic disorder
“My husband grabbed her from my hands, tossed her over his knees, and started CPR. ‘Please hurry,’ I begged dispatch. I will NEVER forget that night.”
‘The WHOLE table stared at us. I had to prove her wrong in every way imaginable.’: Gay dad of 3 adopted kids writes children’s book inspired by his own family
“I could see she was not approving of my family. But we saved our little girl from a life she was destined to have.”
‘Your dad’s been waiting for you.’ I cried like a child. I should’ve been there.’: Man finds ways to assist aging parents after medical emergency
“All he could say was ‘Son.’ I apologized for my shortcomings. Mom soothed me while dad weakly patted my head like I was a little boy. I realized how much they need me.”
‘Days before his 24th birthday, we received messages. ‘Jake has not shown up for work or class.’ His roommates hadn’t seen him.’: Woman navigates grief after losing brother to suicide, sister and nieces to car accident
“Exactly 2 months later, my sister and two beautiful nieces were killed in a car accident. I heard phrases like ‘everything happens for a reason’ more times than I can count. I was told my sadness was a result of my lack of gratitude and my focusing on the negative. I was encouraged to move on, to forget, to focus on the positive and live in gratitude with love.”