Community rallies to help Ronan family adopt
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RONAN — There’s a 12-year-old orphan girl in China who may be meeting her adoptive parents sooner than expected, thanks to the efforts of big-hearted people who organized a fundraising Valentine dinner for the Ronan family.
Barnaby and Heather Smith have been creatively fundraising the $48,000 required to bring their new daughter into their Ronan home, joining birth daughters Helen, 12, and Hailey, 10. They’ve sold popcorn, bracelets, raffled a rifle, hosted a Chinese New Year event, set up an online fundraising site as well as a bank account for donations. They’ve applied for numerous grants.
But the latest event took the cake.
Barnaby said he was hoping the dinner and dessert auction would bring in $2,000. But with cakes selling as high as $310 by professional auctioneer Reed Tobol, the event raised $7,490.
“It blew us away,” said Barnaby, an art teacher at Ronan Schools.
On Jan. 24, the family still owed $30,000, due before March 1.
“We thought, ‘this is going to be impossible,’” Barnaby said. The couple considered taking out a loan, but hesitated because they did not want to incur debt. As Christian believers, they had faith that the funds would be provided. Instead of borrowing, they continued praying.
“After that (decision), the funds just starting pouring in,” he said. “All that in less than three week’s time.”
As of last week, every dollar has been funded. Before the dinner the Smith’s received a matching grant from God’s Grace Adoption Ministry for $2,500 and from LifeSong for Orphans for $4,500, “which seemed to encourage other donations, as many people wanted to have their money doubled by the grants,” Barnaby said. “We estimate that over the last few years this amazing community has helped fund this adoption by donating $24,000 of the $47,000 originally thought to be needed.”
Other requirements such as Visas and travel approval now are in place, and the Smiths plan to pick up their new daughter in early March.
The family is calling her “Hope,” although she was given the name “Martha” in China. The family has been communicating with Hope through emails, learning a bit about her personality. To prepare for meeting Hope, the Smiths recently sent a care package that shared what life is like in the Smith home.
“Basically, it’s our family in a box,” Barnaby said.
Although the Smiths have always considered adoption, they finalized their decision after family friends adopted a young Chinese girl, Lily.
Lily is excited to meet Hope, Barnaby said, and Lily even donated $37 of her own money so the Smiths can purchase Chinese books for Hope.
