Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Everyone!  Who knows...this could be our last Christmas without Abigail! We just wanted to thank you all for an amazing year of prayer and support! When we look back to where we were in this process a year ago, it's absolutely amazing how far we've come! We couldn't have done it without you!

For those of you considering an end of year tax-deductible donation, please use the link below. We're so thankful to LifeSong for setting this up for us so there is a tax benefit to those donating! We will be praying for you all this Christmas season! 

Donate: Click Here

Blessings!
Benson and Heather

Last week we had a meeting with our adoption case worker and after reviewing some things including our financial plan, we were given the OK to move forward by preparing our profile book! We are working on that over the next few weeks and it should be available to start being shown in January!  We have been waiting for this for a long time and are very excited!! This means we are now off hold status and are considered a "waiting family".  The average wait time is currently 18 months once the profile book is done but it could be sooner or longer.  We'll see!

We''ll keep busy in the meantime. For one, I was blessed with a scholarship for the Spring 2015 semester to University of Richmond.  Thanks to this, I will start working on my bachelor's degree which I'm super excited about!  We have been abundantly blessed through this whole process and especially financially in the last few weeks. We are grateful!!!

WOW!!! We're practically there!

We're in AWE! The last 2 weeks have been AMAZING as far as fundraising is concerned to the tune of $15,000 raised!! What?!?!?!?!

Not only were we tremendously blessed with confirmation of two grants, we have also received notice of an extremely generous donation from an amazing couple we've never even met in person! I first heard from Karen over a year ago at which time I believe she saw information about our desire to adopt on her daughter's Facebook account. (Hey Jessica! I sure am glad we had that boot camp class together and became Facebook friends :) !!

Karen and I became Facebook friends but have never met in person as she lives in another state. Karen and her husband, Charlie, sent us a lovely card with a kind donation at that time. Now, once again, they have blessed us with an extremely generous donation! We could never fully express our gratitude toward the kindness of a couple that we have never even met in person! Thanks to their generosity and the grants (along with the funds we've been blessed to be able to put in personally, the wonderful dinner theater that was put on for our behalf last year and all the donations that you, our family and friends have blessed us with) we are almost there!

And, check out this timing!  We have our meeting with the adoption agency tomorrow! We've had this meeting scheduled for about 6 months! And, because we can now outline where almost all of the remaining funds are coming from, we can finally move forward!!  Tomorrow we will look over other couple's profile books to get a better idea of how to prepare ours.  Then, we'll start getting ours together and it will soon be available for birth parents to look at and we will be what is known as a "waiting family"! That term might not sound exciting but it's music to our ears!

I know we keep saying it but thank you all so much! We serve an amazing God and He showed up, once again, in this adoption process  in a big way in the last couple weeks! We are so thankful for how he has used each of you to bless us!

CHECK OUT  THE THERMOMETER ON THE RIGHT (at the top of the page)!  YOUR PRAYERS AND SUPPORT  HELPED THIS HAPPEN!

We can't wait until we get to introduce you all to Abigail!

Blessings!
Heather & Benson

So blessed!

We just received word that we are being granted another $5,000! We are speechless!  Check out the thermometer on the right!! We are so blessed!!

Show Hope!!

We are so excited to have received notification yesterday that we have been awarded a $5000 grant from Show Hope!  This put's us more than half way to our financial goal.  Check out the thermometer on the right! This was one of the main grants we were waiting to hear back from. We are so thankful that we were selected for such a generous grant!!

Sporting my "I Love Show Hope" T :)

Please pray with us that we can some how figure out where the remaining funds are coming from, hopefully by our next appointment with the agency in December, so that we can start having our profile book shown! 

Also, if you'd care to donate, we are now set up to take tax-deductible donations!  See below.

Blessings to each and every one of you who take a moment to keep up with our adoption story.  You are all an amazing support system!

Blessings!

Benson & Heather

We are now able to accept tax-deductible donations to Abigail's adoption fund!

We are very thankful that as of today, we are now able to accept tax-deductible donations toward Abigail's adoption fund thanks to Lifesong for Orphans. Some supporters had asked me about this a while ago so we're so excited that this is now an option!

If you would like to make such a donation, here are the details...

Give by Check
Please make checks payable to Lifesong for Orphans.
In the memo please note your gift preference with Family Account Number and Family Name.
(Marshall, 4789)
Please mail checks to:
Lifesong for Orphans
PO Box 40
Gridley, IL 61744
Lifesong has been blessed with a partner that underwrites all US administrative and fund-raising
costs (TMG Foundation and other partners). That means 100% of your donation will go directly to
the need…helping orphans.

Give Online through the bottom below.

Or...
1. Go to www.lifesongfororphans.org/give/donate
2. Select Give to an Adoptive Family
3. Complete online form and fill in Family Account Number (4789) & Family Name (Marshall) Fields
*Please note that PayPal will charge an administrative fee (2.9% + $.30 USD per transaction). Your
donation will be decreased by the amount of this fee.

Individual donations $50 or more and yearly donations totaling $250 or more will receive a tax deductible receipt. Receipts for donations under $50 will gladly be sent upon request.
Lifesong is a 501(c)3 tax exempt organization.

In addition to this exciting news, we were so happy to receive our first grant last week in the amount of $500 from Families Outreach!!



It's adding up and God is providing in His perfect timing.

As always, thank you for your support!!

Sunday, November 2nd is Orphan Sunday!

On November 2nd, Christians around the globe will stand together with one goal: to rouse believers with God's call to care for the orphan and what our role is in response.

Please see below if you're interested in learning about how you can be involved in this amazing ministry!  

On a personal note, if you feel called to help us bring Abigail home, we are still in need of financial assistance. We're waiting to hear back from some grants but still have a long ways to go. Our next meeting with our adoption worker is on Thursday, December 4th. Our hope is that someway, somehow we will be able to define where the remaining funds are coming from at that time so that we can move forward with the process. The thought of being able to have our adoption profile book shown to birth moms in the beginning of the year is very exciting! We still need help to get there and appreciate every prayer and every dollar that comes in. 

(Donate Button on the right or donations can be mailed to Benson & Heather Marshall at 
PO Box 8334 Richmond, VA 23226 
Ref: Abigail's Adoption)

Thank you all!

"Orphan Sunday isn't about charity; it's about the mission of Christ. I pray that every Gospel-transformed congregation will observe Orphan Sunday, calling all Christians to our mandate to image Christ by caring for his little brothers and sisters, the fatherless of the world." -- Dr. Russell Moore, author Adopted for Life

Does your family, small group or church have plans for Orphan Sunday? There are so many ways that we can honor orphans collectively as the Body of Christ on Orphan Sunday. If you don't have plans or haven't heard of an event near you, here are 4 ways you can engage in this year's Orphan Sunday:

1. Advent for Orphans Calendar -- see explanation below.
2. Orphan's Table -- share a meal eaten by orphans around the world. Gather with family, small group or church for the meal, discussion and prayer.
3. Plan an Orphan Sunday event with a Partnership Package -- easy-to- follow Orphan Sunday event plan, enabling you to partner with an organization to create a simple event!
4. Contact your Regional Orphan Sunday Coordinator with questions, to seek ideas as you plan, or to let them know that you will be holding an event.

Be sure to also check out their other resources which include videos, prayer guides, sermon notes, t-shirts & more! Together, let's stand for the orphan!

To learn more about Orphan Sunday or find an event near you visit OrphanSunday.org

Get your FREE Advent Calendar & celebrate with purpose! 

See how your family, small group or church can celebrate the anticipate the birth of our Savior in a special way that also shows love to orphans.

Limited supply of Advent for Orphans calendars available! Learn more & order your calendar today at www.lifesongfororphans.org/advent.

Things are happening!! (aka Paperwork galore!)

So... since the approval of the home-study, I have failed to post an update!  Not because we aren't doing anything but because we have been in  grant application mode!  We've applied to several grants and still have a few to go! Wow- the paperwork for those is each about as much as the home-study (or at least it feels like it) but I'm becoming a pro and they are getting faster!  As you probably know, we still need to raise $17,000 in order for the agency to start showing our profile book.  Our next meeting is scheduled with our case worker in November so our hope is that we will know where the funds are coming from by then so that we can outline our financial plan and start having our profile book shown by the beginning of the year!  I will update the blog for sure as we hear back from grants but for now we're in waiting (& still applying) mode.

We have to give a HUGE thank you to our pastor and friends who are being so kind in writing referral letters as needed for the various grants!

Also, we're excited to be signed up for an adoption baby care class next month from this place below!

So, even though it may not seem that things are going at warp speed, they are going!  As always, thanks to every one of you who take the time to look at our little blog and say a prayer for us!  This journey would be so much less rewarding without your words of encouragement and support!!

 

PS.  If you would like to donate to our adoption fund, there is a link to the right.  In addition, we have T-shirts & coffee for sale that we receive a portion of through some awesome companies!  Check out those links at the top!  We are thinking about putting together another fundraiser and will certainly post it here if we decide to!

We're approved!!!

As of May 28th, 2014, our Home-Study has been approved!  Yay!! This was a really big step and we're excited to have that part of the process completed. Now, here is how it goes...

In order for the agency to start showing our profile book (a book that we put together with pictures and info about us) to expectant birth moms, we need to either have the remaining $17,000 in hand or at least have an outline of where exactly the funds are coming from and how we could access the funds as soon as we receive a placement. We hope to get at least a portion of that (several thousand or more is hopeful!) from grants and the remaining will be from donations, fundraising and our personal savings.  Because we have chosen to set our preferences to adopt a girl, it could take us longer to receive a placement than families that are open to boy or girl so we're hoping we can start showing our profile book sooner than later so the wait can start. We've always had it on our hearts to adopt a girl (Abigail Grace) so we are going to remain steadfast on that even if it takes longer. It's pretty crazy because we could get a placement right after they start showing our profile book (not likely but has happened!) or a year or two later  (the average wait is around two years but the soonest has been about a week!) It's just a matter of how soon our story connects with a birth mom who is expecting a girl. 

So...please continue to pray for the birth parents, our future daughter, the agency and us. As always, the support of everyone has meant (and continues to mean) so much!

Praying for blessings for all of you!!

Home-Study Visits Completed!

We're so excited that as of two weeks ago (April 25, 2014) we completed our last Home-Study Visit!!!  Even though this is a long detailed part of the process, it wasn't bad at all. We actually kind of enjoyed it!  The visits consisted of individual interviews with each of us, interviews as a couple, a home environment check visit, and a visit to discuss what we are open to/our preferences.

Now, we will be getting our official approval letter anytime and it will be time for us to raise more funds by applying for grants & fundraising. Then, once we know where the remaining funds are coming from, we will make our profile book (a book that has pictures and tells all about us for the birth mom to look through) and birth moms will start looking at it until one picks us to adopt her baby girl!  Crazy awesome!! It's becoming more real now that the Home-Study is done and we have come this far! We knew it would happen but it starts to become more of a reality in our mind as another part of the process is completed. Now, we're pretty much left with one big task- coming up with the rest of the funds needed to be able to have our profile book shown. We appreciate your prayers as we start looking into more fundraising options & grants. Thanks so much for the support!

If you would like to help us in our journey, there are a couple of ways...

1) As mentioned, pray!  Pray for us, the birth parents, Abigail, Bethany Christian Services and everyone involved.

2) Financial support. If you desire to help financially, donations to Abigail's adoption fund can be made directly on this site via paypal or mailed to PO Box 8334 Richmond, VA 23226.

Thank you all & God Bless!

Heather & Benson

Home-Study Visit #1!

We had our first home-study visit yesterday from 6-8pm. It was a breeze :) Katherine just came over and sat in our sun-room and talked with us for a couple hours. We went over paperwork and she asked us a little about ourselves.

We know God has this all figured out so we're actually very relaxed about the whole process so we weren't nervous at all. It looks like the home-study is going to happen pretty quickly because we already have our 2nd visit scheduled for next week which will be in their office and will consist of individual meetings with us.

The 3rd visit will be back at our home and will mostly involve going over a home environment checklist to make sure we're baby ready and the last visit is back in their office to go over our preferences and look at some other profile books so we can get ours together! The whole home-study process is only these 4 meetings so we'll probably have those completed by mid April!  It's definitely moving along now!  Thanks again for the prayers!!

It's scheduled!

I JUST got the call from Katherine at Bethany Christian Services to schedule our first home-study visit!  It's funny but I actually got a little bit of a knot in my stomach because this has been a LONG time coming!  So, here goes! We're really in it now! She will be coming to our home on March 21st to have our first home-study meeting. Once we get the home-study completed, which should be by early May, and raise the remaining funds needed, we'll be preparing a profile book that tells all about us and will be shown to the expectant moms that fit our preferences, of which any one could choose us to be the adoptive parents. It's crazy, exciting and nerve-racking all at the same time! I'm sure all parents know this feeling! Thanks again for the support! We can't wait to introduce you all to Abigail Grace when God brings her to us!!

Coffee shop update...

I'm taking a breather in a coffee shop at the moment and thought this would be a perfect time to do a quick update since good things are happening!!!

What's so great you ask?!?!

Well...we're moved! We love the neighborhood!  Our neighbors already stopped by to introduce themselves :)

For anyone who wants to stay in touch the old school way, our new mailing address is PO Box 8334 Richmond, VA 23226.

And, for anyone who missed it, I was laid off about 6 weeks ago- boo!  But, that's OK! I already landed another amazing job that I start in a couple weeks. One of my old managers, who works at the new place, was excited to have me join this company as the Executive Assistant to the President and Vice President so YAY! The position is a nice step up from my previous position anyway. Yep!  God's great like that!

But, what about the adoption you might ask? What's up with that? Are you guys still doing this thing or what?!?!

Um....well...YES!!!!

The agency called to schedule the home-study but we were in the process of moving and needed to get settled in the new place so we let a family get bumped ahead of us on the home-study list. But, we're the very next!!!!!! That means that they will be calling us in the next couple weeks and we'll be starting the home study most likely before the end of March! So, we're moving slow and steady at God's directed pace. Thanks again for your prayers and financial support. We're so amazingly thankful!

OK, time for me to stop stalling and go unpack some boxes :)

Blessings!!!!!

A non-update...

OK, so this is more of a non-update than an update because right now we're just in waiting mode to start our home-study which should be soon! But, It's been a while since I posted so I felt like I should at least let everyone know we're still here!

Let's see...what's new...

1) We completed an adoption class that was really informative regarding talking to your child about adoption and how they can talk to others about being adopted.  Here's our certificate from that...

2) We've decided to move!  We're excited about that!  In about 6 weeks, we're moving just over the river (for those of you familiar with the James River in Richmond) back to the side that feels more like home to us- I guess you'd call it the North Side. And, we're moving to a home that has a little more room so Abigail will have her own nursery that doesn't have to be shared with my desk! The pups will still have a backyard to run around in  and, the home is in an area that we feel more comfortable in- OK it's statistically safer then where we are currently :)

We still have plenty of money to save/raise for the adoption (about $17k) but we're trusting God will work that all out in His perfect timing.  We have what we need at this moment to move ahead with the home-study thanks to His goodness and so many of you who have generously donated and that is enough for us!

So, I guess that's all for now. Thanks for reading this post!  Please continue to keep us in your prayers!

Oh...Here are some stats I just got today from our adoption agency that I thought we're interesting.  I thought some of you might enjoy seeing it. (see below-just click on it to see it larger)

 Blessings and a Very Happy New Year to each of you!!!!