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!!