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Welcome Home, Keaton Chiprian!

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Adoption Update
Indy East News Article
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The Lafever Adoption Page


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Adoption...Bringing families into focus

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days until the federal adoption tax credit expires! Click here to learn more about the adoption tax credit.









I hope you are doing well. In 1998, my wife and I made the decision to adopt an orphan from another country. We are currently in the process of completing the paperwork for adopting a three to five year old boy from Romania. Our three children are very excited about our new addition and we hope to pick up our new son in 2000. The adoption for our son will cost around $20,000, which is a significant amount for any family, but we feel the cost should not be an obstacle to give an orphan a loving home.

I want to thank everyone who has generously supported our efforts in 1999. We have raised over $18,000 dollars towards the estimated $20,000 to complete the adoption. I especially want to thank the Indianapolis International Church of Christ, Alverno Information Services, the Indy East News paper, and the many co-workers and friends that have contributed to this great effort.

Our goal is to help persuade middle class families that have limited resources that they can raise the money to adopt. It took me years to believe that we could raise enough funds to adopt. God has provided for us in ways we could not have imagined. When I called to place an ad for our first garage sale fundraiser, the Indy East News paper covered our story and ran it on the front page! We started raising money in June and we began at zero dollars. To date, God has allowed to raise over $18,000! We are so thankful for the many people that have supported and encouraged our efforts. I'll soon be adding a "hall of fame" to our site to honor those who have given and helped us. We hope to be an inspiration to many who feel that they can't adopt because of lack of funds. With God, all things are possible.

Additional adoption information...


Click on this picture to learn about our adoption agency:


Click on the flag to learn about Romania:


"Stuart Little"-click on this picture for a great movie about adoption.
1st #1 movie at box office in 2000!


Number of hits to our site:
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Here's our current status:
Home Study: Completed and approved.
Application Fees and Program Fee: Paid in full.
Orphange fee: $10,000 out of $10,000 paid
Application status: Referral received on 3/20/2000!
Travel Date: June 2000
Arrived Home: June 23rd, 2000!
Final Fundraiser: September 2000


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Waiting for our son to come home.

A few moments ago, I kissed my three children goodnight and I told them that I loved them. My children are now all asleep and dreaming. However, my thoughts are on the other empty bed in my son’s room. Somewhere in Romania, a little boy sleeping in an orphanage is totally unaware that someday soon he will be sleeping in that empty bed. His dreams are about having a mommy and daddy and maybe even brothers or sisters. Deena and I want to bring him into our home to make his dreams come true. We hope to be his happily ever after.

We had been considering adopting a child for a number of years. The need to adopt is staggering. In China alone, there are one million orphans that need homes. Some estimate that the city of Moscow has nearly one hundred thousand homeless children. Many countries have children with no place to go and no hope for the future. The United States is no exception. There are thousands of kids here that need fathers and mothers. We became convinced that we could provide a loving family for a child. Yet there was just one thing that held us back. Money. The cost of adoptions can exceed $20,000 and we don’t have that kind of money just laying around the house. Frankly, the cost scared us because we couldn’t think of any way to come up with that much cash. I am a computer technician and my wife works part time and it would take quite a while to save up what we needed. However, we just kept thinking how great it would be for our son to have a little brother.

In 1998, we meet a couple that adopted a young boy named Ivan from Russia. The Salmonds had the courage and the compassion to bring this boy into their lives. William Salmond wrote a set of devotionals called “Lessons from Ivan” that moved us when we read them. They made the sacrifices to bring this wonderful child into their family. The impact of adopting had changed their whole family and each of them individually. Later, a couple we had known for several years, brought their new son home from Romania. We talked extensively with them about their experience and, of course, how much it cost. They too had found a way to fund the adoption. Lastly, Mark Johnson from HOPE for Children came to Indianapolis to conduct an adoption information meeting where he addressed the subject of money. He pointed out how people find a way to pay for things they really want. Some folks don‘t think twice about buying a $20,000 boat or car because they must have it. At this point, we have decided that we won’t let finances stand in our way. We firmly believe that we will find a way to add another son to our family.

This issue has now been settled in our hearts. We are adopting a three to five year old boy from Romania and we hope that to fly to Bucharest and pick him up before the end of the year. The paperwork, home study, passports, and other document have been completed and turned in. Now we wait for our INS approval and then we wait for the Romanian government to accept us as adoptive parents. We have been praying daily and we believe that God wants to see us through. Deena and I believe in James 1:27 that says, ”Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress...” Little by little, we are getting help from friends and family. We would appreciate the help and support of the eastside communities in our effort to become adoptive parents. Honestly, we need your help to raise the twenty thousand plus dollars it takes to make this happen. You can help us in one of two ways: make a financial donation or donate items for our big garage sale that will be held July 31st. We will accept most items such as appliances, clothes, furniture, antiques, cars, or even airplanes! Okay, maybe not airplanes…but most items you would put into a sale. After all, we can do you a favor by getting rid of that stuff that just taking up space in the garage. With your help, we hope to raise all the money we need for our son. We want to bring him home soon. I can’t wait to dry his tears, put him to bed, give him a goodnight kiss, and tell him I love him. But for now, the empty bed will have to wait. Thank you for listening. (Front page article from the Indy East News on June the 30th,1999)


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We are currently raising money through sales of items through ebay actions. If you would like to donate an item or help, please email us at lafever@iquest.net