Adoption has always been in the minds of one Marianna, Fla., couple. But Dashoan and Sofia Olds did something truly amazing when they adopted seven children, all siblings who had been previously separated among several foster families, to become one big family of nine.
According to WJHG, when the couple saw a local news story about the seven kids, they immediately felt it was their calling to adopt them.
“It was a done deal from the day we saw the story; before we even met them, it was a done deal. When I saw that picture, it was a done deal for me, honestly,” Sofia Olds told the news station. “We looked at each other and said, ‘We’ve got to do this, it’s time. There’s no maybe; we have to do this.’”
“We always wanted to be a blessing and adopt a child,” Dashoan Olds added.
And so they welcomed Dava, Erica, Eric, Zavian, Leondras, Reginald and Necia into their home and into their hearts.
For Necia, the oldest of the siblings, her new family was beyond her wildest dreams.
“We thought we would never get adopted, but I thought this was a really good blessing for us,” the 12-year-old said.
And Blair Bell, with the Children’s Home Society, acknowledged that she was told that she should have the children adopted separately, but Bell wouldn’t hear of it.
“I heard from so many people that finding a home for seven children would be impossible,” Bell said. “Siblings [...] that’s the longest bond that you’ll have; it was very important to find a home that would be able to take all seven and make a real forever family.”
For the Olds, they intend to make that “real forever family” a reality.
“We’re going to build their faith up, we’re going to build them educationally,” Dashoan Olds said. “We’re going to get them active in a sport or an activity, or something extracurricular. And we’re going to love each other, so we’re going to do all of it.”
Read more at WJHG.
DISCUSSION
The plot twist to this story is...a happy ending?