Camille is 16 years old. She had a shocking 26 foster family placements over 10 years. A little more than a year ago, Camille’s case came to Wayfinder—changing the trajectory of her life forever. In 2012, Camille and her younger sisters, Maya, age 3, and Dani, age 1, were removed from their home due to…
Alex wanted to be a mom, and Rob wanted to be a dad. With Wayfinder’s help they now have the family they longed for. And their children have the loving home they deserve. The couple approached Wayfinder to adopt through foster care. “I’d seen so many sibling groups be split up between separate homes over…
“As magical as conceiving and childbirth are, adoption has its own amazing pattern of birth,” says Ed Condon, “a birth of the hearts.” About 30 years ago, Ed and his husband, Norman Lorenz, reached out to foster-to-adopt agencies because they wanted a family life with children. But at that time, agencies weren’t welcoming to a…
Elizabeth was in Nebraska for work when she got the call. “We have a baby in the hospital,” said Monica, a Wayfinder social worker. “Can you pick her up tonight?” This was the moment Elizabeth and her husband, Bryan, had longed for. They were going to become parents. After struggling with fertility, they decided to…
August 17 is an important day for Missy and Chris Ewing and their children. They adopted their daughters, Lilly and Cici, on the same August date, five years apart. “It’s a special day of creation for our family,” Missy says. “It’s sister day.” Eight years ago when their biological sons, David and Tim, were ages…
The beautiful thing about families is that they can form without any biological ties—just love. Missy and Chris had two biological sons, David and Tim, and an adopted daughter, Lilly. When they started thinking about a second adoption, Lilly asked for a sister. Missy and Chris went to a Wayfinder family fair for prospective adoptive…
Meet the assistant director of our Short-Term Residential Therapeutic Program. Greg was recently promoted from a shift supervisor in our Cottage. How do you bring Wayfinder Family Services’ mission to life? I bring the mission to life by: number one, having integrity and humility and, number two, coming to work with the understanding that no…
David* suffered severe abuse, but with Wayfinder’s help and his personal strength, he is beating the odds. David’s father, Joe, hit his son with brass knuckles, pointed a gun at him and threatened to kill him. When David was 13 years old, a teacher gained his trust. She reported the abuse, and David was placed with…
James*, age 6, was worried. He was going to lose his first tooth while staying at The Cottage, Wayfinder’s temporary shelter for children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. James had come to The Cottage because his mother, who was struggling with drug addiction, neglected him. Concerned neighbors saw…
“Can the Tooth Fairy find me here?” James, age 6, was worried. He lost his first tooth while staying at The Cottage, Wayfinder’s shelter for children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse and neglect. James had come to The Cottage because his mother, who was struggling with drug addiction, neglected him….
