By Dr. Teena Welborn
In 2023, adoptions occurred for only 644 out of the approximately 4,000 children in the system in Mississippi (Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services, 2023). These children have a smile, a name, and a story. Adoption can change a child’s life. They are yearning to be loved and to feel a sense of belonging.
It is a huge decision to adopt a child and bring them into your home. Some children have difficult backgrounds and will need special care; some have experienced the death of a parent or both parents; and some just need a more stable living situation that is safe and loving.
George and Lesley Cameron of Florence, Mississippi decided to take that leap! After many failed and dangerous attempts to have a biological family, adoption was in the cards. God had big plans for George and Lesley.
Lesley woke up one morning with a tugging on her heart to look into adopting an older child. Foster children normally age out of the system at age 18 to 21. After speaking with George, Lesley immediately went to a website, Mississippi Heart Gallery, and after 22 years of trying to become parents, they were matched with a child. The paperwork began. Lesley said, “God was already showing out!”
The Camerons had to complete a year of paperwork to become licensed foster parents before they could meet or talk to their assigned child. They had no idea what she looked like until halfway through the process. After spending the summer transitioning from her foster home to her new home, it was move-in time!
After the Camerons had lived with their little girl for six months, the social worker filed the papers for Brianna to be adopted – only one day after the waiting period was over. Brianna was 11 when she was legally adopted.
Learning to be a family was difficult at first, and some days still have their challenges, but the Camerons believe they grow closer through every struggle.
The easiest aspect of adoption is loving Brianna. George and Lesley do not feel there is any difference between a biological child and her. They think if anything, they love and protect her more because of the hardships she has gone through.
Early in the adoption process, Lesley says, she was more guarded. She had been hurt so many times from the excitement and then failures of trying to become a mother, so she didn’t want to let her guard down. “What ifs” constantly ran through her mind.
Similarly, it took Brianna awhile to call Lesley and George “mom” and “dad,” but now when she does, Lesley says, “My heart skips a beat, and the hugs are the BEST! Brianna has no idea how long I waited to hug my daughter!”
“A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families.” – Psalms 68:5-6
Dr. Teena Welborn is a retired educator and author of “Raising Whosoevers to Be the Heart of Our Schools.” Dr. Welborn and her husband of 37 years, Cliff, live in Florence, Mississippi, where they raised their three boys. They are members of First Baptist Florence. She can be contacted at tlmwelborn13@gmail.com.