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Dear Birth Parent(s),
We are Lucy and Jon, and we are thrilled to introduce ourselves to you. Now, five years later, we share our story with the hope of making another special connection. We admire your courage and selflessness in considering adoption for your child. Even though we have a strong desire to parent a child, we respect your decision and wish you all the love and support you need in making the best choices for you and your child. Thank you for considering us as you contemplate your path. About Us As a couple, we are fun loving, sincere, and devoted to one another. We enjoy making each other laugh, as well as sharing in each other's dreams. We look forward to bringing a child into our lives whom we can love, nurture, and cherish. Deciding to put our fate in God's hands by not pursuing the recommended fertility treatments, we have always wanted to have a family. We now know that adoption is the beautiful path God intends for us to use in building our family. We presently live in Chicago in a very nice town home, but are currently building a new home in the western suburbs, closer to Lucy's parents. We look forward to the completion of our home this fall. We are excited about having an enclosed backyard, beautiful views of the lake and golf course, and more space. Our new neighborhood offers three lakes with canoeing, sailing, ice skating, and fishing. Numerous year-round events—including Shetland pony rides, Halloween parties, and Christmas craft activities—take place in our subdivision's parks. We will be located within blocks of a top-ranked high school. During the construction process, we have befriended our new neighbors and were happy to discover that right next door are a brother and sister who were both adopted. We enjoy taking long walks and relaxing bicycle rides together. Jon also enjoys photography and "trying" to play golf, whereas Lucy prefers cooking, exercising, and dancing. Both of us enjoy listening to live music and attending art, craft, and plant shows, as well. Often, we take architectural tours and explore projects useful in new home construction. We have also made a habit of our weekly "breakfast date" before (or after) Sunday Mass. Lucy's Story I was born the eldest of three children. My mother is from Madrid, Spain, and all of my cousins, aunts, and uncles still live there. We have alternated visiting family in Spain with hosting relatives here. I have always had the Spanish language and culture as an integral part of my life. My father is Italian. His parents came over from Italy and settled in a northern suburb of Chicago. My dad's brother, Uncle Louis, still lives in the house where he and dad grew up. He is very excited about becoming a great uncle! I have precious memories of my childhood in Chicago's western suburbs. These include my father taking me (along with my sister, brother, and neighborhood friends) ice skating, sledding, and trick-or-treating, as well as memories of my mother taking us swimming and cooking up a storm. I also have impressive memories of my parents as role models. Mom re-took many of her college studies from Madrid to obtain her degree here. She became a U.S. citizen, taught Spanish, and ultimately developed her own bilingual translation service. Dad flourished in his career as an insurance executive, passing up promotions so he would not have to travel or be away from home. Our family always came "first" in the eyes of my parents. Every night, my dad would help us with our homework after we took turns helping him wash and dry the dishes. He actually made a game out of it, making up clever rhymes, so we did not mind the chore. I definitely was blessed with a wonderful childhood—the same type of childhood Jon and I wish to give our child. I graduated from Purdue University and began a career in academic publishing in Texas. While working for the same company, I moved back to Chicago because I missed my family and friends. Later, I decided to move into an even more rewarding field. In this position, I helped sick patients in the hospital suffering from heart disease. I trained doctors and nurses in the operating room on how to use medical equipment. Recently, I decided to leave this career to focus on my family and home life. Pursuing our adoption dream, I now look forward to the most rewarding career of all: being a stay-at-home mom. My mother and father have been happily married for over forty years and still live in the house where I grew up. They still host holiday get-togethers and invite others who have no family or plans. Jon and I plan on taking over the role of hosting these big holiday get-togethers once our home is completed. Mom and dad are so excited about becoming first-time grandparents. Mom plans to teach our child Spanish. My Spanish relatives (including cousins with young children) are also thrilled and planning trips to meet our child. I also feel blessed to have a wonderful brother and sister-in-law. Bart and Tina cannot wait to become Aunt and Uncle. They plan to take trips to the zoo and museums with their little niece/nephew. They both work in social services and are "naturals" with children. My sister, Joanna, contracted leukemia shortly after her one-year wedding anniversary to her husband, Mark. Their dreams were quickly dashed by her grim diagnosis. She succumbed to a brief but courageous battle. Losing my sister was the toughest thing my family and I ever faced. I admire the strength and dignity with which Joanna confronted her illness. She never questioned why this happened to her. My family is still very close to Mark and considers him family. I consider him a "second brother." Mark will make a wonderful uncle. Jon and I participate regularly in leukemia-related charity events. We welcome the opportunity to help lessen the pain for families touched by this disease. I miss Joanna immensely. I know she is watching down on me and guiding me in my daily life. Lucy, As Seen Through Jon's Eyes Lucy is a very warm, compassionate, honest, and intelligent person. She is outgoing, vibrant, and energetic. Her generous nature and huge heart blend well with her playful personality and great sense of humor. Lucy's commitment to a healthy lifestyle further assures me that she will be a terrific mother. I have two wonderful grown sons, Erik and Karl, from my previous marriage. As we became better acquainted, I noticed how accepting she and her family were of my sons. This was very important to me. They made them feel so warm and comfortable. Lucy has been a wonderful stepmother. She has also been very accepting of my cat, Snuggles, pampering him with treats and lots of TLC. "Snugs" has been with me for about twelve years, and is the most affectionate cat I have ever owned. Lucy is very much like a mother hen to him. He has never had it so good. Lucy's relationship with her parents and brother is very close. By looking no further than her family, I see how she has become such a wonderful person. The product of a close-knit family with a generous spirit, Lucy treats her mother and several of her mother's friends to an elaborate Mother's Day ("Woman's Day") brunch. She delights in cooking all the food and assembling individually tailored goodie bags. I also notice that Lucy has a large number of close friends. Judy, her maid of honor at our wedding, grew up a few blocks away and was in the same kindergarten class. Lucy's girlfriends are very much like sisters to her. She is very devoted to them. Lucy is also close to her friends' children. Jon's Story My mother is Swedish; her parents came over from Sweden. My father is Icelandic, and he came to the U.S. to continue his medical training here. Since there was more opportunity here, dad decided to stay. My father grew up on a small farm in the Icelandic countryside. He was one of six children. All of my aunts, uncles, and cousins on his side are still in Iceland. My parents have been happily married for over forty years. I grew up in a northern suburb of Chicago in a very loving and stable family. Ingrid and Nina are my two sisters. My parents have eight grandchildren, including my sons: Erik, who works in California, and Karl, who is in college. My parents live in the same house where my sisters and I grew up, and they are still going strong! They whole-heartedly welcome the opportunity to become grandparents again. I consider myself very fortunate to have had a wonderful childhood. I attended the Illinois Institute of Technology for my architecture degree, as well as Loyola University for my M.B.A. I am a licensed architect who works as a construction manager for a general contractor specializing in commercial buildings. Since I am an architect, I was able to design our new home...along with Lucy, my "superintendent" and "interior decorator." Jon, As Seen Through Lucy's Eyes Jon is such a wonderful person, so thoughtful and giving. When I first met him, I was struck by his genuine kindness, gentleness, and honesty. As I got to know him better, I noticed his keen and playful sense of humor. Jon's personality perfectly blends his serious traits with his light-hearted qualities. I realized I was not only falling in love with him, but I was also falling in love with the way he had raised his two sons. Jon had sole custody of his sons, and I soon understood the extent of this unfaltering love. Doing it all (as both "Mr. Mom" and "Mr. Dad"), he always put the boys' needs before his own. I was so impressed with his devotion that I knew he would be an incredible father to our child as well. What a role model! Jon has solid relationships with his sisters and their families who also live in the Chicago area. He relishes his role as Uncle Jon to his niece and nephews. Jon loves playing with little Conor (Nina's son). In addition, he often visits his parents. I am so fortunate to have married into such a wonderful family! Jon's parents treat me so lovingly, and his sisters' genuine kindness helps fill the void created by the premature loss of my own sister. Lastly, I can honestly say that Jon is my "rock." He exercises a calming influence on me and is a voice of reason. He is a solid individual with sound values, a huge heart, a nurturing spirit, and natural intelligence. Jon is unselfish and always thinks of others before himself. Our Values We were both raised in upper middle class homes and are relatively conservative. Lucy is a practicing Catholic. Jon was raised Lutheran but has been practicing Catholicism. Our parents have laid a solid foundation for us with good examples. We plan to pass along the same unconditional love and support to our child. Instilling a solid sense of faith in our child, we will teach him/her to be respectful of others and non-judgmental. We will create a positive environment in which our child can flourish, grow, and develop while still having much fun along the way! We feel it is best for a young child to have a stay-at-home parent. We both benefited from such maternal care and nurturing and wish to create the same loving environment. We are fortunate to be able to have Lucy stay home with our child without causing financial hardship for our family. We also believe that education is one of the most valuable gifts a parent can give a child. We can assure you that we will provide for our child's college education. We already have plans to assign funds into the child's own trust fund. This will ensure that the gift is available for our child. We will respect your wishes and honor the adoption plan you are creating for your child. We ask that you determine the type of relationship (phone calls, letters, visits) you wish to maintain with us. We assure you that we will love this child unconditionally. Thank you for allowing us to share our story with you. We would be happy to provide more information on our lives together and would like to learn more about your dreams for your child. Please do not hesitate to contact us toll-free, anytime, at 1-866-444-3131 or send us an e-mail at lucyandjonadopt@yahoo.com with any other questions. If you prefer, you may contact our adoption counselor, Tobi Ehrenpreis, at 1-800-869-1005. We wish you strength, peace, and God's blessings as you contemplate your difficult decision. Warmly, About
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