THE KURTZ FAMILY........OUR ADOPTION JOURNEY

Well, we’re in the airport in Frankfurt Germany on the way home. It’s been an incredible adventure. But to be honest we’re adventured out, and now we just want to get home.

We learned one thing on the flight from Addis to Frankfurt. Denaye hates the seatbelt....but she does like the stroller as long as she’s not belted in.

Our last couple of days in Addis were non-stop, hence why I didn’t write. Yesterday we went to one of the largest markets I have ever seen. It stretches for blocks, indoors and outdoors. If you love shoes, you would have been in heaven. Just the number of shoe shops and the variety of shoes was staggering. And there were linens and carvings and spices. Luckily we toured through it with our driver Selamneh.
We can’t say enough about Selamneh. He was not only our tour guide, our driver, but he was also a surrogate father to all the adopted kids. They love him and know him, so when he speaks they listen. He gave Denaye and Maya a little pep talk before we got on the plane about eating unfamiliar food, and they should eat what’s put in front of them because that’s all they’ll get. Ooops, gotta run....we’re boarding.
OK, we’re on board the flight to Toronto. One step closer to home.

Anyway one of the highlights on this trip was going back to the foster home where the girls had lived, and giving Haregewain the donations we brought from home. We took four bags of stuff, all from our friends back in Edmonton. Thanks to all of you who donated. I know Haregewain was blown away with your generosity.
We could tell the foster home was a positive experience for the girls by how they reacted when we arrived. They hugged and kissed all the workers. The workers were all crying. It was quite an emotional scene.

One of our most memorable visits though was later that day...we went to the Liga School. This is a school for kids who basically have nothing. It’s well outside of Addis. The road we took to get to the school was one of the worst we had seen, but we made it....thanks again to Selamneh. These children are impoverished, some have lost parents to AIDS. The school was started by two university graduates. They used their own money. They just wanted to make a difference and give these kid a chance at a better life. They are now getting some funding through CHOIR...the Canadian Humanitarian Organization for International Relief. The students sang and danced for us. You should have seen the joy in their eyes. They’re thrilled to just be able to be in school learning English. It was an emotional visit for all of us, again reminding us of how fortunate we are to have what we have in Canada, but also reminding us there’s much that we all can do to help.

Anyway, I’m pooped. More thoughts later.

Rod