On April 2, 2009, Keyara Jane was officially adopted into the Harrell family and became the newest member of the WMF-Sierra Leone community. She was born on September 15th, 2008 here in Freetown. Chris and I were both with her birthmother at the clinic on the night she was born. I was even able to watch her birth! It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life!!! Since that day, we have been fostering little Keyara in hopes of eventually adopting her. The adoption took about six months to finalize. Sierra Leone requires parents to wait until a child is six months old to officially adopt him or her.
Through her young life, Keyara has become such an amazing source of hope and joy for our family and for the community as a whole. It is wonderful to see some of our more reserved youth just open their hands and hearts to little Keyara when they see her. It’s wonderful to see just how this little life can be a source of hope for those around her. We also think it is important for our youth to see the model of healthy, loving parenting. We are so thankful for Keyara Jane Harrell as the latest addition to our WMF-Sierra Leone community.