Ypsilanti Family Finds Joy in Adoption

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (WJBK) - The holidays are a time for families to come together, but there's nothing more heartbreaking than a child without a family or a home. As you and your family celebrate the season, think about the more than 3,000 children in Michigan waiting to be adopted.

FOX 2 recently spent some time with one family that knows firsthand about the joy adoption can bring.

"I've just never been able to have a child, so I thought, well, we've got plenty in this world so might as well do foster care," said Joy Schafer.

That's how it all started for Joy and Robert Schafer of Ypsilanti -- seven foster children in two and a half years and then one day Michael came into their lives.

"We got Michael when he was four days old. I went and picked him up at the hospital," Joy Schafer said. "When they said he was going to be up for adoption, that was the greatest gift in the world because I wasn't going to let him go anywhere anyway."

The Schafers adopted Michael last April. He is a happy, active and inquisitive two-year-old who charms everyone he meets.

However, the Schafers still had more love to give. They took in eleven-year-old Tyler and nine-year-old Brice -- brothers who had been in the foster care system for four long years.

"We currently have over 300 children in Michigan right now who do not have an identified adoptive family," said Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange (M.A.R.E.) program manager Heidi Raubenolt. "Those kids are older, most of them are over the age of nine, and they are looking for a home right now."

Right from the start, this family felt like a perfect fit, so now the Schafers are making it permanent by adopting the older boys.

"It's changed our live a lot. It's made us very busy, but I'm just so happy for everything we've had with them," said Robert Schafer.

"They're just really nice parents, and we don't get in trouble a lot because they teach us wrong from right," said Tyler.

So, the Schafer family is getting bigger and better. By Christmas it should be official -- three new Schafers celebrating together. They all say that will be the best gift of all.

"It's going to feel great. It's going to feel wonderful. To me, the more the merrier, and seeing their faces on Christmas Day, I can't wait," said Joy Schafer.

"I don't really care about the presents as long as we're all together as a family and we just have a good time on the holidays," Tyler said.

FOX 2 is partnering with the Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange (M.A.R.E. ) to share the stories of local children who are waiting to be adopted. Look for it starting in December because every child deserves a loving home and there are thousands of kids in Michigan waiting for a home of their own.