“Stranger Things” actress Millie Bobby Brown just announced that she and her husband, Jon Bon Jovi’s son Jake Bongiovi, have welcomed a baby daughter via adoption.
The 21-year-old celebrity shared the news via Instagram. &#8220;This summer we welcomed our sweet baby girl through adoption. We are beyond excited to embark on this beautiful next chapter of parenthood in both peace and privacy,&#8221; Brown wrote in the text-based post. &#8220;And then there were 3.&#8221;
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The couple has been criticized for getting married young. Brown and Bongiovi were dating for two years when he proposed in April 2023 when they were 19 and 20, respectively. They wed in a private ceremony in May 2024.
Bon Jovi said he didn’t think their ages were a big deal.
“I don’t know if age matters,” Bon Jovi said at the time, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jon-bon-jovi-approves-of-20-year-old-sons-engagement-to-millie-bobby-brown-19-i-dont-know-if-age-matters?author=Amanda+Harding&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Jon+Bon+Jovi+Approves+Of+20-Year+Old+Son%E2%80%99s+Engagement+To+Millie+Bobby+Brown%2C+19%3A+%E2%80%98I+Don%E2%80%99t+Know+If+Age+Matters%E2%80%99">reported</a>. “If you find the right partner and you grow together … All of my kids have found the people that they think they can grow together with and we like ‘em all.”
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_campaign=summer&amp;utm_content=editorialsummersale&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">End of Summer Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
“Millie is wonderful,” he added. “Her whole family are great. Jake is very, very happy.”
Brown <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/stranger-things-star-makes-very-surprising-pro-family-comment?author=Katie+Jerkovich&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=%E2%80%98Stranger+Things%E2%80%99+Star+Makes+Very+Surprising+Pro-Family+Comment">discussed</a> her thoughts on motherhood during a March episode of the “Smartless” podcast.
&#8220;My mom actually had her first child at 21, and my dad was 19. And you know, it&#8217;s been my thing since before I met Jake,&#8221; the actress said. &#8220;Since I was a baby, I told my mom, like, baby dolls. I wanted to be a mom just like the way my mom was to me.&#8221;
&#8220;And my nan, my grandmother is, she was a huge part of my life. And so, yeah, I mean, Jake knows how important it is to me and, of course, I want to focus on really establishing myself as an actor and as a producer, but I also find it&#8217;s so important to start a family for me personally,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;It&#8217;s a huge thing. Jake was like, we cannot do that until we get married. So that was his thing.&#8221;
Brown said she and her husband both came from big families and wanted the same for themselves.
&#8220;And my thing was, I really want a family. I really want a big family,&#8221; she said at the time. &#8220;I&#8217;m one of four. He&#8217;s one of four. So, it is definitely in our future, but, for me, I don&#8217;t see having your own child, you know, as really any different as in adopting.&#8221;

Millie Bobby Brown and Jake Bongiovi

Why 21-Year-Old ‘Stranger Things’ Star And Bon Jovi’s Son Have Adopted Their First Child

Adoption

Celebrities

Entertainment

Millie Bobby Brown

Parenting

World

A pre-born life frozen since 1994 has finally been welcomed into the world, in what is believed to be the oldest embryo ever brought to birth.
Tim and Lindsey Pierce utilized embryo adoption to grow their family, per the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/baby-embryo-30-year-birth-ohio-129926d4456dcba4781f155898aca7d8">Associated Press</a>. The Ohio-based couple is part of a small movement of people who focus on frozen embryos currently suspended in time.
For many Christians who believe life begins at conception, it is unthinkable to “dispose of” these fully unique human persons even at their very early stages of development. But embryo adoption remains an underutilized option, especially considering estimates that more than 1.5 million frozen embryos are currently being stored in the United States today.
The Pierces adopted the frozen embryo from Linda Archerd, 62. 
She said she had four frozen embryos after undergoing an IVF procedure more than 30 years ago and gave birth to one daughter. But then she and her husband divorced, stalling her plans to expand her family further. Still, Archerd thought about her embryos and believed they deserved a chance at life, too.
“I felt all along that these three little hopes, these little embryos, deserved to live just like my daughter did,” Archerd told AP.
She found the Pierces through an embryo adoption agency. One embryo did not survive the thaw, Archerd told the outlet. Two embryos were transferred, but only one implanted, resulting in the live birth of one little boy on Saturday.
The biological mother of the donated embryos said she looks forward to meeting her son, named Thaddeus Daniel Pierce, which was one of the stipulations she put forth for the adoption.
Archerd said she already sees the family resemblance. “The first thing that I noticed when Lindsey sent me his pictures is how much he looks like my daughter when she was a baby,” Archerd said. “I pulled out my baby book and compared them side by side and there is no doubt that they are siblings.”
“I’d love to meet them some day,” she said. “That would be a dream come true to meet — meet them and the baby.”
Lindsey Pierce told <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/29/1120769/exclusive-record-breaking-baby-born-embryo-over-30-years-old/#:~:text=The%20embryos%20were%20created%20in,Christian%20%E2%80%9Cembryo%20adoption%E2%80%9D%20agency.&amp;text=A%20baby%20boy%20born%20over,for%20the%20%E2%80%9Coldest%20baby.%E2%80%9D">MIT Technology Review</a> that she and her family are doing fine. “We had a rough birth but we are both doing well now,” the new mom told the outlet. “He is so chill. We are in awe that we have this precious baby!”
“The baby has a 30-year-old sister,” she said. The outlet also noted that she and her husband, Tim, who are 34 and 35 respectively, were only toddlers when their future son was conceived.
“We thought it was wild,” Lindsey said. “We didn’t know they froze embryos that long ago.”
“We didn’t go into it thinking we would break any records. We just wanted to have a baby,” she added, noting how her family thinks the whole thing is “like something from a sci-fi movie.”

Three Decades Later, Life Begins: Ohio Baby Boy Born From 1994 Frozen Embryo

Ohio Baby Conceived, Frozen In 1994 Becomes 'Oldest' Embryo Ever Born

babies

Health

Medical Research

Ohio

Pro-Life Movement

Science

You can tell a lot about the strength of a particular argument or world view by how long it lasts before reality ends up discrediting it. There are some debates that don&#8217;t need to be settled by consulting with dozens of experts or asking ten different AI models and then comparing notes. Instead, certain events take place, and they resolve the disagreement right away. A catastrophic nuclear meltdown ended any discussion about how effective Chernobyl&#8217;s emergency shutdown mechanism was. An iceberg convinced everyone that, despite all of the marketing hype, the Titanic could in fact sink. There are limits to the ability of liars and charlatans to deceive the population, in other words. Even the most convincing fraudsters face the risk of exposure if their deception is simply too absurd to be compatible with reality. The more absurd the deception is, the faster it falls apart.
By that standard, there are few lies that are more flagrant — and obviously so — than the fiction that gay men should be allowed to adopt children, or to acquire them by paying for a woman to serve as a &#8220;surrogate.&#8221; As we saw recently, a journalist named Glenn Greenwald personally <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/glenn-greenwald-called-me-morally-deranged-then-this-happened">attacked</a> me for holding the position that children should be raised by a mother and a father. He maintained, in a very public and vitriolic fashion, that I was a terrible person for suggesting that gay adoption isn&#8217;t an ideal outcome. He presented himself as infinitely more virtuous than I am because of his decision to acquire young children. And then, within a matter of weeks, Greenwald himself demonstrated through his own conduct — on camera — why my position was correct.
That was back in June. And now, just a month later, it&#8217;s happened again. Reality has caused yet another major problem for the Left&#8217;s narrative about homosexuals who adopt children. Only this time, reality reared its head even faster — as in, within 24 hours. And the implications here are somehow even more disturbing and grotesque than they were with Glenn Greenwald&#8217;s debauchery. This is a story that makes it very clear that laws need to change, and they need to change immediately. And then people need to go to prison.
It all began on Sunday, when an Irish political activist named Derek Blighe discovered some videos that had been posted on a gay couple&#8217;s social media feeds. The videos show the two gay men, both of whom are overweight, marking monthly anniversaries with a child they&#8217;ve obtained. In every video, they blow out a candle on the cupcake. And the videos keep going, as the men seem to somehow get fatter each time. Watch:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="001 Gay Couple" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sYxqkeV2XRQ?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
In response to these videos, on Sunday, Derek Blighe posted simply, &#8220;Unless a miracle happens, this child has almost no chance at a normal life.&#8221;
And he was right, of course.
At a visceral level, this footage is repulsive. Everyone understands that, whether they&#8217;ll admit it or not. When a child is deprived of his mother and father, it isn&#8217;t something to celebrate. It&#8217;s a tragedy that&#8217;s inflicted on someone who cannot possibly deserve it, and who may never recover from it. And that&#8217;s especially true when, in lieu of a mother and a father, a child is obtained by two men who belong to a demographic whose behavior, in a very disproportionate number of cases, is completely incompatible with raising children, to put things as mildly as possible. It&#8217;s also a demographic that&#8217;s disproportionately interested in adopting male children. And again, everyone understands what&#8217;s going on there, though nobody will say it.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1631-the-matt-walsh-show?elementPosition=0&amp;row=2&amp;rowHeadline=The+Matt+Walsh+Show&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">WATCH: The Matt Walsh Show</a></h3>
And yet, when Blighe made this simple and straightforward observation, hundreds of thousands of Left-wing activists pretended to be shocked and horrified by what he had written. They also claimed that, in fact, it&#8217;s *better* for the child to be raised by two gay men, than by his own mother and father.
Here&#8217;s <a href="https://x.com/LouiseScot51918/status/1949441171085799511">one representative post</a>, which has more than 6 million views and 220,000 &#8220;likes&#8221; on X:
<blockquote>Makes me happy. That baby is going to be raised not to hate people and will be loved.</blockquote>
Here&#8217;s another post, from someone named &#8220;Bev Jackson&#8221; of a group called &#8220;Alliance LGB.&#8221; This came in response to Derek&#8217;s post expressing disgust at the footage: 
<blockquote>That is homophobic. If the child has two loving male parents, there is no evidence whatsoever that he or she will not prosper.</blockquote>
But Bev Jackson&#8217;s response didn&#8217;t last very long. Just a few hours later, Bev <a href="https://x.com/BevJacksonAuth/status/1949907957203751331">deleted</a> it. And a lot of people like Bev deleted their reactions, too. That&#8217;s because, in record-breaking time, the narrative took an extremely dark turn. The journalists at Reduxx decided to take a closer look at the two gay men in the video with that toddler. <a href="https://reduxx.info/gay-man-who-crowdfunded-surrogacy-journey-with-husband-revealed-as-child-sex-offender/">Here&#8217;s</a> what they found:
<blockquote>A widely circulated video showcasing a gay couple’s &#8216;surrogacy journey&#8217; has revealed that a baby boy is currently in the custody of a registered child sex offender. &#8230; Brandon Keith Mitchell is a Tier 1 sex offender in the state of Pennsylvania, and was arrested in 2016 after attempting to solicit a 16-year-old boy for sexual abuse. The victim in the case was a student at Downingtown West High School, where Mitchell had worked as a chemistry teacher. He was 30 years old at the time.</blockquote>
Here&#8217;s an image of Brandon Mitchell when he was teaching:
<div id="attachment_953911" style="width: 442px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-953911" class="wp-image-953911 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/MixCollage-29-Jul-2025-01-40-PM-9665-432x576.jpg" alt="Chester County District Attorney’s office." width="432" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/MixCollage-29-Jul-2025-01-40-PM-9665-432x576.jpg 432w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/MixCollage-29-Jul-2025-01-40-PM-9665-225x300.jpg 225w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/MixCollage-29-Jul-2025-01-40-PM-9665-768x1024.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/MixCollage-29-Jul-2025-01-40-PM-9665-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/MixCollage-29-Jul-2025-01-40-PM-9665-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/MixCollage-29-Jul-2025-01-40-PM-9665-scaled.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 432px) 100vw, 432px" />Chester County District Attorney’s office.</div>
According to local news reports, Mitchell was, &#8220;charged with texting obscene images and texts to a student, [and] asking for nude images of the underage student.&#8221;
Mitchell taught at this school from 2010 to 2015. And during this period, he reportedly sent more than 12,000 text messages to this student. He ended up pleading guilty to &#8220;felony child pornography possession and one count of Corruption of Minors&#8221; — because police found sexually explicit videos of the child on his personal computer — and was sentenced to nearly two years of incarceration. But he didn&#8217;t serve anywhere near that sentence. Just two months after his conviction, Reduxx reports, he was granted parole. For a crime that should&#8217;ve resulted in life imprisonment, at a minimum, he barely spent any time in jail.
The Reduxx article <a href="https://reduxx.info/gay-man-who-crowdfunded-surrogacy-journey-with-husband-revealed-as-child-sex-offender/">continues</a>:
<blockquote>Part of his conditions included that he have no unsupervised contact with minors and that he surrender his teaching license. He quickly moved on to obtain a job as a chemist at Eurofins BioPharma Product Testing in Lancaster, where he has worked for the past 9 years. &#8230; In 2021, Mitchell married Logan Riley, a second-grade teacher from Maryland, and moved to Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania. In 2023, the two launched a GoFundMe to raise money for a surrogate.</blockquote>
Of course, the GoFundMe didn&#8217;t mention the whole &#8220;convicted sex offender” thing.
In any event, the fundraiser has since been taken down. But it reportedly had a goal of $50,000, and raised just over $2,000, so it wasn&#8217;t exactly a success. Nevertheless, Riley — the husband of the convicted sex offender — reported that, in November of 2023, they had found a surrogate.
<blockquote>Our surrogate went through extensive medical and social worker evaluations in order to be approved for surrogacy. Once approved, the lengthy legal and financial process began. We are so excited that our amazing surrogate will carry one of our embryos for us, helping to expand our family.</blockquote>
It&#8217;s hard to miss the irony here. According to these two gay men, there was an &#8220;extensive&#8221; screening process for their &#8220;surrogate&#8221; — meaning, the woman whose body they were going to rent, so that she would bear a child for them, so that they could pretend to be parents. Social workers, doctors and lawyers were all involved. And yet, evidently, there was no screening process whatsoever for these two gay men. No one in the federal government, or the state of Pennsylvania, saw any problem with creating a new human life, for the sole purposes of handing the child off to a convicted sexual predator. And not just any convicted sexual predator. We&#8217;re talking about a convicted <a href="https://x.com/MrAndyNgo/status/1949915000589443072">sexual predator</a> who specifically preyed on a child.
At first, you might think — well, there must have been some massive, very unfortunate mistake here. Surely, you&#8217;d assume, there must be a thorough vetting process for the parents of children who are born through surrogacy. And somehow, in this particular case, someone must have fallen asleep on the job. Maybe they ran a criminal records check under the wrong name or something like that.
But that&#8217;s not remotely what happened. As it turns out, there is no legal bar in the state of Pennsylvania — or many other states — for convicted sexual predators to obtain children through surrogacy. It&#8217;s completely legal. There are no roadblocks whatsoever.
Again, this is from <a href="https://reduxx.info/gay-man-who-crowdfunded-surrogacy-journey-with-husband-revealed-as-child-sex-offender/">Reduxx</a>:
<blockquote>Reduxx reached out to the division Pennsylvania State Police responsible for maintaining Mitchell’s registration, and was informed that the state does not automatically forbid individuals convicted of sex crimes from having children, gaining custody, or exercising parental rights. While Pennsylvania’s adoption law does prohibit sex offenders from adopting or fostering children, gestational surrogacy circumvents any such laws through pre-birth parentage orders.</blockquote>
You heard that correctly. Individuals who are convicted of sex crimes, including sex crimes involving children — crimes so severe that the guilty party had to agree to have &#8220;no unsupervised contact with minors&#8221; for a certain period of time — are allowed to obtain children in Pennsylvania. The only restriction is that, instead of adopting a child, they have to pay for a woman to give birth to a child. This is a policy that&#8217;s so incomprehensible, and so evil, that it&#8217;s hard to even talk about. And it&#8217;s also a policy that, evidently, a lot of officials in Pennsylvania aren&#8217;t even aware of.
One of Reduxx&#8217;s writers <a href="https://x.com/Slatzism/status/1949926492651024812">posted this</a> on social media, as she was working on this story:
<blockquote>While I was talking to the state police sex offender division, the agent actually stopped for a moment when I mentioned it was a surrogate baby and said, &#8216;But surely … there’s a vetting process for this kind of thing?&#8217;</blockquote>
Well, actually, no. There&#8217;s no vetting process for &#8220;this kind of thing,&#8221; as it turns out.
If someone is a pedophile in the state of Pennsylvania, and they’ve been convicted for &#8220;corrupting minors&#8221; and possessing child pornography, they are still completely free to obtain a child through surrogacy. And not just any child — a newborn with no known relatives, no next of kin to check in on him. And then, once they have this defenseless child in their home, he is entirely at their mercy and helpless, and no one can see what they’re doing, and there is no one who actually knows the child or cares for him. Even his mother isn&#8217;t allowed to speak to him. It&#8217;s almost as if the state went out of its way to create a loophole for pedophiles. There are no words for how dark this is.
And by the way, this is one of the many fundamental, fatal problems with relying on &#8220;statistics&#8221; and &#8220;experts&#8221; who tell you that gay adoption is completely fine and appropriate. Every single mainstream expert will tell you that gay men are just as capable as straight couples to raise children, if not more so. They&#8217;ll tell you to suspend all of your intuitions and common sense, and they&#8217;ll call you a bigot if you disagree. But the truth is, none of these experts actually knows what goes on inside these households where men are raising children that aren&#8217;t theirs.
None of the statistics can capture the reality of what&#8217;s happening, because only the parents who are caught abusing their children will actually be reflected in those statistics.
That&#8217;s why we have intuition and basic morality. And it&#8217;s why we should always pay close attention whenever activists on the other side, in a demonic kind of rage, attempt to claim the moral high ground — only for it to crumble immediately in a matter of days (or hours, in this case). There are some lies that are simply too evil and unsustainable to survive contact with reality. The fiction that gay men are appropriate foster parents for other people&#8217;s children is one of them. In recent months, we&#8217;ve repeatedly seen <a href="https://people.com/ga-couple-adopted-young-boys-filmed-sexual-abuse-house-of-horrors-8766348">glimpses</a> into the horrors that many of these children are enduring behind closed doors. The recent case of William and Zachary Zulock in Georgia is an example of two men who were sexually abusing their two adopted children. They probably would never have been caught, if they hadn&#8217;t bragged about their behavior to others.
Especially in light of stories like this, it shouldn&#8217;t be remotely controversial to say that the safety of children is infinitely more important than any gay man&#8217;s desire to become a parent. Nature has already decided that gay couples will be childless by definition. The law should follow suit. Starting with the state of Pennsylvania — which should immediately change its law and remove this particular child from this household — this very straightforward principle needs to become law. Any society that doesn&#8217;t protect its own children does not deserve to exist. Under the guise of helping children, a system has been created that allows for children to be abused in the most horrific ways imaginable. That system must be dismantled. The abusers should go to prison for the rest of their lives. And no child, no matter the circumstances, should ever be forcibly prevented from having a mother and a father ever again in this country.

Rear view of son with arm around fathers sitting on fence in yard

Gay Sex Offender Buys A Baby Through Surrogacy. How Is This Legal?

Homosexuality

LGBTQ

Matt Walsh

Opinion

Pennsylvania

Same-Sex Marriage

Sex Offender

BRAZIL-POLITICS-CORRUPTION-INTERCEPT-GREENWALD

Glenn Greenwald Called Me ‘Morally Deranged.’ Then This Happened.

Children

Glenn Greenwald

The following is an edited transcript of an interview between Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley and Bishop W.C. Martin and his wife Donna on a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire/sound-of-hope-the-inspiring-journey-to-transform-foster-care-7-3-24" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Special Edition of Morning Wire</a>.
First, a behind-the-scenes disclosure: We did not initially intend to release the following interview in full. We sat down with the Martins to get a few quotes for a larger episode. But what took place moved all of us so much that we felt we needed to release the full exchange as a standalone special episode. With that said, we hope you get as much out of it as we did. 
The Daily Wire has partnered with Angel Studios to bring the powerful, inspiring new film “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/videos/sound-of-hope-the-story-of-possum-trot-official-trailer-angel-studios" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot</a>” to theaters on July 4. The story follows Donna and Reverend Martin, who, along with 22 families from their church in a small Texas town, adopt 77 of the most difficult to place kids in the foster system. The small community demonstrated that with real, determined love, America’s most vulnerable can find hope and a better future.
* * *
JOHN: First of all, thank you both for coming on and being here in-studio with us. It’s really an honor to meet you.
BISHOP MARTIN: We&#8217;re definitely glad to be here.
MRS. MARTIN: Absolutely.
JOHN: I want to hear from your perspective, the personal experience of going through this process. Not a lot of people have this kind of thing happen — you start a movement and then you also see it made into a film and probably never, never thought this would go this direction. What were the initial seeds of this push to take action about adoption and foster care children? Where did that come from? What drove that initially? And why did this become a priority for you? 
BISHOP MARTIN: I don&#8217;t know if it became a priority. We were just obedient to the vision that the Lord showed my wife through the death of her mother. We just started doing something. He spoke the word and we obeyed the word. And I don&#8217;t know if it was something that we were looking for any big thing to come out of it. We were just doing what we thought people do, not even knowing all this was going on in this area. But then once we got involved in it, we found out that it was a worldwide problem, a worldwide situation. And when we got involved, we didn&#8217;t have a clue as to the depth of where we were going to end up. Because, we in Possum Trot — and who can imagine, in Possum Trot — here we are, embarked upon a worldwide journey. Who would have thought of that? I didn&#8217;t. I can&#8217;t speak for nobody, but I never would have dreamed that we would be in this position today. But what we did, I guess out of obedience to God&#8217;s will — he opened up doors. And God is faithful to do what he says. That&#8217;s the thing I keep looking at. I keep focusing my eyes on God, knowing that if you do his will, if you trust him and believe in him, He&#8217;s going to do the rest.
<div id="attachment_758967" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-758967" class="size-large wp-image-758967" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784079-864x576.jpg" alt="FAYETTEVILLE, GEORGIA - JUNE 28: Donna Martin, Bishop Wilbert Martin and Letitia Wright attends &quot;Sound Of Hope: The Story Of Possum Trot&quot; Atlanta Premiere at Trilith Studios on June 28, 2024 in Fayetteville, Georgia. (Photo by Nykieria Chaney/Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784079-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784079-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784079-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784079.jpg 1024w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Nykieria Chaney/Getty Images</div>
JOHN: Are there some particular Scriptures you feel really helped center you during this whole process? Are there some biblical passages that served as sort of the heartbeat of what you’ve been trying to do? 
BISHOP MARTIN: My wife may have a different one, but two of my favorite passages of Scriptures in the Bible are Romans 8:28: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” And then I love this one. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me…” (Psalm 23:4). When I think about those two Scriptures and look at all that has gone on, you can see the connection that whatever we go through is working for our good. If you are in this battle of problems and situations and setbacks and heartaches and pain, it&#8217;s working for our good because God has a greater purpose. This was something that I feel that God — it was prophesied in our church. One Friday night, this woman came in and prophesied about everything that went on. And it had happened just like that. We had members in there say, “Yeah, right. Back in these woods? You telling me TV cameras are gonna come back in these woods? Ain&#8217;t no way.” But God always reserves the right to do it his way. We may think one thing, but with it all said and done, with it all boiled down — I get excited when I start talking about Him, because of what I feel and what I sense in Him — it has grown into such a massive thing in this world that it got people thinking from a different perspective. Now they see something tangible that they know, if it had not been for The Lord, we wouldn&#8217;t be right here. Now my wife may have a different Scripture on her mind that she loves, but these are my two. And I keep those in my spirit at all times. Because I know, in this world, you&#8217;re gonna go through some stuff. Whether it&#8217;s one thing or another, you&#8217;re gonna have some problems.
<h4><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">LISTEN: Catch the full inspirational interview with Bishop W.C. and Donna Martin on Morning Wire</a></h4>
JOHN: I want to ask you about that in particular. One of the things with this film is that it does not shy away from how hard this is. The kinds of struggles that are going to come when you make this kind of commitment, when you steer your life in this direction and open your arms to people who are initially strangers. How has it been for you and the community? Has this been a hard process? Do you feel like you went in with eyes wide open or have you been surprised by it?
BISHOP MARTIN: We went in blind, not knowing the ins and outs and the pros and the cons. The children themselves have a new demeanor on life. And I often say this: how does a child know what love is all about when no one ever taught them love? How does a child understand the beauty of a mother and a father when nobody ever spent the time to teach them? How do they know how to love God when no one shows them? So these are struggles. They have all kinds of baggage — lying, stealing just whatever you can name. They come in with that mindset. And they come in like a rubber ball, bouncing from one place to another. But you know, I thank God for my wife. I thank God for Bennett Chapel Church and the community as a whole. Because what happened here, in the midst of all those struggles, in the midst of all them setbacks and all the crying and all the tears and all the heartaches — all I can say is, “But God.” But God was right there. And he helped us through the whole process. You use the term process. And one of the things that we all have to do is stay in the process. Because we may not know what the end is going to be, but if we just stay in the process, bless his name, we will surely see the hand of God is moving in our lives.
<div id="attachment_758963" style="width: 955px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-758963" class="size-large wp-image-758963" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784352-945x576.jpg" alt="FAYETTEVILLE, GEORGIA - JUNE 28: (Back row) Bishop Wilbert Martin, Diaana Babnicova, Nika King, Taj Johnson, Alyssa Gabriel, Demetrius Grosse, Sabrina Johnson, Ellis Hobbs IV, Jayden Tolbert, Rena Canady-Lester, (Front row) Jaxon James, Aria Pulliam, Asher Clay, Sabrina Johnson, and Jackson Abram attends &quot;Sound Of Hope: The Story Of Possum Trot&quot; Atlanta Premiere at Trilith Studios on June 28, 2024 in Fayetteville, Georgia. (Photo by Nykieria Chaney/Getty Images)" width="945" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784352-945x576.jpg 945w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784352-300x183.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784352-768x468.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/07/GettyImages-2159784352.jpg 1024w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 945px) 100vw, 945px" />Nykieria Chaney/Getty Images</div>
JOHN: And have you seen a transformation with these children?
BISHOP MARTIN: First lady, you want to answer that?
MRS. MARTIN: Yes. I’m just amazed. It just goes back to the Scripture that says, “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us…” (Ephesians 3:20). I am amazed with these kids. I&#8217;m amazed that their struggle has turned into triumph. I am just grateful for the opportunity that The Lord allowed them to come into our life. And I&#8217;m also amazed with the pain that I suffered through the loss of my mother at the age of 36-years-old. I was saying to the Lord, three or four months after she passed — transitioned, rather — that no child should lose a mother. No child should be left without a loving mother. Because when you have a mom, it&#8217;s like Jesus, it&#8217;s God. You feel protected, you feel loved, and you feel that you can go to her with anything. And whatever you take to her, she&#8217;s gonna make it alright. She never condemns, but she trains and she nurtures. And coming from a family of 21 siblings, raised with 16, watching this lady, my dear, darling mother, individually love us and not compare us — she taught us how to care for each other; taught us what the word of God said; to think of others more than yourself; to always give back; do the best you can do and never try to be anybody else, just be who you are. Do the best you can so that if you’re digging in a ditch, you take pride in that. And when somebody walks past and sees that ditch, they know Donna dug that ditch.
So, through my pain, I was just crying out to The Lord saying, “God, no child should lose a mom.” And when he spoke to me, he said, “I&#8217;ve heard you, but she&#8217;s with me.&#8221; All I was thinking about for those months was myself. All I was thinking about, when I was alone, was that I couldn&#8217;t go any further. So I looked up to The Lord one day and I said, “Okay God, today is the day. Either you heal me or let me die.” Literally, I thought I was going to die. I thought my husband would come home and find me on the kitchen floor. But God moved upon my heart and I stepped out the back door and He said, “I&#8217;ve heard you. Now think about those children out there who did not and will not have what you had in a mother. Foster and adopt. Give back.” Now, to what magnitude to this point? Here we go again: “Now unto him who is able…” I would have never thunk it if you&#8217;d have told me. I would say, “No way.” But we were full of compassion, dedication, and determination. Now, He didn&#8217;t say get just kids whose parents left them, but get those hard-to-place kids that wouldn&#8217;t fit into a home. Because you know what to give back, you know what was given unto you. You know what I can do, if you will let me do it. And we wanted those children, our community wanted those kids. Because we understand struggle. Possum Trot understands struggle. We understand not having a luxury life. But the most important thing is the love of Christ and loving one another, accepting one another. We understand that. So, I&#8217;m amazed when I look at them now, and no matter what, there’s always going to be challenges. How can you get healed from that kind of rejection? That never leaves you. But when you take Jesus Christ, you give them hope, the sound of hope, the kind of hope that needs not be ashamed, that will rightly divide the word of truth. The word of God says, “When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.” (Psalm 27:10). So he&#8217;s preparing a people, he&#8217;s preparing a nation. Take these kids, because as my husband says, they didn&#8217;t know what to give. They could only give out what was given to them. Some of them are grown and have children and they&#8217;re still hurting. But we knew and we did what The Lord asked us to do.
And it was hell and high water, if you will. We didn&#8217;t know, because I came up in a time, I&#8217;m a ‘61 baby, and I came up in a time when if mama said it, you did it. Whether you like it or not, you didn&#8217;t question it. If your mother said, “You show some love,” or if your mother said, “You give that shirt, you turn the other cheek,” you did it. You know? So, I&#8217;m just amazed. I believe it’s not about us. It&#8217;s not about Bishop W. C. and Donna. It&#8217;s not about Bennett Chapel. It’s about “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son.” (John 3:16) That Son gave his life so that He may have other sons and daughters. So we gave our life. We gave up our agenda through our hurt, our pain, and our brokenness. And we suffered and talked through. And I&#8217;m sitting on this side of it right now and saying, “God, nobody but you — could nobody do this but you.” And to know the plan that God has was bigger than what I could have ever imagined, ever think. I am excited that this hidden message is being known. Anyone who sees it, and hears it, they hear the sound, they hear the cry. They know, we know. Even those that haven&#8217;t even thought about adoption, that took their husbands and their wives and said, we want to start a family. Yet, if you don&#8217;t hear the sound of those children out there that haven&#8217;t had a chance in life and what you give your very own, then it&#8217;s going to contaminate the good. That&#8217;s why God said, forget about yourself. Let&#8217;s reach out of ourselves. And I&#8217;m so grateful. If I have ever been grateful for anything in my life, this is it. I am grateful that the Lord allowed a people to go through the struggle and the pain and give a voice to this nasty enemy, that “&#8230;comes to rob, steal, and kill.” (John 10:10). But Jesus said, “I have prayed for you.” (Luke 22:32). I’m amazed.
BISHOP MARTIN: One of the things that I also want to share is that adoption is nothing new. I mean, God himself showed us in the Old Testament that adoption was the only way we were able to get back to God, was through adoption. I think it&#8217;s in Ephesians 1:5, where it talks about how it was God&#8217;s good pleasure through his son Jesus to adopt us that we are able to get back to God. Anybody believing in God, whether they like it or not, they&#8217;ve been adopted by God himself. It&#8217;s kind of like God called a people to make up, to utilize, and to demonstrate: What I&#8217;ve done for you, you can do it for another. The doors that I opened up for you — because I brought you out of the muck and mire, I brought you out of pain and hurt and sorrow — you can do it for another. And this is the thing that we are missing. This is what we don&#8217;t see. Only thing we see is a whole lot of the bad, hard-headed children. You expect that. You look for that. Because why? Well, if no one teaches them, and shows them, and loves them through their hurt and pain like God —He did the same thing for us. He loved us through our hurts, our pain, because we’ve all been just as messed up. But had it not been for the Lord on our side, we&#8217;d still be jacked up, messed up, and tore up from the floor up, but God saw fit to give us another chance. Why can&#8217;t we, as a people, give a child that never had a chance — why can&#8217;t we give them a chance?
JOHN: I can barely speak. We have to wrap up. That was amazing. Thank you guys so much for sharing this. God bless you guys. You&#8217;re doing amazing stuff. I hope millions of people watch this movie.
BISHOP MARTIN: We believe.
JOHN: We believe it. Thank you so much. God bless you.
BISHOP MARTIN: Thank you.
* * *
Listen to the full interview with Bishop W.C. Martin and his wife Donna on a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire/sound-of-hope-the-inspiring-journey-to-transform-foster-care-7-3-24" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Special Edition of Morning Wire</a>.

Sound of Hope

‘We Wanted Those Children’: The Remarkable Couple Behind ‘Sound Of Hope’

'We Wanted Those Children': The Remarkable Couple Behind 'Sound Of Hope'

Angel Studios

Christianity

DailyWire+

Foster Care

Movies

Readers Pass

“<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/duck-dynasty">Duck Dynasty</a>” couple Jep and Jessica Robertson talked about their own &#8220;life-changing&#8221; experience with adoption and the power of adopting a child in their new children&#8217;s book “<a href="https://bravebooks.us/products/dear-valor?_atid=4z02HnQW7x5kkxuUOWZonalbsxtrQm">Dear Valor</a>” from Brave Books.
The Robertsons — best known for their family’s hit reality TV series “Duck Dynasty” and its spin-offs — spoke with The Daily Wire on Wednesday about their personal adoption experience with their 8-year-old son, Gus, and writing their new book for kids, which teaches families about the importance of adoption, acceptance, and unconditional love.
The couple — who reside in West Monroe, Louisiana, with their five children — said “Dear Valor” is a “sweet adoption story about Valor the tiger who was adopted by two lion parents.&#8221;
“We wanted to do this because we have an adopted son [Gus] who we adopted when he was three days old,” Jessica told The Daily Wire. “And there are challenges that we’ve faced with adoption and him being a black child adopted by a white family.”
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She said the book wasn’t based on their family but that “tidbits” come from their own experience, such as their son noticing how he looks “different” than them. She pointed out how just like in the book, Valor “asked questions about looking different than his lion parents.” 
Jessica said they wanted to write the book “so that other children can empathize and sympathize with what adopted kids go through.”
“And what adopted families go through and they can see ‘oh unconditional love for a family looks different sometimes,” she added.
Jep said the main phrase in the book, “You are strong, you are loved, you are ours,” resonates with them. 
“We just think that’s a beautiful correlation to how God feels about us,” as he pointed out that adoption isn’t easy, but they feel so blessed for their Gus.
&#8220;We are so excited to share &#8216;Dear Valor&#8217; with families everywhere,&#8221; the Robertsons said in a press release. &#8220;Our journey with Gus has been incredibly humbling for us and our other children, and we hope this book will inspire and educate others about the beauty and importance of opening your home and family to a child in need.&#8221;
When asked about how adoption has been humbling for them and their family, Jep said it has been “amazing” seeing everything that’s happened because they always look at things from a “spiritual standpoint.”
“It has been such an amazing, humbling experience, to see this beautiful creation that God created and we get to be his mommy and daddy here on earth,” Jessica added about their son.
The Robertsons are also involved with <a href="https://allgodschildren.org/">All God&#8217;s Children International</a> ministry, which opens up the door to sponsoring and adopting kids all across the world. 
Jep said he got involved in the ministry well before Gus came into their lives, pointing out that his wife had spoken often about wanting to adopt. However, he said it was when he went on a “life-changing” mission with his church to the Dominican Republic to build an orphanage and met the sweet kids that he told his wife he was ready to adopt.
“Adopting Gus has changed my way of living, so amazing,” Jep added.
“Dear Valor” hit the shelves just before “<a href="https://www.angel.com/tickets/sound-of-hope-the-story-of-possum-trot?utm_source=The+Daily+Wire&amp;utm_medium=partner&amp;utm_campaign=dailywire&amp;utm_content=dailywire&amp;codes=DAILYWIRE&amp;oid=35&amp;_ef_transaction_id=dee764931a7745c491a7dab741acd5df&amp;promo=dailywire">Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot</a>,” a movie about the power of adoption, is released in theaters on July 4. Angel Studios <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dailywire-strikes-deal-with-angel-studios-for-sound-of-hope-get-showtimes-now">partnered</a> with DailyWire+ for the release of “Sound of Hope,” which is based on the inspiring true story of Donna and Reverend Martin, who, along with 22 families from their rural black church in the small East Texas town of Possum Trot, adopt 77 of the most difficult to place kids in the foster system.
&#8220;Dear Valor&#8221; is part of Brave Books&#8217; Freedom Island Series and comes from the publishing house dedicated to providing books for kids that teach important life lessons rooted in traditional biblical and American Values. 
For more information about the book and Robertson’s story go to <a href="http://bravebooks.com">bravebooks.com</a>.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/it-wasnt-easy-at-all-sound-of-hope-bishop-tells-ben-shapiro-about-welcoming-foster-children-into-his-home" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘It Wasn’t Easy At All:’ Sound Of Hope Bishop Tells Ben Shapiro About Welcoming Foster Children Into His Home</a>

Jep and Jessica Robertson

‘Duck Dynasty’ Couple Talk ‘Life-Changing’ Power Of Adoption With New Children’s Book ‘Dear Valor’

‘Duck Dynasty’ Couple Talk 'Life Changing' Power Of Adoption With New Children's Book ‘Dear Valor’

Duck Dynasty

The Daily Wire

Celebrities are no strangers to wanting to have a family and kids, but just like the rest of us, the path to having children can look different for everyone. 
As we look forward to the July 4th weekend release of “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dailywire-strikes-deal-with-angel-studios-for-sound-of-hope-get-showtimes-now">Sound of Hope</a>,” we want to celebrate adoption — from the perspectives of those who were adopted and those who chose to adopt. 
“Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot” tells the true story of how 77 children found homes after being adopted out of the foster care system in East Texas by 22 families. DailyWire+ and Angel Studios announced earlier this month that they have entered into a partnership to release the Peacetree Productions’ film. 
<a href="https://www.angel.com/tickets/sound-of-hope-the-story-of-possum-trot?utm_source=The+Daily+Wire&amp;utm_medium=partner&amp;utm_campaign=dailywire&amp;utm_content=dailywire&amp;codes=DAILYWIRE&amp;oid=35&amp;_ef_transaction_id=dee764931a7745c491a7dab741acd5df&amp;promo=dailywire">GET SHOWTIMES HERE FOR ‘SOUND OF HOPE’</a>
For these five celebrities, their families became a reality thanks to adoption and each one has said that it was the best thing they ever did.
Sheryl Crow
Superstar singer Sheryl Crow found her way to motherhood after deciding to adopt not one but two sons, one in 2007 and another in 2010.
Speaking on the “<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sheryl-crow-getting-to-the-other-side/id1585499926?i=1000539607246">Making Space with Hoda Kotb</a>” podcast in 2021, the 62-year-old singer said she &#8220;just never didn&#8217;t think I would have kids.” She admitted her dream of being a mom didn’t include adoption until her mom threw her a &#8220;life raft&#8221; and told her she could be one even if she wasn’t married.
&#8220;You have a family around you who will stand at the altar with you at baptism and say, &#8216;We are his community, or her community,’” Crow said of the conversation she had with her mom.
&#8220;The story I was telling myself limited what I thought I could have, until somebody stepped in and said, &#8216;Wait a minute, your story doesn&#8217;t have to look like your mom and dad&#8217;s story,'&#8221; she added. &#8220;Families look like all different things.&#8221;
Kirk Cameron
“Growing Pains” and “Lifemark” star <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/kirk-cameron">Kirk Cameron</a> is one of the most vocal stars about the power of adoption. The 53-year-old actor and his wife Chelsea Noble not only adopted the first four of their six kids, but also credits adoption with bringing him his wife, who was also adopted by her parents.
During an interview in 2022 with <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kirk-cameron-talks-lifemark-movie-that-proves-why-life-should-be-defended-at-all-costs">The Daily Wire</a>, Cameron told us he and his wife wanted to have kids and thought it was a “beautiful way to have a family.”
Cameron told The Daily Wire that his wife and four children “were one doctor appointment away from not being here.” 
“The adoption option, I think, is such a loving, beautiful place, and I&#8217;ve experienced the result of that choice myself,” the actor told <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/kirk-cameron-shares-message-faith-film-about-beauty-of-adoption-talks-growing-pains-reboot">Fox News</a> previously. “Like I said, with our four kids, my wife is adopted, and if my wife had not been adopted, we likely would not have our two natural-born children either.&#8221; 
“I think it&#8217;s incredible that God brings families together in all kinds of ways,” he added. “And I&#8217;m just so thankful for those ladies out there who make the loving choice of adoption.&#8221;
Steven Curtis Chapman
Christian superstar Steven Curtis Chapman and his wife Mary Beth discovered adoption as a way to grow their family after Mary Beth and their daughter Emily traveled to Haiti and met a young girl age 11, according to the website of their <a href="https://showhope.org/about-us/founders-story/">non-profit</a> Show Hope.
Learning about the orphaned girl’s needs and after praying for guidance, the Chapmans knew that adoption was what they needed to do.
So, the couple set out not once but three times to adopt kids who could use a loving home and over the next few years grew their family after adopting Shaohannah Hope, Stevey Joy, and Maria.
It was this experience that inspired them to create Show Hope, a non-profit organization in Tennessee in 2003 for those families who had the heart but not the means to adopt a child.
“Show Hope exists to care for orphans by engaging the Church and reducing barriers to adoption,” a message on their organization&#8217;s website read. Through the group’s Adoption Aid, “Show Hope has impacted more than 8,600 children from more than 60 countries, including the U.S., by awarding financial grants to families who are on the adoption journey.”
Michelle Pfeiffer
Actress Michelle Pfeiffer was still searching for the love of her life when she decided to adopt her newborn daughter. Later that year, she met the man who would become her husband, TV producer David Kelley. Less than a year later, the couple welcomed a son.
Speaking to <a href="https://people.com/all-about-michelle-pfeiffer-kids-7569445#:~:text=%E2%80%9CThe%20adoption%20process%20was%20already,people%20don't%20have%20that.">Good Housekeeping in 2007</a>, Pfeiffer said the “adoption process was already in motion when he and I met.”
“So when she came, he and I had only been together for about two months. So we had this child with us right away, and most people don&#8217;t have that. But I really got to see him in a situation that certainly would separate the boys from the men,” the actress said. “Obviously, he really rose to the occasion.”
In an interview for the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/celebrities-adopted-kids-2018-3#nia-vardalos-and-her-then-husband-adopted-their-daughter-after-fertility-issues-22">Independent in 2007</a>,  the “Scarface” star said, &#8220;As mother of both an adopted child and my own birth-child, there is absolutely no difference in the huge amount of love I feel for both my children. I always knew I wanted to adopt a child and also have one of my own. There is no difference at all.”
Sandra Bullock
Superstar actress Sandra Bullock found her family through adoption amid her divorce from husband Jesse James after five years of marriage.
The 59-year-old actress adopted her son when he was just a newborn and five years later adopted her daughter who was three and had been run through the foster care system, “Today” <a href="https://www.today.com/parents/moms/sandra-bullock-people-consider-adoption-rcna8046" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
During an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvbps0QY6UI&amp;t=8s">interview</a> in 2021, Bullock was talking about her movie “The Unforgivable” and reflected on how adoption changed her life.
“If it wasn’t for adoption and foster care, I wouldn’t have my family, so this film really struck a chord in that there are millions upon millions of babies and children on this planet that have no one to love,” Bullock explained at the time.
&#8220;They have no one to let them know they are the most amazing thing when they walk in a room,&#8221; she added.“There are millions upon millions of adults that wish they could be a parent.”
“Love is love,” Bullock continued. “And if we stop defining that narrative, it’s just one avenue, the amazing impact would be love and families. And health and mental health and beyond.”

Sheryl Crow/Kirk Cameron/Sandra Bullock

5 Celebrities Who Grew Their Families Through Adoption

fatherhood

Hollywood

kids

Kirk Cameron

Motherhood

In a new “Sunday Special” interview, Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro spoke to Bishop W.C. Martin, the community church pastor who inspired his Texas congregation to adopt dozens of foster children.
Martin and his wife, Donna led 22 families from their congregation at Bennett Chapel in Possum Trot, Texas in coming together to adopt 77 children from the local foster care system.
DailyWire+ is partnering with Angel Studios, which produced The Chosen, in releasing its new movie about the story, Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot.
Sound of Hope is coming to theaters July 4th.
<a href="https://www.angel.com/tickets/sound-of-hope-the-story-of-possum-trot?utm_source=The+Daily+Wire&amp;utm_medium=partner&amp;utm_campaign=dailywire&amp;utm_content=dailywire&amp;codes=DAILYWIRE&amp;oid=35&amp;_ef_transaction_id=dee764931a7745c491a7dab741acd5df&amp;promo=dailywire" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.angel.com/tickets/sound-of-hope-the-story-of-possum-trot?utm_source%3DThe%2BDaily%2BWire%26utm_medium%3Dpartner%26utm_campaign%3Ddailywire%26utm_content%3Ddailywire%26codes%3DDAILYWIRE%26oid%3D35%26_ef_transaction_id%3Ddee764931a7745c491a7dab741acd5df%26promo%3Ddailywire&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1719605622321000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1gybPS8IKRhYqMG7S1zaiw">GET SHOWTIMES HERE FOR ‘SOUND OF HOPE’</a>
Kicking off their in-depth discussion, Shapiro asked Martin about the difficulties of welcoming adopted children who potentially need more attention into his house.
&#8220;You obviously had kids of your own already. That obviously is a massive decision,&#8221; Shapiro said.
Martin agreed, saying his family already had a &#8220;boatload&#8221; of their own problems since his biological son was born with severe brain damage.
&#8220;You don&#8217;t get these Gerber babies,&#8221; he said. &#8220;If you were in the system, they got some problems. They got some trauma.&#8221;
&#8220;It was difficult, very difficult. It was very hard. It wasn&#8217;t easy at all,&#8221; Martin said. &#8220;I had to almost be a policeman in my own household.&#8221;
Martin recalled how one of his adopted sons once lit his bathroom on fire. Thankfully, the house did not burn down because Martin caught the fire in time, he said.
His adopted daughter initially had a stealing problem, Martin said.
&#8220;They had been hungry. And she had to feed her little brother so she had to steal food out of the store, and she developed this habit of stealing,&#8221; he said.
&#8220;I don&#8217;t fault her,&#8221; Martin added. &#8220;When we first got both of them, my wife showed her to the cabinet and showed her, look at the food we got.&#8221;
Martin said he was profoundly affected by seeing and caring for children who had been abused in the foster system.
&#8220;For me to see life and the beauty of life and to look at what I have witnessed in the eyes and the mind, and how the abuse and neglect and the turmoil that have happened,&#8221; he said, &#8220;if anybody has any love of God in their heart at all, this will definitely do something to you inwardly.&#8221;
Martin said adopting foster children is one way to strive to imitate the life of Christ.
&#8220;But you know sometimes I think we&#8217;ve got to look beyond ourselves, look beyond where we are and to reach out into this world,&#8221; Martin said. &#8220;More or less like what Jesus did for us, the suffering that he went through for us that we may have a better life and a greater life.&#8221;

MixCollage-30-Jun-2024-12-15-PM-8551

‘It Wasn’t Easy At All:’ Sound Of Hope Bishop Tells Ben Shapiro About Welcoming Foster Children Into His Home

Sound Of Hope Bishop Tells Ben Shapiro About Welcoming Foster Children Into His Home

Religion

Sound of freedom

The Ben Shapiro Show

An overwhelming majority of voters disagree with new Biden administration regulations that require parents to pass an LGBTQ litmus test to adopt foster children, according to an exclusive <a href="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/DW-RMG-Poll-4.pdf">Daily Wire poll</a>.
Nearly twice as many voters reject banning religious families who oppose transgender ideology from taking in foster children, according to the survey of 1000 registered voters, conducted this week by RMG Research. Only 29 percent say faith-based families who refuse to affirm a child’s gender dysphoria should be banned from adopting, while the rest of the respondents weren’t sure.
On April 30, Biden’s Department of Health and Human Services <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/04/30/2024-08982/designated-placement-requirements-under-titles-iv-e-and-iv-b-for-lgbtqi-children">enacted</a> the “Safe and Appropriate Foster Care Placement Requirements,” which require child welfare agencies to place foster children only with families who have committed to “establishing an environment that supports the child’s LGBTQI+ status or identity.” Under the new rules, foster care providers must use a child’s “identified pronouns” and “chosen name,” and allow the child to dress in a way that “reflects [their] self-identified gender identity and expression.” 
The rules also require foster parents to establish “an environment that supports the child’s LGBTQI+ status or identity,” something legal experts <a href="https://fedsoc.org/commentary/fedsoc-blog/non-affirmation-of-child-s-lgbtqi-identity-is-abuse-under-proposed-foster-care-rule">warn</a> could be interpreted to mean providing puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, or surgical interventions designed to change the child’s sex. 
&nbsp;
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-757135" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.40.54-AM-811x576.png" alt="" width="811" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.40.54-AM-811x576.png 811w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.40.54-AM-300x213.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.40.54-AM-768x545.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.40.54-AM-1536x1091.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.40.54-AM.png 1614w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 811px) 100vw, 811px" /></div>
The poll found that an overwhelming majority, 69 percent, said it would be “good” for religious families to adopt a foster child. Only 13 percent said it would be a “bad” thing. When it comes to religious families who oppose transgender ideology, 54 percent of voters do not support banning them from adopting foster children. Only 29 percent agree that faith-based families who refuse to affirm a child’s gender dysphoria should be banned from adopting, while the rest of the respondents weren’t sure.
According to RMG, over two-thirds of voters believe it is good for foster children to be placed in religious families. And nearly 60 percent feel that parents who will not agree to provide puberty blockers and gender transition surgeries, or otherwise support transgender identities, are better for kids than those who will. 
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire/polling-on-biden-s-lgbtq-litmus-test-for-foster-care-6-30-24">LISTEN ON MORNING WIRE: Polling on Biden’s LGBTQ Litmus Test for Foster Care</a>
Among those who prefer families with traditional gender beliefs are 58 percent of independents. The only political group in which a majority did not agree that foster children are better off with families who adhere to traditional gender norms were Democrats, 63 percent of whom say gender dysphoric children will fare better with families that will support their perceived rather than biological identities.
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-757139" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.26-AM-816x576.png" alt="" width="816" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.26-AM-816x576.png 816w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.26-AM-300x212.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.26-AM-768x542.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.26-AM-1536x1084.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.26-AM.png 1632w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 816px) 100vw, 816px" /></div>
The Biden Administration’s new rules stand to put further strain on a foster care system that is already struggling to serve more than <a href="https://usafacts.org/articles/how-many-kids-are-in-foster-care/">600,000 children</a> annually as it would disqualify the families most likely to care for vulnerable kids. The new HHS rule is not scheduled to take effect until 2026, but it follows similar regulations in Oregon, Massachusetts, and Vermont.
Practicing Christians are more than <a href="https://bipartisanpolicy.org/blog/new-bpc-harris-polling-data-on-religion-and-child-welfare/#:~:text=Barna%20Research%20found%20that%20practicing,and%20children%20with%20special%20needs.">twice as likely</a> to foster or adopt than the general population, with Catholics being <a href="https://cafo.org/new-barna-research-highlights-christian-adoption-foster-care-among-3-most-notable-vocational-trends/#:~:text=Catholics%20are%20three%20times%20as,many%20churches%20are%20doing%20so.">three times</a> more likely and evangelicals five times more likely. Further, 65 percent of non-kin foster parents attend religious services weekly.  
Yet a recent Pew poll found these are also the kinds of families <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/07/07/attitudes-about-transgender-issues-vary-widely-among-christians-religious-nones-in-u-s/">least likely</a> to meet the Biden administration’s new demands. Among white evangelicals, only 15 percent agree that a person’s sex can differ from their biology. For black Protestants like those depicted in Sound of Hope, only 36 percent believe gender can change. (Pew did not offer results for non-whites who identify as evangelical.)
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-757137" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.11-AM-858x576.png" alt="" width="858" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.11-AM-858x576.png 858w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.11-AM-300x201.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.11-AM-768x516.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.11-AM-1536x1032.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-30-at-3.41.11-AM.png 1638w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 858px) 100vw, 858px" /></div>
<a href="http://angel.com/dailywire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot</a>, a new film that tells the true story of 22 Christian families in a single church that adopted 77 at-risk children out of foster care, is providing a fresh picture of this statistical reality.
Adoptive father Josh Weigel, who directed and co-wrote Sound of Hope, fears policies like the new HHS rules will leave vulnerable children at risk of being further neglected, abused, or trafficked.
“That kind of legislation would prevent the story [of Sound of Hope] from happening again,” he told The Daily Wire.  “Over two thirds of the people helping [foster kids] are those who may not agree with that kind of legislation…You would have a monumental ocean of traumatized children mounting every year if you were to cut off that kind of care.”

President Biden Hosts Pride Month Celebration Event

DAILY WIRE POLL: Voters Reject Biden’s Move To Require Parents to Embrace LGBTQ Ideology to Adopt Foster Children

Biden Administration

Joe Biden

Pride Month

From your favorite Oscar-winning stars on the big screen to famed singers and even an Olympic gold medalist, many celebrities and stars were adopted or spent time in foster care at one point in their lives.
As Angel Studios and The Daily Wire look forward to the upcoming inspirational movie “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dailywire-strikes-deal-with-angel-studios-for-sound-of-hope-get-showtimes-now">Sound of Hope</a>” — which tells the true story of how 77 children found homes after being adopted out of the foster care system in East Texas by 22 families — we found 10 celebrities who were adopted or spent time in foster care as young children.
DailyWire+ and Angel Studios announced earlier this month that they have entered into a partnership to release Peacetree Productions’ profoundly moving film “Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot.” The film will be released in theaters on July 4th weekend.
<a href="https://www.angel.com/tickets/sound-of-hope-the-story-of-possum-trot?utm_source=The+Daily+Wire&amp;utm_medium=partner&amp;utm_campaign=dailywire&amp;utm_content=dailywire&amp;codes=DAILYWIRE&amp;oid=35&amp;_ef_transaction_id=dee764931a7745c491a7dab741acd5df&amp;promo=dailywire">GET SHOWTIMES HERE FOR ‘SOUND OF HOPE’</a>
Nicole Richie
The list starts with reality TV star Nicole Richie, who at the age of 9, found a home thanks to singer Lionel Ritchie and his first wife, Brenda Harvey, according to <a href="https://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity/g3665/celebrities-who-were-adopted/">Marie Claire</a>.
Speaking to <a href="https://people.com/music/lionel-richie-reflects-on-adopting-daughter-nicole-with-first-wife/">People magazine</a> in 2022, the famous singer called Nicole a “Godsend” for their family.
“She was a little girl who needed a shot,&#8221; Richie said. &#8220;She was used to people coming and going. She looked at me, and I&#8217;d say, &#8216;I&#8217;m not going anywhere.'&#8221;
Faith Hill
Country singer Faith Hill has been burning up the charts now for decades, but who knows what her life would’ve been like if she hadn’t been adopted as an infant.
When the country star got older, Hill said she searched for her biological parents, though she called her adoptive ones “incredible,” <a href="https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/g44548893/celebrities-who-were-adopted/">Esquire</a> reported.
&#8220;The first time I met [my birth mother], I just stared at her,&#8221; Hill <a href="https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/inspirational-stories/interviews/a15246/faith-hill-renewed-apr04/">said</a>. “I’d never seen anyone that looked anything like me. It was the awe of seeing someone you came from. It fills something.&#8221;
Sarah McLachlan
Another singer who was adopted is soulful Canadian singer and songwriter Sarah McLachlan, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/adopted-celebrities-2018-3#sarah-mclachlan-met-her-birth-mother-through-a-complete-coincidence-10">Business Insider</a> noted.
The singer was adopted, along with two other kids, by Jack and Dorice McLachlan. She was 9 years old when she learned about the adoption. 
Speaking to Parents magazine in 2005, McLachlan said, &#8220;When I think about my mother who raised me, you know, she&#8217;s my mother,” Business Insider reported. 
Marilyn Monroe
The late Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe spent time in foster care living in foster care homes until the age of 7 when her mom’s best friend, Grace McKee, became her legal guardian, <a href="https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/g44548893/celebrities-who-were-adopted/">Esquire magazine</a> noted.
However, things were not smooth for her right away and the young star bounced between orphanages and McKee’s home until the age of 11, according to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/adopted-celebrities-2018-3#marilyn-monroe-bounced-around-the-california-foster-care-system-due-to-her-birth-mothers-inability-to-care-for-her-3">Business Insider</a>.
At one point, she also ended up moving in with her great-aunt Olive, before she got married at the age of 16 to neighbor James Dougherty.
Jamie Foxx
Comedian and actor Jamie Foxx was adopted when he was just seven months old by his own mother&#8217;s adoptive parents, Estelle and Mark Tally, after Foxx&#8217;s parents separated, according to <a href="https://people.com/all-about-jamie-foxx-parents-8421883#:~:text=When%20his%20mom%20realized%20she,and%20became%20his%20primary%20caretakers.">People</a>. 
In his 2021 memoir “<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Act-Like-You-Some-Sense/dp/1538703289">Act Like You Got Some Sense</a>,” Foxx opened up about his childhood and wrote that his grandparents adopted him because his mom “was not ready for the responsibility of parenting.”
He also talked about being raised in Texas by his strict but loving grandmother and said, “She was an educator for 30 years, a very smart woman, raised our city.”
Melissa Gilbert
To most people, Melissa Gilbert is the famed star who got her start on “Little House on the Prairie.” But before she graced the small screen, Gilbert was a baby without a home.
At one day old, the actress was adopted by a “well-known Hollywood family,” the “<a href="https://www.today.com/parents/celebrity/adopted-celebrities-rcna124978">Today</a>” show noted. In the 1990s, she began a search for her biological parents after she gave birth to her son. She soon learned that her mom had passed away, but found her dad. 
In 2010, Gilbert wrote <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Prairie-Tale-Memoir-Melissa-Gilbert/dp/1416599177">“Prairie Tale: A Memoir</a>” and opened up about being adopted and eventually learning the crazy story of who her birth parents were and why they couldn’t raise her.
Simone Biles
Before Simone Biles became a household name after winning numerous Olympic gold medals, she was placed in foster care as a child when her mom couldn’t take care of her and her three siblings, the “<a href="https://www.today.com/parents/celebrity/adopted-celebrities-rcna124978">Today</a>” show noted.
She was eventually adopted by her grandparents, Ron and Nellie Biles. In a letter to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/05/opinions/foster-care-education-olympics-opinion-biles/index.html">CNN</a> in 2018, Biles discussed how she wouldn’t be where she is today if she hadn’t been adopted.
&#8220;My road to success began the day my grandfather and his wife officially adopted my sister and me,” Biles wrote. “My birth mother suffered from drug addiction, and when I was just three years old, my siblings and I were removed from her custody. 
“From there, we bounced around until I was six and my grandparents made the brave move to adopt us,&#8221; she added. &#8220;Finding a family made me feel like I mattered. Finding a passion, something I loved and was really good at, made me feel like I mattered.”
Eddie Murphy 
Famous actor and comedian <a href="https://www.capstonefostercare.co.uk/knowledge-centre/10-celebrities-who-grew-up-in-foster-care#:~:text=Eddie%20Murphy&amp;text=Five%20years%20later%2C%20Eddie%20learned,system%20for%20around%20a%20year.">Eddie Murphy</a> might not know what it’s like to be adopted, but he did spend his childhood growing up in the foster care system, something he now credits with helping him hone his comedic skills.
At the age of 3, Murphy’s parents divorced and five years later his mom was struggling financially to raise him and his dad had died. His mom ended up in the hospital for a lengthy period with an illness during which the actor and his brother were taken into the foster care system, where they spent the next year.
The comedian previously talked about his experience in foster care and credited it with helping him become the talent he is today, admitting that it gave him the ability to laugh in any situation.
Cher
Hollywood star Cher — born Cherilyn Sarkisian — knows what it’s like to be adopted. When she was just 10 months old her parents divorced. Her mother later married bank manager Gilbert LaPiere, who would adopt Cher and her half-sister Georganne.
The 77-year-old singer is currently dating 38-year-old Alexander “AE” Edwards and the two have reportedly talked about having a family through adoption. 
“She’s telling AE it’s her dream in life to have another baby,” a source recently told <a href="https://www.intouchweekly.com/posts/cher-considering-adopting-with-boyfriend-alexander-edwards/">InTouch Weekly</a>. “She missed the boat on freezing eggs and hiring a surrogate but <a href="https://www.sheknows.com/parenting/slideshow/2644578/celebrities-adopted-children/?utm_source=instagramstory&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_campaign=editorial">adoption </a>is something she very much would like to do.”
Ray Liotta
Before Liotta made it big in Hollywood as our favorite bad guy in gangster movies like “Goodfellas” he went through his own personal drama about being adopted.
The late star was adopted by Mary and Alfred Liotta when he was just six months old.
Liotta struggled during his lifetime about being adopted and wondering why his parents gave him up. But before his death in 2022, he talked about how grateful he was for the parents who adopted him and how he’d come to peace with the ones who let him go, <a href="https://people.com/movies/ray-liotta-made-peace-birth-parents-adoption-exclusive/">People magazine</a> reported.
“After years, you grow up, and you just see the pattern of things,” Liotta said. I&#8217;ve definitely developed more patience. Now I&#8217;m grateful for my health. And being born. For my parents that adopted me. I mean, it could have gone a lot of different ways.”

Faith Hill/Jamie Foxx/Marilyn Monroe

10 Celebrities Who Were Adopted Or Spent Time In Foster Care

Cher

Eddie Murphy

Faith Hill

Jamie Foxx

Nicole Richie

Simone Biles

The following is an edited transcript excerpt of an interview between Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley and Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham on a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire/christians-and-the-foster-care-crisis-6-23-24" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sunday Edition of Morning Wire</a>.
When it comes to providing homes for at-risk kids, people of faith, especially Christians, are far more likely to adopt and foster than non-religious people. But because of new regulations from the Biden administration, the very religious beliefs that prompt people of faith to adopt and foster could now render them ineligible. The faith-based commitment that inspires many Christians to care for vulnerable children is illustrated in a new film, “Sound of Hope,” which <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/videos/sound-of-hope-the-story-of-possum-trot-official-trailer-angel-studios" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DailyWire+ has partnered with Angel Studios</a> to get into theaters on July 4th.
JOHN: Daily Wire culture reporter Megan Basham joins us now to discuss the new PeaceTree Productions film “<a href="https://www.angel.com/movies/sound-of-hope-the-story-of-possum-trot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sound of Hope</a>,” and how new federal regulations might impact the role communities of faith play in caring for foster children. So Megan, let’s start out by giving some context here. How big of a need is there for adoptive and foster families?
MEGAN: I think it’s fair to say heartbreakingly big. So, the most recent year for which we have <a href="https://adoptioncouncil.org/article/foster-care-and-adoption-statistics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> is 2022. In that year, just over 53,000 kids were adopted out of foster care. But well over twice that number had a case plan for adoption. Meaning, they just continued in the system because they didn’t have any families that case workers believed were safe for them to return to and no one adopted them.
Joe Knittig is the CEO of the Global Orphan Project and founder of CarePortal, a platform that connects churches to kids in need. He was also an executive producer on “Sound of Hope” and he broke down some of the statistics for me in an interview:
<blockquote>Every year in the United States, even though we pour about $30 billion taxpayer dollars into child welfare, there are more than 7 million children, that&#8217;s more than 4 million families that are referred to Child Protective Services. So these are families at the front door of the system. And there are nearly 400,000 children that are in foster care right now. And there are more than 100,000 children in the system who are available and waiting for adoption. So that&#8217;s kind of a big picture look. A myth about child welfare is that every child that&#8217;s in that system is there because of abuse. That&#8217;s not true. The number one driver for why those 7 million children go into the system — is not abuse, it is neglect. And it&#8217;s usually poverty related neglect. So, in sum, we have a very reactive system with many children waiting. We keep flooding more children into the system. Children that shouldn&#8217;t be going in there in the first place. That is the state of the union of child welfare and child wellbeing in the United States of America.</blockquote>
To give a little more context, the average child in foster care is around 8-years-old. And as they get older, it becomes much harder to place them.
<div id="attachment_750669" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-750669" class="size-large wp-image-750669" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/06/MixCollage-13-Jun-2024-06-47-PM-4886-1024x576.jpg" alt="Sound of Hope" width="1024" height="576" />Angel Studios/DailyWire+</div>
JOHN: Definitely heartbreaking. So just how big of a role do people of faith and Christian communities tend to play in providing homes for these kids?
MEGAN: Oh man, just a massive role. According to Barna research, practicing Christians are more than two times more likely to adopt than the general population. For evangelicals, which is who this film focuses on, they’re five times more likely than other Americans to adopt. They’re also more likely to adopt older kids and kids who have special needs or behavioral issues. I spoke to Tony Mitchell, a board member for the Christian Alliance for Orphans, also known as CAFO. That’s a nonprofit that represents around 200 organizations and close to a thousand churches. He was adopted out of foster care himself by a Christian family. And he told me that upbringing, and his own personal faith that grew out of it, were the reasons he decided to get involved in this work.
<blockquote>So I was given up at birth to foster care and I remained in the foster care system for two and a half years. Up until late in my life, I did not know what happened during those two and a half years, how many homes, or anything at all. Then I was adopted at two and a half years by a wonderful family. That family, we were not very wealthy, we existed below the poverty level, and then I was the first and only one to go to college. And then after a 30 year, very successful business career, I retired. And now I give time to several ministries and have a ministry focused retirement…</blockquote>
He also told me that Christians are instrumental in caring for at-risk kids, not just in the fostering and adopting they do themselves, but also in how they support those who foster and adopt.
<blockquote>My adoptive parents were people of faith and it had a significant impact on me. My dad would always quote things from the Bible without chapter and verse. I did not know as a child where his sayings, as I called them, came from. And when I opened the Bible for the first time myself, my first reaction was, “Hey, they got this from my dad.” So it was definitely a part of my life. And God also touched my life in my foster experience. People of our faith are very key … many times a church will create a community around foster children, and families, adopted children, families, and even families that are at risk and to help prevent children from being put into the system.</blockquote>
He pointed out that you will often see churches organizing to make sure the foster and adoptive families in their congregations are provided with clothes, beds, and other material needs. They offer baby-sitting, weekend care, homework assistance. Just anything you can think of so these families don’t feel like they’re bearing the responsibility on their own.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire/christians-and-the-foster-care-crisis-6-23-24">LISTEN: Catch the full interview with Megan Basham on Morning Wire</a>
JOHN: Yeah, I&#8217;ve seen that play out personally in communities I&#8217;ve been involved with. So why is it often Christians who tend to be especially engaged in this work?
MEGAN: Because, as Barna Research found, Christians believe they have a biblical command to be involved in this kind of work. 77% of them say they have a personal responsibility to care for orphans. For example, James 1:27 says: &#8220;Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to look after orphans and widows in their affliction.” And I’d say that belief is very authentically reflected in “Sound of Hope,” which tells the true story of Bennett Chapel, a church located in the small East Texas town of Possum Trot. All 22 families in the church adopted 77 children out of foster care.
JOHN: Yeah. Now when you hear about kids in need in the foster care system and religious families stepping up to fill the need, I think many people find it surprising, even shocking, that this issue has become controversial and a matter of political debate. What’s going on there?
MEGAN: Well, essentially, the very thing that makes these families decide to adopt and foster — their Bible-based beliefs — is what’s prompting some political leaders to decide they’re unfit. So on April 29, the Department of Health and Human Services <a href="https://dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com/christian-families-are-not-second-class-foster-parents/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">enacted</a> a new rule called the Safe and Appropriate Foster Care Placement Requirements. It requires foster families to use a child&#8217;s &#8220;identified pronouns, chosen name,” and to allow the child to dress “in a manner that the child believes reflects their self-identified gender identity and expression.&#8221; In other words, if a girl says she’s a boy, the foster parents would be required to treat her as a boy, and vice versa. The rule also says that any foster families “&#8230;must commit to establishing an environment that supports the child’s LGBTQI+ status or identity.” That language could potentially even mean that foster families must commit to something like providing puberty blockers to the child. So these rules conflict with the doctrinal convictions of the <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/07/07/attitudes-about-transgender-issues-vary-widely-among-christians-religious-nones-in-u-s/">vast</a><a href="https://research.lifeway.com/2022/09/09/one-group-still-opposes-same-sex-marriage-weekly-churchgoers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> majority</a> of church-going Christians in the United States. Here’s what Republican Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma said while discussing these concerns during a finance committee hearing last month:
<blockquote>I am getting some concerns from some folks that are coming back to my office on — just the concern the <a href="https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/policy-guidance/im-24-05">ACF recent rule</a> on foster care consider situations where a child has been removed from their home. The statement was due in part, or in whole, to a familial conflict about their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or sex characteristics. I know it&#8217;s a touchy issue on this, but we’ve got to figure out how to get as many people as we can possibly to be able to help in the foster system. And what I don&#8217;t want to have is a message being sent to faith-based organizations or families that believe in a traditional marriage situation that you&#8217;re no longer welcome to participate.</blockquote>
When HHS proposed the new rule at the end of last year, a group of 18 Republican attorneys general sent a letter to the administration saying it violates the constitution because it discriminates against religious families. They also said the proposal, &#8220;will harm children by limiting the number of available foster homes…” But the administration went forward with it anyway.
JOHN: Okay, so the rule has just recently been enacted. Do we know yet how it’s going to be applied?
MEGAN: Not yet, because it’s not scheduled to go into effect until 2026, and if a new administration takes power, they could reverse this, of course. But we can look at how some Democrat-led states are applying similar policies. Oregon’s Department of Human Services also requires foster and adoptive parents to “support” a child’s sexual orientation and gender identity. And there Christians are stepping forward to say the state has not allowed them to foster or adopt because of their Christian beliefs. For example, Alliance Defending Freedom is representing Jessica Bates, a widowed mother of five who says her <a href="https://x.com/ADFLegal/status/1644106457925709827/video/1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">application to adopt a pair of siblings out of foster care was denied</a> because of her Christian beliefs.
Also last year, Catholic couple Mike and Kitty Burke said Massachusetts rejected their application to be foster parents. They said the only reason listed on their application was that the state did not believe they would, &#8220;be affirming to a child who identified as LGBTQIA.&#8221; They have also filed a lawsuit arguing that this is a violation of their constitutional right to religious liberty.
JOHN: You almost wonder whether a story like the one told in “Sound of Hope” would be possible in some states right now.
MEGAN: Yes, and that’s something the filmmakers behind the movie are very concerned about. Josh and Rebekah Weigel made this movie together — they were co-writers and Josh directed. And they’re also adoptive parents themselves. So this was a serious labor of love for them and an expression of their own faith. They told me policies like the new HHS rule stand to hurt suffering kids the most:
<blockquote>We&#8217;re Christians and this is a story about a Christian community. And, you know, obviously that kind of legislation would prevent this story from happening again. &#8230; People may not understand that over two thirds of the people helping are people that may not agree with that kind of legislation … You would have a monumental ocean of traumatized children mounting every year if you were to cut off that kind of care&#8230;
Rebekah: Anything that would stand in the way of churches being able to be the answer to this crisis and being able to care for children is going to hurt the kids. And we want to see more churches step in. We want to see them be the solution to this. So any legislation prohibiting that is definitely problematic.</blockquote>
Hopefully, though, the attention this film is getting will encourage audiences, whether religious or not, to consider how they can care for foster kids or support foster and adoptive families.
JOHN: Yes. The most important people we have to remember when considering these policies are the children in need. Thanks for bringing us this report, Megan.
MEGAN: Anytime.

Conceptual image of family love, togetherness and safety

The Foster Care Crisis: How Biden’s New HHS Rule Will Make It Harder To Place Kids In Christian Homes

Christians

Morning Wire

With all the talk of women’s reproductive rights this Mother’s Day, my perspective is that without first surviving an abortion, I would have never had the opportunity to become a mother – whether it was through pregnancy, adoption, or kinship care.
It’s no secret that abortion is a defining political issue in 2024. As these conversations, campaigns, and debates ensue, there are realities, voices, and relationships that are often overlooked. While I acknowledge everyone has a complex relationship with someone else in their life, here is my story.
I grew up in a loving home in Iowa, knowing I was adopted, (along with my older sister) to parents who loved me. I would say I had a great childhood. But, at the age of fourteen, I accidentally found out that I survived an abortion, which crumbled the world I thought I knew. I wrestled with not only the typical angst of figuring out who I was, independent from my family, but with the layers of being adopted and as an abortion survivor, it was confusing. Subconsciously, I felt unloved and unwanted because of the culture surrounding me – the culture that often communicates that abortion is not only a choice, but a right. It created a narrative for me that a child who is aborted is unlovable and unwanted. I began to struggle with self-worth and identity, even with a caring and supportive adoptive family I wondered, &#8220;Am I loved?&#8221;
When my birth mom was 31 weeks pregnant, her mother, a prominent nurse at a local hospital, forced her to have a saline-induced abortion to end my life. For days they injected a toxic solution into the amniotic fluid, a solution designed to poison and scald me until I was delivered dead. On the fifth day, I was born, leading my birth mom to think the abortion was successful. I was rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) — and unbeknownst to her for decades, lived, and was placed for adoption.
I was devastated when I learned the truth about my past. I didn’t want to be a survivor. I felt a range of emotions from guilt for surviving when thousands of other babies had not, to resentment towards my birth family, to ultimately feeling alone. I didn’t know of any other abortion survivors who shared the same experience. 
As a young adult in my twenties, I embarked on a journey to not only learn more about my past but to heal. I went to counseling and began processing forgiveness towards my birth family, still unaware of the circumstances surrounding my birth. While studying for my social work degree, I began seeing common threads to apply to my own story and healing. Self-awareness about the residual anxiety and fears of being a survivor through my studies became an important part of my healing, while unknowingly also laying the foundation for the future services of <a href="https://abortionsurvivors.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Abortion Survivors Network</a>.
I knew I was adopted and had survived a saline abortion attempt, but the details became clearer after ten years of searching. I tried countless times to find my birth family and one day, I found some identifying information. Yet, the biggest breakthrough was found through my medical records, which had been unattainable for me over my ten years of searching. When I finally received those papers, I discovered more details of my “birth”, along with my birth parents’ names.
I had more answers to my abortion survival story and could finally begin attempts at making contact with my birth family and learning more about my origins in life. In 2016, I reunited with my birth mother. For over thirty years, she was led to believe the abortion had been a success. This revelation brought a new level of understanding about women who have walked through abortion, including those whose abortions fail. I will never forget the pain in her eyes when we first met — a pain that my survival helped dull, but the pain from an attempted abortion I could never erase.
Reconciliation brought not only peace within my story but a new compassion and a fight for women like my birth mother. Women who often feel like they have no other choice.
<h4>Healing Helps Us Find Our Voice </h4>
After going public with my story over the years, I started hearing “me too” in return. I found solace in knowing that I wasn’t alone as an ‘abortion survivor’. Connecting with other survivors helps to make sense of our own story and answer many questions that we may not have known existed.
The cultural conversations surrounding abortion are at a new high. It seems each state is fighting for abortion, not to mention it is the year to vote for the next president of the United States. But what about my right to live? What about my fellow survivor friends? What about the pre-born babies still fighting for their lives?
This Mother&#8217;s Day, I feel the increased importance to share my experience — for the sake of not just survivors like me, but our mothers — biological and adoptive. There is a glaring gap of care and understanding for survivors and their families, including women like my birth mother, Ruth, and my adoptive mom, Linda. For all women, those who have experienced an abortion know that you aren’t alone, or who raise an abortion survivor and have questions and concerns they’re grappling with, we need to acknowledge that these circumstances happen.
* * *
Melissa Ohden, is the founder and CEO of <a href="https://abortionsurvivors.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Abortion Survivors Network</a> and is a pro-life speaker, leader, and advocate who often appears on television and radio shows. She has spoken on Fox News, The 700 Club, Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), One America News (OAN), Hannity, Focus on the Family, and more. Having earned her Master’s in Social Work, Melissa is also the author of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/You-Carried-Me-Daughters-Memoir/dp/0874867886/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15IEJ3OBI06GO&amp;keywords=you+carried+me&amp;qid=1694023247&amp;s=books&amp;sprefix=you+carried+me%2Cstripbooks%2C95&amp;sr=1-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">You Carried Me: A Daughter’s Memoir</a>.
If you or someone you know is an abortion survivor, please reach out to Melissa Ohden at melissa@abortionsurvivors.org
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

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