11 Years
Illinois
Presbyterian/Reformed
2
We are Brad and Jerica. We have been married for 11 years. We have three boys; Owen, Briggs and Benny. We are delighted to open our home up to adoption because we believe the Lord has invited us to love another child. These three boys are over the moon excited to welcome another sibling to our family. Brad works as an engineer. He gets to work part time remotely at home and part time in his local office. We homeschool our children and Jerica is a stay at home mom and the primary educator of the kids. We live on 5 acres in the country near our church, friends, and and family. Our family enjoys spending outside and exploring the world God has made. We are deeply connected to our family and friends. We have more support than we could ask or imagine as we grow as a family. We hope to talk to you soon!
9 yr
Owen enjoys fishing, playing football, basketball, baseball, and he enjoys hunting. Owen is gentle, but full of energy. He is a very mature child who has a heart for others.
7 yr
Briggs is full of imagination and joy. He is very passionate about learning and teaching. He loves science and exploration more than any person in the world.
5 yr
Benny loves swinging, running anywhere and playing warriors with his brothers and friends. Benny truly has a smile on his face all the time and is continually willing to help out.
Dear Birth Mom,
We want to start by telling you that we have prayed for all the mothers and fathers that will even pick this up. We pray that you know the love of Christ and that you would feel the Lord's nearness to you. We understand this is not easy for you. Also, we know this will not be easy for us or for your child. However, If your child is placed in our home we will do our best to always explain the full situation so that he or she will know, above all, how loved they are. We are delighted to open our home up to adoption because we believe the Lord has invited us to love another child. If your child is placed in our home he or she will be loved unconditionally. We currently have three biological sons. Owen (9), Briggs (7) and Benny (5). These three boys are over the moon excited to welcome another brother or sister into their sibling group. As a family we try to prioritize one another and always love each other. Our hope is that each one of our children will love the Lord and spend their lives following Him. All of the decisions we make in parenting hopefully reflect this.
Brad and Jerica
I, Brad, was not raised in the church. My parents divorced when I was 8 years old and neither of them were religious. Growing up I would sometimes go to church with my maternal grandparents who were very devout Christians, but this amounted to maybe a handful of times a year. Despite growing up this way I always found myself drawn to prayer in times of struggle even though I honestly didn’t even know what I was doing. I didn’t know much about God, but I knew I got a sense of comfort and strength from it. When Jerica and I started dating we would attend church with her family whenever we were in town. In February of 2013 I was diagnosed with early stage 1 Testicular cancer (I have been cancer free for 11 years now). Through that experience I started praying consistently and really began to feel called to the Lord. Shortly after Jerica and I were married and moved back to where we both grew up in southern Illinois. At that point we started attending church regularly and even started a small group bible study within the church. Through the leadership of our pastor and fellowship of our small group my faith has steadily grown and strengthen over the last 10 years. I have learned to look at life very differently through this process and by God’s grace have found joy in serving my church, family, and community. At this point in my journey, I can honestly say that God has completely transformed my life and I have found happiness and purpose far beyond anything I have ever experienced. Although I am still very imperfect, I believe God is sanctifying me more every day.
I, Jerica, was raised in the church. My parents taught me Christian values and I had seasons in my childhood years where I can remember "following" the Lord. However, in hindsight there was still much to learn about God's love for me. At this point I viewed Christianity as a set of rules and did not understand the Father's deep love for me. I didn't understand that the rules were really the path to abundance out of love not out of harshness. The Lord used motherhood to open my eyes to the foundation Brad and I were builidng our lives on. I began to read the word and got involved in a Bible Study group where I was able to be discipled. Since this time in my life I have held fast to prayer, scripture, confession, feasting, fasting and fellowship only by the grace of God, Even though there are still alot of parts of my own story that are not redeemed and I still being transformed I can surely say, "Jesus is my portion, God is my provider, and the Holy Spirit is my leader" and I mean it from the depth of my soul.
Brad has a bachelors degree in engineering and a masters degree in business. He works as a full time engineer and is currently working a hybrid position. He works 2 days out of the house and 3 days from the home office. Brad is devoted to his family. His personality is laid back but responsible. He believes providing for his family spiritually, emotionally, and financially is one of God's greatest calls on his life. He is gentle, protective, and dedicated to spending time with our children. They enjoy being outside together and playing games and sports. He is always there to help out friends and family in whatever ways they need. He also is on several boards for local community programs where he uses his talents to help our community.
Jerica is a stay at home mom. We are a homeschool family and she is the primary teacher of our children. She has found so much joy in teaching the children from sun-up to sun-down as a way of life. Being a wife and mother is where she feels most aligned with God's purpose in her life. She is nurturing, compassionate, and loving. Jerica is thoughtful and soft spoken by nature and has a big heart for others. She loves spending time with our children especially teaching them things of God. She is also very devoted to our community. This ranges from volunteering at our local homeschool co-op or being out in the community. One example the summer sack lunch program she started to provide daily meals for school.
We live near Jerica's Mother, Father and Sister. Jerica's parents are the primary babysitters or caregiver when we need additional help. Jerica's parents have always been devoted to our family and her sister would consider being an aunt as her greatest gift in life. We are also surrounded by Jerica's paternal aunt, uncles, cousins and grandma.
After completed high school I attended SIUE School of Pharmacy and obtained a Doctorate in Pharmacy. I worked in a local pharmacy for 9 years until recently decided to quit my paid occupation to work fully as a stay at home mom and the educator of our children. I have thoroughly enjoyed caring for the sick as a pharmacist however, I feel most called to the work inside my home. To care for and educate my children and to prepare our home as a place where we can all thrive and grow in Christ.
Owen enjoys fishing, playing football, basketball, baseball, and he enjoys hunting. Owen is gentle, but full of energy. He is a very mature child who has a heart for others.
Briggs is full of imagination and joy. He is very passionate about learning and teaching. He loves science and exploration more than any person in the world.
Benny loves swinging, running anywhere and playing warriors with his brothers and friends. Benny truly has a smile on his face all the time and is continually willing to help out.