Orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names.

They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier

to pretend they’re not real before hold them in your arms, but

once you do, EVERYTHING changes – David Platt

Whitaker Adoption Journey . . . Hope for Anya Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us….Hebrews 12:1

A little over a year ago our family began a journey that we didn’t even know we were beginning. Our lives

changed: God began to show His true heart.

In early spring of 2014, a young man asked Daryl to participate in a Mud Run, Daryl agreed because he

loved that young man and knew it would be a good bonding experience. Daryl was not a runner, so the fact that

God would use something like this was funny all on its own. He began “training” and also reading about the

organization that was sponsoring the run, Bridges Of Faith: Sharing the love of God in word and deed with

people around the world, especially those orphaned and in desperate need. Serving God. Saving Orphans. The

statement intrigued Daryl to learn more and become involved. Long story short, God orchestrated events for our

family to become involved with this beautiful ministry. We volunteered in a number of different ways, and just

enjoyed the time we spent getting to know the program itself and the Bridges of Faith family.

We began asking God what the steps were, why we were on this journey. We

had many questions. Bridges of Faith was really close to our hearts, after all, orphans

were always God’s heart. Children just needed love, family, Jesus. We realized,

there was way more to life than we ever thought. We began seeking God and this

quote by Frances Chan became very prevalent in our lives: “Our greatest fear should

not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.”

Finally, this summer, our answer came in the form of a beautiful young lady:

God ordained us to be her host family for the month of August. We met Anya in

December 2014 when she came with a group for a cultural exchange program with

Bridges of Faith. Anya - a sweet, spunky, little 14 year old Ukrainian girl. She fit

right in our home. She brought joy and peace with her. Hearing her story just broke

our hearts: her mother died and Anya’s grandmother left her at a mental institution. Anya moved to the orphanage,

however, no one visited her for the last two years. Her future seemed terrifying: statistically, 6 of 10 young girls

in Ukraine are sex trafficked, once they graduate from the orphanage, alongside with high percentage of suicide

and chances of going to prison.

We understood God’s plan: Anya was our little girl, she was our daughter. We need to bring her home as

soon as possible!

I read recently: “when you focus on trying to figure out how it can possibly work, what you are really

doing is trying to figure out why it won’t work. STOP STOPPING

YOURSELF. Focus on faith, focus on trust, focus on hope, focus on

purpose, don’t do the math, let GOD do the heavy lifting.” We need to

raise $25,000 to bring our daughter home. This seems like a lot of

money, but God has shown us that we are not meant to walk alone. All

we need is 250 people to donate at least $100 on Anya’s behalf. We

know some can do more and some less. If $100 is a lot at one time, but

you know you want to donate, $25/month for 4 months would help a lot.

Please, most of all, keep us in your prayers while we are walking this

journey, bringing Anya home. We are humbled to partner with God and

with you to bring hope for Anya and being a part of God’s plan for

restoration.

P.S. You may mail your donations to:

Shannon or Daryl Whitaker

208 St. Andrews Drive

Valley Grande, AL 36703 334-375-5790 – Shannon; 334-375-5170 - Daryl

With love, Daryl, Shannon, Brooklyn,

Maryssa, Kennedy and Anya Whitaker