She Skated Into Their Lives

Christina met her daughter-to-be at a roller skating party sponsored by the National Adoption Center. Alma, then 13, had never gone skating before and was timid about taking her first step onto the rink. But her social worker encouraged her, and before long, she was smiling, slowly inching away from the rail. Christina kept watching her from the sidelines. "She's sweet and beautiful," she thought, "just the child we've been waiting for."

Christina and her husband, David, had been married for three years when they began to talk about adopting. Christina is a reading specialist and school counselor, studying for her doctorate degree in special education. David is a videographer and television producer. They were not interested in a baby; they loved teenagers and felt that an older child would be better suited to their lifestyle.

Alma had come to this country from Mexico when she was three, and after living with her grandmother for several years, became part of the foster care system. She had ricocheted among ten foster homes and yearned for a permanent family, a family like Christina & David.

After taking classes and filling in reams of papers, going through security and background checks, David finally met Alma. And for the second time in his life, he fell in love. "We went swimming and I did a handstand in the pool to make her laugh," David says. "I made a total fool of myself in public for her, but I didn't care. I was so happy."

It took four months for Alma to join their family and another six until the adoption was finalized. That poignant moment was filmed by NBC10 and taped by KYW Newsradio. Both stations had aired features on Alma when she was waiting for a family. They were overjoyed to be part of her success story!