Smiles To Myles
I came across his picture on a waiting child advocacy page on Facebook. I hadn’t intended to stumble upon his story in such a way that I would be drawn in, but for some reason, it was in my feed and I clicked on the post. I’d seen his face before and knew of his special need, but this night, when I clicked on the post, I discovered that the family who intended to adopt him changed their minds. As if this news wasn’t tragic enough, he only has until June before he ages out and can no longer be adopted.
I see these stories over and over again, but for Myles, this news is especially tragic. Myles has Thalassemia and without proper treatment, Myles will die.
The realization of his dire predicament hit me hard as I read further about his life from people who had visited him in his orphanage.
Myles is a kind boy, but because of his condition, he has not grown much for his age. He looks very small and it’s hard to believe that next summer he will be fourteen years old. Because he is so small, some other boys in the orphanage have taken advantage of his small stature and have bullied him.
I know that this is a typical scenario for children who live life in an orphanage, but when you see the face of someone who just needs hope...a chance at life ~ a family ~ the obvious truth of just how wrong this is really hits hard. All I could think when I read about Myles’ situation, is “something has to be done! “
Here we are, in the process of adopting two boys with Cerebral Palsy. I am going to be pouring every ounce of energy, time, and emotion into helping these boys transition into their new lives.
...BUT, I have an extra bed. It’s in the boys’ room. We have plenty of food and health insurance. We could be his family.
Did I mention that Myles likes to play guitar? I looked at the photograph of Myles. I took note of his pale lips and again, his small stature. He and Pacey would have something in common. They are close in age, although nobody would guess it. Pacey would protect Myles if he was his brother.
Fighting tears, I showed his picture to Scott. I told him about Myles’ situation, then gave up on holding back the tears. Someone should be crying for this boy. Somebody should notice him and the hopeless situation he is facing. The solution is so simple. He needs a family.
As I continued to talk to Scott about him, I wondered, “What if his parents gave him up hoping that someone would adopt him and be able to afford the healthcare they couldn’t provide? What if nobody comes for him?”
I cannot even imagine the amount of love and faith it must take to completely let go of a child and hope that someone good and kind will step up and rescue the one I gave birth to.
“Can you imagine,” I asked my husband, “having to make that decision for one of our babies? Can you imagine trying for the first few years to provide for him and after realizing we couldn’t give him what he needs to survive, taking that leap of faith?
How many regrets would you have if you later found out your child was never adopted and they died an early death, being bullied and feeling abandoned and hopeless?”
More tears followed. This world can be such a cold, dark place.
Scott, the amazing man he is, told me to ask about him. Our home study only has us approved for two children. I knew that adopting three at once would be a long shot, so I tried to play out the scenario in my mind. How much would it delay the other two adoptions if we tried to do this right now? Could we handle going back a few months later? How can we make this work?
Myles is in a different province than the other two boys we are adopting and I found out he even speaks a different language.
“How hard would it be to have three different spoken languages to try to decipher between all of us?” I wondered.
I played the scenario through my head. I was stressed just thinking about it. How would the other two boys bond with him? Would they treat him differently because he looked and spoke differently?
I finally got the nerve to reach out to a woman who was advocating for him. I told her we were very seriously considering this boy and wanted to ask about him, but we weren’t sure if it would work. Since it was Fridaynight, I had to wait the weekend before I could act. Until then, I decided to do more research.
I reached out to a mother who has experience with Thalassemia. As she shared that he would need to go to a Thalassemia specialist as soon as possible and shared her biggest guess on what could possibly be his initial treatment plan, I tried to figure out in my head how we could make it work. It would require an out of state visit to the nearest specialist, then an aggressive treatment plan to get him on a healthier path.
As I logically planned out how we would pull this off, I realized that adopting Myles and trying to get the other two boys the treatment they need, along with bonding and settling, would be a tremendous burden on our family, especially if we were able to get to him during the school year. Yet, I wrestled with reason. I thought of ways to convince our social worker and the CCCWA in China that we could do this.
Through all of this, I prayed and prayed. I felt restless, the weight of the world pressed down on my heart and shoulders. My body literally ached with the burden I carried for this boy. That Saturday evening, I was awake more than I slept.
I replayed our situation in my head over and over again, trying to find a way to make it all work. There were so many things to consider, but at about 5:00 in the morning, I knew in my heart what I’d been resisting the last 36 hours or so.
I am not enough.
I can’t do it.
I can’t adopt Myles right now.
I grieved the disappointment and failure that I felt. There is so much that we have that we could offer this boy, but it still isn’t enough. I heard God’s gentle voice loud and clear, “You need to focus on the adoptions you are already working on. Stay on your path and let me be God.”
So I relented, “Okay, God. I hear you.”
The next few days, I had to remind myself to focus on our two boys every time Myles came to mind. Each time I breathed out a prayer, telling God that I know I’m not enough, but He is...
and then I said,
“But I’m still going to help that boy.”
I may not be the one who can adopt this very special boy, but Friends, I can share his story. A small group of people have moved to help Myles find his family. He has a Reece’s Rainbow account where a small group of Myles' supporters and advocates have been trying to raise money to fund his adoption. A small portion of his adoption fees have already been waived. But we need to do more.
What if we share Myles’ story and create a greater hope and reason for him to be adopted? What if we were able to raise enough money (Approximately $30,000) for his adoption to be fully funded so that his forever family doesn’t have to worry about the financial burden required just to get to him?
You can be a light in Myles’ life.
You can shelter this orphan from those who might intend harm.
You can help him to see what it is like to be loved.
You can be a messenger of hope.
You can help rescue him from death itself.
Can you imagine the look on Myles’ parents’ faces if they were to hear how people all over the United States gave to save their son’s life? Can you imagine the overwhelming sense of love that would cover them?
Little by little, it would add up. If you have more, give more. But know that just $10 and a personal request to your friends brings Myles many steps closer to hope. This small act of kindness is like sending a smile his way, letting him know he is not alone in this world.
Let’s do this. Let’s send #SmilesToMyles
You can love this orphan along with me. You can send him a smile. I’m challenging you now to ask your friends to join you in this campaign to give Myles hope.
Here is how:
1. To donate towards Myles’ adoption, please go to
2. Then, Tweet “Let’s send #SmilesToMyles” and include links to this blog post and his RR account.
3. Share his story on Facebook. Include the hashtag #SmilesToMyles along with the challenge to donate at least $10 towards his adoption. Be sure to include the link to his Reece's Rainbow account!
4. Send messages to your friends (one at a time is most effective) and ask them to send a smile to Myles. When they donate, tell them to post a picture of themselves holding a sign that says, "I'm Sending #Smiles To Myles" and tag you in it so you know they did it! Then encourage them to personally invite ten of their friends (or more!) to do the same!
5. Share a picture of your pretty smile on Instagram and Facebook and include a link to his account.
As you can see, there are so many ways to raise awareness and help this boy!
Let’s watch his account grow to fully fund his adoption and pray that God brings his family to him soon!
I see these stories over and over again, but for Myles, this news is especially tragic. Myles has Thalassemia and without proper treatment, Myles will die.
Not being adopted is a death sentence.
The realization of his dire predicament hit me hard as I read further about his life from people who had visited him in his orphanage.
Myles is a kind boy, but because of his condition, he has not grown much for his age. He looks very small and it’s hard to believe that next summer he will be fourteen years old. Because he is so small, some other boys in the orphanage have taken advantage of his small stature and have bullied him.
I know that this is a typical scenario for children who live life in an orphanage, but when you see the face of someone who just needs hope...a chance at life ~ a family ~ the obvious truth of just how wrong this is really hits hard. All I could think when I read about Myles’ situation, is “something has to be done! “
Here we are, in the process of adopting two boys with Cerebral Palsy. I am going to be pouring every ounce of energy, time, and emotion into helping these boys transition into their new lives.
...BUT, I have an extra bed. It’s in the boys’ room. We have plenty of food and health insurance. We could be his family.
Did I mention that Myles likes to play guitar? I looked at the photograph of Myles. I took note of his pale lips and again, his small stature. He and Pacey would have something in common. They are close in age, although nobody would guess it. Pacey would protect Myles if he was his brother.
Fighting tears, I showed his picture to Scott. I told him about Myles’ situation, then gave up on holding back the tears. Someone should be crying for this boy. Somebody should notice him and the hopeless situation he is facing. The solution is so simple. He needs a family.
As I continued to talk to Scott about him, I wondered, “What if his parents gave him up hoping that someone would adopt him and be able to afford the healthcare they couldn’t provide? What if nobody comes for him?”
I cannot even imagine the amount of love and faith it must take to completely let go of a child and hope that someone good and kind will step up and rescue the one I gave birth to.
“Can you imagine,” I asked my husband, “having to make that decision for one of our babies? Can you imagine trying for the first few years to provide for him and after realizing we couldn’t give him what he needs to survive, taking that leap of faith?
How many regrets would you have if you later found out your child was never adopted and they died an early death, being bullied and feeling abandoned and hopeless?”
That’s not how this story is supposed to end.
More tears followed. This world can be such a cold, dark place.
Scott, the amazing man he is, told me to ask about him. Our home study only has us approved for two children. I knew that adopting three at once would be a long shot, so I tried to play out the scenario in my mind. How much would it delay the other two adoptions if we tried to do this right now? Could we handle going back a few months later? How can we make this work?
Myles is in a different province than the other two boys we are adopting and I found out he even speaks a different language.
“How hard would it be to have three different spoken languages to try to decipher between all of us?” I wondered.
I played the scenario through my head. I was stressed just thinking about it. How would the other two boys bond with him? Would they treat him differently because he looked and spoke differently?
I finally got the nerve to reach out to a woman who was advocating for him. I told her we were very seriously considering this boy and wanted to ask about him, but we weren’t sure if it would work. Since it was Fridaynight, I had to wait the weekend before I could act. Until then, I decided to do more research.
I reached out to a mother who has experience with Thalassemia. As she shared that he would need to go to a Thalassemia specialist as soon as possible and shared her biggest guess on what could possibly be his initial treatment plan, I tried to figure out in my head how we could make it work. It would require an out of state visit to the nearest specialist, then an aggressive treatment plan to get him on a healthier path.
As I logically planned out how we would pull this off, I realized that adopting Myles and trying to get the other two boys the treatment they need, along with bonding and settling, would be a tremendous burden on our family, especially if we were able to get to him during the school year. Yet, I wrestled with reason. I thought of ways to convince our social worker and the CCCWA in China that we could do this.
Through all of this, I prayed and prayed. I felt restless, the weight of the world pressed down on my heart and shoulders. My body literally ached with the burden I carried for this boy. That Saturday evening, I was awake more than I slept.
I replayed our situation in my head over and over again, trying to find a way to make it all work. There were so many things to consider, but at about 5:00 in the morning, I knew in my heart what I’d been resisting the last 36 hours or so.
I am not enough.
I can’t do it.
I can’t adopt Myles right now.
I grieved the disappointment and failure that I felt. There is so much that we have that we could offer this boy, but it still isn’t enough. I heard God’s gentle voice loud and clear, “You need to focus on the adoptions you are already working on. Stay on your path and let me be God.”
So I relented, “Okay, God. I hear you.”
The next few days, I had to remind myself to focus on our two boys every time Myles came to mind. Each time I breathed out a prayer, telling God that I know I’m not enough, but He is...
and then I said,
“But I’m still going to help that boy.”
I may not be the one who can adopt this very special boy, but Friends, I can share his story. A small group of people have moved to help Myles find his family. He has a Reece’s Rainbow account where a small group of Myles' supporters and advocates have been trying to raise money to fund his adoption. A small portion of his adoption fees have already been waived. But we need to do more.
What if we share Myles’ story and create a greater hope and reason for him to be adopted? What if we were able to raise enough money (Approximately $30,000) for his adoption to be fully funded so that his forever family doesn’t have to worry about the financial burden required just to get to him?
You can be a light in Myles’ life.
You can shelter this orphan from those who might intend harm.
You can help him to see what it is like to be loved.
You can be a messenger of hope.
You can help rescue him from death itself.
YOU can be a hero in Myles’ life.
Can you imagine the look on Myles’ parents’ faces if they were to hear how people all over the United States gave to save their son’s life? Can you imagine the overwhelming sense of love that would cover them?
What if each of us gave just $10 and passed on the message to our friends?
Little by little, it would add up. If you have more, give more. But know that just $10 and a personal request to your friends brings Myles many steps closer to hope. This small act of kindness is like sending a smile his way, letting him know he is not alone in this world.
Let’s do this. Let’s send #SmilesToMyles
Let’s rewrite this boy’s story...the one that claims a death sentence over him. Let’s give him life, hope, and love. We might not be the ones to bring him home...we might not be enough by ourselves, but together, we can change this boy’s life.
You can love this orphan along with me. You can send him a smile. I’m challenging you now to ask your friends to join you in this campaign to give Myles hope.
Here is how:
1. To donate towards Myles’ adoption, please go to
Your donations are tax deductible!
2. Then, Tweet “Let’s send #SmilesToMyles” and include links to this blog post and his RR account.
3. Share his story on Facebook. Include the hashtag #SmilesToMyles along with the challenge to donate at least $10 towards his adoption. Be sure to include the link to his Reece's Rainbow account!
4. Send messages to your friends (one at a time is most effective) and ask them to send a smile to Myles. When they donate, tell them to post a picture of themselves holding a sign that says, "I'm Sending #Smiles To Myles" and tag you in it so you know they did it! Then encourage them to personally invite ten of their friends (or more!) to do the same!
Post your picture and share this opportunity with your friends!
5. Share a picture of your pretty smile on Instagram and Facebook and include a link to his account.
As you can see, there are so many ways to raise awareness and help this boy!
Let’s watch his account grow to fully fund his adoption and pray that God brings his family to him soon!
Thank you for helping change Myles’ story to a story of redemption and hope!
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