The Gift Of Family Receives A Greater Return

By Rick Wells, The News On 6

OWASSO, OK -- Wait until you meet Ava.  She is a four year old with Down Syndrome.  She was adopted by an Owasso family earlier this year.  Ava and her new family are doing quite well together.  Ava was adopted not despite her special needs, but because of them.

You might call this story the Urban Family Circus.  It's a daily or nightly event with Simeon, Liesel, Jude and Hope entertaining their new sister Ava.

They like to see who can make her laugh first, loudest and longest.  Ava has made amazing progress since John and Charissa Urban picked her up at a Ukrainian orphanage in February.

"They need a family.  These kids need families," said John Urban.

That was the focus.  Give the gift of a family to a child who might never have one.  They found Reece's Rainbow, an orphan outreach ministry, focusing on children with Down Syndrome.

Ava was just getting over Chicken pox and wasn't feeling well when she first met the Urbans.  Charissa said she was terrified.

"I was not expecting her to be as severely delayed as she was.  She wouldn't make eye contact with us.  Didn't smile.  She was like a one month old baby," said Charissa Urban.

Now, she is active and expressive.  She sits up.  She's learned some signs.  She crawls and is trying to stand.  She's getting stronger, and she's curious.

Her brothers and sisters have a new playmate.  She has four enthusiastic teachers.  Jude who is 7 has taught her the joy of riding around the porch in a mop bucket and she loves it.

The Urbans set out to offer the gift of a family to a special needs child and got a wonderful gift in return.

"The honest truth is, I feel like we needed her as much as she needed us," said John Urban.

October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month. October 19th is the 6th Annual One Mile Buddy Walk, a fund raiser for the Down Syndrome Association of Tulsa.