At one point, I thought I had the perfect life. I was married to the perfect man, we had four perfect children, and were looking forward to the birth of our perfect fifth.
On July 9, 2010, at 6:37 p.m., I learned what true perfection was. That was the day Chloe Beatrice Herrington was born.
Chloe was born with Down syndrome. Her diagnosis at birth took us by surprise, and led us on a journey that few would choose in their lifetime.
When Chloe was only 2 weeks old we met a family that had recently adopted a baby girl with Down syndrome from Ukraine.
They had adopted the baby through an organization called Reece’s Rainbow. With a little research, I soon discovered the desperate plight of children born with Down syndrome in many foreign countries: Most are put into orphanages at birth and fail to thrive. When they turn 4 years old, they age out of the orphanages and are sent to mental institutions, where they are hopelessly neglected. They never get the chance to know the love of a family.
Chloe’s birth gave us new direction. Our eyes were opened.
Loving her expanded our hearts and gave us a special love for children born with disabilities.
" Perfect Life"
We knew this child we held in our arms, just like the four who had come before her, was perfect! And we knew in our hearts that our family was not yet complete. After months of soul searching, and scouring the Reece’s Rainbow web site, a picture of a baby girl with Down syndrome caught our eye.
Eighteen months later we were on a plane heading to the Ukraine on a rescue mission we called Operation Olivia!
My husband and I spent 7 weeks in the Ukraine bonding with Olivia and finalizing her adoption.
While we were there my sister, who was caring for our other children, alerted me that Chloe was not feeling well. A checkup with the pediatrician included blood work with concerning results
Chloe had a very low platelet count.
Our journey was filled with struggles but we've found that these same struggles have blessed our lives in incredible ways!
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By: Beth Sweeney Herrington
How a
Can Include Down syndrome
and Cancer