SA Family Adopts Haitian Orphans
Couple Adopts 2 Girls After Earthquake
POSTED: Wednesday, March 10, 2010
UPDATED: 5:21 pm CST March 10, 2010
SAN ANTONIO -- Clayton and Leah Trotter were already parents to 2-year-old Davie and 5-year-old Jazzie when they made the decision to adopt from Haiti.
"We just fell in love with them and it was the bottom line," Clayton said.
On Tuesday, they met 9-year-old Vagleen and 17-year-old Rochelle in Miami, to bring them home to San Antonio. The girls come from an orphanage in Port-au-Prince that was demolished by January's earthquake. Since then, they had limited access to food and water and shelter.
Although they've only been the the U.S. for a couple of days, they're already relishing the safety and comfort of a new life. Rochelle Jean Pierre Trotter doesn't speak much English but with a huge smile on her face she said, "I love my family."
Vagleen Sanon Trotter doesn't speak any English but seems happy to have a new best friend in her new sister. They've held hands almost constantly since the moment they met and have been inseparable.
"She has just blossomed," Leah said. "And they said that in the orphanage, she would jsut go off in the corner and cry. I think she just needed to know she was loved and belonged. "
The Trotter family first applied for adoption in November, after Clayton took a trip to Haiti. The application that could have taken years was expedited after the earthquake.
However, the adoption process hasn't been seamless. They're still also in the process of bringing home another orphan from Haiti, an 8-year-old boy named Judson. The boy had to stay in Haiti due to a clerical error, but the Trotters hope to get him soon.
Meanwhile, they're focusing on the family that's here.
"I can't even communicate how beautiful it is just to hold them and finally get them and know they're safe," Leah said.
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