By Anita Powell | Associated Press
Photo: Douglas C. Pizac, AP
September 2, 2008 edition
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Solomon Henderson inherited just three things from his birth parents, who left him at an Ethiopian orphanage when he was 1 year old: a picture of Jesus, a plastic crucifix and HIV.
As one of some 14,000 Ethiopian children born with the virus every year, Solomon’s prospects for survival — much less adoption — were grim. But Erin Henderson’s heart stirred when she saw him, and she decided, on the spot, to adopt him.
“They told me that they weren’t sure he would live through the weekend,” Henderson said by e-mail from her home in rural Wyoming, where she lives with her husband and 11 children, two of whom are HIV-positive adoptees from Ethiopia.
Solomon, now an active 2-year-old with chubby cheeks and a shy smile, is part of a small but growing movement: Americans adopting HIV-positive children from abroad. Read More.
Related:
Hot Blog: Americans are Adopting Fewer Orphans Overseas Except From Ethiopia
