Mom gives up baby because of his head – 4 yrs later, there’s a knock on the orphanage door
The priest’s prayers were soon answered. First, Dima and his friends ended up in a new orphanage. And a few weeks later, a couple named Ernest and Ruth Chaves arrived from Vermont in the United States. They had heard about the war and wanted to adopt a child from the war-torn region.
As soon as they saw Dima, Ernest and Ruth knew they wanted to adopt him.
They decided to adopt Dima, and the little boy’s life changed again—this time for the better.
Ernest and Ruth had already adopted seven children and were used to the parenting role. Plus, they had a lot of experience with all the necessary paperwork, which allowed Dima to join them in Vermont relatively quickly.
Two months after his adoptive parents visited the orphanage in Ukraine, Dima traveled with them to his new home in the United States to join all his new siblings.
Dima also got a new name, Zebadiah Chaves.
Life with his new family was by far the best thing that ever happened to the little boy. He made progress as soon as he arrived in Vermont. Just a few days after he got to his new home, his parents discovered that he was able to eat with a spoon!
A year later, the boy who left Ukraine on the edge of death was like a whole new person.
Now, Zebediah can talk. He can understand both Ukrainian and English. And he can walk.
Talk about progress!
American doctors have examined Zebediah’s brain and are convinced that it hadn’t suffered much damage from the disease. They say that chances are good that he’ll develop normally.