Kimberly Holden had dreams of adopting from a young age but when she got married she couldn’t persuade her partner to help achieve her dream.
Three years later she was divorced and decided to follow her dreams of adopting as a single person.
The Connecticut mom began her journey as a foster mom and the five children she took in were eventually reconnected with their families.
But it was during a year-long break she took from fostering that she was introduced to a baby named Elizabeth, a white girl.
“Elizabeth and I didn’t care that we looked different from one another, because all we saw were each other’s hearts (and those look the same),” she told Love What Matters.
Elizabeth, who she lovingly calls Lizzie, was only 8 months old when she was brought to Kimberly by a social worker. It wasn’t long before the two developed a strong bond and in October 2015 Kimberly adopted her.
But the barriers that Kimberly had to overcome when enjoying what most moms and their children take for granted have been tough on this family.
“Yes, she wasn’t Black, but she was a baby who needed my home and heart that I was willing to give,” she said.
“Many people would give me weird and crazy looks while we were out together. Looks like, ‘Are you her nanny?’ or ‘Did you kidnap her?’”
Soon after, Kimberly was contacted by the same social worker who told her about Lizzie’s baby brother Edgar.
“Fostering Edgar was a long and stressful journey. A lot of ups and downs, highs and lows. A lot of tears, fear and anger, but I never gave up. After 1,072 days in foster care, on July 6, 2018, I adopted Edgar. That day was AMAZING!”
Kimberly’s family is now complete and while being a loving mom to these two siblings, the cruel comments from strangers have only heightened.
Some people even went on to question why Edgar was “more white” than his sister.
Kimberly said she has received a lot of criticism from Black people who mocked her for not adopting Black kids.
“I have been called cruel and derogatory names from people because of me being Black and my children not. Elizabeth and Edgar are Puerto Rican, Greek, and Cherokee. We are classified as a Transracial Family,” she said.
Her daughter Elizabeth even gets asked at school why she is white and her mom is black and she responds with: “YES! This is my mom. Yes she is Black, and Yes I’m not. This is the way God made us!”
This makes Kimberly so proud: “See racism is taught, and Elizabeth and Edgar are being taught to love EVERYONE! Not just the people who look like them, but EVERYONE!”
Now this busy mom of two documents her journey on YouTube and Instagram to help inspire others.
“Love goes beyond skin color. It doesn’t matter what color someone is… LOVE THEM!,” she said.
“I am going to try my hardest to show people that love sees no color and we don’t have to judge others based on their race. We need to stop racism… it’s stupid.”
Nobody should have to justify the children they have adopted, they should be admired and respected for giving needy children a home and loving them as they deserve.
Please share Kimberly’s inspirational story with others.