Local woman going through international adoption process

A local woman and her daughter are going through a long international adoption process for a 4-year-old girl from Serbia with special needs.

“I just like being a mom and we just want to grow our family,” Rachel Jackson said.

“And why did you always want a sibling?” Taja Davis, KIFI/KIDK reporter, asked Rachel’s daughter.

“Because sometimes I get bored and I have no one to play with,” Shyna Jackson said.

With the support of her loved ones, Jackson will adopt a young girl named Anna Maria, who is living in foster care in Serbia and has Down syndrome.

The process of international adoption will take about eight to 12 months to complete.

It is a life-changing decision, but Rachel and Shyna are in it for the long haul.

“[I felt] fear, like, I guess, ‘can I do this?’ Prayed about it a lot until I felt like it was OK. We’re excited, but we expect it to be kind of hard at first. But we have a lot of support,” Rachel Jackson said.

The small family is in the process of doing the home study, signing paperwork, gathering funds and waiting for approval from both countries. After that, Rachel and Shyna Jackson will travel to Serbia to bring Anna Maria home.

Jackson held a garage sale last weekend in which she earned $700. She will hold another garage sale to help with the financial costs at the end of the month.

If you would like to donate to the Jacksons’ adoption process, PayPal Rachael Jackson at rachleannej@gmail.com.